Aaron ("Arcky") Familant, 85, of Monroe Township, died July 10.
He was a leader of the credit union movement for nearly 50 years. As treasurer and board member of Progressive Credit Union, he took the credit union from a local Bronx institution to national prominence. He also served on the boards of the Excelsior, Central, Greater New York, and Empire Corporate Federal Credit Unions. He was president of the New York State Credit Union League and served as a director to the Credit Union National Association. He was the first credit union professional to serve on the New York State Banking Board, having been appointed by Gov. Mario Cuomo.
He was a lifelong member and officer of the Bessarabian Young Men's Benevolent Association.
Predeceased by his wife, Rosalind, he is survived by a daughter, Linda Meisel of Princeton; a son, Robert of New York City; four grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.
The funeral service was July 12 at The Riverside Chapel, New York City.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Rosalind "Mimi" Familant Fund, Jewish Community Foundation of Princeton Mercer Bucks, 4 Princess Road, Suite 206, Lawrenceville 08648.
Michel Jean Martin, 62, of Plainsboro, died July 14 at the University Medical Center at Princeton.
Born in Perpignan, France, he came to Princeton Junction in 1983 and moved to Plainsboro in 1986.
He graduated from the School of Chemistry of Lyon, France, and the School of Chemical Engineering of Nancy, France.
He was a vice president of sales and new product development at Huber Inc., in Havre de Grace, Md., for the last 15 years. He was previously CEO of U.S. Operations for SNPE Inc. in Paris.
He is survived by his wife Annie (Besson) Martin and a daughter, Carole Martin of New York City.
A Mass of a Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. today, July 19 at Queenship of Mary Church, 19 Dey Road, Plainsboro. Burial will be in Princeton Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the University Medical Center at Princeton Oncology Department, 253 Witherspoon Street, Princeton 08540.
Arrangements are under the direction of The Mather-Hodge Funeral Home.
Samuel Thurm, 88, of Princeton, died July 10 following a long illness.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., the son of a tailor, he attended Erasmus Hall High School, graduated from Dartmouth in 1939, and attended Columbia Business School. He left Columbia to serve in the South Pacific as a captain in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II. After the war he completed his business degree and went to work at Young & Rubicam for George Gallup.
On leaving Y&R to become media director at Lever Brothers, he became closely involved with TV shows such as I Love Lucy and Father Knows Best. Rising through the ranks at Lever, he became senior vice president in charge of advertising, in which capacity he had Lever take the lead in casting African Americans, Asian Americans and other minorities in national advertising campaigns. An article in Newsweek described him as "the Branch Rickey of nighttime television."
Recognized by his peers as an industry leader, he became the only person ever to hold the head position at the Association of National Advertisers, The American Advertising Federation, and the Advertising Research Foundation. He also served as vice-chairman of the Advertising Council.
He left Lever in 1973 to head the Washington office of the Association of National Advertisers, and remained there until his retirement in 1987. Following his retirement from full-time work he taught advertising as adjunct professor at Florida Atlantic University.
He continued teaching until he was 81, saying that working with students kept him young.
He was an avid golfer, sports fan, and crossword enthusiast, and doting grandfather.
In 1940 he married Ruth-Elaine Blum, with whom he had two sons. After her death in 1989 he married Arlene Bruck of Montreal and Palm Beach.
He is survived by his wife Arlene; two sons, Andrew of Princeton and Allen of Los Angeles; two stepdaughters, Maggie Bruck and Nancy Bruck; two grandchildren; and two step-grandchildren.
Burial was private.
A memorial service is planned for September in Princeton.
Arrangements were by Orland's Funeral Home, Ewing.
Elaine H. Wert, 79, of Manasquan, formerly of Princeton, died July 12 at Care One in East Brunswick.
Born and raised in Princeton, she was a resident of Kendall Park from 1957 to 1998 before moving to Manasquan in 1998. In Kendall Park she was a member of St. Augustine of Canterbury Church; in Manasquan, a member of St. Denis Church.
The wife of the late Albert M. Wert Jr., she is survived by two sons, Albert M. III of Monmouth Junction, and Jeffrey M. of Boomer, N.C.; two daughters, Kathleen Smith of Dayton and Susan E. Froats of Monmouth Junction; six grandchildren; and one great-grandson.
The funeral was July 15 at M.J. Murphy Funeral Home, Monmouth Junction. It was followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at St. Augustine of Canterbury Church. Entombment was at Franklin Memorial Park, North Brunswick.
Memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, Tenn. 38105.