Ann Cedarholm, 94, passed away painlessly and peacefully thanks to the loving care from the staff at Bridges Cornell Heights and Hospicare on April 28, 2023, at Bridges. Ann was born in Evanston, Illinois, on September 29, 1928, to Hardy S. Ferguson Jr. and Lucile P. Ward, their only child. She grew up in Hastings-on-Hudson, and was a longtime resident of Katonah, NY, where she and her former husband, John Cedarholm, raised their four children. She earned her nursing degree from Skidmore College, and a Masters in Nursing from Columbia University Teachers College. She worked her entire career as a nurse, first as a public health nurse in New York City, a school nurse, a nursing instructor, and finally a Clinical Care Specialist psychiatric nurse. Upon her retirement from New York Presbyterian Westchester Behavioral Health Center in White Plains she moved to Ithaca, NY to be near her daughter Carol and her family.
Ithaca soon became her beloved home. Being the socially active person that she always was, Ann joined the Bridge Club of Ithaca, the First Presbyterian Church of Ithaca, and Historic Ithaca making many friends along the way. Her beautiful Italianate house on South Geneva Street, which she enjoyed decorating and fixing up, was her home until she moved up the street to McGraw House where she stayed actively involved in many community activities.
A devoted friend, she never hesitated to drive someone to church or bridge, send a card, cook a casserole, or bake some cookies for someone in need. She was a huge animal lover, rescuing critters of all kinds, including a duck that was wandering around the Bronx one night while she was on her way home from graduate school. She especially cherished her white, miniature poodle, Billy. She could be seen walking him up and down Geneva St., even with her walker when that became necessary, until her move to Bridges. She spent the last two years of her life lovingly attended to by the staff of Bridges.
Ann will be remembered as a ferocious, spicy, tell it like it is woman. She was a feminist from her early days, pursuing a career, much to the dismay of her father, starting the first day care center in Katonah, and ushering her daughter to the 1970 women’s rights march in Washington, DC. She was very independent, held strong political opinions and was a proud and loving mother and grandmother. She was an avid reader, devouring the New York Times daily as well as the Ithaca Journal and Time Magazine and participating in local book groups. In the summer, she loved picking fruit at local U-picks, picnicking on the shores of Cayuga Lake and visiting her children and grandchildren all over the country. Ann treasured her summer vacations with family and friends at the “Shop,” a ramshackle beach house hidden in the dunes of Chappaquiddick. As her son Todd said about how his mother lived her life, “She crushed it!”
She is survived by her four children; Carol (Carl Feuer) Ithaca, Todd (Jennifer Zeigler) Victor, Idaho, David (Sally), and Martha (Howard Britz) Brooklyn, New York, her five granddaughters; Courtney, Taylor, Lucy, Haley and Ella, her step-granddaughter Aliya Feuer-Whittlesey, her first cousin, Catherine Corkill (Steven Dolnick), their son Andrew Dolnick (Rebecca) and their son Aidan. A memorial service will be held at the First Presbyterian Church of Ithaca at 3 p.m. on Sunday, June 18, 2023, with a reception immediately following the service. Donations in Ann’s memory can be made to Hospicare and Palliative Care Services in Ithaca or the SPCA of Tompkins County.
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