ANCRAMDALE — Though already well aware of the challenges local farmers have endured in keeping their farms operating during the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. Rep. Antonio Delgado (D-NY-19) toured Ronnybrook Farms recently to gain a greater understanding of the support farmers across New York need to remain in business.
Aligning with June’s celebration of National Dairy Month, Delgado visited Ronnybrook’s dairy processing facility, located at 310 Prospect Hill Road in Ancramdale, on Monday, June 22. Following his arrival, the congressman struck up a conversation with farm founder Rick Osofsky, his nephew, Daniel, his son, Peter, and his daughter, Kate, to give the congressman an idea of how Ronnybrook has been working to stay in business during such uncertain times.
The Osofskys then led Delgado on a tour of the farm’s dairy processing plant, showing Delgado how the dairy’s popular products — ranging from milk and chocolate milk to yogurt and half and half to butter and ice cream — are produced.
Throughout the tour, Delgado and the Osofskys discussed the importance of supporting family farms as well as keeping local dairy in area schools. They also talked about the experiences some New York farmers have had with both the federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the Economic Impact Disaster Loan Program, both of which were designed to provide small businesses economic support during the pandemic.
“Our family farmers are essential to our upstate way of life and they have experienced extreme challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Delgado said in the statement from his office about the tour. “As Congress negotiated the CARES Act, I worked to include direct disaster assistance for our small farmers, led the push to make farmers eligible for small business loans programs and have continued to meet with our agriculture operators to make sure they have the tools needed to get through this difficult time.”
The CARES Act, which stands for the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, was drafted in March to provide relief for Americans dealing with economic hardship due to the coronavirus.
Looking ahead, Delgado said he’ll keep working for farmers like the Osofskys in Congress. The Osofskys, for their part, said they appreciate the efforts.
“We had a very good conversation; I’ve been a supporter of his efforts in terms of the dairy industry generally over the last two years that he’s served,” said Rick Osofsky. “We had a good dialogue on the state of affairs as it relates to dairy.”
NEW PRESTON — Edwin A. French III passed away on Jan. 31, at St. Mary’s Hospital in Waterbury after a brief illness. Born July 16, 1951, in North Adams, Massachusetts, he was the eldest child of the late Edwin and Barbara French II. He grew up in Greenwich and attended Greenwich Country Day, Rye Country Day, and Greenwich High School.
Ed served as a volunteer firefighter and later as a decorated Greenwich police officer, also playing bagpipes with the Emerald Society Police Band.
After retiring, he lived in Sherman, Kent and New Preston, Connecticut.
Independent and adventurous, he loved hunting, fishing, traveling, and sharing stories—especially of his motorcycle trip to Alaska. He was always ready to help friends and family.
He is survived by his sons; Steven (Francis) and Marc (Mary); his brothers David (Charlene) and Daniel (Cheryl); several grandchildren, nieces, and nephews; and his brother‑in‑law Steve Gerwin.
He was predeceased by his sister Faye Gerwin.
A private memorial will be held at the family’s convenience. Donations may be made to the American Liver Foundation at liverfoundation.org
CORNWALL — Tim Prentice, architect turned kinetic sculptor, died at home in Cornwall on Nov. 25, 2025, at the well-lived age of 95.
Born in New York City on Guy Fawkes Day in 1930, Tim was the son of Theodora (“Dody”) Machado and architect Merrill Prentice. That same year, his parents bought a 150-year-old house in Cornwall, and Tim’s connection with the town as his lifelong “spiritual home” began.
He attended Rumsey Hall in Cornwall Village, the Brooks School, and Yale College. While at Brooks, a field trip to the Addison Gallery in Andover proved quietly decisive: in the lobby hung a mobile by Alexander Calder, which moved in response to otherwise invisible air currents. Tim was riveted. Decades later, that moment would resurface as destiny.
Graduate school was postponed by four years of Navy service during the Korean War. Tim served as a bombardier navigator with the Sixth Fleet, flying off aircraft carriers on grueling eleven-hour missions and navigating using a demanding three-star fix, an experience that left him with a sailor’s respect for wind, balance, and motion.
After the war, he returned to Yale, earning a Master’s degree at the School of Art and Architecture. He studied with the modernist Paul Rudolph and took Josef Albers’s famed color class not once, but twice.
In 1960, Tim married Marie Bissell in her parents’ backyard in Canton, Connecticut. Both were enthusiastic amateur folksingers. In 1963, they were sent by the State Department on a goodwill journey through Asia and East Africa, guitar and banjo in hand, sharing and gathering new melodies to carry home.
In 1965, back in New York City, Tim co-founded the award-winning architectural firm Prentice & Chan with Lo-Yi Chan from I.M. Pei’s office. Among many projects, Lo-Yi designed middle-income housing for NY State, and Tim designed houses in Connecticut.
During this time, Tim also became a member of MOMA’s Committee on Architecture and Design and President of the Municipal Art Society, where he helped lead a successful campaign to save Grand Central Terminal from demolition.
In 1975, Tim left the firm to pursue his new career in sculpture in the living room of his apartment and, on weekends, in a century-old ice shed on their farm in Cornwall. He taught architecture at Columbia and continued to design and remodel houses in the Cornwall area — over 60 all told. His architecture balanced international modernism with a deep affection for the plainspoken New England barn and, often, a wry sense of humor. Among his creations were a pool house shaped like a miniature Parthenon, complete with Elgin Marbles rendered in plywood, and a new house masquerading as a renovated hay barn.
Tim’s big break came in 1976 with a nearly three-ton commission for AT & T. More than 150 commissions followed throughout the U.S. and the world. Ranging from the 230-foot-long ‘Red Zinger’ in Hartford’s Bradley Airport to a set of turning circles for Renzo Piano’s Aurora Place in Sydney, Australia. He also made dozens of smaller sculptures that sold like hotcakes at local shows and exhibits.
