Obituary: Nancy Alexander

Nancy Alexander, affectionately known as “Bird, passed away May 24, 2011 at her home in Southold surrounded by family, caregivers and friends. She was 61.

Nancy, who retired in 2005 after a career teaching in the Newfield, Southold and Riverhead school districts. was born in Binghamton on October 26, 1949. She graduated from Binghamton Central High School in 1967 and Marywood College in 1971, earning a bachelor’s degree in home economics. She received permanent certification in home economics in 1975 and permanent certification in elementary education in 1978.

She recently enjoyed spending winters in Florida and summers on the North Fork and Shelter Island.

Nancy is survived by her long-time, devoted love, Skip Tuttle of Shelter Island, and very dear friends Carol Taplin and Edna Terry of Southold. She also leaves a sister, Elaine Stone of West Palm Beach, Florida; and a brother and sister-in-law, Fred and Connie Alexander of Vestal, New York. She has two nephews, Jason and Eric Alexander, and three nieces, Lori Stone Vickery, Marcy Stone and Corinne Alexander Cole.

Nancy also leaves many close friends in Southold and on Shelter Island and numerous teacher friends who were all like family to her, her family said.

Nancy was quick to laugh and always ready with a joke or a humorous tale. She had a talent for turning junk into treasure. Her creativity was evident in the many gifts given to friends and family throughout her adult life. The word “eclectic” was often used to describe Nancy because of her varied interests. Hobbies included sewing, cooking, crafts, designing, reading, organizing clam bakes and events. She was a real “Jack of All Trades.”

Nancy had a sensitive, kind and generous manner that will live on in the hearts of those she held dear. Her students remember her as someone who could make learning fun and interesting, yet she expected them to work hard and maximize their potential.

Nancy’s family and friends are indebted to the loving, dedicated, attentive caregivers who were with Nancy and Skip on their six-month journey with ALS.

The family received friends on Saturday, May 28 at the DeFriest-Grattan Funeral Home in Southold.

In lieu of flowers, donations to the Riverhead School District, Nancy Alexander Scholarship Fund, 700 Osborne Avenue, Riverhead, New York 11901 or the Shelter Island School District, Nancy Alexander Scholarship Fund, P.O. Box 2015, Shelter Island, New York 11964 would be appreciated.

I. Lloyd Gang

I. Lloyd Gang, of Newton, Massachusetts, formerly of Stockton, New Jersey, died peacefully at home among family and friends on May 25, 2011. Mr. Gang was 88.

Mr. Gang was born October 13, 1922 in Passaic, New Jersey, the son of Solomon and Jennie R. Gang. He was raised in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, where he attended local schools. He graduated from Amherst College in 1943, where he majored in French and was on the ski and fencing teams and a member of the Lord Jeff Society. In 1949, he graduated from Yale Law School after serving in the Pacific as a lieutenant in the Army Air Corps during World War II.

In 1950, he married Ruth Leon Jacoby of East Orange, whom he met at a post-war party in New Haven. They settled in Upper Montclair, New Jersey, where they raised three children and were both active in community and professional work.

In 1960, the family began spending summers in Shelter Island, where Mr. Gang was a member of the Shelter Island Yacht Club and the Shelter Island Gun Club, and where he found time to enjoy family, friends and nature.

Mr. Gang was a leader and award recipient in numerous professional, charitable, educational and civic organizations in Hunterdon County, Passaic and Montclair. He practiced law for his entire professional life, and was a partner with Sullivan, Sullivan, Gang & Woods in Passaic and later with Gang & Smith in Montclair.

He was passionate about the environment, and much of his civic work focused on conservation and land-use planning, including serving on the Commission on the Meadowlands in 1963. Noted for his cool demeanor when civic tempers rose, Mr. Gang was an invaluable leader and trustee of the public interest. He always kept his wits and his witticisms about him, his family said. Speaking of what would come to be called environmental concerns, he often quoted Pogo to his conservation colleagues: “We have met the enemy, and he is us.”

He was active in the Boy Scouts of America and received Scouting’s prestigious Silver Beaver award for his service as president of Aheka Council. Mr. Gang took pride in seeing his son and two of his grandsons earn their Eagle Scout badges, the highest award for Boy Scouts.

Mr. Gang enjoyed sailing, tennis, collecting, salmon fishing, hunting upland game, travel with his outdoor buddies and Ruth, and frequent family gatherings. He remained a loyal son of Amherst, attending virtually every annual homecoming and class reunion until ill health prevented it. To his great pride, his son and two grandchildren followed his footsteps to “the fairest college.”

Mr. Gang and his wife bred and raised several generations of distinguished German shorthaired pointers, beginning with Von Holster’s Caprice in the late 1950s. He is survived by the last of this line, Mariah’s Stormalong Delaware (Dela).

Mr. and Mrs. Gang retired to Stockton, New Jersey, where they enjoyed the landscape, wildlife and historic preservation. In Stockton, Mr. Gang was an active member and president of the Amwell Valley Conservancy and the New Jersey Conservation Foundation, among other local organizations. After Mrs. Gang’s death in 2004, Mr. Gang moved to Massachusetts to be near family.

Mr. Gang is survived by a son, Stephen R. Gang and his wife Gail G. Gang of Manchester, Massachusettsl; daughter Meredith G. Bergmann and her husband Michael P. Bergmann of New York City, and daughter Laura J. Gang and her husband Steven J. Gag of Roslindale, Massachusetts. He is also survived by a sister, Millicent G. Anisfield and her husband, Richard C. Anisfield, as well as three nieces and seven grandchildren.

A private burial was planned in Stockton, New Jersey. For information, contact Laura Gang at lgang2@comcast.net or 617-469-2506.

Donations may be made to the New Jersey Conservation Foundation, 170 Longview Road, Far Hills, New Jersey 07931 or www.njconservation.org; to Hospice of the Good Shepherd, 2042 Beacon Street, Newton, MA 02469 or www.hospicegoodshepherd.org; or to Bikes Not Bombs-Ghana Program, 284 Amory Street, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130 or http://bikesnotbombs.org/international.