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Mary Lavigne
ALBANY - Mrs. Mary Ella Langlais Lavigne, 88, of the Teresian House, formerly of Lansing Lane, Cohoes, died Monday at the home.
Born and educated in Cohoes, Mrs. Lavigne lived all of her life there.
She was a homemaker. Mrs. Lavigne was also a seamstress with the former Lou Mel Modes Dress of Cohoes, retiring in 1957.
Mrs. Lavigne was a communicant of St. Bernard's Church, Cohoes.
She was the widow of Peter Lavigne.
Survivors include two daughters, Dorilda Bissell of Clifton Park and Pauline Lavigne of Cohoes; six grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; and a great-great-grandchild.
The services will be held at 9 a.m. Wednesday at the Fitzgerald Funeral Home, 105 Vliet Blvd., Cohoes, and at 9:30 a.m. a Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at St. Bernard's Church, Cohoes.
There are no calling hours.
Burial will be in St. Joseph's Cemetery, Waterford.
Dated: Tuesday, 05-Dec-2000
Ralph J. Mickel
JOHNSTOWN - Private services will be held for Ralph J. Mickel, 83, of Fisher Avenue, who died Saturday at Nathan Littauer Hospital in Gloversville after being stricken at home.
Born in Johnstown, Mr. Mickel was a self-employed handyman. He was also a custodian at the Johnstown Reformed Church until retiring.
Survivors include a sister, Betty Mickel of Johnstown.
There are no calling hours.
Burial will be in Johnstown Cemetery.
Arrangements are by the A.G. Cole Funeral Home.
Dated: Tuesday, 05-Dec-2000
Roy M. Ackart
NISKAYUNA - Roy M. Ackart, 88, of Hillcrest Road, died Sunday at home after a short illness.
Born in Troy, Mr. Ackart lived most of his life in the Capital Region. He was a graduate of the General Electric apprentice course.
Mr. Ackart worked in the purchasing department of I.G.E. in New York City and the visitor relations department in Schenectady for 37 years, retiring in 1977.
He was a member of St. George's Lodge 6, Free & Accepted Masons; St. George's Chapter 157, Royal Arch Masons; St. George's Council 74, R&SM, St. George's Commandery 37, Knights Templar; and the GE Quarter Century Club.
Survivors include his wife of 67 years, Marion Eddy Ackart; a son, Capt. Leon E. Ackart of Eagle Lake, Fla.; and two grandchildren.
The service will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday at the Baxter-Andrew Funeral Home, 1867 State St., Schenectady, with a Masonic service at 10:45. A calling hour will precede the service at the funeral home.
Burial will be in Elmwood Cemetery, Schaghticoke.
Memorial contributions may be made to Community Hospice of Schenectady, 1411 Union St., Schenectady, NY 12308.
Dated: Tuesday, 05-Dec-2000
Sally George
DELMAR - Mrs. Sally E. George, 76, of Kilmer Court, died Monday at St. Peter's Hospital, Albany, after a short illness.
Born in Billerica, Mass., Mrs. George was a 1942 graduate of the Milne School in Albany.
She was a sales clerk at Macy's in Colonie Center for 20 years, retiring in 1986.
Mrs. George was an active member of the Ladies Auxiliary of Albany Yacht Club for many years.
She was a communicant of St. Catherine of Siena Church.
Survivors include her husband of 54 years, Robert H. George; a son, Andrew H. George of Saratoga Springs; two daughters, Susan Baker of Schenectady and Nancy E. George of Castleton; a brother, Willis J. Hunt of Ossining; four grandchildren; and a great-grandchild.
A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at 9:30 a.m. Thursday at St. Catherine of Siena Church, Albany.
Calling hours will be from 4:30 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at New Comer-Cannon Family Funeral Home, 343 New Karner Road, Colonie.
Burial will be in Memory's Garden, Colonie.
Contributions may be made to the church building fund, 40 Hopewell St., Albany, NY 12208.
Dated: Tuesday, 05-Dec-2000
Shirley Hubert
TROY - Mrs. Shirley Hubert, 89, of Second Avenue, died Sunday at Albany Memorial Hospital.
Born in Troy, Mrs. Hubert was a 1928 graduate of Cohoes High School. She lived on Long Island for several years before moving to Troy in 1998.
She was a comptroller and deputy comptroller for the City of Cohoes for 11 years. She was also an office manager at the J.C. Penney store in Latham. In her earlier years, Mrs. Hubert owned and operated Shirley Ellrott's School of Dancing in Cohoes.
Mrs. Hubert was the widow of Ralph R. Hubert and George J. Hourigan.
Survivors include a daughter, Maureen A. Urquhart of Troy; two sons, George J. Hubert of Bow, N.H., and Ralph F. Hubert of Cohoes; a sister, Frances Peters of Cohoes; seven grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren.
The services will be held at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday at the Philip J. Brendese Funeral Home, 133 Broad St., Waterford, and at 9 a.m. at St. Mary of the Assumption Church, Waterford. Calling hours will be from 3 to 5 this afternoon and 7 to 9 tonight at the funeral home.
Burial will be in Waterford Rural Cemetery.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Clothe-A-Child Fund.
