Sandra Ahlers
Sandra Marie Ahlers, 65, of Parish, New York, died Sept. 1, 2018, at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Syracuse.
She was born in Beacon, the daughter of Louis and Violet (Crissman) Mazzacone. She was an office worker at the former Community General Hospital.
Sandra is survived by her sister, Rose Ann Mazzacone, of Parish; her brothers, Dennis Mazzacone (Lorraine) and Louis Mazzacone Jr., both of Poughkeepsie; and her aunt, Rose Pendleton, of Beacon.
A funeral service was held on Sept. 8 at the Harter Funeral Home in Parish, with interment at Pleasant Lawn Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals or The Humane Society.
Gino Di Gregorio (1921-2018)
Gino Di Gregorio, 96, died Aug. 27, 2018, in Wappingers Falls.
He was born Nov. 6, 1921, the son of Antonio and Maria (Santilli) Di Gregorio. Â He attended St. Mary’s School and graduated from Wappingers Central School. On May 1, 1949, he married Rose DeLarose of Newburgh. She died in 2008.
Gino worked with his father parttime in the meat and grocery business but always had a flair for machine shop and tooling work. He left the family business in 1942 to take a third-shift job with the Dutchess Tool Co. in Beacon.
During World War II, he served in the U.S. Navy, with the Amphibious Forces and underwater demolition. In 1951 he was hired in the model shop at IBM as a model maker and later transferred to the tool room and many other top engineering positions. He retired in 1987.
Gino was a member of the American Legion for 66 years, among many other achievements. He was fond of horses.
He is survived by his daughters, Katrina (John), Dr. Maria Di Gregorio (Dr. Joseph McCann), Dr. Gina Di Gregorio (Dr. Yasuto Taguchi) and Lisa Di Gregorio (Ron Kiedaisch), as well as 11 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren. He is also survived by a sister, Virginia.
A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on Sept. 1 at St. Mary’s Church in Wappingers Falls, followed by burial with military honors at St. Mary’s Cemetery.
Memorial contributions may be made to La Société des Quarante Hommes et Huit Chevaux, c/o Lenny Hummel, 24 Bahret Ave., Poughkeepsie, NY 12601. (Make checks payable to V-502, 40/8.)
Gerardo Gonzalez (1967-2018)
Gerardo Rivas Gonzalez, 51, of Wappingers Falls and formerly a longtime resident of Beacon, died Sept. 4, 2018, at Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla.
Gerardo was born in Yabucoa, Puerto Rico, on Jan. 18, 1967, the son of Francisco Rivas and Luciana Gonzalez. He was a communicant of St. John the Evangelist Church and worked for several local businesses as a driver.
In addition to his mother, Gerardo is survived by his children, Gerardo Rivas Jr. and wife and Christopher Rivas; his siblings, Carmen Beltran (Freddy), Maria Rivas (Israel Beltran), Gladys Valentin (Gilberto), Carmen Rivas (Domingo Morales), Angel Arrianga; and Jose Rivas (Carmen). He also is survived by his grandchildren, Zachariah Rivas and Zophia Rivas.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Monday, Sept. 10 at 10 a.m. at St. John the Evangelist Church, 35 Willow St., in Beacon, with burial to follow at St. Joachim Cemetery.
Helen Rozner (1930-2018)
Helen E. Rozner, 88, of Wappinger Falls, and formerly of Beacon, died Aug. 27, 2018, at Vassar Brothers Medical Center in Poughkeepsie.
Helen was born July 23, 1930, in Cleveland, the daughter of Alex and Emma (Csizmar) Rozner. She retired from Chemprene in Beacon.
She is survived by her children, Donna Williams, Judy Cardy and Michael Failla (Debra); her grandchildren, Sarah Failla and Kristen Hanlon; her great grandchildren, Brayden Theiss, Emanuel Etedgee and Leah Hanlon; and her brother, William Rozner.
A funeral service was held at Riverview Funeral Home on Aug. 31, followed by burial in St. Joachim Cemetery. Memorial donations may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Dr. Luis Villamon (1928-2018)
Dr. Luis F. Villamon, 80, died Aug. 26, 2018, following a long illness.
He was born in Lima, Peru, on Aug. 3, 1938, to Dr. Froilan Villamon and Teresa Pro, the eldest of three children. Luis followed in his father’s footsteps and attended medical school in Peru.
He moved to the U.S. in 1968, enlisted in the U.S. Army and served as an Army doctor in New York City during the Vietnam conflict before settling in Beacon. It was there he married Barbara Fonteneou in 1980. Dr. Villamon served the Dutchess County area as an endocrinologist for more than three decades, retiring in 2017.
Besides his wife, Dr. Villamon is survived by his son, Juan Villamon (Yonni Groza); and his brother, Juan.
