Obituary of Myrtle E. Buyce

SOUTH GLENS FALLS:  Beloved aunt, cherished friend, and treasured member of her church community, Myrtle Putnam Buyce, formerly of Athol, NY, died at her long-time residence at the Home of the Good Shepherd on January 7, 2024, at the age of 98.

[A celebration of Myrtle’s life will take place on Saturday, April 27, 2024. For specific details, please see below.]

Born August 16, 1925, in South Wilton (Saratoga Springs), NY, Myrtle was the daughter of Jasper and Sylvia Ellithorpe Putnam. The fourth of five siblings, she was the first baby born in the new home her grandfather, the Rev. Osmond Putnam, was building for the family after a fire destroyed the original house.

Myrtle attended Wilton School #6 and Saratoga High School. When she was 16, her family moved back to the Putnam Farm on Crane Mountain, which her great-grandfather Francis Putnam had established and which had been in the Putnam family for several generations.  Myrtle graduated from North Creek High School with the class of 1943. Members of that class of graduates from high schools throughout the region were recruited by the General Electric Company in Schenectady, NY to fill the need for workers to support manufacturing for war-time readiness. When she began employment with GE, Myrtle moved to Schenectady, NY, where she would live for approximately 25 years.

Starting in 1947 and graduating in 1952, Myrtle also attended Nyack College, transitioning back and forth between being a full-time college student and a full-time worker, eventually earning a degree in Christian Education. After 1952, she worked for fifteen years in the supply department of Ellis Hospital in Schenectady and held volunteer Christian education positions in the Christian Missionary Alliance Church there.

As a child, she was a member (simultaneously) of the South Wilton Methodist Church and the Christian Missionary Alliance Church in Saratoga Springs. As a teenager, she was active in the Wesleyan Methodist Church on Mill Creek Road, which her great-great-grandfather Rev. Enos Putnam had built.

Myrtle married Elmer Buyce in 1968. They made their home on Buyce Cross Road in Athol at the Buyce family homestead, which had been a family-run boarding house for previous generations. Elmer retired from the Town of Thurman after working there for about 30 years. He also worked part-time at the Glen-Hudson campground, as did Myrtle from time to time. Their home was surrounded by Elmer’s colorful flower gardens and impressive vegetable gardens, with a back yard trail leading visitors into the woods to the scenic, gurgling, sometimes ferocious, Patterson Brook. Elmer Buyce died October 2, 2010.

When Myrtle’s father died in 1984, Myrtle and Elmer invited Myrtle’s mother to live with them. They cared for Sylvia Putnam at their home for almost nine years, until a few months before her passing in 1993.

Myrtle was an involved and inspirational member of the Thurman Baptist Church for more than half a century. For most of those many years, Myrtle’s daily life was enriched by frequent phone conversations with her many close friends from her church community as well as with many family members. Myrtle treasured those relationships, and all who received daily or weekly calls from Myrtle felt strengthened by her consistent uplifting outlook on life.

The family feels deep appreciation for all those who have reached out to our Aunt Myrt over these last few years to show her how very much they love and value her. Particular thanks also go to the thoughtful and caring staff at The Home of the Good Shepherd and, recently, The Community Hospice, who provided extra help, comfort and encouragement when it was needed most.

In addition to her husband and her parents, Myrtle was predeceased by her sisters, Doris Putnam Lasselle and Elsie Putnam Allen; a brother, Wayne Putnam; and a nephew, James Allen.

She is survived by her brother Jay Putnam and by twelve nieces and nephews - Linda Lasselle Baker, Sally Lasselle Grigg, and Richard Lasselle; Carolyn Putnam Lowrey, Jeff Putnam, and Mark Putnam; David Allen, Walter Allen, Joe Allen, and Diana Allen Caswell; and Casey Putnam and Margaret Putnam Williamson - and by niece-in-law Cathy Allen. Myrtle also considered long-time close friends and neighbors Joan and Dede Harris and Terry Beadnell and Donna Beadnell Knickerbocker to be family members.

A celebration of Myrtle’s life will take place on Saturday, April 27, 2024.  At 9:30 am on that date, friends and family are invited to meet at Warrensburg Cemetery, Hudson Street, Warrensburg, NY, where Myrtle will be laid to rest.

The Thurman Baptist Church, 386 South Johnsburg Road, Thurman, NY, will be the site of the continuing commemoration that day, beginning with an informal gathering time at approximately 10:30 am.  The 11 am memorial service for Myrtle will be hosted by former pastor Rev. Nathan Herrmann.  Following the service, everyone is invited to stay for a time of fellowship and remembering.

In lieu of flowers, expressions of sympathy may take the form of donations to the Thurman Baptist Church.

Please visit www.alexanderfh.net for online guestbook, condolences and directions.