SARATOGA SPRINGS – Rose (Cooperberg) Cavalluzzo passed away March 6, 2021 after a brief but brave battle with ovarian cancer. No words can express how merciless this disease is. Born August 16, 1952 in Manhattan, Rose grew up in Whitestone, NY, after a short time in the Bronx. She attended Hunter College High School, Sarah Lawrence College, and Saint John’s University. 

Rose was a loving, giving, bright and hard-working woman. A lifelong educator, she taught high school and college courses and supported teachers throughout her career for the New York City Board of Education. She made learning fun and memorable and was always willing to step in and help a student in need, even if they were not in her classes. Rose was first and always willing to help wherever she could and lift the people around her up. She was quick to make friends, and always there for anyone who needed her.

While NYC was where she grew up and worked, Rose fully embraced Saratoga Springs long before she moved here in 2012, and positively adored her new hometown. She would tell anyone who asked that living in a community with so many wonderful things to do – good restaurants, places playing great music and a library that’s open 7 days a week – was exactly what she wanted. While the winters were a bit long for her liking, she was even beginning to appreciate them, if only a little. Losing her as the world is waking up to spring is the biggest heartbreak, as this was her favorite part.

In Saratoga, Rose fully embraced the opportunities to continue to learn and grow.  She participated in several book clubs, enjoyed the company of other teachers at the retired teachers’ luncheons, and was excited to see more of her community through the Academy for Lifelong Learning. Rose loved dancing (especially to Garland Nelson and Soul Session), music of all persuasions, and summers by the pool with friends and family. She was the life of the party and made everyone feel welcome and at home.

Rose is survived by her husband, Michael, and her daughter and son-in-law, Andrea and David, as well as many dear friends, old and new, near and far, who have been so supportive and caring. She was predeceased by her beloved son James in 2019, and his loss was still new and devastating to all of us, but especially to Rose. She was also predeceased by her brothers, William and Howard, and her parents, Dorothy and Samuel, with whom we hope she is having a long-awaited reunion.

While we are grateful that Rose is not suffering, we all miss her terribly already. Rose’s family would like to extend their gratitude to the many people at Saratoga Hospital and Saratoga Oncology who have made the hardest time in their lives as compassionate and caring as it could be. 

In lieu of flowers, please consider making memorial donations Rose’s name to either Caffé Lena (47 Phila St, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866) or to Old Friends at Cabin Creek (483 Sand Hill Road, Greenfield Center, NY 12833)

Relatives and friends may call from 4 to 6 p.m. on Wednesday, March 10, 2021 at the William J. Burke & Sons/Bussing & Cunniff Funeral Homes, 628 N. Broadway, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866.

Online remembrances may be made at www.burkefuneralhome.com

BACON HILL – Edgar Albert King, born September 19, 1939, age 81, passed away peacefully on February 21, 2021 with his loving family surrounding him. 

He was the son of William Edgar and Blanche Schoonmaker King. He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Carolyn (Peck) King, his four sons and their families: son David and LouAnne King of Waddington, Sara Bull (Matthew), Kristin King (Jordan Thomas), Laurie King (Jeremy Flint), Jennifer King; son Larry and Sally King of Saratoga Springs, son Jan King and Pandora Davis of Schuylerville, Nate King, Hannah King, and son Jeff and Becky King of Schuylerville, Johnathan King, Adam King, Lauren King, a sister Barbara (and William) Wakefield of Saratoga Springs, three great-grandchildren Simon, Isaac and Elaina Bull, and many nieces, nephews and extended family.

Edgar was more than involved in his extended community. Born, raised and self-employed as a dairy farmer, he served on many Agricultural Cooperative Boards including Dairy Farmers of America (DFA), Dairylea, New England Dairy Promotion Board, served as the Deputy Commissioner of NYS Ag and Markets for Governors’ Hugh Carey and Mario Cuomo, served as deacon, elder and life-long member of the Bacon Hill Reformed Church, and was a lifelong Farm Bureau member. Edgar was elected the Town of Northumberland supervisor for 12 years, following in his father’s footsteps. He received many awards and recognitions during his career, too many to list.

