Rosemary O’Brien

Rosemary O’Brien, 93, died on September 29, 2018 at her home at Princeton Windrows, in Princeton, NJ, after a long struggle with Parkinson’s disease.

She was born June 6, 1925 in South Bend, Indiana, the eldest child of Dr. Peter Birmingham and Sarah Birmingham. She graduated from Saint Mary’s College in 1947 and earned a master’s degree in Far Eastern Studies from the University of Michigan in 1979.

In 1948 she married James L. O’Brien of Beloit, Wisconsin, with whom she raised three children in South Bend, Indiana and Ann Arbor, Michigan, before moving to Princeton in 1968. She greatly enjoyed spending summers, over more than 50 years, at their cottage in Harbor Springs, Michigan.

Rosemary had a passion for reading and a great talent for writing, culminating in the publication of a book on the diaries of Gertrude Bell, who was an early female Middle East explorer. She enjoyed travel around the globe with her husband Jim, who was an attorney and executive with Bendix International. Rosemary also developed an increasing interest in other women’s issues and published articles and chapters on women’s historical and cultural topics. Wherever she lived, she enjoyed participating in various book groups and reading clubs. She always showed flair for entertaining. Rosemary was active in many civic activities in Princeton. She was among the first women to be inducted into the Old Guard of Princeton Nassau Club.

She was preceded in death by her husband of 54 years, James L. O’Brien, who died in 2002; her parents; and her brother Richard and his wife Jeanne. She is survived by daughter and son-in law, Anne and Dr. Stephen Bauer of Rochester, New York; son and daughter-in-law, Dennis and Wendilee (Health) O’Brien of Winter Harbor, Maine; son and daughter-in-law David and Sara (Howard) O’Brien of Reston, Virginia; five grandchildren, Erica (Bauer) Evert and her husband Corey Evert and Benjamin, Luke, Charleen, and Gabe O’Brien; and one great-grandson, Jack Evert.

Visitation for family and friends will be held on Friday October 12, 2018 from 4-6 p.m. at Kimble Funeral Home, 1 Hamilton Avenue, Princeton, NJ 08542. The burial will be private in Princeton Cemetery.

A gathering to celebrate Rosemary’s life will be held Saturday, October 13, 2018 from 2-4 p.m. at Princeton Windrows, 2000 Windrow Drive, Princeton, NJ 08540.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Rosemary’s honor to the Michael J. Fox Foundation, P.O. Box 5014, Hagerstown, MD 21741-5014.

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Chi Lung Kang

Chi Lung Kang, 97, Princeton resident of 51 years, died September 30, 2018. Born and raised in Shanghai, China, his college education at the National Chiao Tung University was interrupted by the World War II Japanese invasion of Shanghai. He and his family fled to Chungking, where he went to work in a munitions factory building arms. At the end of the war, he returned to Chiao Tung where he completed his degree in mechanical engineering. In 1947 he immigrated to the United States to get advanced degrees in mechanical and electrical engineering at the University of Illinois Champaign/Urbana. It was there that he met his loving wife-to-be Chia-chen Chu (Cecilia) who was also pursuing her advanced degrees. After graduating, in 1951 they moved to New Jersey and married. They happily lived there for the rest of their lives; raising their family and helping their siblings, nephews, and nieces immigrate to the United States.

Chi Lung worked at Boonton Radio Corporation, Remington Rand Univac, Princeton University (Forrestal atomic accelerator group), and General Electric conducting high energy engineering research. With family and friends he championed kindness to all, intellectual curiosity, and a love for China — the “motherland.” From the beginning to the end of his life he enjoyed and promoted Chinese philosophy, literature, and poetry. Survived by his son and daughter-in-law Jeff and Brenda Kang, Ft. Lauderdale, FL; son and daughter-in-law, Ray and Kim Kang, Orono, MN; five grandchildren, Lee Kang, Chelsea Kang, Harrison Kang, Eleanor Kang, and Rachel Kang; two sisters Ji Qin Kang, Plainsboro, NJ, and Ji Cheng Kang, Chengdu, China; and numerous nieces and nephews.

