Howland Plans Memorial For Florence Northcutt

BEACON – The Howland Cultural Center will hold a memorial celebration October 13 in honor of Florence Northcutt, the longtime former leader of the center.

Florence Northcutt died May 17, 2024, at age 97, still a member of the Howland board of directors on which she had served for decades, many of them as president and the chief volunteer.

“Please join Florence Northcutt’s family and friends with an afternoon of music, songs and stories celebrating the legacy of this extraordinary woman who dedicated her life to supporting the arts wherever she went,” said Theresa Kraft, Howland president.

This occasion will also launch the Northcutt Legacy Fund to benefit the center’s work in perpetuity. Discussions have begun with the Community Foundations of the Hudson Valley to establish a Designated Fund. In such a fund, the income will support the Howland’s operations and preserve the 1872 historic building that is the center’s home.

To help start the fund, Florence’s family has donated many of her collected treasured artworks to be purchased in a silent auction at the Oct. 13 event.

Donations will also be welcomed to help this cause.

Florence Northcutt moved to Beacon in 1984 and said she was loving every minute of it. She retired after 36 years as an educator and became involved with the arts, which have always been a major part of her life. She joined the Howland Cultural Center board in 1988 and served as its president from 1996 to March 1, 2017. In 1994, she developed a series of monthly art exhibitions, a program that became one of the major features at the center, providing an opportunity for both accomplished and up-and-coming artists of the Hudson Valley to have their work presented to the art-loving public.

The Howland Cultural Center said it was grateful to Florence’s family for sharing her generous heart with them. They thank her son William and his wife Rosemary and daughter Vicki and her husband Joel Reiff. Her beloved grandchildren Frances (Noah Green), Martha (Ayberk Ozturk) and Jed Reiff (Mirella). Cherished great-grandmother of Naomi and Joanna Green, Berk and Taner Ozturk and Yara Kalea Reiff.

As space is limited and many have already registered, those who plan to attend should RSVP in advance via the center’s website, howlandculturalcenter.org, or by going to bit.ly/FNmemorial. The event is from 1-5 and the memorial starts at 2 PM.