June 4, 2013

Solomon Schifrin, 93
November 23, 1919-May 31, 2013

Solomon Schifrin of Rock Hill, NY, died peacefully on May 31, 2013 in Silver Spring, MD. He was 93.
Born in Monticello, NY, on November 23, 1919, the youngest of Joseph and Esther Schifrin’s nine children, he graduated from Erasmus Hall High School and served in the United States Army as a staff sergeant and radio operator. He was stationed in Europe during WWII and fought in the Battle of Normandy.
He was an owner of Expediters of the Printed Word, a distributor of foreign and domestic publications, and lived in Bayside, Queens, before retiring to Lake Louise Marie in Rock Hill. He was an active member of the Kiwanis Club and of the Crescent Hill Synagogue, and an avid follower of the news. He loved dogs, children, and, above all, his family. 
He is survived by daughters, Emily Schifrin of Silver Spring, MD, and Karen Grosso of Endwell, NY; sons-in-law John Chamberlain and William Grosso; grandson Milo Chamberlain; and four generations of nieces and nephews. His wife of 61 years, Rita Schifrin, died in 2012.
Services are scheduled for Tuesday, June 4, 2013 at 11 a.m. at the Joseph N. Garlick Funeral Home at 388 Broadway in Monticello.
Interment will follow at the Ahavath Israel Synagogue Cemetery in Liberty.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in his memory to a charity of your choice.
For directions or to send the family a condolence note, please visit www.josephngarlickfuneralhome.com.

Bernice Shiffman, 80
4/20/1933 - 6/1/2013

Bernice Shiffman, a longtime resident of White Lake, NY, died on June 1, 2013. She was 80.
Bernice was a teacher in the Sullivan County Headstart program for more than two decades until her retirement. She was a member of Temple Beth-El in Kauneonga Lake, NY, for nearly 50 years and served the congregation as an officer and a member of the Board of Trustees. She lived the last 3 years in Layton, UT.
She is survived by a brother, Steven Yabek of Albuquerque, NM; her three children, Mitchell Shiffman of Richmond, VA, Kevin Shiffman of Syracuse, NY, and Jody Wong of Layton, UT, and 9 grandchildren.
A funeral service will be conducted at 12 p.m. on Wednesday, June 5 at the Joseph N. Garlick Funeral Home in Monticello, NY.
Burial will follow at the Temple Beth-El Cemetery in Bethel, NY, where she will be laid to rest next to her husband Eugene.
For directions or to send the family a condolence note, please visit www.josephngarlickfuneralhome.com.