A visitation and memorial service will be held Saturday, October 13, 2018 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Kimble Funeral Home, 1 Hamilton Avenue, Princeton, NJ.; immediately followed by a reception at Shanghai Park Restaurant, 301 N. Harrison Street, #33, Princeton, NJ from 2-4 p.m. An interment service and reception will be held in Princeton at a future date. Condolences can be submitted online at www.thekimblefuneralhome.com. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Chi Lung Kang Endowment at the University of Illinois Foundation, 1305 West Green Street, Urbana, IL 61801.

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Mary Josephine McCloskey

Mary Josephine McCloskey, known as Bridie to all that knew her, 85, passed away peacefully on Friday, October 5th, 2018, at the Brookdale assisted living facility in Hillsborough, NJ.

Bridie was born on October 6th, 1932 in Gurteen, Ireland. The oldest of three children, Bridie grew up in Gurteen with her two brothers and completed her schooling in Halifax, England. Bridie developed a lifelong love of horses and swimming during her childhood. She trained to swim the English Channel and often swam on Long Beach Island and at the Community Park Pool. She treasured trips back to Ireland to visit friends and family.

Bridie was a resident of Princeton for nearly 60 years. Bridie immigrated to the United States in 1954 to live with relatives in Trenton before meeting her husband William (Dave) McCloskey. She worked for Bell Telephone Company until the birth of her first child, Michael (Kevin). She loved being a mother to Kevin and her daughter, Maureen (Missy), and devoted herself to supporting her children throughout their adult lives. Bridie could sing — at the great delight of others she could be found singing “Danny Boy” by her mother’s side at a pub in Gurteen or family birthday parties in Princeton. Bridie was very talented in needlepoint and this transitioned into a love of drawing in her later years. Bridie and her husband Dave spent countless falls and winters cheering for the Tigers at Princeton football and basketball games.

Bridie was a light to all that knew her. She defined selflessness as a beloved daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother, cousin, aunt, and friend. Daughter of the late Martin and Mary (Mulligan) Callaghan, sister of the late Tony Callaghan, mother of the late Michael Kevin McCloskey. She is survived by her husband William David McCloskey; daughter Missy and her husband Ken; and her two grandchildren, Kelly and Ryan. She is also survived by her brother, Peter Callaghan and sister-in-law Mary Callaghan of Manchester, England; and special nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Friends may call on Wednesday, October 10th, from 2 p.m. until 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. at Mather-Hodge Funeral Home. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Thursday, October 11th, at 10 a.m. at St. Paul’s Church 216 Nassau Street, Princeton. Burial will follow in the Princeton Cemetery.

Memorial contributions may be made to St. Paul’s Church 216 Nassau Street, Princeton, NJ 08542.

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Jill Ann Gowen Weatherill

Jill Ann Gowen Weatherill, longtime resident of Princeton NJ, died September 30, 2018, at her son’s home in Connecticut after a long battle with frontotemporal dementia (FTD). She was 85 years old.

Born in East Dereham, Norfolk, UK, Jill was the first in her family to attend university, studying food science at Queen Elizabeth College in London. After university she worked for British food companies Lyons and Walls, before moving to New York City in the late 1950s where she continued work as a food scientist.

Jill met her husband, Derek Weatherill, in 1960 while on a sailing holiday in England. As Derek also happened to live in New York they arranged to meet upon their return to the States, and married in June 1961.

Jill was always extremely active and never without a ‘project.’ She was a passionate gardener, knew all the Latin names of plants, and created a spectacular garden over a 40-year period at the family home in Princeton. It was much admired by all, visited by gardening clubs and painted by artists. Friends rarely left without gifts of plants, cuttings, or flowers.

