Madeline 'Peachie' Patton Halsey of Water Mill Dies February 26

Madeline “Peachie” Patton Halsey of Water Mill died on February 26. She was 96.

She born on February 11, 1928. When she was 2 years old, she was with her mother, Joan, canning peaches, when the telephone rang. Her mother stepped away and when she returned, she discovered that Madeline had consumed a significant number of peaches — so many peaches that she was worried. She called the family doctor. His advice — “I think you should call her Peachie!” — stuck, and she carried this nickname throughout her life.

She came from a family of hard workers. Her father’s father was a coal miner in Newcastle, England, while her mother’s family was from Ireland. George Patton, her father, worked for the Riverhead Lighting Co. as a field manager. After he died, when she was 12, her mother supported the family working at the Lighting Company and then Meyer’s Department Store in Riverhead.

After graduating from Riverhead High School, she was working for the Metropolitan Life Insurance Co., earning a salary of $18 per week, until one day her life took a turn. While visiting her sister Margaret, who was recovering from an appendectomy at Southampton Hospital, she noticed a stranger who was visiting her sister. Later on, in private, she asked her sister to fix her up with “that guy.” When her sister asked which guy she was talking about, she simply responded, “the cute one.” The cute one was Raymond Halsey. Her sister set him up with her, and after about a year of dating, they were married in June 1948.

They settled on Halsey Lane in Water Mill, near where he had grown up. Halsey worked on his family’s potato farm and the couple had four children in four years, Jo, Bill, Larry and Patti. By the end of the 1950s, with potato prices low and little chance of survival due to competition from other large potato growers, the young parents decided to try something new. Rather than selling only to brokers, they decided to make their goods available directly to the community by opening a farm stand on Montauk Highway. They figured that if one in 10 cars happened to stop they could do well.

The Green Thumb was opened in the summer of 1962 and was one of the first farm stands on the South Fork. Aside from the usual crops — corn, tomatoes, melons and lettuces — they began to grow and sell specialty and heirloom vegetables and herbs, such as arugula, Asian greens, coriander, fennel, hot green and red chilis, green and red basil, and other uncommon produce, establishing unique and newly diverse offerings for the area.

Over time, the farmstand became a success, and all four of the couple’s children continue to work the farm to this day. She managed the farmstand and dealt with the business paperwork, while her husband managed the fields and harvest. Together, they found ways to enjoy both farm and home life, her family said, blending hard work and leisure, celebrating holidays and organizing family trips.

She also stayed active in her community. She was a member of the Water Mill Community Club, a volunteer at Southampton Hospital, and a devoted 75-year member of Sacred Hearts church.

Halsey, who dedicated over 50 years to raising and working alongside her four children, emphasized teamwork at the Green Thumb. Her legacy lives on as a role model for hard work, grace, and a winning smile, her family said.

She died peacefully in her Water Mill home, surrounded by family.

She was predeceased by her parents, George and Joan Patton; her sisters, Jean LaColla, Ann Skarka, and Margaret Stevens; and her husband Ray Halsey, who died in 2015. She is survived by her brother, George Patton of South Bend, Indiana; her children, Jo, Bill, Larry, and Patti, and their spouses; 12 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.