Cheryl M. Gold

SARATOGA SPRINGS – Cheryl M. Gold, aged 71, died at home on Saturday, July 30, 2016. Born in Bakersfield, California, Cheryl was the daughter of Don G. and Genevieve K. Magruder. She received her B.A. in American History from the University of Colorado, did graduate study in anthropology at UCLA and received her M.A. in museum studies from the Cooperstown Graduate Program of the New York State Historical Association and State University College at Oneonta. In 1968 she married James P. Gold, who she met in graduate school. An advocate for historic preservation and public libraries, Cheryl’s career was spent in the museum, historic site and park management fields. It began in Bakersfield, between study at UCLA and Cooperstown, where she served as Assistant Director at the Kern County Museum. After receiving her master’s degree, Cheryl was appointed Senior Curator in the Office of State History of the New York State Education Department. She left this position to become Curator of Education at the Schenectady Museum. Cheryl and her husband worked briefly on Cape Cod before returning to New York at the start of the nation’s Bicentennial to serve as the first managers at Clermont and Senate House State Historic Sites in the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Promoted to Regional Historic Preservation Supervisor in the Saratoga/Capital Region of State Parks, later to include central New York, Cheryl supervised 15 State-owned historic sites from the Vermont border to Lake Ontario and from the Mohawk Valley north to Lake Champlain. Cheryl concluded her professional career as Assistant Regional Director of the Saratoga/Capital Region of State Parks, where she had responsibility for 17 state parks and historic sites and many regional management duties, including budget, personnel, concessions, engineering, land acquisition, restoration, and interpretive services. In recognition of her contributions to State Parks, she received the Maple Leaf Award from her park and site management peers and the L.L. Huttleston “Special Achievement” Award from State Parks’ Commissioner. Cheryl was a founding member of the New York Chapter of the Association for Preservation Technology and a board member and officer of the Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation. She served on its Major Properties and Advocacy Committees for over thirty years. In recognition of her years of service and commitment to local preservation causes, she was named an emeritus member of the board. She served on the Saratoga Springs Convention and Tourism Board and, following retirement, as a board member and officer of the Friends of Saratoga Spa State Park. She was a graduate of Leadership Saratoga and also served as a board member of the Saratoga Care Foundation. While museums and historic preservation were common threads throughout her career, Cheryl’s lifelong passions were gardening and reading. It was Cheryl’s idea to establish flower beds at the entrance to the Avenue of the Pines at Saratoga Spa State Park. Cheryl was a long-time volunteer at Saratoga Springs Public Library and a board member and officer of the Friends organization. She established the Friends’ Ex Libris Society to support the library’s non-fiction collection. As a member and officer of the Saratoga Springs Public Library Board of Trustees, she was instrumental in creating the library’s endowment fund at the Community Foundation for the Greater Capital Region. The Friends honored Cheryl with its highest award for service with the H. Dunham Hunt Award. Cheryl also served on the Board of Trustees of the Southern Adirondack Library System, where she was honored as Library Trustee of the Year. Cheryl and her husband appreciated the care and guidance she received throughout her long illness from Dr. Daniel Eldredge of Saratoga Family Physicians, Dr. Dzintra Celmins of the Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Center of Albany Medical Center, Dr. David Mastrianni of Saratoga Hospital Hematology/Oncology, Dr. Alex Frank of Saratoga Hospital Radiation Oncology Center, and their staff. They appreciated the care she received from Community Hospice and were especially grateful for the kindness of many friends. Cheryl is survived by her best friend and husband, Jim; fellow puzzle enthusiast and brother-in-law, Jon of Montgomery Village, Maryland; cousins on the west coast; and her Abyssinian cat Callie. It was Cheryl’s wish that there be no memorial service. Friends are invited to a reception at their home at 199 Woodlawn Avenue, Saratoga Springs on Sunday, August 14, 2016 from 2 to 5 p.m. Donations in Cheryl’s memory may be made to the endowment funds of the Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation, 112 Spring Street, and the Saratoga Springs Public Library, 49 Henry Street, Saratoga Springs, New York 12866. Online remembrances may be made at www.burkefuneralhome.com.