Betty L. Clausen

George W. Clausen

Betty Louise Clausen, age 88, beloved mother of Suzanne Brassel and Jody Clausen, born in Melbourne, Australia on November 7, 1923, passed away peacefully on February 13, 2012 in Gloucester, Va.

Her husband, George William Clausen, Jr., age 91, passed away on August 16, 2010. He was born in Princeton on a dairy farm known as Catalpa Farm, located on 119 acres of land that is now the Princeton Shopping Center. (Catalpa Farm, built in the late 1700s, was purchased by his grandfather Hans Clausen in 1898. Hans also built the house on 35 Chestnut Street in Princeton. George’s uncle, Martin Clausen, was Chief of Police in Princeton from 1927 until the 1950s).

George joined the First Marine Corp Division at age 20 in 1939. He was then sent to Cuba on maneuvers, shipped to New Zealand, and then fought the Japanese at Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands. Returning to Australia on leave, he met Betty Louise Brier, a sergeant in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF); they married in September 1943. Soon after, George shipped to New Guinea and then to New Briton, where he re-enlisted. He was then sent to what has been called “the bitterest battle of the war for the marines”, the Battle of Peleliu, as a rifleman landing in the first wave.

Returning to Australia after the war, George graduated from Technical College in Melbourne, and returned to Princeton where he worked for 20 years as superintendent of public works for the Borough of Princeton. For more than 30 years Betty worked as a proofreader and secretary at Educational Testing Service (ETS) in Princeton. The couple moved to Gloucester, Virginia in 1994.

Betty was raised in Australia, the daughter of Elsie Amy Brier and William James Frasier Briar, and sister to Margaret Carnie, Bonnie Barrett, and Vera Tremayne of Melbourne (all deceased) and William “Billy” Brier of Sydney, Australia, and their families. She leaves behind her daughter, Suzanne E. Brassel and her husband, Alfred L. Brassel, of Yorktown, Va., as well as her granddaughter Valery Brassel Brinda and her husband, Mark Brinda of New York City; and her son, George “Jody” Clausen, at Cary Adult Home in Gloucester, Va. In addition, she leaves behind an extended family of nieces and nephews in Australia, as well as two brothers-in-law, Robert Clausen and John Clausen of Princeton, and a sister-in-law, Anita Mekeel in California and their families.

Betty will be remembered as an avid reader, wonderful listener, and a charming and witty lady, who found solace in a cup of tea. She had a gracious acceptance of life and was always a source of comfort and wisdom. She was dearly loved and is greatly missed.

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Marie A. Scasserra

Marie A. Scasserra, 89, of Rocky Hill, passed away on Wednesday, February 22, 2012, at her residence.

Born in Woonsocket, R.I., Marie retired from Kings Point Merchant Marine Academy in Great Neck, Long Island, N.Y. Upon her retirement, she and her husband moved back to Rocky Hill to maintain the Scasserra family farm.

Marie was a member of St. Paul’s Catholic Church in Princeton and a volunteer for Deborah Hospital.

Mrs. Scasserra was predeceased by her husband, Donald Leber Scasserra in 2010; her parents, Albert N. and Margaret M. Peloquin; sisters, Margaret Nicewicz and Cecelia Peloquin; brothers and sisters-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. John Scasserra, Dr. and Mrs. Benedict Scasserra, Mr. and Mrs. Anthony Scasserra, Mr. and Mrs. Julius Guarnieri, Mr. and Mrs. Nicholas Muccilli, Miss Louise Scasserra, and Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Scasserra. She is survived by several nieces and nephews.

Funeral services were on Monday, February 27, 2012 at 10:30 a.m. in the Kimble Funeral Home, 1 Hamilton Avenue, Princeton, followed by a funeral mass at St. Paul’s RC Church, 214 Nassau Street, Princeton. Burial was in the family plot at Rocky Hill Cemetery in Rocky Hill, N.J.

Visiting hours took place on February 26, 2012 from 5 to 8 p.m. at the funeral home.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Marie’s memory may be made to Princeton Health Care Ministry, P.O. Box 1517, Princeton, N.J. 08542; or Princeton Hospice, 208 Bunn Drive, Princeton, N.J. 08540.

Extend condolences at TheKimbleFuneralHome.com.

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Zelda E. Laschever

Zelda Etz Laschever died on January 17 at age 83. Zelda, the daughter of Jacob and Mary Etz, graduated from Trenton High School and Goucher College.

She exercised her life long passion for education and learning by cofounding the Princeton Junior Museum, one of the first please-touch museums, bringing interactive exhibits to Princeton’s public schools, and by traveling and experiencing the world’s many wonders. In her fifties she took up single shell rowing and taught many friends this pastime on Lake Carnegie.

She was predeceased in 2009 by the love of her life and husband of more than 50 years, Dr. E. Frederick Laschever. She is survived by her sons, Jeff, Eric, David, and Jack; her daughters-in-law Eulalie and Sonali; and her grandchildren, Tara, Benjamin, Beth, and Jean.

The many she touched remember her as vivacious, creative, loving, resilient, and adventurous.

Gifts in her memory may be given to the Fund for Girls and Women, Princeton Community Foundation, 15 Princess Road, Lawrenceville, N.J. 08648.