In the mid-1980’s, Tim and Marie moved to Cornwall full-time and became involved with local affordable housing initiatives.Tim co-founded the Cornwall Housing Corporation (CHC), organized the annual House Tour benefit, and designed several houses for the CHC’s parcel program. Additionally, he spearheaded an unsuccessful but passionate effort to save the Greek Revival Rumsey Hall building in Cornwall Village, which, prior to demolition, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
In 2012, Tim and longtime associate David Colbert formed Prentice Colbert, Inc., to continue the adventure of making large-scale site-specific pieces.
A monograph, Drawing on the Air, was published in 2012. Tim received the Connecticut Governor’s Arts Award in 2014 and was honored in 2021 with a solo exhibit at the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield.
In the 1990’s, Tim developed macular degeneration, but he never stopped working as his eyesight diminished.In 2024, the American Macular Degeneration Foundation’s Vision & Art Project premiered a film about his life, aptly titled The Air Made Visible.
Whimsy, playfulness and music were an important part of Tim’s life. For decades, he created an annual calendar for family and friends and was a frequent illustrator for the Cornwall Chronicle, where his drawings tended to skewer local issues. The Prentice barn was legendary for everything but cows: instruments constructed out of plywood and PVC tubing, concerts, picnics, weddings, art shows, memorials, anniversaries, birthdays, songfests, family reunions, raucous hootenannies, and even as a test site for a‘bolt-together’ house.
He is survived by his two daughters, Nora and Phoebe, and by his adored grandchildren, Zeke and Zed Homer. His infinitely beloved wife, Marie, predeceased him in 2018.
One of Tim’s favorite reflections captures the arc of his life:
The engineer wants to minimize friction to make the air visible.
The architect studies matters of scale and proportion.
The sailor wants to know the strength and direction of the wind.
The artist wants to understand its changing shape.
Meanwhile, the child wants to play.
Donations can be made to: The Cornwall Housing Corporation: P.O. Box 174, Cornwall, CT 06753
No memorial is planned yet.
Thank you to all of Tim’s great caregivers.
FALLS VILLAGE — Michael English passed away peacefully on Jan. 17, 2026.
Michael was born in Queens, New York, on Oct. 19, 1961, to Anita and Thomas English. Michael was in a hurry and he arrived a bit early with his red hair, big bright blue eyes, and a bit of a temper. He was the 6th of 9 children.
Michael spent his life trying to see where he fit in and was very happy living in Falls Village.
He had a big heart, an infectious laugh, and was happiest when cooking for others. He enjoyed working at Snack Shack and The Boathouse. He loved Thanksgiving and feeding all those who came together for community dinners at Pilgrim House.
He had two passions: the NY Yankees and playing golf. If he was watching Yankees baseball, he would block out everything and everyone and cheer them on. As far as golf goes, he probably wasn’t as good as he told everyone he was. He had the gift of gab.
You would think he kissed the Blarney Stone. Michael liked to tell stories with and without his (fake) Irish Brogue.
Michael was predeceased by his parents Anita and Thomas, and his brothers Brian and Stephen.
He is survived by his siblings; Kenneth, Maureen, Patricia Siantos (Apostolos), Donna Fanning (Mike), Christopher (Claudia), and Philip as well as 16 nieces and nephews. A memorial service will be held in the spring and Michael’s final resting place will be at St. Charles Cemetery in Farmingdale, New York. Kenny Funeral Home has care of arrangements.
SHARON — Lucille C. Nelson, 93, of Sharon Valley passed away Feb. 1, 2026, at Sharon Hospital after a short illness. Her loving family was at her side. She was the wife of the late Edwin O. Nelson.
Lucille was born Nov. 28, 1932, in Vergennes, Vermont, the daughter of the late Eldred Cunningham Sr. and Lilah LaRose Cunningham.
She graduated from Vergennes High School in 1950.
In 1953, Lucille married Eddie Nelson while he was home on medical leave from the United States Army where he was actively serving during the Korean Conflict. The young couple moved to Connecticut in 1960.
In 1970 they bought their home in Sharon where Lucille would reside for the next 55 years.
Lucille began her career at The Hotchkiss School in 1966. Over the years, she held many positions within the school, including work in the mail room and serving as secretary to the Head Master. From 1987 until her retirement in 2006, she served as the Gifts Manager in the Alumni and Development Office, where she was responsible for processing gifts to the school. In recognition of her dedication and service, Lucille received the Independent School Support Staff Distinguished Service Award in 1992 from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) of Washington, D.C. She was deeply devoted to The Hotchkiss School and treasured her school “family.”
Outside of work, Lucille was an avid gardener with a true green thumb. She enjoyed crocheting and knitting, staying active through walking and exercise, and especially looked forward to her Monday night dinners with friends.
Most of all, Lucille treasured time spent with her family, which brought her the greatest joy.
Lucille is survived by her children, Eric (Cindy) Nelson, Diane N. (Peter) Selino and Scott (Bianca) Nelson of Sharon and by her brother, David Cunningham of Vergennes, Vermont. She has 11 grandchildren and 17 great grandchildren.
She was predeceased by her children, Lynn, Michael and Jon Nelson; and her grandson, Mark Selino; and her siblings, Eldred Cunningham Jr., Leonard Cunningham (her twin brother), Rosalene Casey, Beverly Peck, and Richard Cunningham.
A graveside service and burial will be held at Ellsworth Cemetery in Sharon, with a reception following in the spring. All are welcome to attend. Memorial contributions may be made to the Sharon Volunteer Ambulance, P.O. Box 357, Sharon, CT 06069. Kenny Funeral Home has care of arrangements.
