Barbara P. Lester, a resident of East Hampton for 60 years, died at the Riverhead Care Center on January 27. She was 93 years old.

Born in Sag Harbor on April 26, 1919, she was the daughter of Peter and Petronella (Kordy) Remkus. Mrs. Lester, who grew up on Bridge Street in Sag Harbor, was a housekeeper for many families in East Hampton, including the actress Dina Merrill, for whom she worked for over 40 years.

A graduate from the Sacred Heart Academy in Sag Harbor, she liked to read, cook and embroider. She also enjoyed traveling, especially her trip to Hawaii, going on cruises and spending time with her family.

Mrs. Lester was predeceased by her husband, Howard E. Lester, Sr., and a daughter, Patricia Wynkoop, of Wading River, L.I. She was also predeceased by brother Peter Remkus of Sag Harbor.

She is survived by sons Howard Lester of Portsmouth, N.H. and Peter Lester of Wesley Chapel, Fla.; daughters Margaret Lucyk of Sag Harbor and Sandra Dahl of Clinton Twp., Mich.

She is also survived by nine grandchildren, Charles, Peter and David Wynkoop; Michelle Schiavoni; Edward Lucyk; Jason and Ashley Lester; and Jeff and Greg Dahl. She is also survived by 17 great-grandchildren.

Visitation was at Yardley & Pino Funeral Home on Wednesday, January 30. A funeral Mass will be held today, Thursday, January 31, at St. Andrews Church, at 10:30 a.m. Interment will follow at St. Andrews Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorial donations be made to Alzheimers Research, PO Box 30783, Tucson, AZ, 85751.

Albert M. “Al” Ketcham passed away peacefully Wednesday, January 23, 2013 at Southern Tennessee Medical Center in Winchester, Tenn. He was 93 years old.

Mr. Ketcham was born August 21, 1919 in Locust Valley, New York the son of the late Charles A. Ketcham and Hilda Johnson Ketcham. He spent most all of his adult life in New York, a fact that he was very proud of. When asked where he was from, he would often stretch out his arm and demonstrate the numerous locations he and his wife, Muriel had visited and lived. Since her death in July 2009, whenever he spoke of his loving bride, Muriel, he would always say “60 years, 10 months, 10 days, and the love story continues”.

In earlier years, he was an avid bowler, cabinet maker and at one point, a volunteer fireman. He enjoyed playing dominos and participating in the handbell choir at Trinity Lutheran Church, Tullahoma, Tenn., where he was a member for over 15 years.

In addition to his parents and his wife, Muriel Alice Ketcham, he is preceded in death by a sister, Ellen Blessin.

Survivors include two daughters, Elise Farris and husband, Herman of Manchester; and Elaine Ketcham Caltrider and husband, Lou of Apex, N.C.; five grandchildren, Jason Laxson and wife, Tiffany; Becky Shelton and husband, Glenn; Karen Gold and husband, Phil; Eric Horton and wife, Mojan and Bryan Horton and wife, Lindsay; nine great-grandchildren; Kristen Shelton; Alexandria Shelton; Emily Shelton; Brandy Gold; Hunter Gold; Kamyar Horton; Lily Laxson; Neysan Horton and Edward Horton; and several nieces, nephews, cousins and loving friends.

Graveside services for Mr. Ketcham were held Sunday, January 27, 2013 at Rose Hill Memorial Gardens, Tullahoma, Tenn.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Trinity Lutheran Church-Music Program, 705 Wilson Avenue, Tullahoma, Tenn., 37388.

Kurt Kahofer of Wainscott died of natural causes on January 28, 2013 at the age of 80.

Mr. Kahofer was born and raised in Pernitz, Austria. Following World War II, he attended school for hotel and restaurant management in Wiener Neustadt. Upon completion of his studies he pursued his love of travel by working at various ski resorts in Austria, Switzerland, Italy and Germany, becoming fluent in five languages.

In 1959 he emigrated to the United States and was employed by Restaurant Associates in New York City. During the summer months he was a Maitre D’ at Herb McCarthy’s Bowden Square in Southampton while his family lived in Southampton Shores. He and his family settled in Maspeth, NY, and after 35 years of service at the ‘21’ Club in New York, retired to the East End of Long Island.

Among Mr. Kahofer’s many interests were oil painting, fishing and playing the violin, harmonica, squeeze box and piano. He was very handy and loved working on the upkeep of his house and property.

