Rev. Dr. Marilyn McCord Adams

The Rev. Dr. Marilyn McCord Adams died peacefully at her home in Princeton, New Jersey, on March 22, 2017. She is known internationally in academic circles for her contributions to the study of philosophy and theology, and in the Anglican Communion for her forceful advocacy of full recognition of the value of loving same-sex relationships. Born October 12, 1943, in Oak Park, Illinois, to William Clark McCord and Wilmah Brown McCord, she spent most of her childhood in small towns in east central Illinois, and attended the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, graduating as valedictorian of her class in early 1964, with a major in philosophy. Continuing her study of philosophy at the graduate level, she received her PhD from Cornell University in 1967.

At Cornell she met and married Robert Merrihew Adams, a fellow doctoral student in philosophy (known then and now as “Bob” to colleagues, graduate students, and other friends). This began a partnership spanning half a century in which their professional as well as personal lives were closely intertwined. They held faculty positions in the same universities, first in the philosophy department of the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and then for 21 years in the UCLA philosophy department. It was during her time in Los Angeles that Marilyn was ordained to the Episcopal priesthood, having followed a sense of calling through an intense introduction to ministry in Hollywood during the AIDS crisis, and having acquired two ThM degrees from Princeton Theological Seminary.

In 1993 they moved east to Yale, where Marilyn was the Horace Tracy Pitkin Professor of Historical Theology in the divinity school, while Bob was in the philosophy department (and chaired it for eight years). In 2004 they moved to Oxford, England. He retired, and she became Regius Professor Divinity, and a Canon of Christ Church Cathedral. Historically, she was the first woman, and the first American, to hold that professorship. Both of them participated in the intellectual life of Oxford University, and felt their lives enriched by English traditions of Christian worship.

Returning to the United States in 2009, they settled in Chapel Hill, N.C., for nearly four years, teaching in the UNC philosophy department. In 2013 they moved to Princeton, and taught in a graduate center for philosophy of religion at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, and at Princeton Theological Seminary.

As a scholar and interpreter of medieval philosophy and theology Marilyn McCord Adams is known especially for her definitive two-volume study of the work of William Ockham. She has also made a mark in contemporary philosophy of religion, particularly with two books presenting her distinctive approach to the theological problem of evil. In Horrendous Evils and the Goodness of God and Christ and Horrors she does not try to answer the question, ‘Why did God permit all the evils that we know about?’ Rather she asks, ‘What can God do to make our existence a great good to us, without trivializing the horrendous evils that we know about?’ As an Episcopal priest, most recently assisting at Trinity Cathedral in Trenton, New Jersey, she will be remembered for generous spiritual companionship and forceful sermons, delivered always without notes, relating the Bible to questions of present-day life in ways both critical and hopeful.

She is survived by her husband of 50 years, and by a large and loyal extended family, including her brother and sister-in-law, William and Carolyn McCord of Peoria, Illinois: her nephew James Fearon, of Stanford, California: and her niece Mary Fearon Jack, of Hudson, Ohio: and many of her former students, with their families. There will be a family interment ceremony at the cemetery in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. Public memorial services will take place in Trinity Cathedral in Trenton, New Jersey, at 10 a.m. on Saturday April 8, and in Los Angeles, California on the first Saturday in May. In lieu of flowers, contributions in memory of Marilyn may be made to a charity of the donor’s choice.

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

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Janet Jeffers 

Janet Jeffers passed away quietly on Thursday, March 23, 2017 at the age of 84.

Janet was a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, Amherst with a Bachelor’s Degree in English literature. Janet taught in The West Windsor Plainsboro School system for many years as a substitute teacher. She was an avid reader and founding member of the Plainsboro Free Public Library. She had an unparalleled love and passion for gardening. She was a member of the Garden Club of Trenton, Garden Club of America, and Martha’s Vineyard Garden Club. Janet spent many wonderful summers with her family on Martha’s Vineyard.

She is survived by her devoted husband of 59 years, Henry W. Jeffers, III; two children, Katherine Jeffers Goldfarb and husband, Rob Goldfarb, of New York City; James W. Jeffers and his wife, Raquel; and two grandchildren, Juliette and Jasper Jeffers of Hopewell.

