Ruppert DeAndrade

Ruppert “The Big Guy” DeAndrade of Princeton died on Wednesday, December 19, 2012 at a hospital in central New Jersey.

Born on October 6, 1929 in New York, Ruppert moved to Princeton in the mid-1970’s. When Ruppert re-located to Princeton, he was a tenant in the home of the late Mrs. Jesse Holland on Leigh Avenue. Although he had no known relatives, he was soon embraced by the late Mrs. Jossie Broadway of Birch Avenue, and her entire family. As a result, he was included in all of their many family celebrations.

Ruppert worked for many decades for the Princeton Township Public Works. Due to his stature, many people in town referred to him as “The Big Guy” who worked for, and drove the truck for the Township. He was so proud of his job, that even when he was not working, he was most often seen wearing the hat and jacket bearing the logo of the Public Works.

Due to his love for his hometown, he became an iconic figure around Princeton, usually on Nassau Street talking with the taxi drivers, the merchants, the tellers at the bank, and always conversing with the customers that frequented the kiosk at Palmer Square.

After Ruppert retired from the Princeton Public Works, he started spending most of his time talking with his fellow tenants at the Holly House, where he resided until his health required that he move to Merwick. Even there, he was referred to as “The Big Guy,” who was a little different from the other residents.

It was such a pleasure to see Ruppert respond favorably when my (Frances Broadway Craig) children would come with me to visit him and still include him in any celebrations. He was happy to be included in the ritual of Holy Communion, which Reverend Brooks from Mount Pisgah Church would administer and pray with him.

Ruppert is survived by his loving, supportive family, including Frances Broadway Craig, Julian Craig, and Romus Broadway of Princeton, Sydni Craig and her husband Reverend Michael Nabors of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., John and Herbert Broadway of Lawrenceville, Jaqui Geary of Trenton, and Daryl Boone of Morristown.

The funeral arrangements, conducted by The Campbell Funeral Home, were private.

May the memory of Rupert “The Big Guy” DeAndrade be etched in the hearts of anyone he may have touched.

Any memorial contributions may be made to Mount Pisgah Church, 170 Witherspoon Street, Princeton. This obituary was lovingly submitted by Frances Broadway Craig.

———

Minnie L. Rhodes

Minnie L. Rhodes of Princeton, New Jersey passed away on Sunday, December 30, 2012, at home, surrounded by her loving family.

Born in Columbia, North Carolina on November 6, 1934, Minnie was educated in the North Carolina public school system. She moved to Princeton, New Jersey in 1958.

Minnie was a Home Health Aide with the Home Care Council of New Jersey from 1976 to 1992. From 1992 to 2012, Minnie was the Site Supervisor for the Mercer County Nutrition Program, retiring from there in July 2012.

Minnie was a member of the First Baptist Church in Princeton from 1958 until her death. While a member of First Baptist, she served in the Willing Workers, Adult Dance Ministry, Ladies Guild, Missionaries and the Nurses Unit. She was also a member of the First Baptist Church Choir and the Sunday School.

Minnie was an officer of the Nassau Court #6 Order of the Calanta. She was a frequent traveler and member of the Princeton Getaway Club. Minnie was also a distinguished lifetime member of the Trenton Chapter of the NAACP.

Minnie was predeceased by her parents, Tassie and Hodges Bowser, her sisters, Marie Ashe, Ermaline Akin, and brothers Leonard and Hardy Bowser. Minnie was also predeceased by her first husband, Melvin R. Liverman who died in 1964 and her second husband, Playton Rhodes, who died in 1986.

Minnie is survived by her children, Dexter Liverman of Ewing, Bonita (Richard) Leadem of Ewing, Denise (James) Isley of Trenton, Lance (LaTonya) Liverman of Princeton, and Elliott (Karen) Liverman of Pottstown, Pa. as well as her stepsons, Emmanuel (Hazel) Rhodes of Princeton, and Oscar Rhodes, also of Princeton. Minnie is also survived by four sisters, Violet (James) Barnes of Norfolk, Va, Shirley Liverman of Brooklyn, N.Y., Alene Lockhart of Trenton, and Mary (Joe) Collier of Morrisville, Pa. as well as three brothers, Clayton (Della) Bowser of Columbia, N.C., Hodges Bowser, Jr. of Windsor, N.C., and Grady (Kay) Bowser of San Jose, Calif., and many grandchildren, nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

Funeral services were held on January 5 at 11 a.m. at First Baptist Church, John Street and Paul Robeson Place in Princeton. Reverend Carlton Branscomb officiated. Interment was at Princeton Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made to a charity of the donor’s choice. Arrangements are by the Hughes Funeral Home.

