At the age of 94, Clifton V. “Cliff” Farling, a longtime

resident of Horseshoe Island, Clay, NY passed away

peacefully on Monday November 7, 2016 after a lengthy

battle with dementia. His final years were spent in the

loving care of the staff of the Aarondale Retirement and

Assisted Living Community in Springfield, Virginia. He

was born in Franklin Township, OH on June 18, 1922

to Cleon C. Farling and Anna Belle Jemison. Cliff attended

more than a dozen schools during his youth as his family

moved frequently while navigating the challenges of the

Great Depression, before ultimately graduating from

Phoenix High School in Phoenix, New York.


Cliff served during World War II as a radio operator for

the Merchant Marines in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans,

and Mediterranean-Middle East War Zones.

After his military service, he lived in New York City and

was trained by the RCA Service Company on how to

repair televisions, an invention recently introduced to the

American public. While in New York City he met Cath

erine T. (Wolpert) Farlingwhom he married in Brooklyn, NY on January 31, 1948. Cliff and Catherine later relocated to Central New York and started a family.

The couple had three daughters and raised them on

Horseshoe Island. Just like his father who owned a

local enterprise in the area called Pappy Farling’s

Strawberries in Clay. Cliff also was an entrepreneur

and made his living as co-owner of Chip’s and Cliff’s

TV and Appliances, Inc., formally located at 7 West

Genesee Street in Baldwinsville, NY.

Cliff and his family’s longtime home at 3460 Horseshoe

Island Road was just a few feet from the Oneida River,

and building on his time spent at sea, while in the

Merchant Marines, life on the water continued to be the

norm. He was active in the Viking Boat Club and the

Horseshoe Island Homeowners Organization (HIHO),

and regularly captained family outings on their boat

cruising the waterways of New York and Canada.

Cliff was a member of the Wetzel Road Church of Christ;

Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Liverpool-Clay Post

951. He was a lifelong Syracuse University sports fan,

particularly basketball.

Cliff was preceeded in death by his wife of 57 years,

Catherine; his daughters Pauline Farling and Linda

Brennan and his brother Floyd Farling.

He is survived by his daughter Joyce Farling and

(Kenneth Satten); his grandchildren Emma

Brennan (Tom Ward), Leah Jubelt (Matthew), Andrew

Satten, Ian Brennan, and Erica Satten; his great-grandchildren Willa, Etta and Luke Jubelt; son-in-law Stephen Brennan; and his sister-in-law, Lucine Farling; several

nieces and nephews.

.


A celebration of life gathering will be held in Clay, NY in

the upcoming weeks. In lieu of flowers, a memorial

donations may be to The Humane Society of the United

States or any other animal welfare group in honor of

Cliff’s longtime affection and devoted care of his pets

and other animals.