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obituaries Gary Carter
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Gary Carter, 51, of Saratoga Springs, quietly passed away unexpectedly on Monday, January 13 at St Peter’s Hospital in Albany He was born on April 1, 1962 in Saratoga Springs, the son of the late Gerald and Madeline Rethman Carter. Gary worked for Saratoga County DPW as an attendant at the Clifton Park Recycling Center. Gary lived and worked in the community his whole life, always willing to help his family
or friends at moments noticed. He loved riding his motorcycle. He is survived by his longtime girlfriend Lynda DeFoe; son, Brian Carter (Ashley); daughter, Shelbie Carter (Brandon); brothers, William “Bill” (Debby), James “Jim” (Sherri) and Gerald (Pam) Carter; sister, Eileen Dingmon (Mike); grandsons, James Dobson and Avery Dashner; granddaughter, Madison Watts; Lynda’s children, Kenny, Zack and Brandon; and many nieces, nephews and friends.
Week of January 24 – January 30, 2014
John Joseph Whelan SARATOGA SPRINGS — John Joseph Whelan entered into eternal rest on Tuesday, December 24 at Saratoga Hospital. Born to John and Catherine (Hallissey) Whelan, he was raised and married in Yonkers and proudly served his country in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. He graduated with honors in 1959 from Iona College with his Bachelor’s degree in business administration and accounting. Following his marriage to the former Lois Sneider in 1960, they chose to raise their family in Pleasantville, while he worked as business manager for Rye City School District in Westchester County. He devoted his spare time to his community through the Pleasantville Volunteer Fire Department on Patrol 7 and was a lifelong fan of Notre Dame football. While retired in upstate New York, he was a dedicated member of Saratoga Council 246 Knights of Columbus and the SaratogaWilton B.P.O. Elks Lodge 161. A communicant and faithful weekly Mass usher at St. Clement’s Roman Catholic Church, he also served as a member of St. Clement’s
Regional Catholic School Board of Directors. Survivors include his wife of 53 years, Lois; his daughter and son-in-law, Patricia and Paul Roberts of Martha’s Vinyard, Massachusetts’ his youngest daughter, Barbara Ann Whelan of Saratoga Springs; two grandchildren, Emily Roberts and John Mihalek; and an older sister, Mrs. Margaret Burke of Yonkers. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11 a.m. today, January 24, at St. Clement’s Church, 231 Lake Ave., Saratoga Springs. Burial with military honors will follow at 12:30 p.m. at the Gerald B.H. Solomon Saratoga National Cemetery, Duell Road, Schuylerville. There are no calling hours and in lieu of flowers, his family has requested any financial memorial contributions may be made in his name to St. Clement’s Regional Catholic School, 231 Lake Ave., Saratoga Springs, NY 12866, (518) 584-7350.
Victor L. Szumachowski BALLSTON SPA — Victor L. Szumachowski, 95, formerly of Ballston Spa, passed away on January 1, 2014 at Wesley Health Care Center. Victor was a 20-year retired World War II veteran from 1940 to 1960 and moved back to the area after his duty with the U.S. Army.
EllaMay Marie LaFountain-Almy BALLSTON SPA — EllaMay Marie LaFountain-Almy, 92, passed away January 16. Born May 7, 1921 in Tupper Lake, she was the daughter of the late Charles StLouis and Adelaide (Lazon) StLouis. EllaMay enlisted in the U.S. Navy (WAVES) in 1942 where she rose to the rank of Communication Specialist, 3rd class. She worked at the Navel Communications Annex in Washington D.C. and was honorably discharged in 1945. After graduating from Mildred Elly Business College, she worked as a legal secretary and bookkeeper until her retirement in 1993. In addition to her parents, EllaMay was predeceased by her husbands, Kenneth H. LaFountain (married in 1947, died 1972) and Arthur C. Almy (married in 1994, died 2005); six brothers, George, Roy, Henry, Harry, Joe and Peter StLouis and one sister, Veronica Maynard.
Survivors include her children, Patricia Turner (David) of Hudson Falls, Kenneth G. LaFountain (Tina) of Alabama, Henry C. LaFountain (Ann) of Hudson Falls and David L. LaFountain (Terry) of West Charlton; sister, Gertrude Dugan of Tupper Lake; grandchildren, Susan Turner, Marie McCarthy, Nancy Turner, Kenneth LaFountain, Christine LaFountain, AmyJo Vozza, Dawn LaFountain, Zackary LaFountain, Sara Korona and Samantha Blowers; 12 greatgrandchildren; several nieces and nephews and extended Almy family.
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He is survived by a brother, Edwin Szmachowski of Pennsylvania, two nephews and seven nieces.
Dennis M. Brunelle
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Dennis M. Brunelle, 71, of Holly Drive, passed away Monday, January 13 at Saratoga Hospital. Born on December 1, 1942 in Albany, he graduated with a BA from Siena College in 1967 and his Masters in social work from Syracuse University in 1969. He was a probation officer for Onondaga County from 1969 to 1971. From 1971 to 1993, he was Director of Medical Social Work and Discharge Planning for St. Peter’s Hospital in Albany and served from 1993 to 2008 as Executive Director of Saratoga County Economic Opportunity Council. Dennis served on many committees and boards, including the following: President and founder of the Hudson Mohawk Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Foundation where he established the first SIDS chapter in the region covering 17 counties, President and founder of the Society of Hospital Social Workers, Saratoga Springs Community Development Block Grant Committee, chair of the Saratoga Springs
Homeless Coalition, founder of Shelters of Saratoga (SOS), chairman of the Saratoga Springs Recreation Commission, chairman of Albany Visiting Nurses, chair and Disaster Planning Coordinator for the American Red Cross, a board member of the Saratoga Springs YMCA, board member of Saratoga Senior Services, chairman of the Saratoga Springs Housing Authority and founder of the Saratoga Affordable Housing Group. He also was a consultant in social work for various colleges and many local hospitals. Various awards received included the SpaHa Community Leader Award (1997), Saratoga Springs Rotary Community Service Award (2001) and the Spirit of Saratoga Award in 2004. He was a member of the Church of St. Peter and was a founding member of the parish’s former folk group known as The Joyful Word. He found time to coach many Little League baseball teams and had a love for music, fishing, camping, photography and archery. His greatest love was spending time with his family and friends. Survivors include his wife of 46 years, Jean (Wells) Brunelle; a daughter, Lisa (Randy) Hunter of Galway and son, Michael Brunelle of Broadalbin; two granddaughters, Cara and McKayla Brunelle; two step-grandsons, Charlie Hunter and Luke Brunelle; an identical twin brother, Donald (Judy) Brunelle of St. Simons Island, Georgia; a sister Kathleen Timber of Wynantskill; step-great-grandson CJ Hunter; his mother-in-law, Josephine Wells; many cherished nieces, nephews, sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law and cousins. In addition to his mother, Virginia Brunelle, he is predeceased by a brother, Daniel Brunelle.