Caron Louise Neild

Caron Louise Friend-Neild, 58, of Elmira, NY passed away peacefully, surrounded by family on April 15, 2016 after a long battle with cancer.She was born in Kalamazoo, MI on June 27, 1957 to Dr. Charles and Muriel Friend.Caron lived in Michigan, England, Germany, and Wisconsin while growing up and settled in Elmira, NY.She graduated from Horseheads H.S. in 1975.She earned degrees from F.I.T. (Fashion Institute of Technology) in NYC, X-Ray Technology at Arnot Ogden and a BA/MA from Elmira College in Education.Caron worked at Elmira Urological for over 30 years and also taught at Corning Community College. She and her mom also had an antique business for over 12 years. She was known for her great sense of humor and story telling and could always be counted on to make everyone laugh.Her creative talents excelled in many areas; gardening, quilting, cooking, decorating and crafting. She also swam nearly everyday. Most of all, Caron’s family was the center of her life.She was a beloved daughter, sister, niece, wife, mother, aunt, grandmother and dear friend.This beautiful and funny lady will be missed immensely and cherished forever by all who knew her. Caron is survived by her husband, David Neild; their three children, Rachel (and her husband Derrick) Seitz, Shannon (Brett) Conrad, Chad Neild; and her granddaughter, Meredith Conrad.She is also survived by her parents, Muriel and Charles Friend; her siblings Lori Friend, Heather (David) Odahowski, Charley (Lori) Friend, John Friend and Chris (Renee) Friend; several nieces and nephews, Julianne (Chris) Steele, Sean Friend, Peter (Cassie) Odahowski, Daniel Odahowski, Christopher (Laura) Lee, Michael Lee, Timmy Lee, Patrick and Kirstie Friend, Brianna, Josh, Ashley and Elijah Friend; also the Damburg (Sheldon) Family of St. Paul, MN, the Johnson (Paul) Family of Waterford, CT, the Johnson Family (Tim) of Ft. Collins, CO, and the Bloomquist’s (Ardy) of Duluth, MN. A celebration of her life will be held for this amazing and dear soul for close friends and family on Tuesday, April 19 at 11:00am at Bethany Lutheran Church located at 256 S. Walnut St, Elmira, NY 14904. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Care First of Painted Post, NY (www.CareFirstNY.org) and/or Tanglewood Nature Center of Elmira, NY. Caron's guestbook may be signed at www.olthof.com.