A memorial service will be held in Plainsboro at the Plainsboro Presbyterian Church on Thursday, April 6^th at 11 a.m.

In lieu of flowers, donations should be made to the East Chop Yacht Club Junior Sailing Program, P.O. Box 525, Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts 02557.

Arrangements are under the direction of the A.S. Cole Son & Co. Funeral Home, 22 North Main Street, Cranbury, NJ. www.saulfuneralhomes.com.

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Helen Newman Chooljian

Helen Newman Chooljian, 84, of Princeton passed away on Sunday, March 19, 2017 at her residence with her beloved husband and her longtime aide at her side.

Born July 5, 1932 to Lois and Joseph Percy Newman in White Plains, New York, Helen spent her childhood and youth in Cleveland, Ohio where her father was a publishing executive. She inherited a lifelong love of reading and literature from her father. In 1950 Helen graduated from Shaw High School and went on to Wellesley College where she majored in English. While at Wellesley she met her future husband, Martin A. Chooljian, a student at Harvard Business School. They married on April 16, 1955.

Martin and Helen spent the next few years in Dayton, Ohio while he was serving in the United States Air Force as a lieutenant. Their first child, Anne, was born there. Several happy years followed in Palo Alto and Atherton, California where their second daughter Cynthia was born and where Martin worked as a vice president at Litton Industries while Helen perfected her skills as a mother and homemaker.

In 1964 the family relocated to Princeton, after Martin made the decision to go into business for himself. Helen enthusiastically endorsed the plan, which showed quite a bit of courage on her part as she had recently overcome serious challenges to her health.

Helen thrived in Princeton, making numerous longtime friends via her many memberships and associations with local organizations. She and Martin were members of All Saints’ Episcopal Church, The Bedens Brook Club, and the Nassau Club. Helen was a founding member and later president of the Women’s Investment Group, a member of the Present Day Club, the local Wellesley College Club, and a McCarter Theater patron. She was also one of the early friends of the Institute for Advanced Study and had a scholarship in her name at Wellesley College.

Helen especially enjoyed working every year at the Bryn Mawr-Wellesley Book Sale and the Wellesley antiques show where she could be counted on to make sure that no one left the premises without making a donation.

An enthusiastic traveler, Helen visited places as far away as Australia and was always ready for an adventure like seeing the Grand Canyon, going white water rafting in Colorado, or ballooning in Arizona. She was a voracious reader who could be depended upon to remember a book’s title or author that no one else could, and loved to play cards especially bridge and solitaire.

Helen will be remembered for her grace, strength, courage, intellect, sharp wit, and generosity. She will be forever in the hearts of her family and many friends.

Helen was preceded in death by her brothers John and Andrew Harpham Newman. She is survived by her husband Martin; daughter Anne Chooljian and longtime companion Raul Najar; daughter Cynthia Jost and son-in-law Dan Jost; son Andrew Martin Chooljian and daughter-in-law Laurel Chooljian; honorary grandchildren Dr. Ingrid Stewart, Tyrone Taylor, Dr. Elizabeth Taylor, Dr. Rebecca Taylor and Joshua Taylor; and finally her honorary great granddaughter Stony Taylor. A special thanks to her wonderful aide of 16 years, Brenda Stewart, for without her Helen’s last years would not have been all that they were.

Private cremation was held and a memorial service celebrating her life will be held at The Mather-Hodge Funeral Home, 40 Vandeventer Avenue Princeton, New Jersey on Saturday, April 29, 2017 at 3 p.m. to be followed by a reception at the Bedens Brook Club at 240 Rolling Hill Road, Skillman, New Jersey.

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Gundel Bradford

Gundel Bradford, 81, died in the comfort of her home in Princeton, on March 14, 2017, tended by family and beloved friends, as heavy snow began to fall outside her window.

Born Gunthild Klaerchen Huober, on December 16, 1935 in Baghdad, Iraq, to German émigré parents, Dr. Hans-Guenther and Gudrun Huober, she excelled in her undergraduate studies in the late 1950’s at both the American University in Beirut, Lebanon as well as the University of Munich, Germany. In 1961, she came to the United States as a Ford Foundation Fellow to pursue her PhD degree in economics at Stanford University. It was there that she met the late Dr. David F. Bradford, and the two were married in Cambridge, England in 1964, where David was then a Fellow at Cambridge University.