———

Katharine Bonsall Strong

Katharine Bonsall (Kay) Strong, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, Cub Scout den mother, and beloved matriarch of her extended family, passed away peacefully at Merwick Care and Rehabilitation Center in Plainsboro, on November 19, 2012. She was 96.

Kay Strong was born in Morristown on July 6, 1916 to parents John Halsey Bonsall and Katharine Neilson Bonsall. After graduating from Kent Place in Summit, she attended Sweet Briar College, Class of 1939, where she was active in the Drama Society. Her late brother, Major John H. Bonsall, Princeton, Class of 1941, was one of three members of a Jedburgh team who was killed behind enemy lines in France in August 1944 during World War II (he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and the Croix de Guerre posthumously). Kay was so proud of her brother and established a memorial fund in his honor in the music department at Princeton University.

In 1942, Kay married the late John Van Rensselaer Strong, an attorney in New Brunswick from whom she was divorced in 1963. She is survived by their four children: Katharine S. (Bonnie) Berge of Johannesburg, South Africa; John VR Strong, Jr. of Princeton; Robert L. Strong of Lincoln, Calif.; and Sarah Strong Drake of Belle Mead.

Kay was a “people person” with a delightful wit and a gentle nature who especially enjoyed volunteering with children and the elderly. For five years she served as president of the board of managers of the Francis E. Parker Memorial Home in New Brunswick, and for eight years as a vice president of the Girl Scouts of Middlesex County. She belonged to the Study Club of New Brunswick for 37 years and also the Trowel Club. She was a volunteer at the Child and Family organization in New Brunswick and belonged to the Second Dutch Reformed Church of New Brunswick. Kay served as a den mother for the Milltown Cub Scouts while living there.

After moving from Milltown to Princeton, Kay became a charter member and officer of the Learners Investment Club (L.I.P.) of Princeton; was a volunteer at the Princeton Nursing Home for 15 years; and participated in the reading program at the Skillman Training School for Boys. She served for five years on the Council of Friends of the Princeton Public Library, and was a trustee for the New Jersey State Museum for several years.

Kay belonged to the Princeton Present Day Club. She was also a member of the Junior League, the Holland Dames Society, the Lords of the Manor, the Colonial Dames of America and the Colony Club in New York City.

About 25 years ago, Kay moved permanently to her coastal home and most beloved retreat on Fisher’s Island Sound in Noank, Conn. She became a member of the Noank Baptist Church and was co-chairman of its stewardship committee; sang in the senior choir; was secretary for its Evening Circle; and a volunteer in its fundraising activities, including the Corner Closet. In her own words, she “always relished soliciting for any worthwhile cause,” from raising funds for the Pequot Sepos Nature Center in Mystic, Conn. to securing donations for the church’s annual silent auction.

Kay was a keen amateur artist, filling many sketchbooks with scenes from her travels. She also painted in oils on canvas a variety of landscapes, seascapes, animals, and people. During Noank summers, she studied oil painting with the late artist Robert Brackman. She was a devoted gardener and enjoyed arranging the flowers she grew in her gardens in Princeton and Noank. Her creative expression extended to singing and playing the piano, talents that she passed on to her daughters.

Kay “Gammie” was dearly loved by her six grandchildren: Matthew, Benjamin, and Simon Berge, and Katharine, Emily, and Alexandra Drake. She never had the chance to meet her two young South African great-grandsons, Zachary and Joshua Berge.

Her family especially appreciated the devoted caregiving from Maria Ellis. Maria was a kindred spirit whose loving attention brightened Kay’s final years.

In lieu of flowers, donations are suggested to SAVE, A Friend to Homeless Animals, at 900 Herrontown Rd, Princeton, N.J. 08540.

A memorial service will be held at the Princeton University Chapel on January 12 at 11 a.m. An additional memorial service will be at the Noank Baptist Church in Noank in spring.

Arrangements are under the direction of The Mather-Hodge Funeral Home, Princeton.

———

Mary Devlin Abbott

Mary Devlin “Devey” Abbott, 89, of Boca Raton Florida, passed away on Saturday January 5 surrounded by her family.

Devey was born in Trenton, attended Cathedral Grammar School, and was a graduate of Cathedral High School.

In 1943 she became the wartime bride of George Simko who served in the Army Air Corps in the Pacific. After the war they had a son, Michael Simko. Their marriage ended in divorce.

