Petersburgh – Estelle Brunner, 93, passed away on Saturday, January 10, 2015, at her residence in Troy, NY. Born on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1921, in Port Chester, NY, Estelle was the only one of Michael and Mary Belluscio’s eleven children to be born in a hospital; the other children were born at home.
Estelle attended the Grasslands School of Nursing (now part of the Westchester Medical Center) and graduated as a Registered Nurse (RN) in 1943. Her favorite nursing assignment was when she worked at Saint Vincent’s Psychiatric Center in Harrison, NY.
In 1974, Estelle, her husband and their daughter, Vivian, moved to Petersburgh, NY. Estelle was active in the community and volunteered with several organizations. She was an early member of the Petersburgh Rescue Ambulance Squad. She was a Trustee of the Petersburgh Library Board. She was an active member of the Woman’s National Farm and Garden Association. In the early 1980s she opened her home for a week each summer to the Albany Roman Catholic Diocese for the House of Prayer Experience (HOPE). She also ran a safe house for the Bennington County PAVE program (Protection Against Violent Encounters) where she provided shelter to women in need of assistance at a moment’s notice. She was a communicant of the Saint John Francis Regis Catholic Church in Grafton, NY.
For the past eight years, Estelle resided at Diamond Ridge, an independent retirement community, in Troy.
Estelle is pre-deceased by her husband, Vincent J. Brunner, a son, William B. McDonald IV, and all of her siblings. Survivors include her three daughters, Ruthie and husband Doug Calkins of Athens, NY, Lea and husband Joseph Blaha of Placitas, NM, and Vivian and husband Martin Conboy of Petersburgh, five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
Services were held on Wednesday, January 14, at 10:30 am at the Sacred Heart Church on Main Street in Berlin, NY, followed by burial at Saint Joseph’s Cemetery in Stephentown, NY. Visitation was held prior to the service from 9:30 to 10:30 am at the Church. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Petersburgh Rescue Ambulance Squad, P.O. Box 164, Petersburgh, NY, 12138. Arrangements are by the Thomas M. Barber Funeral Home of Petersburgh. Visit www.parkerbrosmemorial.com to leave a message of sympathy for the family.