Mr. Kahofer is survived by his brother Karl of London, England, wife Mina of 54 years, children Lisa Cory of Wainscott, Kurt Eric of Southampton, Heidi Varucene of Water Mill, Amy Dalsimer of Moretown, Vermont and Karl of New York, New York; five grandchildren, Nicole, Karrin, Amanday, Cory and Cora; and two great grandchildren Isabella and Ava.

A celebration of his life will be held on Saturday, March 16 at 2 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Old Whalers’ Church, 44 Union Street, Sag Harbor. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the Old Whalers’ Church or a charity of choice.

Ken G. Lasiuk, a resident of Sag Harbor, passed away peacefully in his sleep on January 26 following a 20-month battle with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). He was 63 years old.

Born on June 12, 1949 in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, Canada,  Mr. Lasiuk was the son of the late Morris Lasiuk and Jane Lasiuk-Ferrari. He was a graduate of the University of Saskatchewan and worked from 1971-1984 for the Provincial Government of Saskatchewan in various administrative capacities. In 1982-83, he completed his Masters Degree in Public Administration from Queens University in Kingston, Ontario.

While visiting a friend interning at the United Nations in New York, Mr. Lasiuk managed to secure an interview for himself, and in 1984 joined the United Nations where he worked for 25 years in the New York-based Secretariat. After several administrative positions, he became Executive Officer for the Office of Legal Affairs in 1992, reporting directly to the Legal Counsel to the Secretary General. The highlight of his tenure in the Legal Office was his direct involvement with the establishment of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, the Special Court for Sierra Leone, and the International Criminal Court in The Hague. Mr. Lasiuk was also active with the United Nations International School where his daughter was a student for three years and where he served on its board of directors from July 2001 – June 2008.

Mr. Lasiuk was a passionate hockey player having enjoyed the sport all his life. He played weekly for more than 20 years in New York at Sky Rink and then at Chelsea Piers. Locally he was an active member of the Hackers at the Buckskill Winter Club where last winter he was on the ice with a paraplegic’s ice sled his Hacker teammates purchased for him.  Mr. Lasiuk was a great entertainer. His storytelling is legendary as were his antics in the annual office holiday play where he dressed up as the wives of senior UN officials, very often with her present. At 6’0” and 180 lbs, his “impersonations” triggered a great deal of laughter and good times. He also loved music, particularly reggae and jazz, and had a special affection for Jerry Jeff Walker.

Mr. Lasiuk is survived by his wife Carol Powel Smith, his daughter Emma Lasiuk, and his mother Jane Lasiuk-Ferrari. Funeral services were held on February 1 at St. Andrew Catholic Church. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that a memorial contribution be made to East End Hospice, PO Box 1048, Westhampton Beach, NY 11978.

Anthony J. Mangano, 72, a resident of Boynton Beach, Florida, died January 26, after a long illness.

Born and raised in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Mr. Mangano was loved by countless friends and family members.

After graduating college, he moved to Sag Harbor, where he established Mangano Real Estate. In addition, he taught English at Pierson High School, where he later became Dean of Students.

Upon retirement, he relocated to Calabash, North Carolina, and finally settled in Boynton Beach.

Mr. Mangano was preceded in death by parents, John and Josephine Mangano, and a sister, Anita.

Surviving are his wife, Ana Maria; his former wife, Marie; a daughter Ann Marie Prime and children; a son, Christopher; a brother, John Mangano; and a niece, Amy Mangano Moran.

Funeral services were conducted in Boynton Beach, and burial was in Boca Raton, Florida.

Nancy Decker Dougherty passed away peacefully on February 6, 2013 at her home on Tuthill’s Hill, Shelter Island, after a 13-year battle with Alzheimers Disease.

Mrs. Dougherty was born and raised in Columbia, Missouri, the daughter of a college professor and went on to Radcliffe College, graduating in 1961.

She was invited to join Phi Beta Kappa in her junior year at Radcliffe and upon graduation accepted President Bunting’s offer to tour the country for a year with classmate Lucy Tuchman, daughter of author Barbara Tuchman, extolling the virtues of Radcliffe to high school girls.

She then studied for her master’s degree and PhD at the University of California, Berkeley.

Mrs. Dougherty moved back east in 1971, marrying Jim Doughterty, Shelter Island Town Supervisor since 2008, and taking up residence in Manhattan.

She was a very active Co-Chair of the Literary Committee of the National Arts Club in New York City for many years.

In 1976 the Doughertys bought the John Tuthill house, built in 1852 and owned by the Tuthill family for exactly 100 years, using it as a weekend getaway until 2001 when they moved to the island permanently.

