On September 9, 2023, Deborah Doherty-Williams (age 68) died in her home surrounded by her immediate family; husband Jeffrey Williams, and daughters Lindsay, Kaitlin and Jessica. Born in Boston, MA on September 16, 1954 to parents Joseph (Bud) Doherty and Margaret (Peg) Moran, Deb was raised alongside her older brother Dennis, and younger brothers, David and Daniel Doherty.
The family lived in various locations in Massachusetts until settling in Rhinebeck in April of 1964 when Deb was 9 years old. Deb participated in numerous activities, clubs, and sports including cheerleading, school plays, choir, Spanish club, chefs club, ski club, hall patrol, volleyball, and field hockey.
Each summer, Deb and her family would visit their grandparents’ home in Hampton Beach, NH one block from the beach. Hampton Beach was a special place for her. No matter what life brought; graduating from high school in 1972, going to college, getting married, and raising a family, she never missed a yearly visit to Hampton Beach.
Deb first “met” her future husband Jeff, on their senior trip to Washington, DC in 1972. Deb and Jeff married in 1977 and remained together for 51 years.
Deborah spent her early college years attending SUNY Geneseo, Dutchess Community College, and SUNY Cortland. She received an Associate’s in 1974 and received a Bachelor’s degree in Health Education in 1976. In 1976 Deborah moved with her husband, Jeff, to Ithaca, NY where she worked at Planned Parenthood while her husband attended veterinary school at Cornell University. After several years at Planned Parenthood, Deb attended SUNY Binghamton where, in 1982, she graduated with a Master’s degree in accounting. Jeff graduated from veterinary school the same year and same day as Deb.
After graduation from SUNY Binghamton, Deb and Jeff moved to Massachusetts where she worked as an accountant for a large retail store. In 1983, Deb and Jeff moved back to the Hudson Valley where Deb worked at various accounting firms until starting a family in 1986. She had three beautiful daughters all delivered at the newly opened Neugarten Birth Center at Northern Dutchess hospital in Rhinebeck. Music was a constant in Deborah’s life. There was always something playing in the house when the children were growing up. They knew many of the lyrics to Tears for Fears, The Cranberries, Michael Jackson, and Imogen Heap before they were in middle school. Deb also enjoyed Zero Seven, Beth Orten, Garbage, Sofi Tukker, Sneaker Pimps and many others.
Deb and Jeff loved history and exploring new places. Thanks to Debs’ insistence they found time to travel around the U.S. and abroad. At home one of Deb’s favorite pastimes was sitting on the back porch with her dog Jewel, a Jack Russell terrier given to the family as a puppy, watching the beautiful sunsets over the Catskill Mountains while enjoying a drink, a “toke’ and some music. It was our “Sunset Celebration” (as they say on Key West).
Please read full obituary here.
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