July 15, 2015

Obituaries 7/15/15

Obit Holt 7-15-15Helen Froelich Holt

Helen Froelich Holt, wife of a U.S. Senator, mother of a U.S Congressman, college science teacher, first woman in statewide office in West Virginia, and federal housing official appointed by seven U.S. presidents, died July 12, 2015 at age 101 in Boca Raton, Florida. She lived in Boca Raton and Washington, D.C. The cause of death was heart failure.

Helen Froelich was born in the central Illinois farming town of Gridley in 1913, the year of the introduction of parcel post delivery and the year of the completion of the Panama Canal. A dutiful student, she graduated from Stephens College, then a two-year college for women in Columbia, Missouri, and went on to earn bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in zoology from Northwestern University. She studied at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, and she was hired to set up the science library at Stephens College.

In her long life, Holt’s experiences ranged widely: from flying as a young girl with then little-known barnstorming pilot Charles Lindbergh, to modeling for an agency in the new Rockefeller Center, to serving in the West Virginia legislature, to founding and running a national program that resulted in the building of 1,000 high-standard nursing homes with 100,000 beds, to receiving an honorary doctorate at age 99 from a Big Ten university with a standing ovation following her commencement speech. Many people who knew her were more impressed by her deep, unobtrusive religious faith than by her remarkable professional accomplishments.

As a young woman, some of the senior faculty at Northwestern attempted to dissuade her from studying zoology, saying that she would have to go through the mud and handle insects and amphibians. That was just the challenge she relished. She completed her Master of Science degree in zoology with a thesis on artificial insemination of the Japanese salamander. From 1938 to 1941, Holt taught biology at the prestigious National Park College for women in Forest Glen (Silver Spring), Maryland, where she also led field trips and taught hygiene and etiquette.

In 1940, her students contributed her picture to Life magazine for a photo spread of teachers and the dynamic young bachelor, U.S. Senator Rush Holt of West Virginia, happened to see the spread and pointed to Helen’s picture. His sister said she knew that teacher from a national sorority association and could arrange a meeting. The Senator and the teacher met, soon married, moved back to West Virginia, and following his re-election defeat, they began raising three children, including a nephew who joined their family.

In 1955, Rush Holt died of cancer at age 49. Helen, left with three small children, resumed teaching at Greenbrier College for Women, and finished her husband’s term in the West Virginia legislature. In 1957, Governor Cecil Underwood appointed her to fill a vacancy as Secretary of State, and Holt became the first woman to hold statewide public office in West Virginia. In 1958, she ran unsuccessfully for a full term as a Republican, but was her party’s leading vote-getter in the state that year. Subsequently appointed West Virginia’s assistant commissioner for public institutions, she oversaw state long-term care facilities and the women’s prison. Holt got acquainted with Dwight Eisenhower, first when he was a candidate and later as president, and toward the end of his second term, he appointed her to implement the newly authorized program in the Federal Housing Administration to set standards for long-term care facilities and to provide insured mortgages for the construction of nursing homes meeting those standards. Her work setting up that program and advancing other housing programs for the elderly was so successful that Holt was reappointed to positions in the Department of Housing and Urban Development by six subsequent presidents, from Kennedy through Reagan.

In retirement, Holt devoted herself especially to church activities. She also campaigned with enthusiasm and determination for her son, Rush D. Holt, Jr., in his eight successful races for U.S. Congress. In 2013, when her son campaigned unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate from New Jersey, she decided that he was not running well in the southern part of the state, and so, at age 99 she set off on a tour of South Jersey — going from diner to diner with her walker to talk with patrons and encourage them to vote for her son.

Holt credited Natalie Tennant, the current West Virginia Secretary of State, with resurrecting her professional reputation. Holt said that no one remembered what she had done until 2009, when Secretary Tennant inquired about the portrait in the State Capitol of an attractive, young former secretary and discovered that Holt was still alive. Tennant’s public interviews with Holt drew attention and resulted in several public appearances of the nonagenarian. In 2013, West Virginia University awarded her an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters. As the 99-year-old concluded her speech, which was delivered without notes due to poor eyesight, the large audience rose to its feet in ovation.

Holt was predeceased by her husband Rush Holt, Sr. and daughter Jane Holt Seale. She is survived by her son, Rush Holt, and his wife, Margaret Lancefield, of Hopewell; David Chase, a nephew whom she raised, and his wife Patricia, of Syracuse, N.Y.; her grandson, Rush Seale, his wife Katie Sheketoff, and their children Nathaniel and Emerson; step-grandchildren Dejan Miovic, Michael Miovic, and Rachel Novsak; and nine great-grandchildren.

Memorial services will be held in Boca Raton on Sunday, July 19, 2015 and in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, August 15, 2015. Further information about memorial arrangements in Florida and in Washington, D.C. can be obtained from rush@rushholt.com.

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Obit Hannon 7-15-15Martha Hannon

Martha Hannon, 78, died suddenly on Sunday, June 28, 2015 at the University Medical Center of Princeton at Plainsboro. She was a resident of Princeton for over 50 years, had retired from Princeton Regional Schools and was a parishioner of St. Paul Roman Catholic Church.