Dated: Tuesday, 05-Dec-2000
Michel Navratil, last known male survivor of the Titanic
The Associated Press
PARIS - Michel Navratil, one of the last known survivors of the sinking of the Titanic, has died in southern France. He was 92.
Navratil, who was 3 years old when the Titantic sank after striking an iceberg in 1912, died Wednesday in Montpellier. He was the last known male survivor of the tragedy, according to the Titanic Historical Society in Springfield, Mass.
"There are only four women left now," said Edward Kamuda, the society's founder.
Navratil and his 2-year-old brother, Edmond, were traveling with their father, who was separated from his wife and had taken his sons on the voyage without her permission.
Navratil described what happened when the ship began to sink:
"My father entered our cabin where we were sleeping. He dressed me very warmly and took me in his arms. A stranger did the same for my brother. When I think of it now, I am very moved. They knew they were going to die.
"I don't recall being afraid, I remember the pleasure really, of going plop into the lifeboat."
Navratil and his brother were rescued by the Carpathia, the first ship to reach the scene of the sinking after racing through waters filled with icebergs. Navratil was hauled up the side of the ship in a mail sack.
His father went down with the Titanic. Of the 2,228 people on board, only 705 survived.
When the boys reached the United States, they were taken in by a woman who met them aboard the ship. Their mother learned of their survival by reading newspaper reports about the boys, nicknamed "The Orphans of the Titanic" because no adult came forward to claim them.
Kamuda, who also runs the local Titanic museum, met Navratil several times.
"He seemed to be a very quiet individual and was very interested in what people had to say. After all, he was a professor of philosophy," Kamuda told The Associated Press.
Navratil was an honorary member of the society and took part in conventions and other commemorative events. In 1996, the society organized a meeting in Paris with a French woman who occupied the cabin across from him, and who used to play with the little boy.
That year, Navratil was one of a few survivors who went on cruise ships to the site where the Titanic sank to watch research vessels try to lift part of the hull to the surface.
Dated: Saturday, 03-Feb-2001
Johnnie Johnson, 85, top ace for RAF during World War II
The Associated Press
LONDON - Johnnie Johnson, who shot down 38 enemy aircraft making him the Royal Air Force's top gun in World War II, has died at age 85.
Johnson died Tuesday at his home in Buxton in Derbyshire following an illness, said his friend, retired Air Chief Marshal Sir Christopher Foxley-Norris.
His career began inauspiciously. At first rejected by the Auxiliary Air Force, Johnson joined the RAF Volunteer Reserves in the summer of 1940. He crashed a Spitfire on his fourth flight.
In an interview last year with the Leicester Mercury newspaper, Johnson recalled the high morale of British airmen in the Battle of Britain, which raged from July to November 1940.
"We never thought of defeat. We did not countenance it," he said.
"I remember the swiftness and the speed of it - suddenly the sky was full of black crosses. Then they were gone.
"Being in a dogfight was very frightening. You never knew if someone was on your tail," he said.
Johnson found he was hampered by an old rugby injury, a poorly set fracture of the collarbone, and his courage was questioned when he reported the problem. After surgery, however, he joined the Tangmere Wing in 1941 under the command of Douglas Bader, the legendary pilot who had lost both legs before the war.
Flying with Bader, "you could feel the bond of leadership holding you together, it was like something physical," Johnson said.
Johnson shot down his first plane, a Messerschmitt 109, over France on June 26, 1941.
In 1943, he was made commander of an air wing composed of three Canadian squadrons based at Kenley. On their first operation under Johnson's command, the wing shot down six Focke-Wulf 190s, with Johnson downing one.
Johnson remained in the Royal Air Force until 1966, retiring as Air Vice Marshal in command of Air Forces Middle East in Aden. In later years, he founded the John Johnson Housing Trust, which built more than 4,000 homes, many for people with special needs.
His books included "Wing Leader" (1956), "Full Circle" (1966) and three volumes co-authored with fellow ace P.G. Lucas: "Glorious Summer" (1990), "Courage in the Skies" (1992) and "Winged Victory" (1995).
He is survived by two sons.
A private cremation service was planned.
Dated: Saturday, 03-Feb-2001
Shirley Peter
RENSSELAER - Mrs. Shirley J. Peter, 67, of Mann Avenue, died Wednesday at Albany Memorial Hospital after a long illness.
Born in Vienna, Ohio, Mrs. Peter lived in Rensselaer most of her life.
For 10 years, she worked at the Visiting Nurses Association in Albany. She was also a homemaker.
Mrs. Peter was a volunteer at the Rensselaer Senior Center.
She was a member of the Bingo Club and the Ramada Inn Swim Club.
Survivors include her stepmother, Grace Sheldon of Rensselaer; two sisters, Elsie Brady of Rensselaer and Jennie Mercer of Latham; three brothers, W. Glenn Sheldon of Wynantskill, and William and Vincent Sheldon, both of Rensselaer; four grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
A service will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday at the W.J. Lyons Funeral Home, 1700 Washington Ave.
Burial will be in St. Agnes Cemetery, Menands.
Calling hours are from 4 this afternoon until 8 tonight at the funeral home.
Contributions may be made the American Diabetes Association, 50 Colvin Ave., Albany, NY 12206; or the American Heart Association, 440 New Karner Road, Albany, NY 12205.
Dated: Saturday, 03-Feb-2001