Jill’s love for children led her to spend many years teaching nursery school. Later she worked as a docent at the Princeton University Art Museum giving tours to children and also adults. In her free time, she enjoyed visiting art museums, playing the piano and recorder, and attending classical concerts. With Derek, she shared a love of the ancient world, and wrote a small book of Greek myths in verse. She kept herself informed about current events and always had a stack of newspapers by her bed.

Her husband Derek was diagnosed with cancer shortly after he retired, ending dreams of traveling together in retirement. Derek struggled with the illness for eight years before passing away in 2004. After falling at home in October 2013, Jill moved to an apartment in Boston in early 2014 to be closer to family. She moved into a memory care assisted-living facility in Boston in 2015.

She is survived by her brother Roger of Tahiti, her four children — Sally, Simon, Julian, James — and five grandchildren, Oliver, Emily, William, Ben, and Sophia. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration, www.theaftd.org.

She has been buried alongside Derek at Princeton Cemetery. A memorial is being planned, for details please email MemorialForJill@gmail.com.

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Joyce Marie Albers-Schonberg

Joyce Marie Albers-Schonberg died on October 6 after a long, bravely fought illness in her 76th year and the 50th year of an incredibly happy marriage. 

Joyce was born in Linden, NJ to Mary D. and Andrew R. Kovatch. After high school, she went to Douglass College in New Brunswick, New Jersey and graduated with a degree in Biochemistry. She then joined the Merck Sharp & Dohme Research Laboratories in Rahway NJ in 1965, where she was part of several important projects. After 12 years, she decided on a career change, obtained a Master’s Degree in Business Administration at New York University, and joined the First Boston Investment Bank in Manhattan as a Healthcare Securities Analyst. In her field, she ranked first in the country in the Institutional Investor magazine for several years. In the 1990s she made one more career change, joining the very young healthcare investment firm, Deerfield Management, where she found wonderful, lasting friends. In 1999 she retired to join her husband, Georg Albers-Schonberg, whom she had met in her first few weeks at Merck and who was now also retired.

Joyce had the rare gift to always put others before herself. She continued to care very deeply for Douglass College and its Alumnae Association, for the Princeton Healthcare System Foundation and many other charitable causes. In 2012, Joyce was awarded the NJ Women of Achievement Award. 

Joyce is survived by her husband, her mother, age 95, her brother Richard A. Kovatch, two sisters Jo Ann Kuser and Andrea Correia, their growing families, and Georg’s many relatives in Europe.

Joyce and Georg enjoyed extensive travel throughout the world and spending time on the Jersey shore. They had a deep appreciation for the fine arts, and could regularly be found at the Metropolitan Opera, or attending a concert given by the Princeton Symphony Orchestra.

Visitation will be at the Mather-Hodge Funeral Home, 40 Vandeventer Avenue, Princeton, NJ, Friday, October 12th from 3-6:30 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at St. Paul’s Catholic Church, 216 Nassau St., Princeton, NJ, Saturday, October 13th at 11 a.m.

In lieu of flowers the family requests memorial contributions be made in Joyce’s memory to any of the following organizations: Columbia University Medical Center; the Princeton Medical Group P.A.; Princeton Healthcare System Foundation; Lustgarten Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer; the Associate Alumnae of Douglass College; or the Community Foundation of Collier County (Naples, Fl).

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Georgine Hall Stauffer

Georgine Hall Stauffer, 93, died peacefully on Monday, October 1, 2018, at the Acorn Glen assisted living residence in Princeton.

Georgine was born and raised in Princeton, the daughter of George Gilson Fleming and Grace Elizabeth Titus, and she spent most of her adult life there. She graduated from Wilson College in Pennsylvania in 1946 and later earned a master’s degree in English from Columbia University.

