Jack Collins (1931-2019)
John “Jack” Collins of Basalt, Colorado, and formerly of Cold Spring, died March 23, 2019, at Valley View Hospital in Glenwood Springs.
He was born in 1931 in Peekskill, the son of John Collins and Helen Hayes.
Jack graduated from Haldane High School and joined the U.S. Air Force. He later studied at Marist College in Poughkeepsie and Union College. He spent most of his professional career at IBM and Advanced Micro Devices before retiring — twice. In Basalt. Jack was an active member of St. Vincent Parish and the Basalt Lions Club.
Jack is survived by Barbara, his wife of 62 years; his son, Stephen Collins, his daughter, Susan Anderson, his sister, Rita Golder; and his grandchildren.
Char Emmel (1929-2019)
Charlotte “Char” Emmel, 89, of New Lebanon, and formerly of Garrison, died April 23, 2019, at her home, surrounded by family members.
She was born Charlotte Prime Carver in New York City on Sept. 12, 1929, the daughter of Richard and Charlotte (Benjamin) Carver. She attended Miss Noera’s School for Young Girls, followed by the Knox School in Cooperstown, where she received her high school diploma in 1946. She went on to attend Mount Holyoke College in Holyoke, Massachusetts, and, in 1950, she graduated from the Barmore Business School in New York City.
She worked at Baird Associates in Boston and San Francisco before returning to New York, and met Robert Emmel, on the ski slopes of New Hampshire. They were married on Jan. 22, 1966, in Garrison, at her family home, Iena. She was a homemaker until her husband’s death in 1981, and then worked for Re/Max Realty in North Conway, New Hampshire, beginning in 1984.
She is survived by her aunt, Sally Anderson, her sister-in-law Patti Carver, her nephews William Carver and John Carver (Rita), her niece Wendy Carroll (Tom), her stepson Christopher Emmel, and many grandchildren and great grandchildren.
A funeral service was held April 27 in Pleasant Valley, followed by burial at Gilman Cemetery in Madison, New Hampshire. Memorial donations may be made to the Conway Area Humane Society (conwayshelter.org).
Brother Leo Hall (1933-2019)
Brother Leo Hall (nee William F.), a Franciscan Friar of the Atonement, died May 2, 2019, in Somers. He was born in 1933.
A wake service will be held at 7 p.m. on Sunday, May 5, in the St. Anthony Chapel of the St. Paul Friary at Graymoor in Garrison. A funeral Mass will be celebrated on Monday, May 6, at 10 a.m. in the Chapel, followed by interment in the Friars’ Cemetery.
Liquat Khan
Liquat Khan, 51, of Bloomingburg, New York, a special agent with the Army Criminal Investigation Command, died at Keller Army Community Hospital on April 30, 2019, after collapsing during a run at West Point.
The chief warrant officer, a 15-year veteran of the CID, had been assigned to West Point since June, his third tour at the academy. He joined the Army after 9/11 and served two combat tours.
West Point will hold a funeral with full military honors on Monday, May 6.
Elmer Sprague
Elmer D. Sprague, formerly of Cold Spring, died April 19, 2019.
Born and raised in Nebraska, he served in a Cannon Company in the 44th Infantry Division in France and Austria during World War II.
He graduated from the University of Nebraska, earned a Rhodes Scholarship and completed a doctorate of philosophy at Oxford. He taught philosophy at Brooklyn College for 42 years. He loved the outdoors and worked to preserve urban and rural open spaces. In his later years he enjoyed photographing, documenting and promoting interest in and the preservation of public sculptures.
He is survived by his partner, Kristina, his children, Emily and Timothy, his sister Pamela Bush. While he and his late wife, Gretchen, lived in Cold Spring, they were active in the Old Road Society of Philipstown and with Audubon.
June Stolecki (1938-2019)
June Patricia Stolecki, 80, of Bonita Springs, Florida, and formerly of Cold Spring, died April 15, 2019.
Born July 21, 1938, in Mount Vernon, she was the daughter of Frank and Edith Hunt. She graduated from Saint Catharine Academy in the Bronx.
On Oct. 8, 1960, she married William Edmond Stolecki, who died in 2003. June was a member of Our Lady of Loretto in Cold Spring and Saint Leo’s in Bonita Springs. She loved camping and hiking.
She is survived by her children; Susan Caraher (Ed) of Port Jefferson; Kathy Stolecki (Andrea) of Lexington, Kentucky; Carol Merlino (Lou) of Wallkill; Stephen Stolecki of Middletown; Tricia Palmieri (Dave) of Mechanicville; Jim Stolecki (Cindy) of Fishkill; Chris Ann Morabito (Joe) of Newburgh; and Roseann Merrill (Jay) of Wallkill. She also is survived by 15 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, May 22, at Our Lady of Fatima Church in Plattekill.
