Obituaries

Rose Campbell Gibson, a research scientist and gerontologist who served on the faculty of the University of Michigan School of Social Work, died on Aug. 11 after a brief illness. She was 98.

The musician Jimmy Buffett, who lived on North Haven for many years, was remembered on the South Fork this week as a generous, gracious, and down-to-earth neighbor, his worldwide fame and considerable wealth notwithstanding.

Mona Lisa DeCristofaro, a former secretary at the East Hampton Middle School who went on to work for 30 years with Kevin Fitzgerald at ARK Construction, died at home in Springs on Aug. 21. She was 70.

Mary Roberta Lewis Hildreth, who helped her husband, Merrall Topping Hildreth, run the Sagaponack General Store and Post Office for many years, died on July 26 at East End Hospice’s Kanas Center for Hospice Care in Quiogue.

Elisabeth Brugnoni, a painter, talented seamstress, and gifted cook, moved to Amagansett in 1972 with her husband, Marc Brugnoni, and three daughters, and “immediately fell in love with her new home and the surroundings,” her family wrote. Mrs. Brugnoni, described as “a loving mother, a cherished wife, and a much-beloved friend,” died in her sleep on July 3 in Northampton, Mass. She was 83.

Richard Ellis Lynn had already retired from a career as a successful insurance executive when he was accepted at Harris Manchester College at the University of Oxford in England to study Renaissance literature. When he returned to East Hampton after his studies, he published a book of his poetry, “Bottom’s Dream," and “for the rest of his life, he would find great satisfaction in his poetry practice,” his family said.

Thomas Kelsall, who was deputy principal investigator on the NASA team credited with developing technology that yielded proof that the Big Bang Theory was correct, died in hospice care in Mitchellville, Md., on Aug. 13. Formerly of East Hampton, he had experienced complications of dementia.

Marshall Garypie Jr., a science teacher and a member of the Sag Harbor Village Board in the early 1990s, died on Aug. 3 at Long Island Community Hospital in Patchogue. He was 86 and had been ill for three months.

An English teacher and attorney in private practice, Robert T. Anker of East Hampton and Brooklyn Heights died at Stony Brook Southampton Hospital on Aug. 2.

Averill Dayton Geus, who died at home on Old Orchard Lane in East Hampton on Aug. 1, was one of the last of what East Hampton used to call its “great ladies.” In a life distinguished by personal courage and indomitable energy, she wielded considerable political and social influence through the channels of soft power available to women of her generation — as the town’s official historian; as a president of the Ladies Village Improvement Society and of the Suffolk County Historical Society; as curator at Home, Sweet Home Museum; as a teacher, and as an outspoken champion of the preservation of our built heritage.

A celebration of the life of Mary Roberta Lewis Hildreth will be held at the Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church on Sunday at 2 p.m., with the Rev. Adrian J. Pratt officiating. Mrs. Hildreth, who ran the Sagaponack General Store and Post Office with her husband, Merrall Topping Hildreth, died on July 26 at East End Hospice’s Kanas Center for Hospice Care in Quiogue. She was 94.

In 1964, the French artist Nadine Daskaloff was commissioned to paint the mural known as “Luz del Norte” for the National Museum of Anthropology (Museo Nacional de Antropología) in Mexico City. She died of cancer at home in East Hampton on July 13. She had been ill for a year.

Sheila Crasky Ray, whose yard in Montauk was a sanctuary for deer, squirrels, and a variety of birds, died of heart failure on Aug. 16 at Mather Hospital in Port Jefferson. She was 79 and had been ill for eight months.

Gladys Whitridge Collier, a national duplicate bridge champion who twice represented the United States at the World Bridge Championships and was one of the top players on Long Island and in the country, died at home in East Hampton on June 27. She was 101.

A memorial gathering for Richard Ellis Lynn of East Hampton will be held on Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Yardley and Pino Funeral Home in East Hampton, with visiting hours to begin at 1:30.

Richard Evan Ekstract, a magazine publisher who founded Hamptons Cottages and Gardens, a noted art collector, and a real estate developer, died on Aug. 7 at Good Samaritan Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Fla. A part-time resident of the South Fork for many years, he was 92.

Mario Jose Stutterheim of Amagansett, a classical music announcer at WQXR, WNCN, and WBAI in New York City for over 40 years, died on July 10 at the Kanas Center for Hospice Care in Quiogue. He was 82.

Dr. Ronald Halweil, a doctor at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary for 50 years who had a private practice in New York City and Bayonne, N.J., died at home in Southampton on May 30. He was 80. The cause was glioblastoma. 

Gay Quarty, an East Hampton native and dedicated volunteer, died on June 21 at Peconic Landing in Greenport. She was 78 and had cancer and dementia.

Dick Webb, who grew up in Montauk and devoted his life to charity and humanitarian work, died on July 18. He was 89.

Madeleine Hunter of East Hampton, who had worked at New York art galleries and for TriStar Pictures in Los Angeles, died of chronic Lyme disease and heart and organ failure on July 21. She was 74.

Paul Pavia, a scion of art world royalty, died of a heart attack at home in Springs on July 30. He was 52.

Helen S. Witty, an author of seven cookbooks and a veteran of the Women's Army Corps during World War II, died on July 15 at Peconic Landing in Greenport. Mrs. Witty, who had lived in Springs for many years, was 101.

Averill Dayton Geus died at home in East Hampton on Aug. 1 following a stroke. Ms. Geus, a past president of the East Hampton Ladies Village Improvement Society who was instrumental in establishing its landmarks committee, was 89. 

Raymond Edward Hegner, a Montauk “real estate icon” for more than 50 years, died on July 22. He was 89 and had kidney disease.

Janice Marie Collins, an art teacher at the Springs School for many years and a member of the Pawnee Nation, died on July 24 at the Kanas Center for Hospice Care in Quiogue. She was 79 and had cancer.

A memorial service for Tom Kochie, a Sag Harbor photographer and artist who died on May 30 at the age of 74, will take place on Saturday at 11 a.m. at the Old Whalers Church in Sag Harbor.

Tom Griffin of Wainscott and New York City died of a heart attack in a New York hospital on Saturday. He was 66.

A yoga teacher who was passionate about nature and gardening, Tsuyumi Kobayashi of Montauk died at home on July 10. She was 69.

Janice Marie Collins of Springs, an art teacher at the Springs School for over 35 years, died on Monday at the age of 79. An obituary will appear in a future issue.