Her calling was in the theatre. She performed in summer and regional plays during college and went on to enjoy a long acting career with appearances in a wide variety of stage, TV, and movie productions. Her Broadway credits include a performance with George C. Scott in Present Laughter and a role as understudy to Anne Pitoniak in Night Mother. Off-Broadway, she appeared in Moliere’s Learned Ladies with Jean Stapleton; in Sam Shepard’s True West with Peter Boyle and Tommy Lee Jones; and in Harold Pinter’s The Birthday Party. Her regional theatre roles included Henry V, Buried Child, and Tartuffe. In the early 1960s, she pioneered a children’s television program entitled Once Upon a Day, which aired on WNET in New York. Later in her career, she appeared in several TV series, including Law and Order and The Good Wife. And she played Melvin Douglas’s secretary in the movie Being There with Peter Sellers and Shirley MacLaine. Georgine also taught English and drama in the Princeton public schools for years, and until recently, she worked at The Lewis School of Princeton teaching drama to students with dyslexia and other learning challenges.

Her first marriage was in 1949 to Herbert J. Hall, a prominent physicist and environmental scientist and the father of her three children. Later husbands included Ralph Freedman, former Chair of the Department of Comparative Literature at Princeton University, and David DuVivier, a former assistant district attorney in Manhattan and member of the Coudert Brothers law firm in Paris. In her 80s, Georgine rekindled a college-era romance with Daniel Stauffer, a Princeton graduate and civil engineer from Texas, and the two were married in August of 2010. Their loving companionship ended with Daniel’s passing in May of 2017.

Not only an accomplished actress, Georgine was a champion of civil rights, a devoted mother, a gourmet cook, a lover of English Bulldogs (Guinevere and Lancelot), and a loyal and generous friend to many, from actors and academics to the caregivers on staff at Acorn Glen. Her love of life, grit, and humor will be sorely missed.

She is survived by three children and their spouses (Molly Hall and husband Emilio Tavernise; John Hall and wife Kate Hall; and Stephen Hall and wife Margaret Dailey); two stepsons and their spouses (Mark Freedman and wife Alison Meyer; and Jonathan Freedman and wife Sara Blair); seven grandchildren (Kate Berenson, Aaron Berenson, Hannah Berenson and husband Ryan Stafford, Sarah Berenson, Conrad Hall, Jennifer Hall, and Margot Hall); six stepgrandchildren (Weli Freedman, Michael Freedman, Sarah Freedman, Ariel Freedman, Benjamin Freedman, and Miriam Freedman); and two great-grandchildren (Grace Stafford and Caleb Stafford).

The family held a burial service at the Princeton Cemetery on October 8^th, with a memorial to follow on a date to be determined. Arrangements are under the direction of the Mather-Hodge Funeral Home in Princeton.

Donations in Georgine’s memory may be made to The Actors Fund, 729 Seventh Avenue, 10th Floor, New York, NY 10019; The Lewis School of Princeton, 53 Bayard Lane, Princeton, NJ 08540; or C-Change Conversations, PO Box 1206, Princeton, NJ 08542.

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Elinor T. Riddle

Elinor T. Riddle, 77, of Princeton, NJ passed away Friday, October 5, 2018 from cancer. She died at home, quietly in her sleep.

Born in Elmhurst, NY, Elinor graduated from Marymount Manhattan College in 1962 with a bachelor’s degree in English Literature. In 1965 she married Larry Riddle, with whom she raised a family of three children. They have lived in Princeton since 1973. In 1986 she joined the Princeton Public Library where she worked as a library assistant for over 20 years. Beauties of nature have been joys in her life, and she and her husband have been avid birders.

Elinor was predeceased by her parents, Edmond and Margaret Kelly Tyne. She is survived by her husband; her two daughters, Margaret Gillingham and Adele Feldstein; her son, George; her six grandchildren, Ellen and Ben Gillingham, Jean Strickland, Hazel, Ava and Eloise Feldstein; and her sister Catherine Bingay.

Services will begin on Wednesday, October 10, 2018 at 10:15 a.m. in the Kimble Funeral Home, 1 Hamilton Avenue, Princeton, NJ followed by a 10:45 a.m. funeral mass at St. Paul Church, 214 Nassau Street, Princeton, NJ. Interment will be in Princeton Abbey and Cemetery, 75 Mapleton Road, Princeton.

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