Senate Resolution No. 2146
BY: Senator LITTLE
MOURNING the death of The Honorable John DeLong
Austin Jr. distinguished citizen and devoted member
of his community
WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to pay tribute to
citizens of the State of New York whose lifework and civic endeavor
served to enhance the quality of life in their communities and the great
State of New York; and
WHEREAS, The Honorable John DeLong Austin Jr. of Queensbury, New
York, died on June 17, 2019, at the age of 84; he was a Warren County
lawyer and judge, author, historian and genealogist; and
WHEREAS, Judge John Austin Jr. served in Warren County Family Court,
Surrogate's Court and County Court from 1984 to 2003; after stepping
down from the bench, he was appointed Warren County Historian and served
from the Fall of 2007 until July 2010, when he was named historian
emeritus and
WHEREAS, Born in Cambridge, Washington County on May 31, 1935, he
was the son of John DeLong and Mabel Cowles (Bascom) Austin; when his
grandmother, Mabel (DeLong) (Austin) Chapman, died in 1944, his family
then occupied the Glen Street residence that was later designated as the
Chapman Historical Museum, and he was a pupil at the old Broad Street
School in Glens Falls; and
WHEREAS, The family later resided for many years on Ridge Road in
Queensbury, and he attended the old one-room schoolhouse of Queensbury
Common District No. 4; he was then educated at Jackson Heights School,
Glens Falls Junior and Senior High Schools, graduating from the last
with the class of 1953; and
WHEREAS, He later received degrees from Dartmouth College and Albany
Law School and worked as a teaching assistant at the University of
Minnesota in Minneapolis; he also served as the editor of The Dartmouth,
America's oldest college newspaper; and
WHEREAS, John D. Austin Jr. distinguished himself in his profession
and by his sincere dedication and substantial contribution to the
welfare of his community; and
WHEREAS, Early employment was at the old Central Market on Cooper
Street in Glens Falls; as a towboat deckhand on the Cumberland River in
Tennessee; and as a firefighter with the U.S. Forest Service in Idaho;
and
WHEREAS, He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1958, and served as an
infantryman and rocket-launcher specialist in Germany; he later served
with the New York National Guard; and
WHEREAS, Returning to Glens Falls, John D. Austin Jr. worked as a
reporter and editorial director of The Glens Falls Times; while
attaining his law degree, he was editor of The Lake George Mirror and
did radio news reports for station WWSC; and
WHEREAS, John D. Austin Jr. was admitted to the practice of law in
1969; at the same time, he was active in politics, serving as Town of
Queensbury councilman, county supervisor and town supervisor, including
duties of Warren County budget officer and Social Services chairman; and
WHEREAS, He was appointed later as law clerk for both county court
and surrogate's court, then gave up private practice in 1980 to become a
full-time law clerk in Supreme Court; in 1984, he was appointed to serve
as Warren County family court judge and was thereafter elected to two
successive terms, serving for 15 years; and
WHEREAS, In 1999, John D. Austin Jr. was appointed Warren County
judge and surrogate and was thereafter elected to the position and
served until his retirement in 2003; and
WHEREAS, John D. Austin Jr.'s commitment to excellence, and his
spirit of humanity, carried over into all fields of enterprise,
including charitable and civic endeavors; and
WHEREAS, In October of 2002, he started the county's drug treatment
court as an alternative to state prison; this valuable program has an 80
percent success rate; and
WHEREAS, John D. Austin Jr. worked as an officer and director of
many local groups, including terms as president of the Warren County Bar
Association, Southern Adirondack Library System, Crandall Public Library
and the Glens Falls-Queensbury Historical Association; and
WHEREAS, He was a director of the Warren County Historical
Association and was active for many years with the Extension Service
Association and its 4-H program, including duties as chairman of the
County Youth Fair; as a youth, he had been a member of the Mighty Men,
the first boys' 4-H Club in Warren County; and
WHEREAS, He also served on the board of Warren County Head Start and
as treasurer and board member of the Chapman Historical Museum; and
WHEREAS, For more than 30 years, John D. Austin Jr. served as
secretary-treasurer of the Stephen J. Potter Memorial Foundation, which
makes charitable grants to local students and groups; he was a longtime
member of both Mohican Grange and Glens Falls Lodge, 81, B.P.O. Elks;
and
WHEREAS, John D. Austin Jr. married his soulmate, Marcia Kay Behan,
on August 15, 1969, at the Church of Our Lady of the Annunciation, in
Queensbury; and
WHEREAS, In 1970, John D. Austin Jr. was named a fellow of the
American Society of Genealogists, a designation limited to 50 living
individuals at any time; he had for many years served as that society's
membership chairman; and
WHEREAS, John D. Austin Jr. was a longtime fan of the Adirondack Red
Wings and its successor hockey teams; he enjoyed listening to country
music at Rick and Carol's, participating in Red Cross blood drives,
collecting tapes of old radio programs from his youth, and answering
family-history queries on local websites; and
WHEREAS, In addition to his wife who died on July 28, 1997, and his
parents, John D. Austin Jr. was predeceased by two sons, James Behan
Austin and Michael John Austin; a sister, Nancy Austin Wright; and a
brother, James B. Austin; he is survived by two children, John Delong
Austin III and Susan Behan Austin and her wife, Lorielle Mallue; one
grandson, Henry Fenno Austin-Mallue; and a brother, James B. Austin; as
well as many nieces, nephews and cousins; and
WHEREAS, Armed with a humanistic spirit and imbued with a sense of
compassion, John D. Austin Jr. leaves behind a legacy which will long
endure the passage of time and will remain as a comforting memory to all
he served and befriended; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
mourn the death of The Honorable John DeLong Austin Jr. distinguished
citizen and devoted member of his community; and be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to the family of The Honorable John DeLong Austin Jr.