WRIGHT — Agnes L. Gaige, who brightened every room with joy and laughter, died on Saturday, Feb. 7, 2015 at St. Peter’s Hospice Inn in Albany, after a brief terminal illness. She was 84.

Mrs. Gaige was born on Sept. 1, 1930, in the Bronx, the daughter of Katherine (née Buckenberger) and Alfred Holt.

The family purchased a farm and moved to Cotton Hill, Middleburgh in 1933.

“The city girl quickly became a country girl,” wrote Mrs. Gaige’s family in a tribute.

She graduated from Schoharie High School in 1950, and on May 26, 1951, she married her high school sweetheart, Donald Gaige. Their union ended only with his death, in 1977.

Together the couple raised five children on the family dairy farm in Schoharie.

“Agnes loved to socialize, enjoyed laughter, and had a quick wit, hilarious sayings, and enormous strength,” wrote her family. “She was a true survive of many hardships. She was full of life and brought laughter and joy just by her presence in a room.”

She was a loyal friend who loved to care for others; animals and children had a special place in her heart; she was a great storyteller with animation that was unforgettable; she was proud of her family and enjoyed sharing her accomplishments with others.

“She loved her family, chatting with her sisters and good friends,” wrote her family. “She will be missed by many, but never forgotten.”

Mrs. Gaige is survived by her children, Richard Gaige, and his wife, Janet, David Gaige, and his wife, Donna, Nancy Liddle, and her husband, John, and Timothy Gaige, all of Schoharie; six grandchildren, Richard, Lori, Jessica, Allison, Gregory, and Robert Gaige, all of Schoharie; four great-grandchildren, Kailey, Emily, Adam, and Richard; two sisters, Ethel Benninger, and her husband, Robert, of Central Bridge, and Annabelle Rivenburgh of Schoharie; and many special nieces and nephews.

Her husband, Donald Gaige, died before her, as did her son, Donald Gaige Jr., her brother, Robert Holt, and her brother-in-law, Warren Rivenburgh.

Calling hours will be held on Friday, Feb. 13, from 10 a.m. to noon, at the Langan Funeral Home, 327 Main St., Schoharie, followed by a funeral service at 1 p.m. at the Gallupville Gospel Church, Route 443, Schoharie. Interment will be later in the Old Stone Fort Cemetery in Schoharie.

Further information is available at www.langanfuneralhome.com.

Memorial contributions may be made to Marathon for a Better Life, Post Office Box 268, Warnerville, NY 12187.

The family thanks the staff at St. Peters Hospice Inn for “providing top-notch end-of-life care and comfort” and to Jess, Norda, Donna, Linda, and Jacob at St. Peters Hospital” for their excellent care, love, and dedication.”