Victor and Lois Porlier

Victor William Porlier, Jr.

Victor William Porlier Jr. of East Berne, NY, along with his wife Lois Porlier, died June 4, 2021. Victor was born in Fort Lewis, Washington November 6, 1937. The son of a career military officer, his family moved to a number of different locales, including Panama, Alaska, and California. Being in his own works “an army brat,” he was extremely proud of his upbringing and his father, Victor Sr. Victor himself was a communications specialist in the US Naval Intelligence Reserves.

Victor was driven by intellectual interests. His library contained over 20,000 books. He was a public speaker on a wide range of issues and he never tired of learning. At 83, he was still writing and studying. His career began at The University of California, Berkeley, where he earned a dual Bachelor’s degree in economics and political science and a Master’s degree in public administration and public policy. In the early 1960s, he worked his way to becoming the Chief of Information Systems Development in the Agency for International Development at the State Department in Washington, D.C. Upon leaving D.C. in the late 60s, he spent many years in the Pacific Northwest, before settling down in New York. In that time, he served as a consultant for numerous foundations and think tanks, working with Laney Advisors LTD, the Center for Civic Renewal in New York, and the Randolph Foundation.

Victor met his wife, Lois, in the early 1990s and they were married in 1993. They were skilled gardeners and incredibly industrious people. They were a generous couple that truly cared for the people in their life. Their influence and deep concern for the people around them will be greatly missed. He is survived by his sister, Valerie, two sons, Marc and Jon, his daughter, also named Valerie, and his grandchildren, Sydney, Alexander, Emma and Serena.

Services will be Wednesday June 16, 2021 with a wake at Applebee Funeral Home, 403 Kenwood Ave, Delmar from 11am to 1pm followed immediately by a memorial service and burial at the Elmwood Cemetery in Selkirk.

Donations may be made in Victor’s memory to the East Berne Volunteer Fire Company at 25 Main St, East Berne, NY 12059 or the Helderberg Volunteer Ambulance Squad at 978 Cole Hill Rd, East Berne, NY 12059.

Lois Kleinhans Porlier

Lois Kleinhans Porlier, 72, of East Berne, NY, died suddenly along with her husband Victor W. Porlier on June 4, 2021 at their home. She was born Lois Jean Wagoner to the late Jean K. Kerr and Ellwood Wagoner in Albany, NY on August 24, 1948.

Lois grew up in in Delmar and graduated from Bethlehem Central in 1966. She attended SUNY Albany, and graduated from SUNY Buffalo with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science. Lois and Victor settled in East Berne on their Deer’s Lair Farm where she would pursue her passion of organic farming while working with Victor on many consulting ventures and intellectual pursuits.

Survivors include her brothers Jim (Cyndi) Kerr and Jeff (Colleen) Wagoner, step children Marc, Jon and Valerie Porlier, niece Jennifer Kerr, nephews Eric (Christina) Kerr, Mark (Arielle) Wagoner, Jack (Tania) Wagoner, great nieces Alana Kerr and Bree Wagoner, great nephew Aiden Kerr, grandchildren Sydney, Alexander, Emma and Serena, many extended relatives and friends that she cherished.

Services will be Wednesday June 16, 2021 with a wake at Applebee Funeral Home, 403 Kenwood Ave, Delmar from 11am to 1pm followed immediately by a memorial service and burial at the Elmwood Cemetery in Selkirk.

Donations may be made in Lois’s memory to the East Berne Volunteer Fire Company at 25 Main St, East Berne, NY 12059 or the Helderberg Volunteer Ambulance Squad at 978 Cole Hill Rd, East Berne, NY 12059.