Elaine Verne (Eiffe) Tear

Adirondack, NY - E.V. Tear was born Elaine Verne Eiffe on June 10, 1928 in Baltimore, Maryland to Lucy Francis Millhouse and Leslie James Eiffe.  She lived most of her life in her beloved Troy, New York where she lived as a child, met her husband, Richard Theodore Tear, and had her three children, Lucinda, W. Gregory, and Timothy.  She attended and was active in St. John’s Episcopal Church in Troy along with the rest of her family, her uncle Chester Francis Millhouse, his wife Marge Watson and other members of her extended family.  Through Marge’s family, she came to know the Adirondack Mountains, particularly Schroon Lake, and most particularly East Shore Drive, which was her home away from Troy until it became her full-time home after her husband’s retirement.  There, she was one of a devoted clan of parishioners at Christ Church in Pottersville.  She and her family lived also in Acton, Massachusetts (1962 - 1994), and Seabrook Texas (1964-1966) during her children’s school years where she was active in the Church of the Good Shepherd in Acton and St. John’s in LaPorte. 

E.V. was a natural graphic artist, in a time before electronics had any part in graphic artistry.  She silk-screened posters for many organizations for which she volunteered (including the churches she attended, local library “rummage sales”, the Red Cross), and made her family’s Christmas cards for many years.  She attended Hobart and William  Smith College but was largely self-educated and was widely read regarding English history, art history, and natural history, and was particularly touched by opera, birds, butterflies, and wildflowers.  Her sympathy for the natural world spurred her, in her adult life, to become an advocate for environmental protection.  She was very interested in family history and conducted extensive research into her husband’s and her own family trees.  She loved to dance and ice-skate as a young person, and later in life her love of dancing returned with a gusto and helped to enliven a long, slow progression of Alzheimer’s, which was the eventual cause of her peaceful death on July 9, 2020.

She is survived by her three children, her two grand children Westley and Taylor Tear, and by a large group of extended family who live around Schroon Lake and to whom she introduced Schroon Lake and helped establish a family ritual called “Schroon in June”.  She will be remembered for loving sweets, for being sweet, and for being feisty.  

Her family would like to thank Doctor John Rugge of Hudson Headwaters Health Network, for his deep care for E.V.’s well-being and his support of our family, The Eddy in Troy, and Plumeria Family Adult Home in Fort Edward for their kindness and care during her last years.

Those who wish to remember E.V. in a special way may contribute to the “Elaine Tear and Lucy Millhouse Howard Memorial Award" that provides scholarships to aspiring musicians from the Troy High School to attend college.  The check should be sent to: The District Treasurer's Office, c/o Samantha Schweizer, School 12, 475 First Street, 
Troy, NY 12180.

The family will hold a remote memorial service on Saturday, July 25th at 4 pm.  Anyone who would like to attend or wishes to send a card should contact one of her children 

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