Mary Claire Reiser of Sag Harbor Dies May 5 - 27 East
logo logo logo logo

Sag Harbor Express

Obituaries / Sag Harbor Express / 2158549

Mary Claire Reiser of Sag Harbor Dies May 5

icon 1 Photo
Mary Claire Reiser

Mary Claire Reiser

authorStaff Writer on May 15, 2023

Mary Claire Reiser of Sag Harbor died peacefully at her home in Sag Harbor on May 5, surrounded by her family. She was 88.

The daughter of Helen Lawless (nee Wurster) and John Lawless, she was born in Newark, New Jersey, on February 19, 1935. She graduated from Caldwell College in 1955 with a degree in English literature. She was the president of the debate team, the editor of the yearbook and a writer for the school paper.

Family was a pillar of her life, her family said, and she began hers with her beloved husband, Robert Reiser, who she married in 1955.

Together, in 54 years of marriage until Bob’s death, they had six children: Mark, Robert, John (Jack), Martin, Mary, and Peter. Her family grew with four children-in-law: Bernadette, Linda, Victoria and Walter.

The couple enjoyed 11 grandchildren: Erin, Tim, Dan, Myke, Brendan, Bridget, Kathleen, Tom, Walt, Mary Claire and Rob.

And she became “GiGi,” a loving great-grandmother to nine great-grandchildren: Harrison, Henry, Annie, Walt, Pat, Hailey, Henry, Josh and Lauren.

The couple saw the world together, traveling to all seven continents. They learned cooking in Italy, skied and rode horses through the West, and sailed the Caribbean — Bob at the helm, and Mary on the mainsheet.

Along with her family, she served her community and her church with great devotion. She was a longtime volunteer at the Sag Harbor Food Pantry and the East End Hospice, a Eucharistic minister at St. Andrew’s, served on the Architecture Review Board and was a Friend of the John Jermain Memorial Library. She received the St. Agnes Medal of Service for her work for the parish.

She loved dancing, shopping and the Sunday crossword. She sailed the world with her husband and she built a loving home. She will be missed, but she made it home. And she’s sailing and dancing again, hand in hand and wing to wing with her husband.

A wake was held on May 8 at Yardley and Pino Funeral Home in Sag Harbor. A funeral Mass was held at St. Andrew’s on May 9.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Cormaria Retreat Center.

You May Also Like:

Tracking Reality

Thank you for “Water Hogs” [“The Water Hogs of the Hamptons, 2025,” Residence, 27east.com, August 28], a deeply necessary, smart service to us all, tracking the reality — what the press can do. I teach a course in the spring, “Language as Action: Reading & Writing Water,” and I will use “Water Hogs.” Kathy Engel Sagaponack 15 Sep 2025 by Staff Writer

Rare Treasure

I am urging the Southampton Town Board to keep this land as is, regardless of classification [“Fate of Southampton Town-Owned Poxabogue Field, Within Sagaponack Village, Is Debated at Town Board Meeting,” 27east.com, September 10]. I understand that it is in consideration to be returned to an agricultural use, but it has become an increasingly rare treasure here on the East End: an “old field” environment that now serves as habitat for wildlife, as well as having become a natural water quality buffer to Poxabogue Pond. As development continues to insidiously encroach on our wild neighbors, we threaten that very unique ... by Staff Writer

Ecologically Important

I am a resident and voter in Sagaponack and Southampton Town. Poxabogue Field provides many important ecological services. It serves as: • A wildlife sanctuary, and if farmed, as projected, would be fenced and plowed, obliterating the wildlife that has come to live there. • A natural buffer protecting Poxabogue Pond, its wetlands, and our aquifer. • An important ecosystem for ground-nesting birds, like the American woodcock (photographed in the field last month by Jane Gill), salamanders and turtles, grasshoppers and beetles, butterflies and moths. • A shelter for foxes, rabbits, deer, field mice, raccoons, chipmunks and more. • An open, natural field vista. I believe ... by Staff Writer

Essential Programming

As many East End town residents know who tried to access their public, educational and government (PEG) channels recently, they were no longer available on channels 20 and 22. Instead you were directed to find your channels somewhere in the 1300s. Because of the hue and cry in Newsday and all the local East End print and online media, and by town and village officials and the PEG industry, Altice/Optimum later backtracked and promised to return the channels to their original slots “on or about September 16, 2025” [“Optimum Walks Back Public Access Shakeup With Plan To Restore LTV, Sea-TV ... by Staff Writer

School News, September 18, Sag Harbor & East Hampton Town

College News Sophia Wilson of East Hampton was named to Southern New Hampshire University’s summer 2025 pesident’s list. Jessica Claflin of East Hampton was named to Southern New Hampshire University’s summer 2025 dean’s list. Robert Stanich of East Hampton received the Elmira College Key Award for academic and community leadership. A tradition that goes back to 1935, the EC Key Award is presented to outstanding students in their junior year of high school or preparatory school. This year, the award was given to 831 students in 18 states and Canada. Recipients receive an $88,000 scholarship over a four-year period, $22,000 ... by Staff Writer

Community News, September 18

YOUTH CORNER Read and Play The John Jermain Memorial Library, 201 Main Street in Sag ... by Staff Writer

Town To Host Disability Resource Fair in November

The Southampton Town Disability Task Force will host its second annual Disability Services Resource Fair on Saturday, November 1, from noon to 3 p.m. at the Hampton Bays Community Center, located at 25 Ponquogue Avenue in Hampton Bays. This inclusive community event is open to all and aims to connect individuals and families with valuable resources, service providers, advocates, and support groups. Throughout the afternoon, attendees will have the opportunity to explore a variety of informational booths, speak directly with representatives from both state and local organizations, and learn more about services available to people with disabilities. Highlights of the ... by Staff Writer

Gardella Is Guest at Next Knowlege Friday

Sag Harbor Village Mayor Tom Gardella will be the featured guest at The Church’s next Knowledge Friday, taking place on October 3 at 6 p.m. Gardella, a lifelong public servant, brings decades of experience and community dedication to the conversation. From his early days in U.S. military intelligence to his leadership roles as fire department chief, critical care EMT, and now mayor, Gardella has lived a life defined by service. For this season’s first Knowledge Friday, Gardella will sit down for a one-on-one conversation with Eric Fischl, co-founder of The Church, to share stories from his unique personal and professional ... by Staff Writer

Open Space Impact

I am hoping you will understand the environmental impact of what natural open space, near watering holes, does for our native wildlife. I can only speak professionally as a New York State licensed expert for our state-protected “species of special concern,” Eastern box turtles, and the “endangered” Eastern mud turtles, and “threatened” Eastern spotted turtles, that all call this Poxabogue meadow and Poxabogue Pond home [“Fate of Southampton Town-Owned Poxabogue Field, Within Sagaponack Village, Is Debated at Town Board Meeting,” 27east.com, September 10]. You may ask why our native turtles are important. They are a keystone species, which means if ... by Staff Writer

Rewild Your Yard?

Many neighbors spoke last week at the public hearing on the future of the Poxabogue Field [“Fate of Southampton Town-Owned Poxabogue Field, Within Sagaponack Village, Is Debated at Town Board Meeting,” 27east.com, September 10]. Most speakers wanted the field to not be farmed, as it had been for the past century, but instead wanted the field be left to return to nature. Points were raised about environmental imperatives such as water quality, habitat for birds, pollinators, etc., and also an unobstructed view. Knowing many of those speakers and how their own properties are landscaped and maintained, it occurred to me ... by Staff Writer