Mrs. Dougherty was a film critic and writer of biographies. She was honored by PEN America in 1987 with the PEN Girard Award for best non-fiction work by a previously unpublished female author.

On Shelter Island, in addition to spending glorious days writing, reading, swimming and playing tennis, she was very active with local literary groups and in the environment, serving for many years on the Mashomack Preserve Board of Trustees.

Mrs. Dougherty is survived by her husband, Jim,  brother Jack and sister in law Linda of Hawaii, niece Sarah, Jim’s nephew Terence and her four wonderful caregivers and loving friends of the past seven years,  Germaine, Lita, Maka and Tamar.

There will be a private family service, and a memorial celebration of Mrs. Dougherty’s life planned for her birthday, June 30 or thereabouts.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The MacDowell  Colony, Peterborough, NH, where she was a writer in residence, to the Mashomack Preserve or to the Alzheimer’s Foundation.

Helen Downes Labrozzi of Sag Harbor died on February 15, 2013 in Port Jefferson at the age of 93.

Born November 11, 1919 in Southampton, she was the daughter of William J. and Helen Jones Downes. She was a graduate of Pierson High School.

Mrs. Labrozzi was predeceased by her husband Joseph R. Labrozzi. She is survived by her son Joseph W. Labrozzi, Sr. and is wife, Mary, of Sag Harbor; five grandchildren, Theresa G. Labrozzi, Joseph W. Labrozzi, Jr. and wife Leslie, Cheryl Labrozzi McMahon and husband Mark, Peter A. Labrozzi and wife Angela, and Michael A. Labrozzi; and two great grandchildren, Meagan N. McMahon and Daniel J. Labrozzi.

Services were held Monday, February 18 at St. Andrews Church, Sag Harbor. Memorial donations can be sent to the Sag Harbor Fire Department or the Sag Harbor Volunteer Ambulance Corps.

Robert E. Fordham, an 11^th generation Fordham in Sag Harbor, passed away in Port Charlotte, Florida on February 6. He was 69 years old.

Mr. Fordham was born on July 13, 1943 to Hiram (Hydie) and Dorothy Fordham. Attending the Sag Harbor Schools throughout his childhood, he left soon after graduation to serve his country in the Army. After a tour in Vietnam, he left the military to return home where he married his hometown sweetheart, Eileen Archibald in 1968.

Mr. Fordham worked until retirement for the telephone company as a lineman and service technician where he enjoyed the people he worked with and the customers he met. Mr. Fordham joined the Phoenix Hook and Ladder Company of the Sag Harbor Fire Department and was a member for 42 years upon his passing. He was known for his devotion to the aerial ladder throughout his time of service as well as holding offices of captain and warden for many years. He also served as a leader of the Boy Scouts for a number of years, holding Weblos meetings in his home and helping young boys in the community learn how to use tools and respect one another. The family gave countless hours to their children’s school, St. Andrew’s, running carnivals, fundraisers and dinner dances, as well as fixing broken items, painting and dealing with emergency situations without hesitation. He was a kind and gentle man, says family members, who always had a story to tell or advice to give and although he loved his children, he adored his grandchildren more than anything.

Mr. Fordham passed away at the vacation home he and his wife shared in Florida. His wake was held at Yardley and Pino Funeral Home and Mr. Fordham was buried at St. Andrew’s Cemetery in Sag Harbor. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Sag Harbor Fire Department Benevolent Association or The March of Dimes.

Mr. Fordham is survived by his wife, Eileen, his three children; Scott Fordham, Heidi Forham Wilson and Kiersten Fordham Simmons, as well as six grandchildren; Kyle and Jake Fordham, Colby and Carolyn Wilson and Riley and Lilah Simmons. He is also survived by his sister, Judy Gregory and brother, Donald Fordham, as well as sisters- and brothers-in-law, as well as nieces and nephews.

Edward Milton Evans, who served the United States House Select Committee on Assassinations as the Chief Investigator for the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Investigation, died on February 22, 2013 at Stony Brook University Hospital. He was 81.

Mr. Evans was born on March 22,1931 in West Palm Beach, Fla. to Luella Morgan Evans and Edward ‘Ned’ Evans and grew up in Brooklyn, New York where he attended Boys High School and received his undergraduate degree in Criminal Justice from the City University of New York.

