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Jean DeLand Hardy

Jean DeLand Hardy, 88, of Saranac Lake, and formerly of Canton, died on Tuesday, May 27, 2014 at the Essex Center for Rehabilitation in Elizabethtown.

There will be a private memorial service held at the convenience of the family at a later date. There will be no calling hours. Arrangements are with W.M. Marvin’s Sons Funeral Home in Elizabethtown.

Jean was born March 28, 1926 in Fairport, the daughter of Page and Sybil DeLand. She was raised in Fairport and graduated from Fairport High School in 1944. The family spent their summers at their cottage on Sodus Bay. Jean attended the University of New Hampshire four years and graduated in 1948 with a Physical Education Degree.

She taught at St. Lawrence University where she met her husband, Dr. John W. (Jack) Hardy, the optometrist in Canton for 37 years. They were married Aug. 16, 1952 at the First Congregational Church in Fairport. They resided in Canton and had three daughters. Jean received her Master’s Degree from SUNY Potsdam and taught physical education at Knox Memorial School in Russell for many years. The family spent their summers at their cottage on the St. Lawrence River. In 2001, Jean and her husband relocated to Saranac Lake.

Jean loved the great outdoors. She enjoyed sailing, skiing, hiking, canoeing, kayaking, camping and bike riding with her family and friends. She was an Adirondack 46er and a member of the Laurentian, Hurricane Mountain, and Northwoods chapters of the Adirondack Mountain Club. Jean was a member of the Keene Valley Congregational Church in Keene Valley.

Jean is survived by her three daughters and two sons-in-law: Linda and Bill Ainsworth of Canton, Jennifer Munn of Saranac Lake and Garnet and Neil Hubbard of Newburgh, Maine; two grandchildren: Hannah (Ainsworth) Zampelli of Odenton, Maryland and Dan Ainsworth of Boston, Massachusetts; one great-grandson, Kellan Zampelli; and three nieces.

Jean was predeceased by her husband, Jack Hardy, her brother Warren DeLand, and two nephews.

Family and friends will remember her one of a kind generous and adventurous spirit. Memorial donations may be made to the Adirondack Mountain Club Trails Program.