Edgar provided a constant voice for honesty, fair treatment, conviction and purpose to see things through no matter the odds. He instilled these values in his family. Edgar then cheered the successes of his children and grandchildren in their businesses, their awards, accomplishments and endeavors which are attributed to his core and unwavering principles. He was a beloved father, husband, son, grandfather, uncle and great-grandfather and family teammate.

Edgar never missed an opportunity to promote agriculture and was respected by dairymen across New York State and the U.S. In recent years, he devoted much time and effort supporting Carolyn with her bed and breakfast operations which brought both of them great joy working together and meeting new folks who visited the Saratoga area. Even more recently, he has also been the ever-cheerful greeter and tour guide for friends, guests and acquaintances at King Brothers Dairy, the newest endeavor at the present King Farm location that he and Carolyn founded in 1963.

Edgar’s Christian faith was important to him, and he was deeply grateful for the support of the members of his church in the past several years. Edgar and his family will be forever grateful to the medical community for his recent care, for their praying church community and for the outpouring love of neighbors.

Friends of the family may share their condolences at Flynn Bros., Inc. Funeral Home in  Schuylerville on Thursday February 25, 2021. 

In lieu of flowers, a donation can be made in memory of Edgar to the Bacon Hill Reformed Church or to a charity of your choice. Online remembrances can be made to the family at www.flynnbrosinc.com

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Rita Moote, 94, passed away on February 23, 2021. A mass was held at St. Clement’s Church on Tues., March 2, with burial in Greenridge Cemetery. Arrangements are under the direction of the Burke Funeral Home, 628 N. Broadway. Online remembrances may be made at burkefuneralhome.com

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Susan P. Ekiert, 73, went peacefully to sleep on Feb. 24. Visitation was on Wed., Mar. 3, at Burke Funeral Home, followed by a funeral home service. Burial was in Waterford Rural Cemetery.  Visit burkefuneralhome.com

STILLWATER — Mary Lynn passed away Feb. 23, 2021 after a number of years struggling with Fronto-Temporal Lobar Degeneration, among the various forms of dementia. Services will be private. Memorial donations may be made to Skidmore College or The Presbyterian/New England Congregational Church of Saratoga Springs. Online remembrances may be made at burkefuneralhome.com

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Everett K. Hall passed away February 24 peacefully at home. Born July 31, 1942, Everett was a native Saratogian. His grandfather Clarence Knapp served as Mayor. Everett operated an Outdoor sports Store on Putnam Street. His mother June Knapp assisted him at the store. 

He worked at G.E. for a number of years. Everett Served his country in the Navy as a weatherman. In 1975 he wed Leslie Bechtel in Congress Park. Everett was an avid fly fisherman tying his own flies and was active as a fishing guide in North Georgia. He is survived by his wife, a son Mackenzie (Kathrine), and their children Hollister and Elli. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Denise F. Polit, 74, died at home February 18, 2021 after a courageous battle with an extremely aggressive form of lymphoma. Services were private. Later this year, a public internment ceremony will be at Greenridge Cemetery. Memorial donations may be made to Saratoga Hospital Foundation. Visit burkefuneralhome.com.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Richard F. (“Dick”) Mullaney, 88, passed away peacefully February 17, 2021 at Saratoga Hospital, surrounded by his family. Services were private. Memorial donations may be made to Franklin Community Center (10 Franklin St, Saratoga Springs). Burial with military honors will be at Saratoga National Cemetery. Visit burkefuneralhome.com.

ROUND LAKE — Irene Elena Burke-Jones, 77, of Round Lake, peacefully passed away on February 11, 2021. The family wishes to celebrate Irene’s life in private. Please consider a donation to a nonprofit organization Irene was passionate about or put a pink Flamingo in your yard. Visit burkefuneralhome.com.

CHANDLER, AZ — Fanny May Woodcock Putnam, 82, of Saratoga Springs, passed peacefully into the arms of her Lord and Savior the evening of February 11, 2021, in the company of her children at her winter home in Chandler, AZ.

