Lois Hurlock Crist

“Beloved Wife, Mother, Grammy, GG, Friend and Teacher”

Lois Hurlock Crist passed away July 19, 2025, under Hospice care in Newburgh, NY at the age of 98. She lived on Crist Bros Orchards where she moved after she was married and lived until her passing. She leaves behind her sister Syliva Dowst; children Jeffrey Day Crist (Joy), Nancy Crist Milch (Chuck), Joanne Donnellan (Lloyd); grandchildren Jeffrey Milch, Leah Northington, Jennifer Kohn, Alicia Milch, Joel Crist, Nathaniel Milch, Jedidiah Crist; and great grandchildren Alessandra, Zinnia, Mary, William Ellis, Viggo, Lucy, Gideon, Edmund, Ines, Evelyn, Arlo, Haytham.

Lois was born in Marblehead, MA on April 24, 1927, soon followed by her twin sister Lorraine who remained her closest friend throughout life. She loved living near the ocean and growing up with her four sisters. Lois studied violin, enjoyed many sports especially swimming and was a camp counselor during summers. She graduated from Tufts University in 1949 with a dual major in PE and music. 

Lois met her husband Edward Crist, 3rd generation Hudson Valley farmer and WWII purple heart veteran, while skiing with the Newburgh Ski Club. They were married in 1952 and enjoyed a full and loving marriage until Ed’s passing in 1998. Lois loved the farm, becoming a pruner, apple harvest inspector, and daily cold room reader. She was a concert violinist with the Hudson Valley Philharmonic, a founding member of the Newburgh Symphony Orchestra, and taught violin using the Suzuki method. During summers she ran “Grammy Camp” for her six grandchildren. Lois inspired children throughout her life with her playfulness and enthusiasm.

Lois married John Woodward in 2001, another veteran of the 10th Mountain Troops of WWII. They spent 10 wonderful years traveling the world and snow birding in Arizona. Lois took up ski racing in her late 70’s, downhill skied through her 80’s and cross country skiied into her mid 90’s.

Lois continued her active life on the farm in her later years playing in a music trio, off-roading in the golfcart, visiting her family in New England, gardening and finding joy and beauty in each day. Lois’s spirit of independence, generosity, thriftiness, and eternal positivity – plus her unmatched zest for life - will live on in her family and the many lives she touched. Because of her life, the world is a better place.

Visitation will be held on Friday July 25, 2025, from 4 to 7 at Millspaugh Funeral Home, 22 Bank St., Walden, NY 12586.

A Service to celebrate Lois’s life will be held on Saturday, July 26, 2025, at 11 AM at the First Reformed Church, 70 Scofield St., Walden, NY.  Burial will follow at the Wallkill Valley Cemetery. 

Memorial contributions may be made to: Greater Newburgh Symphony Orchestra, P.O. Box 2121, Newburgh, NY 12552; Montgomery Food Pantry, P.O. Box 423,  Montgomery, NY 12549; Hudson Valley Research Lab, PO Box 727, Highland NY 12528; or First Reformed Church, Walden, NY  

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