He entered the U.S. Army in 1947 and served as a military policeman in Japan from 1947 to 1950. He received an honorable discharge and in1954 he entered the New York City Police Academy being among the first African American officers to matriculate in the academy. Upon graduation from the academy, he served as a patrolman in many precincts in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Manhattan before promotion to detective and assignment to the NYPD Major Case Squad where he worked on numerous high profile cases including the bombing of Fraunces Tavern by the FALN in 1975.

Mr. Evans retired from the NYPD in 1977 to accept the position with the House Select Committee. At the conclusion of the Select Committee, he accepted a position at the United States Department of Health and Human Services as the Special Agent in charge of the Washington field office where he investigated waste, fraud and abuse. After residing in Fall Church, Virginia for over 25 years, he retired to his beloved Sag Harbor, where he had vacationed since 1961 and could enjoy full-time the unique charms and peace present only there.

He was a passionate man who loved tennis, animals, music, fishing and history. He will be greatly missed for his passion for life, his knowledge and intelligence, political acumen and dedication to civil rights.

His current wife of 32 years, Merete M. Evans and his former wife, Joanne V. Evans as well as children, grandchildren, and other family members and friends in the New York and Washington Metro Areas survive him. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the National Kidney Foundation at www.kidney.org.

Ernest Leroy “Roy” Thomsen, a former police officer for East Hampton Town, died at Southampton Hospital on February 20, 2013. He was 84 years old. Born in Queens, N.Y. on May 30, 1928, he was the son of Ernest and Jessie (Bachelor) Thomsen.

Mr. Thomsen attended high school in Queens, before moving to East Hampton, where he was a member of the PBA, the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He served with the U.S. Army.

Mr. Thomsen was predeceased by his wife, the former Ruth Hildreth. He is survived by a daughter, Linda Sattler of Houston Texas. He was predeceased by a son, Jay Thomsen.

He is also survived by longtime companion, Ann Adele Watson and brothers Robert Thomsen and Kenneth Thomsen (and wife Lois) all of Essex. Conn. He was predeceased by brother Richard Thomsen.

He is also survived by niece Kimberly Thomsen and nephews Brian and Keith Thomsen.

A memorial service will be held at a future date.

Marytherese Bennett, a former resident of Sag Harbor, died in East Lyme, Conn. on February 28. She was 51 years old.

Mrs. Bennett was born on April 18, 1961 in Rockville Centre, L.I., the daughter of Wallace and Isabelle (Riordan) Moyer.

A full time mother, Mrs. Bennett attended Mercy High School in Riverhead, and graduated from Pierson High School in Sag Harbor.

Mrs. Bennett is survived by her husband, Nathan, and children Nathan and Nicholas of Manorville, NY, and Matthew, Marie, Michael and Marykate of Niantic, Conn.

She is also survived by brothers Wallace Moyer and Thomas Moyer of Sag Harbor and sister Monica Lerhman of upstate.

A funeral service was held Tuesday, March 5 at St. Andrew R.C. Church. Interment followed at St. Andrew Cemetery.

The family asks that memorial contributions be made to the Southeastern Connecticut Hospice.

Caroline Valenta, trailblazing woman newspaper photographer and Pulitzer-Prize nominee, poses with her 1929 Ford Model A (mileage 272,000) in front of The Houston Post building in 1948. She drove her Model A to assignments all over Texas during her pioneering 8-year career at The Post.

Caroline Valenta, a trail-blazing woman newspaper photographer and Pulitzer-Prize nominee, who once photographed herself giving birth, died February 20, 2013 at the Westhampton Care Center, Westhampton. She was 88 and had been battling pancreatic cancer for the past three years. Born in 1924 in the small south-central Texas city of Shiner, she left the University of Houston near the end of her senior year in 1945 to work for the morning daily The Houston Post as a full-time staff photographer. Ms. Valenta, already employed part-time by the paper, was told by the managing editor that she had to choose between taking an assignment for the paper or taking a final exam (the schedules of which conflicted) or be fired. She chose the job. Her starting salary was $25 per week. She was the Post’s first woman staff photographer and the only woman in the photo department.

Ms. Valenta began her career at a time when women were discouraged from covering “hard” news and if employed at all, were encouraged to limit themselves to “society” news or the “women’s pages.” Within six months she had taken photographs that won her national acclaim. One, a news photo she took in October, 1945, two months after the end of WWII, entitled, Daddy, Daddy, Daddy — First Lieut. Earl Pizzo, just back from a year’s duty in China being greeted at Union station by his three-and-a-half-year-old son, two-year-old daughter and wife — was picked up by the Associated Press wire service and appeared in more than a thousand newspapers worldwide. It captures the joy of a soldier’s reunion with his family, even if his young children don’t quite remember him. “Daddy, Daddy” was chosen by Edward Steichen along with another of Valenta’s news photos for The Exact Instant, Events and Faces in 100 Years of News Photography, an exhibition of photography at The Museum of Modern Art in NYC in 1949.

