Fannie Gurney, of Elmont, died on Dec. 31, 1999. Wife of the late Joseph. Mother of Joseph and Carol. Mother-in-law of Paula and Thomas. Grandmother of six. Great-grandmother of seven. Arrangements were made by the Krauss Funeral Home, Franklin Square. Mass of Christian Burial at St. Vincent de Paul RC Church. Interment Evergreens Cemetery. Anna M. Howell, of West Hempstead, died on Jan. 1, 2000. Wife of Gregory. Mother of Theresa Parsons and Janine Sadowski. Sistero of Michael Amborsino. Grandmother of Adam and Victoria. Arrangements were made by the Barnes-Sorrentino Funeral Home, West Hempstead. Mass at St. Thomas RC Church. Interment St. Charles Cemetery. Contributions can be made to the National Primary Pulmonary Hypertension Association.

Anna Marie Bundschuh (Kirchert), 95, died on Jan. 6, 2000 at the Athol Memorial Hospital. Her husband of 35 years Ludwig Bundschuh died in 1967. She leaves two sons, Dr. Ernest Bundschuh of Seabrook Island, SC, and Werner Bundschuh of Royalston; five grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; four nephews and a niece.

She was born Dec. 1, 1904, the youngest of six children, in Hausen, a village north of Stuttgart, Germany. She came to the US in 1928 to visit her mother's sister, Katie Mussler, and stayed for the rest of her life. She met her husband, Ludwig, at the Hempstead Liederkranz, a German choral society on LI. After they were married in 1932 they lived on a duck farm managed by Ludwig and in 1938 they moved to Franklin Square.

After WWII, Marie and Ludwig started a farm in Plainview raising chickens, turkeys, ducks and geese along with a menagerie of other creatures including peacocks. Except for a road-side hot dog stand and a gas station, Plainview had only farms and fields. In the mid 1960s, when Marie and Ludwig sold their farm, it was the last in town, completely surrounded by housing subdivisions.

Marie and Ludwig lived for a while in Bethpage where Ludwig died. Marie later moved to Athol and for the past two years resided at Quabbin Valley Healthcare.

Marie had a life-long interest in folk medicine and healing. Any suggestion that one was indisposed would send her to her books, in both German and English, in search of an herbal remedy that would surely correct the condition if one faithfully followed to her prescriptions. She also practiced what is now called reflexology, the belief that massage of specific areas of the foot and hand can affect vital organs in the body. Although never denied "official" medical care for ailments, Marie's sons - and anyone within her reach - were first required to submit to her foot massages. Always of frail stature, Marie used a toy wooden bowling ball pin to achieve the necessary pressure on her patient's foot, usually causing enough pain to make any discomfort from the original ailment disappear.

Funeral services were held Jan. 8 in the First Congregational Church in Royalston with Rev. Virginia Asel, pastor, officiating. Burial Lawrence Brook Cemetery, Royalston. Arrangements were made by the Higgins-O'Connor Funeral Home, Athol.