Abigail A McKay

Abigail Atkinson McKay, age 91, of Davenport Center, NY, passed away on January 5, 2023, at A.O. Fox Hospital in Oneonta, NY, after a brief illness. She was born to Cuthbert Guernsey McKay and Katharine Harnden (Thomas) McKay in Rochester, NY, on July 24, 1931. Her parents divorced when she was young, and she and her sister Joan were raised by her mother and step-father, E. Burton White of Syracuse.

Abigail graduated from Nottingham High School in Syracuse in 1949. She left Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY, in 1952 to marry Alan R. Chien of Cobleskill, NY, and lived in Germany when Alan was deployed there with the Army. After divorce in 1969, she went back to Skidmore and completed her B.A. in Studio Arts with honors. After her children were grown, she graduated from the “Education for Ministry” course and studied for the diaconate in the Episcopal Church.

Known to family and friends as “Gail” or “Abby,” she was first employed during college summers as a check designer at the Todd Company in Rochester, NY, and as a camp counselor. From 1952–1971, she was a wife and then a stay-at-home mom. In 1971, she was employed at Dudley Observatory in Albany, NY, as a draftsperson, then, after marrying William Dennebaum of Schenectady, NY, in 1976, as an artist for the 1980 Lake Placid Olympic Committee. After the Olympics, she worked in Lake Placid, NY, as a graphic artist doing studio and freelance work. Subsequently, she was executive director of the Lake Placid Sinfonietta, secretary at St. Eustace Episcopal Church, and a frame maker at the Bookstore Plus, all in Lake Placid. She also did freelance and commission work in drawing and painting for many years.

Abby was active in the Episocopal Church for most of her life. She was also active in several civic organizations, including University Women of Lake Placid, Adirondack Mountain Club, Lake Placid Sinfonietta, the Nature Conservancy, and the Wild Center in Tupper Lake, NY. Additionally, she was an associate of Holy Cross Monastery and was involved with the Artists League of Lake Placid, Saranac Lake ArtWorks, Fagan Flyers of Sidney, NY, and Tired Iron of the Butternut Valley, in Morris, NY.

Abby also did many hours of volunteering in and around Lake Placid, including with the Lake Placid Sinfonietta, Ironman Lake Placid, St. Eustace Church, Hospice of Saranac Lake, Helping Hands Thrift Store in Lake Placid, The Lunch Box in Saranac Lake, at sporting events run by the Olympic Regional Development Authority, and doing pastoral care at the Adirondack Medical Center and Uihlein Mercy Home in Lake Placid.

Always working on a new painting or drawing, Abby’s favorite subjects were landscapes, animals, birds, and requests by friends and family. Over the years, she signed her works “Gail Chien,” “Gail Dennebaum,” “Gail McKay,” or “Abigail McKay.” She loved exhibiting her work at local art shows and galleries, wherever she lived. She took special joy in exploring nature's wonders, and could often be found happily paddling her Hornbeck canoe on the waterways of the Adirondacks, often with family or with other members of the “Isabel Six,” her dear friends Jeri, Ruth, Lorraine, Monique, and Marcia. She loved to travel and lived at times in Germany, Austria, Saudi Arabia, and Florida, but the home of her heart was the Adirondacks. Later in life, she found adventure with her beloved beau, Charlie, including flying in his Cessna Cardinal 3118T and skydiving together to celebrate their 80th birthdays. She skied and hiked for as long as she was able, and loved gardening, music, watching the birds, learning computers, sharing friends in many groups, at all times staying closely connected with family.

Abigail is survived by her three loving sons: Peter Chien and wife Lori of Rome, NY; Christopher Chien of Green Island, NY; and Timothy Chien and partner Shelley LaPorte of Saranac Lake, NY, and Fort Collins, CO; Abby was “Oma” to her beloved grandchildren Katherine and Sarah Chien; Taylor Chien, his wife Marissa, and great-grandson Julian Chien. Abby also leaves behind nieces and nephews living in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and New Hampshire, and her beloved companion, Charles Zimmerman of Davenport Center, with whom she shared life, love, and adventures in the last years of her life.

Arrangements for cremation were made by Lester R. Grummons Funeral Home of Oneonta. A funeral service will be held at St. Eustace Episcopal Church in Lake Placid on January 27 at 2 pm. In lieu of flowers, charitable gifts in Abigail’s memory may be made to the Community Arts Network of Oneonta, Tired Iron of Butternut Valley, Inc., North Country Public Radio, Adirondack Mountain Club, and Lake Placid Center for the Arts.