Memorial Garden Dedicated for Longtime Cortlandt Volunteer
On what would have been her 93rd birthday, a Memorial Garden was dedicated on the front lawn of Cortlandt Town Hall Thursday for Helen Lindsey, a longtime volunteer who worked tirelessly to beautify the community.
Lindsey, who died January 6, was a 56-year member and past president of the Garden Club of Peekskill and a former home economics teacher at Hendrick Hudson High School.
“She really touched our lives and she touched our hearts,” said Cortlandt Supervisor Linda Puglisi. “We are grateful to her forever.”
Lindsey was married for many years to Merritt Lindsey, a former principal at Lakeland High School. She was a master flower judge and developed many symposiums in New York State. However, she will be best remembered for her creative town-wide plantings, including in the courtyard at Town Hall and at Steamboat Dock in Verplanck.
“I think one of her specialties was her design work,” Puglisi said. “She did inspire many. She did teach me a lot. She was determined, she was dedicated. She was passionate about what she wanted to do.”
Holly Larken-Rice, president of the Garden Club, also spoke about Lindsey’s creative touch.
“Helen was an inspiration to many and is greatly missed by all,” she said.
Cortlandt Receiver of Taxes Mary Breining recalled being a student of Lindsey in high school.
“She expected the best. She could never stop teaching or bringing us further,” Breining said. “She was always on the cutting edge. She never had a design that was the same.”
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