In 1960 she married Clarence “Chafe” Chafey, a retired New York banker. The 1960s were a special time as Devey reconnected with her Cathedral classmate and friend, Betty Hughes, wife of Governor Richard Hughes. At first a campaign volunteer, Devey later agreed to serve as Betty’s social secretary. For eight years she managed the daily social and family affairs at Morven, the governor’s residence. She kept a close but loving eye on the eight Hughes and Murphy children then living under the Morven roof. She loved the Hughes family like her own, and remained close to the children for the rest of her life. At various times each was labeled her favorite, but she loved them all deeply.

After the Morven years, Devey returned to being a wife and mother until March 1970 when Chafe died.

In November 1971, Devey married J. Alan Abbott of Boca Raton, Florida, and Stamford, Conn. Alan had recently retired as President of Homelite Corp., later a division of Textron Inc.

Devey and Alan enjoyed a wonderful life together in Boca Raton. They entertained often and were active in several Boca Raton charities, notably in support of the Boca Raton hospital. They were longtime members of both the Royal Palm Yacht and Country Club, and of the Delray Beach Club. Devey lived in and loved Boca for more than forty years until her death.

Devey also maintained ties in New Jersey. She was a member of the Trenton Country Club where she enjoyed friends and family during summer and holiday visits with her son and granddaughters. She was also a member of the Nassau Club.

Daughter of the late Peter James and Margaret Duffy Devlin, wife of the late J. Alan Abbott, mother-in-law of the late Elaine F. Simko, sister of the late Margaret Palsho and Helen Masick, she is survived by her son Michael Simko of Princeton, three granddaughters — Kate, Caroline, and Julia, and several nieces and nephews.

Devey was generous and caring with all of her friends and family. She will be greatly missed by the many whose lives she touched.

Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Thursday, January 10 at 11 a.m. at The Church of the Sacred Heart, 343 S. Broad St. Trenton.

Burial in St. Mary’s Cemetery will be private at the convenience of the family.

Calling hours will be on Wednesday from 5-7 p.m., at the M. William Murphy Funeral Home, 935 Parkway Avenue, Ewing, N.J., 08618. Visit www. Murphyfh.com.

There will be a memorial service in Boca Raton later this month. Details will be announced later.

Flowers are welcome or donations may be made in Devey’s memory to St. Francis Medical Center Foundation 601 Hamilton Avenue Trenton, N.J. 08629 or to Boca Raton Regional Hospital Foundation 745 Meadows Rd. Boca Raton, Fla., 33486.

———

Lucille Joan Frohling

Lucille Joan Frohling died peacefully at Sibley Hospital on December 23, 2012 after a massive stroke. A lifetime Washington D.C. resident, Lucille was born in Princeton. A talented performer, her survivors include her siblings: Elizabeth Curtiss of Princeton; John Frohling of Jersey City; Edward Frohling of Southampton, N.Y.; Lucien Frohling of North Caldwell, N.J.; Agnes Jackson of Hanover, Pa.; Marie Rawlings of North Andover, Mass.; daughter Diane Daniels of Durham, N.C., and 24 nieces and nephews.

A burial service will be held on Friday, January 11 at 10:45 a.m. at St. Paul’s Church in Princeton. There will be a memorial service for her many Washington friends on February 9 at Epiphany Catholic Church in Georgetown.

———

Lauren O’Neil

Lauren O’Neil, 61, a Kingston resident for over 30 years, was killed in a head on collision on Route 206 in Montgomery on Saturday night, December 22, 2012. Born in Watertown, N.Y., on September 8, 1951, O’Neil grew up in Canandaigua, Huntington, and Greenlawn, N.Y. She graduated from Harborfield High School in Greenlawn where her father, Harry O’Neil, was a history teacher. Her mother, Rosemary, was also a teacher. Upon graduation from Ithaca College, O’Neil worked as a Vista volunteer in Newark and Harlem in New York City. She first came to Princeton as an au pair in the late 1970’s and then developed a highly successful career in radio advertising sales. She was employed variously over two decades at WCTC, WPAT, and CBS. O’Neil was a single mother of Devin O’Neil, now 23.

Friends most remember Lauren for her seemingly limitless energy and generosity, and for her involvement and devotion to innumerable causes and organizations close to her heart. She was an active member of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Princeton since the 1980s. She organized a series of brunches at UUCP to raise money for groups such as Homefront and the Mercer Alliance. Lauren coordinated UUCP’s donations to the Crisis Ministry of Trenton and Princeton for many years. She was an active fundraiser for the Stonybrook Millstone Watershed Association and NJ Citizen Action. She was also actively involved with the Coalition for Peace Action, The Middle East Society of Princeton, and in Democratic Party politics in Princeton and Kingston. She served as a Kingston Commissioner and Somerset County Democratic Committeewoman. She was a major organizer in the Kingston community and was well known at election time for organizing voter registration and get out the vote drives in Philadelphia, as well as locally.

