Obituaries

ITHACA: Stuart E. Cobb, 90 of 115 Franklin Street,Ithaca, New York died early Monday morning, December 19, 2005 at his residence.

Born June 16, 1915 in Groton, New York, he was a son of the late Earl and Norma (nee Decamp) Cobb. Mr. Cobb was an Insurance Agent for Nationwide Insurance Company, retiring in 1977. He was a member of St. Paul's United Methodist Church of Ithaca since 1928, a member of Ithaca Senior Citizens and was a charter member of The Ithaca Cayuga Rotary Club. He served as a long term Seargant at Arms and boasted perfect attendance for his many years of membership and was a Paul Harris Fellow.

ITHACA - Barbara Morrell Mai died on Friday (December 16, 2005) after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. Barbara was born in Montclair, New Jersey on June 24, 1917. She did her undergraduate work at the University of Delaware, majoring in Chemistry and minoring in English. After moving to Ithaca in 1940 to do her graduate work in Foods and Nutrition in what was then the College of Home Economics at Cornell, she married William F. Mai in 1941.

Barbara and Bill remained at Cornell following their graduate work. Bill was a professor in Plant Pathology at the College of Agriculture and Barbara taught Food Chemistry, first in the College of Home Economics and then at the College of Hotel Administration.

ITHACA – Charles F. Phillips, age 83, a retired foreman and toolmaker at Morse Chain and Emerson Manufacturing, went to be with our God and Our Lord Jesus Christ, Saturday morning (September 17, 2005) at Cayuga Medical Center in Ithaca.

Mr. Phillips was a lifelong resident of Ithaca and a son of the late Claude & Lena Wilson Phillips. On May 15, 2005 he celebrated 66 years of marriage with his wife, Helen Myers Phillips.

ITHACA – Freida A. “Dot (who’s)” June, age 78 of Ithaca, a homemaker, died Saturday mornings (December 17, 2005) at Cayuga Medical Center.

Mrs. June was born July 19, 1927 in Ithaca, a daughter of the late John & Florence Linderman Fish. She recently celebrated 60 years of marriage with her husband, Alfred F. June Sr.

ITHACA – Isabelle Engle Bangs, age 92 of Ithaca, died Thursday morning (December 15, 2005) at Cayuga Medical Center.

Mrs. Bangs was born March 31, 1913 in Salisbury, PA, a daughter of the late Irwin J. & Cora Newman Engle. She was the wife if the late Professor O. Ernest Bangs who died August 10, 1995.

ENFIELD- Margaret L. Benjamin (nee: Perry), age 46 of Enfield, died Tuesday morning at Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester after a brief illness.

Margaret was born February 28, 1959 in Ithaca, a daughter of the late Ronald F. and Constance Clark Perry Sr. She is the wife of Kenneth D. Benjamin Sr.

TRUMANSBURG: George H. Steinmetz, 53 of 1881 Route 96 Trumansburg, New York died at 8:47am., November 23, 2005 at Cayuga Medical Center at Ithaca.

Private services will be observed by the Steinmetz family and George's cremated remains will be scatter in the Long Island Sound.

Cremation arrangements are under the direction of The Lansing Funeral Home, Inc., 32 Auburn Road, Lansing, NY 533.8600

Candace Widmer, 62, a woman of enormous intellectual curiosity and personal integrity, died on November 23, 2005 at her home with her family in Ithaca, New York. Just as she had done prior to her cancer diagnosis seven years ago, she approached the significant challenges her illness presented with the same open heart and adventurous spirit she brought to the rest of her life.

She is survived by her partner of 25 years, Sue Robinson; her children, Abigail, Marc, and Matthew (Amy Phelps); her granddaughters, Brooke and Katelyn; and a large group of loving and devoted friends who, along with her family, shared both the pleasures and sorrows of her life, many of whom helped care for her during her final months. She is also survived by her mother, Jane Armstrong Hestwood; her brother, Thomas Hestwood (Therese Jezioro); her sister, Meryl Streeter (John); and several nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her father, John Clifford Hestwood.

LANSING: Lorne Francis Montague, 72, of 33 Fenner Road, Lansing, N.Y., died Wednesday, December 7, 2005, at Cayuga Medical Center, after a sudden, brief illness. Born February 2, 1933 in East Aurora, N.Y., to Lorne Emmett Montague and Mildred Beaver Montague, he attended St. Clare and East Aurora High School. Lorne served in the U.S. Army as a meteorologist during the Korean War and was honorably discharged in 1954. He worked for New York State Electric and Gas for 40 years, starting out as a linesman and retiring as a utility construction and maintenance supervisor in 1993.

