Beryl MacMillen Anderson, a beloved music teacher, died peacefully at 100 years of age on Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Catskill, New York at The Pines Nursing Home. 

“God gave me a wonderful journey as, first, a musician, and then as a teacher!” she said.

She was born July 25, 1924 in Knox 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,” her family wrote in a tribute. “She went on to earn her bachelor’s degree in music education from Houghton College in 1949, and her master’s degree at Ithaca College.”

In 1951, she began her teaching career in public schools in Beacon, in Dutchess County, and Livingston Manor, in Sullivan County, and, in 1953, landed at Liberty Central School, also in Sullivan County, New York.

“Over the next 30 years in both the junior-senior high school and elementary schools,” the tribute went on, “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, 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.”

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Beryl MacMillen Anderson is survived by her daughter, Amy Anderson (Steve Rosen) of Warrensburg, New York; her son, William Henry Anderson II (Katherine Lastowka Anderson) of Belmont, Massachusetts; her daughter, Marcia Anderson Petucci (Christopher Petucci) of Norristown, Pennsylvania; her 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, Arizona, who survives, and his sons, Douglas Anderson of Scottsdale, Arizona and Jeffrey Anderson of Kalaheo, Hawaii.

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

When she was 18 months old, Mrs. Anderson’s 3-year-old sister, June, died from illness. Her parents also died before her, as did her husband; her brother, John MacMillen of Delmar, and his wife ,Dorothy; her brother-in-law, John Miller; and numerous aunts, uncles, a niece, and cousins.

Visitation will be Friday, Dec. 6, from 4 to 7 p.m. at McLoughlin & Mason Funeral Home in Troy. The  funeral will be Saturday, Dec. 7, at 10 a.m. at the Knox Reformed Church in Knox.  Commitment will follow at St. Peter’s Oakwood Cemetery in Troy.