In 1947 Ms. Valenta garnered worldwide recognition for a series of pictures she took of the Texas City disaster, the deadliest industrial accident in U.S. history. The SS Grandcamp, a liberty ship filled with approximately 2,300 tons of ammonium nitrate, caught fire and burned dockside for more than an hour before finally exploding with the force of a small atom bomb. Destroying a wide swath of the Port of Texas City, on the Gulf of Mexico, the fires and explosions killed at least 581 people, including all but one member of the Texas City fire department and injured 8,485 more, some of them severely. The tremendous blast leveled nearly 1,000 buildings on land and sent a 15-foot wave that was detectable nearly 100 miles off the Texas shoreline. Ms. Valenta, in Houston 50 miles away when the initial explosion occurred, rushed to the scene in her 1929 Model A Ford (mileage 272,000) — being waved through roadblocks by police and emergency personnel who recognized her car — with just seven film holders for her boxy, 9-pound Speed Graphic camera. That meant she could take no more than 14 exposures. She arrived at the disaster while smaller explosions caused by the first massive blast were still occurring and poisonous gas flooded the area. The resulting images were reproduced throughout the world and one, of the skeleton of the Monsanto Chemical plant, was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. Life magazine ran that photo as the lead picture in a multiple-page spread. Her iconic image of Texas City was included in the book Great News Photos and the Stories Behind Them by John Faber, a history of the world’s greatest news photos. She considered it her greatest professional accomplishment and once said, “I don’t think I’d trade the (Texas City) experience for anything in the world. Maybe more time. But that would be it, if that. I felt really alive while walking among all those dead bodies. I was glad it wasn’t me lying out there..” She was

Ms. Valenta covered hundreds of accidents, crimes, fires, grisly murders and disasters as well as heart-warming “human interest” stories and celebrity features while working 80-hour weeks for years in Houston, a 24-hour-a-day, rapidly-growing, wide-open industrial city. Competing photographers at The Houston Chronicle and The Houston Press, both afternoon newspapers, nicknamed Valenta “‘ol blood ’n’ guts” because she once picked up a man’s brains while helping some ambulance workers who were scrambling to pick up the pieces of two men killed in a catastrophic fuel-truck explosion. A colleague once introduced her as “the gal who would charge Hell with a bucket of water.”

She also worked extensively all over the United States while on assignment for the leading newsweeklies of the era such as Life magazine, Time, Look, Fortune, Ebony and smaller-circulation magazines.

Ms. Valenta moved to New York City in 1952 with her husband, where she continued to work professionally for the New York Daily News and news magazines while raising seven children. In 1957 she photographed the birth of her daughter Lillie, while giving birth, by holding her Rolleiflex Twin-Reflex camera upside down and looking up at the viewfinder to compose her pictures. The contact sheet of nine square, 120mm images showing the progress of the baby’s birth is riveting.

While on assignment, she photographed many notables such as future President Lyndon Baines Johnson, the Duke of Windsor (who photographed her in turn), Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra, bandleader Woody Herman, former Vice President John Nance Garner, aviator Charles Lindbergh, architects Frank Lloyd Wright and Phillip Johnson, golfing great Ben Hogan and baseball’s enfant terrible Billie Martin and Hall of Fame superstar Stan Musial.

She is survived by all seven of her children: Dr. Caroline V. Gatewood of Hampton Bays, NY, Grover V. Gatewood of Bridgehampton, NY, Gloria V. Gatewood Russo of Sayville, NY, Lillie V. Gatewood of Greenvale, NY, John V. Gatewood of Oakland, CA, Rosabelle V. Gatewood Naleski of Southold, NY, William W. Gatewood of Grayslake, IL; two stepchildren, Boyd Gatewood of San Jose, CA, Louise Gatewood Horton of Houston, TX; eight grandchildren and one great-grandchild. Her husband, Worth Gatewood, a well-known newspaperman and former Sunday Editor of the NY Daily News, died in 1998.

A service was held at the Robertaccio Funeral Home, Patchogue, Tuesday, Feb. 26. Ms. Valenta’s ashes will be spread upon the waters of Matagorda Bay at the ghost town Indianola, TX. A book and exhibition about her life and ground-breaking career is planned.