After living in Europe and Washington, D.C. for several years, they settled in New Jersey where David became professor of economics at Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School. They had two children, Theodore and Catherine Louise (called “Lulu”).

Gundel and David continued to travel widely, spending sabbaticals in Belgium, Washington D.C. and California. They visited Germany often to spend time with Gundel’s parents, brother and friends, as well as to collaborate with German scholars. Gundel was also a passionate lover of the arts, and in particular, opera. She and David spent much of their time in Manhattan attending operas at The Met. After David’s death in 2005, Gundel found solace by sustaining her passion for music and the arts in numerous ways, in New York City and in the Princeton community.

In 1991, while David was serving on the President’s Council of Economic Advisors, Gundel returned to school to study landscape design at George Washington University, in Washington, D.C. Upon returning to Princeton, Gundel Bradford Landscape Design was founded, and she pursued her love for beautifying parks and gardens. Gundel was one of the original founders of the Pine Street Block Party, an annual tradition that spanned over 40 years and included lively dancing to Bluegrass music. Her German plum tart and freshly whipped cream were an annual hit among her neighbors and friends in the Pine Street community, where she was much beloved. Gundel was also an accomplished gourmet, and loved cooking and spending time with family and friends around dinner tables over many hours, late into the evenings.

Gundel is survived by her son, Theodore (Gillian Haney) of Boston, Mass.; and daughter, Lulu (Dr. Kerry Tucker) of Saco, Me.; and four granddaughters, Alethea and Phoebe Bradford, and Metis and Thalia Bradford-Tucker; a sister Helga (Dr. Jack Doucette) of Denver, Colo.; and brother Wolfram Huober (Josi L’habitant) of Freiburg, Germany; and sister-in-law Victoria Bradford Witte (Dr Patrick Witte) of St. Louis, Mo.; and nieces and nephews Marc Doucette, Stephanie Doucette, Cynthia Doucette, Mark Witte, Bruce Witte, Eric Witte, Gretchen Anderson.

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Colin C. McAneny

November 18, 1930 — March 14, 2017

Colin Crombie McAneny, 86, died in Jackson, Miss, from complications following surgery. Colin was born in New York City and raised in Princeton. After graduating from Princeton University in 1952 with a bachelor’s degree in geological engineering, he served in the U.S. Navy from 1952 to 1956, remaining active in the U.S. Naval Reserves until 1968. Following his active duty in the Navy, Colin earned a master’s degree in geology from Johns Hopkins University in 1964. Over the course of his career, Colin worked for Kennecott Copper Corporation, McGraw-Hill Publishing Company, the U.S. Public Health Service, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He worked in geotechnical engineering at Waterways Experiment Station in Vicksburg, Miss, from 1975 until his retirement in 1995. Colin was a faithful member of Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Vicksburg, singing bass in the church choir. In retirement he also became active in community theater, following in the footsteps of his parents, Herbert and Marguerite McAneny, who were founding actor-director members of the Princeton Community Players. Colin played the role of “Father” for many years in Vicksburg Theater Guild’s annual production of Gold in the Hills. He also volunteered his time generously, serving as volunteer treasurer for the Warren County Habitat for Humanity for many years and as a volunteer for Serenity Premier Hospice in Vicksburg. Colin was an avid sailor and enjoyed seeing the world. Over the course of his life he traveled to six continents; recent trips included Iceland, Zambia, Nova Scotia, and Bali.

Colin is survived by his loving wife, Danielle McAneny of Vicksburg, Miss.; his sister, Wendy McAneny Bradburn of Arlington, Va.; his children Jean F. McAneny of Albany, Calif., Joseph C. McAneny of Oakland, Calif., and Marjorie McAneny Page of Richmond, Calif.; and five grandchildren, Marika, David, James, Madeleine, and Corinne. He was predeceased by his sister Leslie C. McAneny (2005) and his daughter Teresa M. Sousa (2006).

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Colin’s name to the Warren County Habitat for Humanity, 820 South Street, Vicksburg, MS 39180.