Having moved his family to the Ithaca area in 1967, Lorne was active in the Lansing community, serving on the town planning board in the 1970s and volunteering many hours at All Saints Church, where he was a Eucharistic Minister, and at the Lansing Food Pantry. He enjoyed playing golf with the John Listar Senior League at the Newman course in Ithaca, going on day tours to local points of interest with his good friends in the Bored to Death Gang, hunting, fishing, and spending holidays with his large, rambunctious family. Most of all, Lorne enjoyed long trips abroad with Carolyn, his beloved wife of 49 years. Among the countries the couple visited were Spain, Portugal, Australia, Thailand, Scotland, Peru, and all corners of the continental United States.

BINGHAMTON – Mervyn Charles Williams, age 68 of Binghamton, died Saturday morning at Willow Point Nursing Home in Vestal. On July 13, 1937, Minnie Olivert and Jerry Wadsworth Williams gave birth to their second child and only son at Morrisania Hospital in the Bronx. The proud parents blessed him with the name of Mervyn Charles Williams.

The spitting image of his father, Mervyn grew up with a quick wit…and temper. Developing his father’s sense of style, Mervyn knew he was the “sharpest” dude on the block. He also inherited his father’s intelligence and developed his mother’s love of reading. He spent many pleasurable hours reading all kinds of literature. From William Faulkner and James Joyce, to Toni Morrison, James Baldwin, and Walter Mosley, to Donald Goines and Iceburg Slim, Mervyn was able to discuss these author’s works as well as any professor from an Ivy League university.

ITHACA - Ronald G. Mc Kane, 74, of 24 Shore Drive, Ithaca, New York, died at 1:02 p.m. Monday, November 28, 2005, at Cayuga Medical Center at Ithaca.

Born May 9, 1931 in Lansing, New York, he was a son of the late John and Florence (nee Jacobs) Mc Kane. Mr. McKane was employed as a Truck Driver prior to becoming disabled and was a member of the New York State Horse Pullers Association.

ITHACA – Robert L. Miller, age 73, of Ithaca, a retired carpenter died Friday November 25, 2005 at Cayuga Medical Center in Ithaca. Mr. Miller was born June 28, 1932, a son of the late Edward and Agnes Harris Miller.

He was an avid outdoorsman who enjoyed camping and hunting.

GROTON: Rodney R. Linderberry, Sr., "Butch", 54 of 55 Bacon Road, Groton, New York died at 11:20pm, Sunday, October 23, 2005 at University Hospital, Syracuse, New York.

Mr. Linderberry was born April 9, 1951 in Ithaca, New York, a son of the late Oscar and Alberta (nee Squires) Linderberry. He was employed as a Custodian at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.

ITHACA - Linda Ford-Onan, age 61, a former housekeeper at Cornell University, went to be with Our Lord Saturday afternoon, October 8, 2005, at Hospicare in Ithaca. Mrs. Ford-Onan was born November 29, 1943 in Syracuse, a daughter of Margaret L. Rochen Keyser of Liverpool and the late Frank Ford.

ITHACA – Eugene T. “Mickey” Nesbitt Sr., age 83, a retired machinist with Morse Chain and a former resident of Binghamton and Danby, died Sunday evening at Lakeside Nursing Home in Ithaca. Mr. Nesbitt was born October 25, 1921, the son of the late Willis and Grace VanHusen Nesbitt.

OXFORD – Mr. Jacob G. Johnson, age 86 of Oxford and formerly of Ithaca, went home to be with Our Lord and Savior on Tuesday afternoon (September 20, 2005) at the New York State Veteran’s Home in Oxford. He was born in Ithaca on March 14, 1919, a son of the late Charles Phillip and Bertha Mae Moss Johnson. Prior to his retirement, he was an auto mechanic.

LANSING: Donald V. De Chellis, 56 of 11 Salmon Creek Road, Lansing, New York died at 6:15pm on Monday, September 19, 2005 at Cayuga Medical Center at Ithaca.
 
Born April 6, 1949 in Ithaca, New York he was a son of the late Leo and Alberta (nee Nash) De Chellis.  Donald was a self employed contractor who will be dearly missed his family and friends.  He was an avid NY Yankees fan.
 

BROOKTONDALE – Mrs. Ellen F. Robbins, age 93 of Brooktondale, went home to be with Our Lord and Savior on Saturday (September 17, 2005) evening at Cayuga Medical Center. She was born in Sullivan on September 26, 1911, a daughter of the late Charles Phillip and Bertha Mae Moss Johnson.

New York City – Ricky Charles Johnson, age 56 of New York City, died August 18, 2005 at his residence. Mr. Johnson, also known as “Big Rick,” was born April 25, 1949 in Ithaca, a son of the late Lois Johnson.