Ruth H. Guyer, a lifelong resident of Bridgehampton, passed away at her home on February 26. She was 71 years old.

Ruth “Grandma Buzzy” was born on October 28, 1941 to Miriam Fickeissen and Allen Hedges. After completing Bridgehampton High School, she attended State University College at New Paltz from 1959 – 1963. Upon graduation, she started her teaching career at the Southampton Elementary School. On April 18, 1964, she was married to Fred Guyer, also of Bridgehampton. Soon after, she put her career on hold to start raising her three children, Catherine, Michael and Debra.

With her love of teaching calling and daughter Debra reaching nursery school age, Mrs. Guyer went back to work as the teacher/director of the Bridgehampton Cooperative Nursery School. When the opportunity arose, she returned to teach at the Bridgehampton School in the kindergarten and later in the pre-k program. Throughout her life she felt blessed to do what she loved doing, working with children. Being a lifetime member of the Bridgehampton United Methodist Church, Mrs. Guyer taught Sunday school, sang in the church choir and held various offices within the church. One of her other loves was being a part of the Red Hats where she served as Queen Mum.

Mrs. Guyer was predeceased by her husband Fred in November 2010, her mother in March 2012, her father in July 1981 and her sister Florence Lanz. She is survived by brothers Edwin and Albert of Bridgehampton, Eugene of Washington, David of Texas, T. William and John of Arizona, sister Margaret Makowski of Jamesport, sister-in-law Mary Ann Guyer of Hampton Bays, numerous loving sisters-in-law, brother-in-law, nieces, nephews and cousins. Also, son Michael and wife Rebecca Guyer of Sag Harbor and daughters Catherine and husband Paul Hansen of Sag Harbor and Debra Guyer and husband Humberto Leon of Bridgehampton. And six grandchildren, Maizy, Keegan and Greylynn Guyer, Hunter and Austin Hansen and Oscar Leon.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the ALS Association of Greater New York or the American Cancer Society.

Hatthaway Martin “Hap” Barry, a lifelong resident of Sag Harbor, died at the Hamptons Center, Southampton, on March 3. He was 61 years old.

A full obituary will appear next week.

By Annette Hinkle

Sybil Christopher, a co-founder of Sag Harbor’s Bay Street Theatre and its artistic director for 22 years, died Friday, March 8 in New York City.

She was 83 years old.

Born Sybil Williams on March 27, 1929 in Tylorstown, South Wales, she lost both her parents by age 15. She went to live with her older sister and throughout her teens, saw countless productions at a local theater where she began to try her hand at acting. She went on to train at the London Academy of Dramatic Arts.

As an actress on the set of her first and only film, Christopher met fellow actor and Welshman Richard Burton. The couple married in 1948 and had two daughters, Kate and Jessica. Burton eventually left Christopher for Elizabeth Taylor and the couple divorced in 1963.

By then, Christopher was living in New York, and in 1965, she partnered with Roddy McDowall and Edward Villella to open “Arthur” a wildly successful nightclub on 54^th Street in New York City. The club attracted a long list of high profile celebrities including Truman Capote, Andy Warhol and Rudolf Nureyev. In 1966, Christopher married Jordan Christopher, the singer in the club’s house band. They had one daughter, Amy. He died in 1996.

After selling the club in 1969, Christopher co-founded the New Theatre in New York. Productions included “The Knack,” directed by Mike Nichols and “The Mad Show” written by Mary Rodgers.

Christopher’s theatrical life in Sag Harbor began in 1991when she founded the Bay Street Theatre with Emma Walton Hamilton and Stephen Hamilton. The theater was built in a former disco on Long Wharf and Christopher and her partners frequently tapped into the talents of well-known local playwrights like Terrence McNally and Lanford Wilson for material. The theater’s inaugural 1992 production was Joe Pintauro’s “Men’s Lives,” based on Peter Matthiessen’s book about East End fishermen (Bay Street revived that play just last summer).

Over the years, Bay Street produced countless plays during the summer season, some of which found their way to stages in New York City. After 22 year as the theater’s artistic director, Christopher stepped down in March of 2012. In December when her health began to fail, she returned to Manhattan.

Last March, in an interview with the Express, Christopher emphasized the importance of theater in a community and the vital role it played in her own young life.

“We know it’s important. I grew up in Wales and when my parents died, when I was 15, I moved to Northampton in England, and there was weekly repertory theater. From age 15 to 18, I saw 52 plays a year,” she said.

