Cynthia Diane McEvoy, 61, a former longtime resident of Garrison, and more recent of Valcour, New York and St. Augustine, Florida, died on Nov. 10 at her home surrounded by family members, of pancreatic cancer.
Cindy was born in Akron, Ohio, but grew up in Cocoa Beach, Florida. After graduating from Indiana Wesleyan University, she began her career as a registered nurse at Nyack Hospital. It was there she met her future husband, Dan, in 1983, while caring for his father, who was a cancer patient at the hospital.
Cindy loved nursing and continued her career at New York Hospital and Memorial Sloan Kettering, both in New York City.
She was a frequent runner on the dirt roads of Garrison, a certified trainer working with cancer patients, a cyclist, a yoga practitioner, a walker and hiker. She loved to cycle and run on the beach or hunt for sea glass and shells, her family said. She was a lifelong animal lover and walked her dogs every day, either on the beach or on the roads and trails around Garrison or the Adirondacks.
Cindy was a passionate reader and film aficionado. She always had a recommendation for her friends about a newly discovered book or film — usually the more offbeat the better.
Cindy loved food and spent countless hours cooking for her family and friends. She never considered herself to be a good cook; in her words, she just followed recipes. A host of friends and family would beg to differ. She especially enjoyed cooking for people who were facing personal challenges in life. Quietly and without fanfare, she would bring a meal to a friend or acquaintance in need. It was her joy.
She was famous for the beach lunches she made for family and friends at her summer home in Massachusetts. Cindy loved to make soup and treats for Vermont family ski trips or chili for West Point football games. She made caramels or cookies for co-workers. Cindy spread love through cooking without fanfare. She did it for the joy it created, her family said.
Cindy was a longtime member of St. Philip’s Episcopal Church in Garrison, where she volunteered in outreach programs. She especially enjoyed tutoring at the San Miguel Academy in Newburgh. In St. Augustine, she volunteered weekly at the St. John’s Food Pantry. She also volunteered in Africa, bringing compassionate care, including cataract surgery clinics.
Cindy loved to travel with family and friends. Whether it was trekking with Kelsey in Nepal, travelling in Europe with Dan and friends, taking family RV trips in the US and Canadian Rockies, or exploring Kenya far off the tourist trail, the destinations were always about the food, the culture and the people.
Along with her husband, Cindy is survived by her children: Sean McEvoy, a Marine Corps veteran who lives in Jacksonville, Florida; Kieran McEvoy, an Army officer in Enterprise, Alabama; and Kelsey McEvoy of New York City, who is enrolled in a program to become a physician assistant.
She is also survived by her mother, Sandra Hawkins, and her siblings, Rob Hawkins (Marcia) and Victoria Shore (Brian); her sisters- in-law: Eileen McEvoy, Patrice Clapacs and Kathleen Hughen; and her mother-in-law, Ann McEvoy.
The family plans to hold a celebration of life in the spring. Memorial donations may be made to the San Miguel Academy (newburghsanmiguel.org), the St John’s Food Pantry (stjohnsfoodpantry.org), a local food pantry or the University of Vermont Medical Center (uvmhealth.org).
