MILLERTON — Melissa “Missy” Near, R.N., 49, a lifelong area resident, formerly Millerton and Pine Plains, most recently of Spencer, West Virginia, passed away, unexpectedly, on Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024, at Charleston Area Medical Center in West Virginia following a brief illness. Missy had a long career with New York State where she worked as a Registered Nurse at Taconic DDSO on the Wassaic campus.
Born May 1, 1975, in Sharon, she was the daughter of Herbert W. McEathron of Millerton and the late Ida M. (Ferris) McEathron. Missy attended and graduated from Webutuck High School in Amenia, and attended college at Columbia- Greene Community College in Hudson, and Cleveland State University in Cleveland, Ohio. Missy held degrees in Criminal Justice and Nursing at the time of her passing. On July 31, 2010, in Millerton, she married the love of her life, Bruce Near. Bruce survives at their home in Spencer, West Virginia.
Missy was a long-time member of the CSEA and Public Employees Federation (PEF) while she was employed at Taconic DDSO. She was an avid gun collector and an enthusiastic hobby farmer. She enjoyed boating on the Hudson River with her husband, Bruce, for many years and liked camping as well. One of her favorite pastimes was riding on Bruce’s Harley Davidson motorcycle, where they spent many happy times together. She will be dearly missed by loving family and many close friends.
In addition to her husband, Bruce, and her father Herb, Missy is survived by her daughter, Bridget M. Butts of Binghamton, New York, and her son, Bradley W. Butts of Pine Plains; her sister, Winifred Pinczes of Stockholm Center, New York; her aunts, Lorraine Phillips and cousin Joseph Cawley of Millerton and Murial McEathron of Forest City, Pennsylvania; her uncle, Irving “Bob” Ferris of Millbrook; her dear friends, Michael Reynolds and Sara Hutchinson and several cousins and extended family members. She was predeceased by her brother Jozsef C. Pinczes in 2021.
Calling hours will be held on Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Scott D. Conklin Funeral Home, 37 Park Avenue, Millerton, New York, 12546. A funeral service will take place at 11:30 a.m. during visitation. Pastor William Mayhew will officiate. Burial will take place at Valley View Cemetery in Dover Plains, New York at a later date. Memorial contributions may be made to the National MS Society, P.O. Box 91891, Washington, D.C. 20090-1891. To send an online condolence to the family, please visit www.conklinfuneralhome.com
Justine and Victor Valla in their studio with a painting of Victor’s,”Jonah and the Whale.” Robin Roraback 
A ceramic vase by Kathleen Heidemann.Provided 
Joy Brown’s delightful ceramic sculptures.Provided 