“Since I’ve been here, I’ve always hoped the young people realize how lucky they are that they have this wonderful jewel of a theater down the street,” added Christopher of the Bay Street Theatre. “The arts are imperative in your life. When all else fails, the arts are what surfaces.”

“She was such an indomitable spirit. This woman was two weeks shy of 84. But she had the energy, spirit and curiosity of somebody much younger,” said Tracy Mitchell, Bay Street’s executive director. “After we had a good cry here, I said “Sybil would hate the fact we’re doing this. She would say, ‘Get on with it darlings.’”

“Anytime something was going on that was unpleasant, she would say ‘Just give me two hours in the dark darling.’ She meant, let her go see a show,” added Mitchell. “That kind of spirit in an office really reverberates. We really miss her.”

Per Christopher’s wishes, there will be no funeral services. Bay Street Theatre plans to host a celebration of her life in the near future.

Alice Elaine Voight Smith, born November 29, 1927 in Brooklyn, NY, died in Southampton Hospital on March 9 at the age of 85.

Mrs. Smith was a resident of North Babylon, L.I., for many years and moved to North Haven in 1972. In 2004 she sold her North Haven home and moved to Sag Harbor with her daughter, Pat.

“She lived a long and active life, maintaining her sense of humor and wit right to the end,” said the family.

Mrs. Smith loved the beach and woods, picking berries and watching birds. She spent many hours on her computer or Kindle playing games, and within the last five years made two cross country trips to California with her daughter Pat, son Bruce and grandson Willy.

She was predeceased by her husband, Shelby Smith, her parents, Sophia and Walter Voight of North Haven, her brother Walter Voight of Sanford,Fla., and her granddaughter Kelly Doroski of Sag Harbor who died in February of this year.

She is survived by her children and their spouses, Michele and Bruce Smith of Kendall, Fla., daughter Sandra Arthur of Chula Vista, Salif., Pat and Ken Smith of Beaufort, S.C., and Patricia and Billy Doroski of Sag Harbor.

She is also survived by 15 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren.

“She was very loved and will be missed by all,” said the family.

Hathaway Martin Barry, known as “Hap,” died on March 3 after a lengthy illness at the Hamptons Center in Southampton. He was 61 years old.

Born June 11, 1951, he was the son of Robert Ira Barry and Betty Fay (Perkins) Barry. He was raised in North Haven and lived most of his life in Sag Harbor.

When he was 12, Mr. Barry barely survived a 75-foot fall from a cliff in the Idaho Snake River Canyon. He spent six months in a hospital, the first three months in a coma. After many surgeries and much rehabilitation, he was released. The accident affected his entire life, said the family, and while he grew into adulthood, he did considerably more rehabilitation, therapy and schooling.

As an adult Mr. Barry worked at Baron’s Cove Inn & Baron’s Marina, owned and operated by his uncle, Frank Barry, and his father.

Mr. Barry enjoyed doing things for other people, said the family, reading, collecting, and watching television. He especially liked watching  shows that focused on cooking. He was attracted to new kitchen gadgets that would enable him to make meals as they were shown on these shows. He also liked picking lottery numbers.

“During the last few months, when he would win, it was, such a joy to see his familiar grin,” said the family.

In addition to his parents, Mr. Barry was predeceased by his sister, Beth Marie Barry.  He is survived by Beth’s daughter, Morgan Gallagher, as well as two half brothers, Robert H. Barry and Trebor C. Barry. He is also survived by step-siblings Bonnie Wingate Jackson, Natasha Sigmund, Derek Ebeling-Koning, Gwen Waddington and his former step-mother, Nada Barry.

A celebration of Mr. Barry’s life will be held around his birthday in June.

“Meanwhile, Hap would say to his family and friends, ‘Adios, Kiddo,’” the family said.

The family asks that memorial donations be made to the Sag Harbor Volunteer Ambulance Corps.

Edward “Ed” Earle, 57, a longtime resident of Sag Harbor passed away in Southampton Hospital on March 15 surrounded by loved ones. He lost his battle with brain cancer on his birthday in the very hospital where he was born.

Mr. Earle was born in 1956 to Helen and Edsel Earle of Sag Harbor. He lived nearly his entire life in Sag Harbor until he married his long time love and moved to East Quogue. He is survived by his wife, Jennifer Friebely Earle and stepdaughters Rebekah and Emma Brenard as well as his loving mother, Helen Earle, loving sister Nikki Earle and her husband Bill Lusty, niece, Dawn Hedberg and her husband Mike Kinsey and their son Jonas – as well as his dog Sidney whom he adored.

