Longtime Liberty resident Beryl MacMillen Anderson passed away peacefully at 100 years of age on Tuesday, November 26, 2024, in Catskill, NY at The Pines Nursing Home.

She was born July 25, 1924 in Knox, NY, to Irving MacMillen and Rachel Gibbs MacMillen, who owned a dairy farm there until the 1970s. Mrs. Anderson attended Berne-Knox schools (starting off in a one-room schoolhouse) and, after high school graduation, worked at the nearby General Electric plant to help the war effort.

She went on to earn her Bachelors of Music Education from Houghton College in 1949, and her Master’s at Ithaca College. In 1951 she began her teaching career in public schools in Beacon, NY, Livingston Manor, NY, and, in 1953, landed at Liberty Central School.

Over the next 30 years in both the Jr-Sr. High and Elementary schools, she became a local institution as a much-loved and respected music teacher.

There she met her husband, William N. Anderson, Sr., who was the District’s Business Administrator. They married in 1955, built a home on Benton Hollow Road on Revonah Hill in Liberty, and raised three children.

Mrs. Anderson also contributed her notable energies to the production of several well-received school musicals in the 1960s and early 1970s, along with art and theater teacher Gary Eckhart and many talented staff, students, and volunteers.

Among them were “Peter Pan,” “Camelot,” “The Sound of Music,” “The Music Man,” and “Man of La Mancha.” She always maintained a private piano teaching studio in her home, and continued to do so after her retirement in 1984, and well into her 90s while living in Guilderland, NY after leaving Liberty in 1996.

She attributed her youthfulness and longevity to the joy she felt working with children, imparting to them a love of music that many say has had a long and profound impact on their lives. In retirement she also maintained her connection with her church, often contributing to music and bible study programs.

She enjoyed traveling with friends and relatives: a walking tour of England; marveling at the beauty of Switzerland, Austria, and Budapest; and a pilgrimage to Turkey and Syria as part of a church tour entitled “In the Footsteps of St. Paul” along with her sister and brother-in-law, Leah and John Miller.

In 2007, Mrs. Anderson was an honored guest at the 50th reunion dinner of the Liberty High School Class of 1957, and enjoyed every minute of it. When she was 18 months old, Mrs. Anderson’s 3-year-old sister, June, died from illness.

Others who predeceased her are her parents; her husband; her brother John MacMillen of Delmar, NY and his wife Dorothy; her brother-in-law John Miller; and numerous aunts, uncles, a niece, and cousins.

Survivors include her daughter Amy Anderson (Steve Rosen) of Warrensburg, NY; her son William Henry Anderson II (Katherine Lastowka Anderson) of Belmont, MA; her daughter Marcia Anderson Petucci (Christopher Petucci) of Norristown, PA; grandchildren Nathanael, Sophia, and Rachel Petucci; and William H. Anderson III.

Mrs. Anderson valued highly her connections with her stepson, William N. Anderson, Jr. of Scottsdale, AZ, who survives, and his sons, Douglas Anderson of Scottsdale, AZ and Jeffrey Anderson of Kalaheo, HI.

She is also survived by her sister, Leah MacMillen Miller of Wheaton, IL; several nieces and nephews, grand-nieces and grand-nephews, and numerous cousins and their families.

Visitation will be Friday, December 6 from 4-7 at McLoughlin & Mason Funeral Home, Troy, NY. Funeral will be Saturday, December 7 at 10 a.m. at the Knox Reformed Church, Knox, NY. Commitment will follow at St. Peter’s Oakwood Cemetery, Troy, NY.

“God gave me a wonderful journey as, first, a musician, and then as a teacher!” — Beryl Anderson. Please visit www.mcloughlinmason.com.