Born in Saratoga Springs on November 3, 1938, she grew up number six out of ten children in those difficult post-depression WWII years. Learning first-hand the meaning of deprivation and rationing, she developed a near-Scroogian appreciation of the value of a dollar, which would serve her well in the pursuit of her later accounting career.

Fanny attended and graduated from Schuylerville High School, class of 1957, where she divided her attention between academics (as much as was necessary), singing in the school choir (as much as was scheduled) and traveling with her brothers to spend time dancing with the boys (as much as she could get away with).

She would meet her sweetheart, Jay Myron Putnam, in 1957 and marry him for life when she was nineteen years old in June of 1958.

Her career found her early in the accounting department at Montgomery Wards, where she served over thirty years until the company waned into oblivion, then she took her accounting skills to Saratoga County, where she served another sixteen years, retiring to travel with her husband in 2004.

While she spent much of her life as a working mother, she found time do all those things that her family loved. Sewing for her children and grandchildren provided clothes, blankets, handmade dolls, quilts and many treasured memories. She was an accomplished baker, crafting cookies and winning the hearts of every starry-eyed grandchild. 

Outside the house, she devoted time to her Sunday School classes at both the Saratoga and Ballston Spa Christian & Missionary Alliance churches. If she wasn’t actively engaged in caring for her family and others, she found time to devote to their treasured horses, Pete, Major and Casper, relaxing in casual riding, or heated competitive barrel-racing.

Fanny turned out to be a woman of surprises. She could be quiet and calm around the house, but quickly quite the terror at the table drawn up around a deck of cards or a handful of dice. At home in the saddle on the back of a quarter horse, she was equally comfortable on the back of a hurtling motorcycle. Behind the wheel of their Dodge pickup, which seemed to be her favorite ride, she was known for dominating the road and lesser drivers alike, with speed being her primary measure of competency.

We will long remember the extended-family fried dough and bacon breakfasts and sundown shindigs she hosted in their barn and corral where dozens of family and friends would gather around the fire with coffee, music, and hours of stories and gossip.

In the end, Fanny reflected the love of her Lord and Savior in her sacrificial love for others; her friends, her brothers and sisters, her children, and most of all her husband. 

She loved, and she was loved.

Those of us blessed to know Fanny knew without question that her heart was for others, whether family or friend, and you were not a friend for long before you understood you were family.

She is survived by her husband of sixty-two years, Jay M. Putnam, an old rodeo rider, who shared her love for horses, rodeos, and the cowboy way, and her two proudest achievements, her son Casey (Tracey Hartman) Putnam, and her daughter Margaret (Brad) Williamson. 

Her legacy continues in those who we knew brought her so much joy; her seven grandchildren: the Putnams – Cheyanna, Elizabeth and Garrett, and the Williamsons – Caitlin (Ross) Downhour, Tierney, Beck (Lexi Schmidt), and Keely, and her five great-grandchildren: Cheylee, Braylee, and Novalee on the Putnam side, Maynard and Simon on the Williamson side.

She is also survived by her brothers; Roger George, Karl K., and Kirklin D.

She is preceded in death by her parents, Kirkland D. and Martha A. (Owens) Woodcock and siblings Betty Lou (Zwijacz), Ralph Lamar, Olive Sandra “Sandy” (Dickenson), and Joy Susan, as well as half-sisters, Lois (Saetes) and Rose-Marie (Neiger).

Memorial services will be held both in Chandler, Arizona and in Saratoga Springs with details being published as soon as circumstances allow.

Fanny will be interred in the Gerald B. H. Solomon Saratoga National Cemetery in Schuylerville, weather and pandemic restrictions allowing, as early as May 2021, on a specific date to be announced.

The family’s heartfelt thanks go to the exceptional nurses at Chandler Regional Medical Center and the professional staff of In My Home Hospice Care, who provided not only attentive nursing care for Fanny, but also a peaceful, compassionate, and hymn-filled environment during her transition from this life to the next.

Memorial donations can be made to In My Home Hospice Care, 1204 East Baseline Road, Suite 101, Tempe, Arizona 85283.