Mr. Earle worked for Hampton Jitney since 1981 as a motorcoach driver. It was his love for the road that also inspired his hobbies — which were riding his motorcycles and bicycles — as well as anything that had to do with a Volkswagen bus or van. He had an uncanny ability to fix anything and would never say “no” when a friend or loved one needed him. Above all, during the last few years of his life he was extremely devoted to the Greek Orthodox Church of the Hamptons where he served behind the altar as well as helped whenever he thought there was a need.

In lieu of flowers the family requests that donations be made to the Greek Orthodox Church building fund, 111 Saint Andrews Road, Southampton, NY 11968

Visitation was held on Sunday, March 17 at Brockett Funeral Home in Southampton. A funeral was held on Monday, March 18, at The Greek Orthodox Church of the Hamptons. Burial followed at Oakland Cemetery in Sag Harbor.

Elizabeth Elting Rogers, a long-time resident of the East End, passed away at her home in Bridgehampton on March 7. She was 76 years old.

Elizabeth “Bumpy” was born in Chicago, Ill., on October 23, 1936 to Winston Elting and Marjorie Horton. She grew up in Lake Forest, Ill. She attended Chatham Hall and was a music major at Vassar College from 1954-1957. Her marriage to Bernard Fowler Rogers III, in that year, led her to transfer to The University of Chicago where she graduated with a BA in 1958. That same year she gave birth to her first of four beloved boys – Mark, Michael, Christopher and Paul.

Throughout her life Mrs. Rogers maintained a deep and abiding love of music and the arts. While raising her children on Chicago’s north side, she taught piano, and served as a piano accompanist to ballet master classes with Maria Tallchief, the Lyric Opera, and dancer Carleton Smith. Later, after moving to New York, she continued her piano accompaniment at the American Ballet Theatre and then, in Bridgehampton, with Aras Ames of the Conservatory of Ballet and Danse Arts.

In addition to her musical pursuits, she was a co-founder and manager of the Lencia Boutique in Chicago and produced “People of the Wind,” an Academy Award nominee for Best Documentary Feature Film in 1977.

Mrs. Roger’s love of the East End began in the late 60s, when she was introduced to its stunning natural beauty and its vibrant community of artists and writers. The South Fork allowed her to pursue her lifelong interests as a musician, gardener, writer, activist and adventurer.

“She was appreciated and loved throughout the community for her vibrant and unique spirit, her prowess on the piano, her annual jazz celebration for Barry Harris and her remarkable generosity,” said the family.

She was a regular attendee at Ocean Zendo in Sagaponack, and this Sunday, she was to have played the piano for the Unitarian Church in Sag Harbor.

Mrs. Rogers is predeceased by her son, Mark. She is survived by three sons: Michael of Mt. Tremper, N.Y., and Paul and Christopher, both of Sag Harbor, and her beloved daughter-in-law, Li Kun Huang. She leaves two siblings, John Elting of New York, N.Y. and Audry Elting of Godfry, Ill, and a half brother, Lach Elting of San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.

A memorial service, officiated by Reverend Peter M. Larsen, will be held on June 1, 2013 at 2 p.m. in St. Andrew’s Dune Church in Southampton.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Choral Society of the Hamptons.

“Throughout her life, Elizabeth hewed to her motto to ‘create your own excitement,’” said the family. “She will be sorely missed by all who knew and loved her.”

Gerald “Jerry” E. McCarthy, age 76, died in Port Jefferson on March 13, 2013.

After more than 30 years as a seasonal resident, Mr. McCarthy moved to Sag Harbor full time six years ago.

Born October 11, 1936 in New York, NY, he was the son of J. Russell and Anne Ayres McCarthy. He attended St. Francis Preparatory High School and St. John’s University. A retired detective in the New York Police Department and assistant commissioner, New York State Division of Criminal Justice, he was a member of the Police Anchor Club, National Law Enforcement Association, Friendly Sons of St. Patrick and the NYPD Holy Name Society.

McCarthy is survived by his wife Margaret; step-children Maureen Rossi of Bethesda, Md. and Elizabeth Kirwan of Sag Harbor; sisters Patricia of Armenia, NY and Sheila of Ohio; five grandchildren and five nieces and nephews.

The funeral is noon on Thursday, March 21 at Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Church, Bridgehampton, interment follows at St. Andrew’s Cemetery, Sag Harbor.