Harry Van Vliet III, 81, of Ulster Park

ULSTER PARK » Harry Van Vliet III, 81, of The Birches at Esopus in Ulster Park, passed away peacefully on Sunday morning, July 1, 2018, at Ten Broeck Commons following a tough and heartbreaking battle with dementia.

He was born in Kingston, N.Y., on Nov. 17, 1936; a son of the late Harry “Unk” Jr. and Eleanor (Krum) Van Vliet. Harry was raised on First Ave. in Sleightsburgh, a waterfront hamlet in Esopus, where he raised his family and lived his entire life. An area of Sleightsburgh, which is bordered by the Hudson River and Rondout Creek, also known as the “Islands”, is where Harry would enjoy boating, fishing, snowmobiling, hunting and building duck blinds in the Hudson from where he would duck hunt.

In the 1960’s, he began a 20-year career as an oil burner service technician for Kingston Oil Supply Corp. (KOSCO). Throughout his KOSCO career, he would accept service calls in the Phoenicia/Woodland Valley area, where he made many friends and where he enjoyed hunting, trout fishing and camping with his family.

In the 1970’s, Harry patrolled the Town of Esopus as a police officer with the Town of Esopus Police Dept., and then later served as a deputy sheriff with the Ulster County Sheriff’s Patrol, where he was later promoted to Patrol Sergeant, and then First Sergeant. It was his time with the Esopus Police, and the Sheriff’s Patrol and Navigation Unit that he was most proud of, always reminiscing and offering stories about his experiences.

Before his retirement, Harry served as the recycling supervisor for the Town of Esopus, and was also the hearse driver for funeral homes in the Kingston area, and assisted at the family-owned funeral home, Gilpatric-Van-Vliet Funeral Home in Ulster Park.

Harry was a gun enthusiast and collector of antiques. He enjoyed vacationing with his family in the Thousand Islands, and visiting the casinos with his wife and siblings. Throughout his retirement years, he loved sitting outside his Sleightsburgh home with his wife, Janet, where he would watch boats on the nearby Rondout, the visiting wildlife, and travelers to the new Sleightsburgh Spit Park.

Harry is survived at home by his wife of over 60 years, Janet Nora (Riehl) Van Vliet; his four children, Harry Van-Vliet IV, and his wife Gina, of Ulster Park, Melissa A. Van Vliet of Town of Ulster, Jay L. Van Vliet and his wife Susan, of Sleightsburgh, and Kim M. Van Vliet, and her companion Robert Zerby, of Barclay Heights; one brother, Lawrence Van Vliet, and his wife Gloria, of Port Ewen; two sisters, Coreen Phillips, and her husband Ron, and Nora Haight, and her husband Jon, all of Florida; and grandchildren, Dr. Joshua Quick, and his wife Catherine, of Killingworth, Conn., Taylor and Matthew Van Vliet of Ulster Park, and Scotty Weaver of Barclay Heights. Many nieces and nephews also survive.

He is predeceased by two sisters, Margaret Breithaupt and Barbara Morris, and one brother, William G. Van Vliet.

The Van Vliet family will receive friends at the Gilpatric-Van-Vliet Funeral Home, 339 Broadway, Ulster Park, Town of Esopus on Thursday, July 5, 2018, from 3 to 6:45 p.m., followed by a prayer service. In honor of Harry’s wishes, please attend in comfortable, casual attire.

The Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. on Friday, July 6, 2018, at Sacred Heart Church, 1055 Broadway, Esopus, Rev. Eugene J. Grohe, C.Ss.R., will officiate with Pastor Carl D. Johnson concelebrant. There is no procession to church.

Cremation and inurnment in the family plot at Montrepose Cemetery will be private at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests contributions in Harry’s memory to: Alzheimers Association, 2 Jefferson Plaza, Suite 103, Poughkeepsie, N.Y., 12601,

Send the family an expression of condolence by visiting Harry’s Book of Memories: www.GVVFH.com