Elmina Tilden Edmonston
Elmina a resident of Bedford, NY for more than 40 years passed away at Meadow Ridge in Redding, CT on Tuesday, March 20. Mina was in her 100th year. She was among the original "pioneers" at Meadow Ridge where she lived for more than 15 years. For many years she was active with Decorating Committee.
She was the daughter of the late Alfred M. & Elmina (Ambrose) Tilden of Winter Haven, FL. and Sorrento, ME. Her father owned and managed citrus groves and was a pioneer in the field. Her family came from New Lebanon, Columbia County, NY and were collateral descendants of NY Governor Samuel J. Tilden.
Mina was born on an orange grove in Winter Haven, FL in May 1918, at a time and place which was in transition from frontier to settled community and where horses were more common than cars. The eldest of three children, she enjoyed an unusual childhood surrounded by animals and nature. She graduated from Chatham Hall in VA in 1936 and went on to study dance in New York City. She graduated from the Katharine Gibbs School and worked as a secretary in Manhattan until she married.
In West Orange, NJ in June 1941 in she married the love of her life Charles H. Edmonston. They were married for 72 years. He predeceased her in 2013. Her siblings Samuel J Tilden IV and Nina T. Sheldon (formerly of Bedford) also predeceased her.
In 1946 she and Charlie moved to the Bedford area and in1962 they built a house in Bedford Village where they lived for the next 40 years.
She was a loving wife, mother and homemaker. As a young women she enjoyed fishing and sailing. She loved her summers in the Penobscot region of Maine. She had a lifelong love of travel, gourmet cooking and gardening which she got from her mother. Charlie shared her passion for gardening which they pursued well into their 90's. She was active with the Junior League of Mount Kisco, NY where she served as Nominating Committee Chairman from 1955-1957 and the Bedford Garden Club. She had a good eye for color and design and was a talented flower arranger winning many awards. She later served as a Garden Club of America judge at regional flower shows. She was a member of the Mayflower Society, the Colony Club, and the Colonial Dames and was active in St Matthews Church, Bedford, NY.
Mina was an avid reader. She had an interesting library with books on gardening, antiques, art and over 100 cookbooks. When she lost her vision to macular degeneration the recorded books for the blind from the NLS proved a godsend.
Mina is lovingly remembered by daughter Elmina Edmonston Placek, son Tilden Edmonston, his wife Janet Hoffmann and their daughter Elsbeth Anne all of Santa Fe, NM and son Charles Edmonston and wife Lyn (Tiffany) of Poughquag, NY. Also by niece Cappie Morgan and husband Ron, niece Nina Sheldon and nephew Sam Tilden and partner Thea Marx as well as many nieces and nephews.
She will be sorely missed by all whose lives she touched.
A graveside service is planned for May 26 at Cemetery of the Evergreens, New Lebanon, NY. To offer the family online condolences please visit boutonfuneralhome.com.
Memorial donations can be made to:
Chatham Hall: https://chathamhall.myschoolapp.com/page/alumnae--giving/give-today?
Or Macular Degeneration Research: https://www.brightfocus.org/research/macular-degeneration-research-program