Recently, O’Neil completed an MA in Special Education at Rutgers University and was matriculating into a doctoral program at Rutgers. She has worked as both an elementary school substitute teacher and as a tutor for the Princeton Regional School District, primarily at Riverside and Community Park schools. “The kids loved her,” said Carol Allen, grandmother of a Community Park School student.

O’Neil was also a long-time member of the Princeton Ski Club, played tennis and rugby, and was a member of the Princeton Country Dancers where she especially loved English Country Dance.

O’Neil is survived by her son, Devin, of New Brunswick, and by her mother Rosemary O’Neil, sister Coleen Hennessey, and niece and nephew Erika and James, all of Plantsville, Conn., and by additional relatives in Rhode Island, western New York state, and Michigan. O’Neil treated all of her close friends as family.

A memorial service will be held at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Princeton, 50 Cherry Hill Rd, on Saturday, January 12, 2013, at 2 p.m.

———

Rachel Jeanne Lehr

Rachel Jeanne Lehr, 80, passed away in her home on Saturday December 29, 2012. The daughter of Martin and Rebecca Lehr, she was born in Bayonne, and grew up in Teaneck. She graduated from Teaneck High School. As she raised five children, she earned a BA from Columbia University in 1981 and a JD from Rutgers University, Newark, in 1984.

Rachel began her career as an attorney in 1985 with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. In 1989 she became a Deputy Attorney General for the Division of Law of the Office of the Attorney General for the state of New Jersey, where she worked until her death.

She is survived by her children and their spouses Jill Mohrer (Jonathan Mohrer), James Goodman (Jennifer McFeely), Robert Goodman (Deborah Bernstein), Sandra Goodman (Susan Weil), and Wendy Goodman (Leonard Tesler); her grandchildren Joshua Mohrer, Daniel Mohrer, McFeely Samuel Goodman, McFeely Jackson Goodman, Alexander Watkins Goodman, Jonah Tesler, Haley Tesler, Abigail Goodman, and Gabriel Goodman; sister Edith Amsterdam and brother Jay Lehr; and ex-husband, Burton Goodman.

Funeral services were on Monday at 11 a.m. at The Jewish Center, 435 Nassau Street in Princeton. Burial will follow at Cedar Park Cemetery, Paramus.

The family respectfully requests memorial contributions be offered to the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation or the Environmental Defense Fund.

Shiva was observed. Funeral arrangements by Orland’s Ewing Memorial Chapel, 1534 Pennington Road, Ewing Township.

———

Alfred D. Christie

Alfred D. Christie, M.D., 81, of Pennington, passed away Monday at Capital Medical Center-Hopewell.

Born in Trenton, Dr. Christie was a life long area resident.

He was a graduate of Trenton Boys Catholic High School, Georgetown University class of 1952, Jefferson Medical College, Class of 1956. Dr. Christie interned at Mercer Medical Center in Trenton, served as a Captain in the US Army Medical Corp in Fort Sam Houston Texas and then went on to practice family medicine in West Trenton for over 30 years. He helped organize and was president of the Medical Board at St. Lawrence Rehabilitation in Lawrenceville. He was a member of Symposium, The Trenton Club, the N.J. Audobon Society. He was an avid fisherman, sailor, skier, ice skater, and loved his dogs .

Son of the late Alfred E. and Anna West Christie, father of the late Brian J. Christie, brother of the late Betty Ann Christie Sweeney and Mary Virginia Christie Nolan, he is survived by his wife of 56 years Carol Christie, three daughters and two sons-in-law; Gretchen Christie of Princeton; Colleen and Martin Maloney of Frenchtown, N.J.; and Cathleen and Jeffrey Arch of Lawrenceville. He is also survived by one son, A. Douglas Christie, M.D., of Bloomsburg Pa.; one daughter-in-law, Sally Christie of Lawrenceville; and 6 grandchildren, Caroline and M. Patrick Maloney, Quinn Christie, Sarah, Madeleine and Courtney Arch, and many nieces and nephews.

The family will receive visitors on Thursday, January 10 from 5-7:30 p.m. at the M. William Murphy Funeral Home, 935 Parkway Avenue, Ewing N.J. 08618. Visit www.murphyfh.com. Funeral services and burial will be private and at the convenience of the family. In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory may be made to the St. Lawrence Rehabilitation Center, 2381 Lawrenceville Road, Lawrenceville, N.J., 08648.

———