Elma E. (Ann)(Rutledge) Soracco
Retired Registered Nurse, 101

Elma Elizabeth (Rutledge) Soracco, 101, of Liberty, NY, passed away peacefully on May 31, 2013 at the Life Care Center of Nashoba Valley, Littleton, MA. She was the beloved wife of the late Louis F. Soracco for 51 years.
Elma was born in Galilee, Pennsylvania on June 6, 1911. She was the daughter of Floyd E. and Mary I. (Gilroy) Rutledge. She was educated in Galilee and graduated from the Damascus, PA High School in 1929. Elma went to nursing school at the Clemson School of Nursing at the Horton Memorial Hospital in Middletown, NY. Elma (Ann) received her “Cap” in September 1932, graduating in a class of approximately six. She received her Registered Nurse Certificate from the University of the State of New York on September 22, 1932. Elma went to Bellevue Hospital in New York City for intern work and then to Mass. General in Boston, MA, as an intern. Elma returned to Middletown, NY, and worked as an Operating Room nurse with Dr. Roswell L. Schmidt, Chief Surgeon.
Elma went to Liberty, NY, and worked as an Operating Room nurse at Maimonides Hospital in the late 1930s. She met and married Louis F. Soracco, a Liberty policeman, on January 4, 1942. They resided at their home on Darby Lane with their two sons, Louis F. Soracco, now retired Major, USAF, and Reginald J. Soracco, PhD, who predeceased her. Elma also worked as a nurse at the Liberty Loomis Hospital and the Woodbourne Correctional Facility, in Woodbourne, NY. Elma was a communicant of St. Peter’s Parish and a 50-year member of the Rosarians. Elma was also active in the Cornell Extension and Home Demonstration.
Survivors include her son, Louis Soracco and wife Mary of Littleton, MA, and four grandchildren, Rachella and husband Christopher Johnson of Littleton, MA; Roma and husband John (JP) Ehwa of Ayer, MA; Louis A. Sorraco and wife Anita of Ayer, MA, and Teresa Soracco of Littleton, MA. She is also survived by five cherished great-grandchildren. In addition, she is survived by nieces and nephews in New York and New Jersey and relatives in New York, Pennsylvania and Florida.
Friends may call on Thursday, June 6 from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. at Ramsay’s Funeral Home, 275 S. Main St., Liberty, NY.
A Mass of Christian Burial will take place on Friday, June 7, 2013 at noon at St. Peter’s Church, 264 N. Main St., Liberty.
Burial in St. Joseph’s Cemetery in Rileyville, PA will follow the Mass.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in her name may be sent to St. Peter’s Church, 264 N. Main St., Liberty, NY 12754 or to the American Heart Association, 1 Union St. #301, Robbinsville, NJ 08691-4183.
Funeral arrangements are by Ramsay’s Funeral Homes Inc., Liberty, NY. For further information or to send an online condolence, please visit www.ramsaysfuneralhome.com.

Tomira Koss
Artist, 50

Tomira Koss of North Branch, NY, an 18-year area resident, died Thursday, May 30, 2013 at the age of 50.
Tomira was born January 22, 1963 in Gdynia, Poland, and immigrated to America in 1971. She lived in New York City until 1995 when she moved to the beautiful Catskills Mountains with her family. As a child and young adult, she was part of the “Koss Family Artists” exhibiting her paintings in New York, Poland and around the world. She had the great honor of meeting Pope John Paul II in the Vatican in 1983 when he opened the family’s exhibition of religious paintings.
Tomira graduated from the private and prestigious The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science & Art in New York City in 1984 with a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts. She loved to study and travel the world, a passion she held her entire life. Over the years she went to: Egypt, Greece, Italy, France, England, Poland, Serbia, Montenegro, Mexico, Hong Kong, Macau, Tahiti and Marquesas Islands, Caribbean Islands, and Hawaii. Once she discovered Hawaii, especially the island of Maui, she fell in love with these Pacific Islands and returned 8 more times, wishing them to be her resting place in the end.
Art and photography never left her as she enjoyed doing landscape photos and making albums. Since 2000 she had been working for Sullivan County as a Case Manager. In 2004, Tomira became the Case Manager at the Adult Care Center. She truly enjoyed working with the elderly and was devoted to her residents and co-workers.
Tomira is very grateful to her friends and co-workers at the Sullivan County Adult Care Center who donated 220.5 hours of vacation time to help her get better.
She is survived by her loving husband, Senad Mujanovic; her five children, Konrad Koss (25), Violetta Koss (22), Jasmina Mujanovic (17), Ryszard Mujanovic (14), Senada Mujanovic (6); her father, Jerzy A Koss of NYC; her brother, Wlodek Koss; her sister-in-law, Joey Koss; along with her nieces, Sofia Koss (1) and Sonia Koss (13); and her nephews, Adrian Koss (15) and Jonathan Koss (20).
Viewing will be held on Tuesday, June 4, 2013 from 2-4 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. at Ramsay’s Funeral Home, 275 S. Main St. Liberty, NY.
A Celebration of Life Memorial Mass will be held at St. Mary’s Church in Obernburg, NY, followed by a reception on Saturday, June 8 at 11 a.m.
Memorial donations can be made to the family and sent to Senad Mujanovic at P.O. Box 110, Callicoon Center, NY 12724.
Funeral arrangements are by Ramsay’s Funeral Homes Inc., Liberty, NY. For further information or to send an online condolence, please visit www.ramsaysfuneralhome.com.