EAST BERNE — Warren Francis “Mike” Willsey lived most of his life — save for a stint in the Army Air Corps during World War II — on the farm in East Berne farm where he had deep roots and where he raised his own family. He loved the land and was key to guiding the Long Path through the Helderbergs. His opinions were revered locally.

He died on Tuesday, April 16, 2024. He was 97.

“He was born at the family farm in East Berne on June 24, 1926,” his family wrote in a tribute, “and was sleeping in the room he was born in until he was recently hospitalized.

“He used to say, ‘I still sleep in the room where I was born, but not with the same woman!’

“Though he was named after his Uncle Warren, he soon earned a lasting nickname. The Great Depression saw homeless men wandering the countryside looking to work as farm hands in return for room and board. Old Mike was one of the toughest of these; rolling cigarettes out of newspaper, brushing his teeth with scouring powder, and winning any fight that broke out.  

“When young Warren was 4 years old, he was playing with a milk separator and noticed an intriguing little ridge of gear oil would form on the unprotected gears as he cranked it. He decided to touch it.

“His finger was drawn instantly through the gears and he lost the tip of his index finger!  Really too astonished to cry, little Warren took this injury stoically, prompting someone in the family to exclaim “You’re as tough as Old Mike!”  He has been called Mike throughout the 94 years since that day.

“Mike was the son of Francis ‘Frank’ Bolster Willsey and Millie Ball Willsey, both from families with very deep ancestral heritage in the Helderbergs. Millie’s mother grew up on what is now Switzkill Farm and her father grew up on the Ball farm on the Switzkill Creek nearby.  

“Mike was the last of Frank and Millie’s nine children to survive. His brother David died at 2 years of age. All but one of his other seven siblings lived into their nineties like him. Longevity is a trait of the Ball family.

“Mike enlisted in the Army Air Corps with his high school buddy, Milton Hart, in December of 1944 before they graduated. Upon graduation, they entered the service, and after a while it was discovered that Milton’s eyesight didn’t meet the Air Corps requirements and he was moved to the infantry (missing the required basic training). 

“As an airplane mechanic, Mike ended up maintaining idled aircraft for readiness as the European theater was winding down. For all the months that Milton marched in campaigns like the liberation of concentration camps, Mike maintained aircraft for readiness, and many were then decommissioned or destroyed. He always felt his contribution to the war effort was minimal and that he didn’t deserve Veterans Affairs benefits.  He strongly felt they were reserved for those who saw combat or were wounded in action. 

“After the war, Mike married Whilma Wolford who lived on a farm near the Schoharie County line on Knox Gallupville Road.

“Her family also has a very deep ancestral heritage in the Helderbergs and Schoharie County. In fact, her ancestor, Daniel Wolford, had a farm in the 1700s on what is now Sawmill Road near the Ball / Willsey farm in East Berne.

“Whilma’s brother Herbert became one of Mike’s best friends for life and he inherited the Wolford farm in Knox. They were both dairy farmers and were always very close. Herbie and Mike were charter members of The Old Men of the Mountain. 

“Mike and Whilma built up a herd of Holstein milk cows on the family farm in East Berne in the late 1940s and early ’50s. They were among Milton’s regular customers at Hart’s Mill in Berne. All of their children loved to visit Milton at the feed store (where Milton had candy hidden behind the counter).  A 7-ounce bottle of coke out of the now famous Coke machine with the rotating top was always a treat.

“One of Mike’s other best local friends was the renowned area neurosurgeon and decorated World War II veteran Dr. Stanley Ball. His father, also a doctor, owned a summer camp on Joslyn School Road nearby and the area was pretty desolate in the 1930s.

“Stanley was a couple of years older but had no one to play with there and began hanging out with Mike on the farm. They were friends to the end. Stanley attended many Willsey family reunions, and he was always considered family (it was just coincidence that his family name was Ball).

“In the early sixties, Mike faced the realization that continuation in the farming business would require debt that was not likely sustainable. He transitioned out of farming selling the very productive, but small, herd and all equipment by 1965. 

“He sold many of his cows to the Settle family farm on the Knox-Gallupville Road where, coincidentally, his final daily home caregiver, Debbie Settle, grew up. Mike knew her father and uncle very well as fellow farmers and their farm was near Herbie Wolford’s farm. Debbie and Mike grew very close as his health declined, and she very skillfully cared for him. 

“Transitioning out of farming doesn’t sound like a big deal to those who didn’t grow up in a farm family, but it was devastatingly painful to drop farming and move on when the entire existence and perceived future of everyone in the family assumed the farm operation would always be a huge part of their lives. 

“The transition required Mike to work numerous simultaneous jobs, some while still milking cows twice a day.  Whilma became a fixture working at Duke’s Dairy Bar in East Berne while raising chickens for eggs; animals for the freezer; and growing, canning, and freezing all the vegetables necessary to make it through each year.  She sewed clothes from scratch and ran a tight ship where housekeeping was concerned. These were incredibly driven, hard-working parents. Their example is now influencing a third generation, their great-grandchildren. 

“Dr. Ball’s father-in-law was the locally famous Joe Kulik, proprietor of the very popular Joe’s Delicatessen on Madison Avenue in Albany. Mike worked there in the kitchen as he transitioned out of farming. Money was very tight then and “care packages” from Joe’s helped get the family through. 

