In Memory: Roland William Ellis, Jr., Age 89
Roland William Ellis, Jr., of New Paltz, NY, passed away on September 16th, 2022, at Woodland Pond. He was predeceased by his parents, Roland Sr. and Marguerite Ellis, and his brother, David Ellis. He is survived by his loving wife of 48 years, Alice Murphy Ellis, and their three sons, Abram W. Paradies (Savannah TN), William T. Paradies (Orlando FL), and James I. Paradies (Largo FL), six grandchildren, three great-grandchildren, and numerous nieces, nephews, and in-laws.
Roland was born on April 4th, 1933, in St. Louis, Mo. Roland Sr. worked for Shell Oil and was transferred to New York City when Roland Jr. was a child and the family settled in White Plains, NY. Roland Jr. attended the usual schools and was then accepted at Oswego State College and majored in Industrial Arts Education. Upon graduation he was hired by the Washingtonville, NY school district and after one year was drafted into the U.S. Army, No one was fighting anyone at that time.
After his honorable discharge from the Army, Roland Jr. taught at Rye High School seven years, during which time he attended Indiana University for a year and received a Master’s Degree in Education. He was then hired by the New Paltz, NY school district to work as the Audio/Visual coordinator. He also served in several other positions during his many years in the New Paltz school district. His final eight years of teaching were at the Newburgh Free Academy as an Industrial Arts teacher.
The best thing that ever happened to him was Alice, a New Paltz elementary school teacher who had three young sons. He got along easily with her and her sons (10, 13 and 15 at the time) and knew of them from Boy Scouts, where Roland Jr. was a long-time Scoutmaster and Leadership Development Coordinator. Roland Jr. and Alice decided to marry and did so in 1974 and have had many pleasant adventures since.
He put an addition on his house in the woods and the family enjoyed many years living near the Mohonk Preserve. Hiking, canoeing, traveling, and community service were important to Roland Jr., and he was very proud that all three of his sons became Eagle Scouts. After the boys’ college graduations, Roland Jr. and Alice moved to a home on Luna Drive in Gardiner NY, in 1990. And when Alice, also a teacher, retired, they moved into the Woodland Pond retirement facility in 2010.
Roland was active in the Pondaliers choir, and his sense of humor endeared him to all of the other residents and staff of Woodland Pond. Roland Jr. also worked and volunteered at the Mohonk Preserve for 25 years, leading school groups and scheduling volunteers for trips on the property. He received many awards and honors for his volunteer work not only for the Preserve, but also for his long-time contributions to Scouting. At Roland Jr.’s, request, there will be no services; the family will have a private memorial at a later date. The family requests any contributions in Roland Jr.’s, name be made to the Mohonk Preserve.
