Obituaries

Brent Newsom, in memoriam.

Roger Ames, a composer who lived in Springs for many years, died last Thursday at home in Cumberland, Me. He was 77. An obituary will appear in a future issue.

Carlos Baladron of East Hampton and Naples, Fla., a real estate investor in New York and Spain who was a professor of Spanish history and literature earlier in his career, died on New Year’s Day in Naples.

Brent Newsom, a chef, caterer, and restaurant and nightclub owner who lived in Wainscott and East Hampton, died on Dec. 27 of complications of Covid-19.

Michael Parrella, an Army veteran who worked for the United States Postal Service, died at home in Sag Harbor on Dec. 21. Mr. Parrella, who was 90, had been in declining health for the last several months.

Word has reached The Star that Irene Feldt of East Hampton died of heart failure on Aug. 19. She was 89.

Gloria Taradash, who was known as Glorious, died of cardiopulmonary arrest on Dec. 24 at New York-Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York City. She was 93.

Sheila Mary Collum, a longtime East Hampton resident dubbed Gra by her grandson as a toddler, could not have earned a more fitting nickname, according to her children, who later learned that the word “Gra” means “love” in Gaelic. This is exactly what Mrs. Collum embodied throughout her life to all who knew her, her children said.

Ellen Frank followed her dreams despite the obstacles in her path. Four years after earning her doctorate and securing a tenured teaching position, she quit teaching in order to paint, despite the misgivings of her parents and her lack of formal training.

Allan Paul White, a longtime resident of East Hampton, died on Dec. 23 at Good Samaritan Hospital in West Palm Beach, Fla., not far from his winter residence in the village of Wellington.

A memorial service for Bryan Eldridge, a detective who worked for the East Hampton Village Police Department for 19 years, will take place Thursday from 2 to 5 p.m. at East Hampton High School. A formal police officer’s service will begin at 4, and a reception will follow at the East Hampton Fire Department headquarters on Cedar Street. Mr. Eldridge died on Dec. 22.

Word has been received of the death of Merrie Barbara Bennett Gay, a lifelong resident of Springs, on July 15 at the Kanas Center for Hospice Care in Quiogue. She was 63 and had been ill with cancer for two years.