ALTAMONT — Earl A. MacIntosh oversaw the multi-million-dollar redevelopment of Albany Medical Center Hospital and applied the same kind of perfectionism to growing Christmas trees to sell.

He died on Monday, June 29, 2020, at his Altamont home surrounded by his family.

Born in 1932, he was the first of five children, and was raised in Slingerlands. He honorably served his country in the Marine Corps during the Korean War.

After college, he joined Montgomery Ward in Menands as the plant engineer responsible for the main facility and the outlying catalog stores in the Northeast and metropolitan areas of Long Island and New Jersey. He later transferred to Wards regional engineering department in Baltimore.

Subsequently, he joined the management staff of the Albany Medical Center Hospital where he worked for 30 years until retiring as vice president. During his tenure, he was asked to assume responsibility for the $168,000,000 Albany Medical Center Hospital redevelopment program, which included all aspects of directing, planning, design, construction, and coordination.

After retiring, Mr. MacIntosh completed a special research project to provide a historical database and assist with plans for the hospital’s 150th anniversary celebration.

Mr. MacIntosh was an active member and leader in his church for over 50 years, director and chairman of the Altamont Fair Museum Committee, member of the board of directors of the Good Samaritan Lutheran Homes, and member of the Water Study Committee for his local town.

He and his wife, Anne, operated a successful choose-and-cut Christmas tree farm for many years. He was a past president of the New York Christmas Tree Growers Association.

When he retired from Albany Medical Center, Mr. MacIntosh would spend entire summer days shearing the trees. “He was a perfectionist; he wanted people to have the best Christmas tree they could,” said his daughter, Karen MacIntosh. “What was rewarding to him was that customers didn’t just come back year after year, it’s that they came back generation after generation.”

When their business first began, customers were invited into the basement for coffee and pastries, but as it grew, that became difficult to manage. “It really was a success …,” his daughter said. “It was deeply meaningful to him.”

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Earl A. MacIntosh is survived by his wife, and high school classmate, Anne, to whom he was married for 63 years; their children, Karen, Earl Jr., Allyn, and Lori; five grandchildren; a brother and two sisters; and numerous nieces and nephews.

A private funeral service for family and friends was held at the Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Delmar.  Burial with military honors was in the Gerald B.H. Solomon Saratoga National Cemetery in Schuylerville.

Memorial contributions may be made to Community Hospice, 310 South Manning Blvd., Albany, NY  12208 or Alzheimer’s Association, NENY Chapter, 4 Pine West Plaza, Suite 405, Albany, NY  12205.