Fay Rumsey

SENECA FALLS < Fay Rumsey, 100, peacefully left this world for the next, Saturday, Sept. 20, 2008, held in the arms of her beloved daughter, Miranda, at her residence. Her family"s "Rock of Gibraltar," a truly loving woman of immense talent and impeccable judgment, a woman of courage, resilience and resolve, she was a beacon illuminating the paths of the many people in her life. First born (Jan. 21, 1908) of 10 children to Agustus and Bertha Bentley, she began life on a family farm outside Seneca Falls, in an era when there was no electricity, no phones, no indoor plumbing and few automobiles. She learned and endured all the farm chores, commanding a team of horses by age 10. Her education began in a one-room country schoolhouse, where she gained an appreciation of the power of the written word, especially poetry. She continued her education at Mynderse Academy, in Seneca Falls, graduating in 1925. She secured a position at Goulds Pumps, working through the depression era and into 1942. She then volunteered for the Women"s Army Air Corps, over the strenuous objections of her bosses at Goulds. She married a co-worker, Clark Rumsey, also then serving in the U.S. Army, on May 16, 1943. She served in Philadelphia at the headquarters of the East Coast monitoring station for all air traffic, civilian and military, from Massachusetts to Georgia, attaining the rank of Master Sergeant. She was honorably discharged from the WAAC in late 1943, for the birth of her first son, Terence, Aug. 8, 1944. After World War II, she and her husband, Clark, relocated to Syracuse to attend Syracuse University through the GI Bill. She completed her freshman year in journalism before leaving for the birth of her second son, David, Oct. 4, 1946. She cared for her family and worked at home until both sons were in school, then gaining a position in the offices of John Ayres, M. D. Several years later, she took a position at the State University of New York, College of Forestry, on the campus of Syracuse University, primarily because it offered dependent scholarships to either institution for both her sons, upon reaching college age. She worked in the Department of Forestry Economics, under department chair Dr. William Duerr for 20 years, her role constantly expanding from filing and typing to office supervision and management and eventually to a member of the faculty, where her duties broadened further to include research and graduate student advisor and ultimately to instituting the first complete quarterly bibliography of journals and periodicals in the forestry economic field. Bound annually these became essential to researchers in this area. She also co-edited a published textbook Social Sciences in Forestry: A Book of Readings, in 1975, collaborating with Dr. Duerr. She was listed in Who"s Who in American Women, for her body of work. She retired in 1975 at the age of 67, despite the offer of a new three-year expanded contract and pleas from the administration to stay, simply stating, "It was time to go!" Fay enjoyed her retirement years with her husband at the cozy family home at 110 Benedict Avenue in Syracuse, including sharing their lives with the new grandsons, Patrick and Sean. The newest members of her family were showered with Fay and Clark"s love and extraordinary grandparenting skills. Clark"s failing health in 1990 was met with Fay"s characteristic resolve and caring as she nursed him through a lengthy illness with devotion, love and skill, until his passing in 1992. After the service for her husband, she gathered her immediate family together and stressed that she would continue to reside at home and would live independently. She made it clear that she would never "be a a burden" to any of her family and that her family respect her wishes. This was her way. Here fate intervened. Her recently widowed former employer and co-author, Dr. William Duerr phoned, offering his condolences. Their professional history led to a re-establishing of their friendship. They corresponded, traded visits to Syracuse and Blacksburg, Va. Fay eventually moved to Blacksburg and they married in December of 1993. After several years of traveling and companionship his health failed and, once again, Fay nursed and cared for her husband in his declining years, until his death in 2002. She lived independently in Blacksburg until January 2006, when she relocated to Auburn at Westminster Manor. She is survived by her two sons, Terence and his wife, Barbara of Rochester, N. H., and David and his wife, Miranda of Auburn; her grandson, Patrick of Burlington, Vt.; two brothers, R. Haines Bentley and Agustus Bentley, both of Seneca Falls, and some twenty nephews and nieces. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 5, at Sanderson-Moore Funeral Home, 32 State St., Seneca Falls. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Sean Clark Rumsey Memorial Scholarship Fund, c/o David Rumsey, 4643 Twelve Corners Road, Auburn, NY 13021, or to a charity close to their hearts. To send a message to the family, sign our guest book at www.auburnpub.com and click on obituaries.