Rita Van Etten

Rita Stewart Van Etten, a retired bookkeeper and teacher’s aide for the Liberty Central School District and a lifelong area resident, died Saturday, January 6, 2018 at her home.  She was 84.

The daughter of the late Otto and Sarah Morton Stewart, she was born on March 9, 1933 in Livingston Manor, NY.

Rita proudly served Our Country in the United States Air Force during the Korean War. She was a longtime director of the White Sulphur Springs Cemetery Association; a life member of the Sullivan County Historical Society; a life member of the VFW; and a member of the Liberty Museum and Arts Center.

Survivors include her son, John S. Van Etten, of Liberty, NY; one daughter, Sarah E. Foster and her husband Kerry of Reynoldsburg, OH; one sister, Isabelle Tuttle of Livingston Manor, NY; two granddaughters, Rebecca and Rachel; and one sister-in-law, Barbara Stewart, of Neversink, NY.

She was predeceased by her husband, Delbert E. Van Etten on October 31, 2004; her brothers, Stanley and his wife Edna, Russell and his wife Mabel, Donald and his wife Mildred, Robert and his wife Ethel, Leonard and his wife Mabel, her fraternal twin, Richard, and her brother-in-law John Tuttle.

Visitation will be Friday, January 12, 2018 from 4 to 7 PM in the Harris Funeral Home, West St. at Buckley, Liberty, NY.

Funeral services will be Saturday, January 13, 2018 at 10 AM in the Funeral Home.  The Rev. Bridget LeConey will officiate.

Memorial contributions in Rita’s name may be made to the Salvation Army, Middletown Corps, PO Box 759 Middletown, NY 10940 or to the Special Olympics of New York, Attn: Donations, 504 Balltown Road, Schenectady, NY 12304.

Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to the Harris Funeral Home West St. at Buckley, Liberty, NY 845-292-0001 or 845-439-5200 www.Harris-FH.com