Martha was born in Glens Falls, New York, to Arthur F. and Adele Brown. She was a graduate of St. Mary’s Academy and Pembroke College (Brown University). She loved Lake George in the Adirondacks and spent time there nearly every summer of her life.

Survivors include her children: Jessica Martin (Galen) of Camp Hill, Pennsylvania; Matthew of Princeton, New Jersey; and Tim (Jennifer) of Seattle, Washington. She had one grandchild, Andrew. She is also survived by her sister, Brenda Rew of Queensbury, New York.

A funeral mass was held at Our Lady of the Annunciation, in Queensbury, New York on July 14, 2015 with a private burial afterwards. In addition, a memorial gathering in memory of Martha will be held in Princeton, New Jersey in September. If you’re interested in attending, please contact the family through marthahannonmemorial@gmail.com after August 1.

Please consider making a memorial donation in lieu of sending flowers. Martha supported the Lake George Association (PO Box 408, Lake George, NY 12845 or www.lakegeorgeassociation.org), Princeton First Aid and Rescue Squad (237 North Harrison Street, Princeton, NJ 08540 or www.pfars.org) and the 101: fund, a scholarship fund at Princeton High School (151 Moore St, Princeton, NJ 08540 or fund101.org).

The family would like to thank Kimble Funeral Home for their help with the arrangements.

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obit Juega 7-15-15Rosario (Charo) Uruñuela de Juega

A loving wife and mother, Rosario (Charo) Uruñuela de Juega passed away peacefully on June 30, 2015, in Madrid, Spain. She had celebrated her 92nd birthday two weeks earlier. Born in Vigo, Spain, one of five children, she was raised in Bilbao in the devastating period during and after the Spanish Civil War, and survived a prolonged bout with typhoid fever in her teens. She abandoned her nursing studies and moved to Madrid after her marriage in 1945 to Jose Juega Boudon, then an officer in the Spanish Air Force Academy. In 1966, she moved to Montreal, Canada, following her husband’s appointment as the Spanish representative to the International Civil Aviation Organization. She spoke French, having learnt it in school and having been raised in a household where it was frequently used, but in Montreal she took on the challenge of learning English, well into her 40s. Upon her return to Madrid, she enrolled in the Official School of Foreign Languages in Madrid, and obtained a diploma in English. She was an avid reader, a wonderful cook, a creative knitter, and an active member of her church. She and her husband traveled extensively upon his retirement. After her husband’s death in 1991, she visited Princeton frequently for extended stays with her daughter. While in Princeton, she made many friendships, through her charming and graceful character. She particularly loved to spend time browsing and reading in the Princeton Public Library and walking in the gardens and many open spaces in the area.

She is survived by her three children Maria (Charo) Juega of Princeton, New Jersey; Jose Juega (Dolores) of Madrid; and Antonio (Montserrat) of Bescanó (Girona), Spain; her brother Ignacio (Nano) Uruñuela and sister Pilar (Ipis) Uruñuela; nieces, nephews and cousins. Her remains were cremated in Madrid. The 7 p.m. Spanish masses at St. Paul’s Catholic Church in Princeton will be offered for the repose of her soul on the five consecutive Sundays beginning July 12. Her ashes will be interred at St. Paul´s Cemetery at a later date.

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Obit Metzger 7-15-15Howard Martin Metzger

Howard Martin Metzger, 85, a longtime resident of South Brunswick, New Jersey, died peacefully on March 3, 2015 in Canton, Ohio. Born May 23, 1929 to the late Hazel and Louis Metzger in Floral Park, New York, he was the second of two sons. He graduated from Valparaiso University in 1951 with a BA in biology and later studied insurance at the College of Insurance, New York, N.Y. and Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey.

Howard served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War from December 1952 to December 1953, achieving the rank of Second Lieutenant. He began a 40 year career in the property and casualty insurance industry in 1954 at Marsh & McClennan and retired after 20 years with Johnson & Higgins in 1996 as a senior vice president in risk management.

Howard was actively involved in fundraising and for 11 years, from 1986 to 1997, rode the Anchor House Ride for Runaways, a 500-mile bike ride founded after federal funding was cut in 1986 and Anchor House risked closing its doors. In 2005, he received an award from Anchor House for his dedication and commitment in aiding runaway, homeless and abused youths. Howard was also actively engaged in supporting his alma mater and in 1991 he received the Alumni Service Award from Valparaiso University Alumni Association.

Howard was the beloved husband of the late Mary Jean Metzger. He is survived by his children: Jean Larson (Robert); Howard Jr. (Bobbi Barchiesi); Patricia Metzger (Jeff Reed); Kathryn Metzger Fucarino (Andrea); and Kristen Dodge (Sumner); and 14 grandchildren.

A memorial service is scheduled for Saturday, July 18, 2015, at 2 p.m. at Trinity Episcopal Church, Princeton, New Jersey.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Valparaiso University — Advancement Office, 1100 Campus Drive South, Valparaiso, IN 46383.

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