“Mike also worked with Ed Buchardt in his East Berne contracting business as an equipment operator, mason, and carpenter. He commuted to Oneonta to help build the new college campus there as an equipment operator driving his prized Studebaker Lark, an incredibly reliable and powerful car for the era. In 2003, he purchased a Chrysler 300. He always appreciated powerful cars. 

“He worked with Charlie Haluska, another local contractor and helped build additions and houses and such as he transitioned from farming.

“Mike also worked at the Walter Motor Truck Factory in Voorheesville where his mechanical skills learned on the farm and in the Air Corps were an asset. 

“Mike worked at the state campus as a snowplow operator while it was being constructed. 

“He worked on bridge maintenance at the Thruway in the 1960s and was part of a bridge painting crew that lost a member in a fall. He was promoted and became responsible for all the fire extinguishers along the Thruway.  

“Mike was an intelligent guy and was regularly promoted. By 1967, he was working for the state of New York as a traveling inspector in the Standards in Purchase Bureau at the Office of General Services. He commuted to Buffalo for a couple of years, and was there when Niagara Falls was turned off for repair.  

“He eventually took a promotion to a New York State OGS position in surplus property where he arranged for the auctioning of all kinds of state-owned machinery and vehicles. 

“He later went back to the inspection unit at OGS where he was placed in charge of the Standards in Purchase Inspection Unit. There he supervised a team of inspectors who traveled the state vetting machinery and vehicles purchased under state contracts.  

“Mike was very sociable, and he regularly organized dinner events and picnics in his supervisory role, promoting a very positive workplace. He retired from the state in 1988.

“In retirement, he spent a lot of time woodworking for friends and family and developed and built a signature clock and gave away dozens and dozens of them. They are distinctive and recognizable. His grandkids and great-grandkids call them “Poppy Clocks.” He gave one of his last clocks to Sheriff Craig Apple.

“Mike was a fierce advocate for outdoor recreation and did a lot of hiking in his retirement. He worked hard to get the Long Path through the area. He knew most of the old farmers at the time and he was an ambassador of sorts, reaching out to landowners and securing permission for the trail across private properties. He volunteered a lot of time to help with trail maintenance and establishing alternative paths when necessary. 

“Ed Walsh of the New York, New Jersey Trail Conference worked with Mike decades ago and said this about his efforts while expressing his condolences:

“‘Mike was instrumental in getting the Long Path established in Albany County. When we first met back in the ’90s, he was the one that knew everybody, and he brought us to meet all his neighbors to tell them about the trail. Without him I think we would still be knocking on doors trying to get permission! He served as the Albany County Supervisor for a number of years and his service was appreciated. There was a volunteer event yesterday where I spoke and let everyone know your dad has died. He’ll be missed.’

“He was also a supporter of the Frontier Sno-Riders snowmobile club granting permission across his property to establish their trail. He never rode snowmobiles, but he recognized their efforts were very similar to his Long Path efforts. He liked the people he dealt with and praised the organization. That helped promote acceptance of their proposed trail making things a little easier for that organization too. His opinions were revered locally.”

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The Willsey family expressed gratitude “for the compassionate and wonderful care Mike received from Debbie Settle, Betsy Blodget, St. Peter’s Hospital, and The Baptist Health Nursing Home. His care was exceptional.”

Warren Francis “Mike” Willsey is survived by his sister-in-law, Sarah “Sidge” Willsey (Charles), and his five children, Winifred Willsey Chartier (Gerry), Warren Willsey (Carol), Joel Willsey (Patty), Amy Willsey and Erin Willsey Bradt (Ray).

He is also survived by his eight grandchildren, Rebecca Chartier-Hobson (Erin), Jesse Chartier (Kendra), Ashley Willsey Attoma (Anthony), Danielle Willsey Powers (Brian), Caitlin Willsey Rice (Jake), Graham Willsey (Chelsea), Dylan Willsey (Ashley) Rena Bradt, and step-grandson Ted King (son of Carol Willsey).

He is survived, too, by his nine great grandchildren, Stevie Chartier (Jesse and Kendra), Julian Attoma (Ashley and Anthony), Jack Powers (Danielle and Brian), Nora and Gavin Rice (Caitlin and Jake), Hendrick and Concetta Willsey (Graham and Chelsea), Colden Willsey, and his soon-to-be-born sister Everly (Dylan and Ashley).

His wife, Whilma Wolford Willsey, died before him, as did his parents, Frank B. Willsey and Millie Ball Willsey; brothers, David Willsey, Robert Willsey (Marion), Wilford ”Bill” Willsey (Irene) Clyde “Ted” Willsey (Dorothy), and Charles Willsey (Sarah); his sisters, Floy Willsey Behlmer, (George)  Doris Willsey O’Brien (John) Rosemary, “Rusty” Willsey Flint (Arden) and his daughter-in-law Elaine Colose Willsey (Survived by Warren, Ashley and Danielle).

Viewing hours will be from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Fredendall Funeral Home at 199 Main Street in Altamont followed by a short service.

Burial will follow at Woodlawn Cemetery at 1820 Helderberg Trail in Berne.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Helderberg Ambulance Service, 978 Cole Hill Rd, East Berne, NY 12059 or to the Wounded Warrior Project, Post Office Box 758516, Topeka, Kansas 66675-8516.