Obituaries, 4/1/2020
Jacques Pierre Sibeud
Jacques Pierre Sibeud, dearly beloved husband, father, and grandfather passed away on March 25, 2020 at home in Sag Harbor, NY, at the age of 93. A successful business executive with an international career, Jacques was most focused on his family and friends. His intellectual curiosity, gregarious nature, and open mind attracted new lifelong friends along the way wherever he went.
Jacques was born in 1926 in Toulon, France, where his father was a French naval officer. Most of his childhood was spent in Lyon, France, where he attended a Jesuit preparatory school before going on to Le Prytanée National Militiare, a military boarding school for children of Légion d’Honneur recipients. Although his father hoped he would follow him into the Navy, Jacques was not attracted to the life of a soldier which he could appreciate very well from his experiences as a teenager during World War II.
Ultimately Jacques’ calling was to become a scientist so he returned home to study at l’École Supérieure de Chimie Industrielle de Lyon where he earned a chemical engineering degree and a PhD in chemistry. While working on his doctorate, Jacques made a discovery which brought him to the attention of the president of his corporate sponsor, Rhone-Poulenc, the French chemical-textile giant. In recognition of his abilities, Jacques was asked to move to the United States to build a chemical plant in New Brunswick, NJ, and spearhead the company’s new business there. The catch was he had to decide on the spot. Jacques accepted the challenge to head to an unfamiliar country where he did not speak the language, thereby launching a career lasting over 35 years with Rhone-Poulenc. Ultimately Jacques reached the top echelons of Rhone-Poulenc as Vice President-Technical, overseeing important research and the construction and acquisition of more plants in the United States including a rare earth extraction plant in Freeport, Texas.
Another very important moment came in the spring of 1963 when Jacques met the woman of his dreams at the home of a mutual friend. After a whirlwind courtship he and Michele were married in New York City in November where they lived for the next five years. In 1968, with 3-year-old daughter, Amy, in tow they moved to Princeton, NJ, where they lived for 21 years. Another significant decision came in 1966 when Jacques and Michele built a home in Water Mill, NY, where they summered for many years eventually moving in full-time in 1990. In 2014, Jacques and Michele moved again to a historic home in Sag Harbor within walking distance of the pier and village.
Once retired, Jacques had time to serve as Treasurer and then as Commodore of the Devon Yacht Club in Amagansett, NY, where he had been involved for years running the weekend sailing races and serving as Fleet Captain. He liked to joke that his father would have been very happy to see him in uniform at last! Jacques also found time to serve on the vestry at St Ann’s Church in Bridgehampton at the time when they managed the renovation of the parish house basement to a multipurpose space for hosting meetings and Sunday school. He also ushered at Sunday services on a regular basis.
Jacques had many hobbies in addition to sailing. He was an avid bridge player and also enjoyed tennis and golf. Jacques and Michele traveled most years to California and France to visit their respective families and visited many new destinations in Europe together. They made several trips driving across the country, visiting friends and new places each time. Jacques loved working on his garden with Michele and also cooking and hosting beautiful dinners for friends and family. Many will remember that every year he and Michele made raspberry and quince jelly to enjoy and to give as gifts. An avid reader, especially of history, and a true sports fan, he always had something interesting to talk about with anyone he encountered. As a member of several luncheon groups over the years, he enjoyed lively discussions. His most recent project, now in the final stages of completion, is an extensive Sibeud family history dating back to the 1500s in both English and French.
He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Michele Brown Sibeud; his daughters, Amy and Eugenie; his sons-in-law Alfred Morgan and Dean Gomolka; and six grandchildren: Carter, James, Timothy, Chloe, Grace, and Max.
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Ricarda Froehlich
Ricarda Froehlich, 83 years old, died peacefully at Acorn Glen in Princeton on Sunday, March 29. She was born in Allenstein, East Prussia (today Olsztyn, Poland), the first child of the late Richard Lotzin and his wife, Hilde Bransky, on August 30, 1936. She grew up in Loerrach near the Swiss border where she attended the Hebel-Gymnasium and went on to study classical languages and literature (Greek and Latin) at the universities of Tuebingen, Hamburg, and Vienna. In 1961, she married Karlfried Froehlich and went with him to to the U.S. where they lived in Madison, NJ. In 1968, the family moved to Princeton.
Ricarda tutored numerous graduate students in German and Latin. Through Redeemer Lutheran Church in Trenton she participated in the work of the Trenton soup kitchen. Later, she became a longtime member of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Princeton Junction. She also served for many years as a choir mother at Trinity Church, and regularly attended the Early Birds bible study group at Nassau Presbyterian Church.
In 2010 the Froehlichs moved to the Princeton Windrows community where Ricarda spent her last years. Her mother had been a concert pianist, and Ricarda loved music. She sang in several church choirs and vocal ensembles over the years and was a faithful member of the Princeton Recorder Society. She also loved plants and flowers, and found great joy in tending her garden. She was gifted at arts and crafts, working especially with fabrics and yarns and exceptionally skilled at the spinning wheel.
Ricarda will be fondly remembered by a large circle of friends in the U.S. and abroad with whom she engaged in an extensive correspondence. She is survived by her husband and three children, Johanna Froehlich Swartzentruber of Princeton, Eberhard Froehlich of Montreal, and Daniel Froehlich of Poulsbo, WA, and two grandchildren, Anna Baroud of Berlin and Clara Swartzentruber of Princeton.
A private funeral service will be held on April 1 with burial at Princeton Cemetery immediately following. A memorial celebration will be scheduled later this year. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be directed to Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, 177 Princeton-Hightstown Road, Princeton Junction, NJ 08550.
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Amelia Buck Kerlin
Amelia (Amy) Buck Kerlin of Princeton died March 25, 2020, at Princeton Windrows where she had resided since 2005. She was the daughter of John Newton Buck and Elizabeth Mulcare Buck. Born in 1929, Amy grew up in Washington, DC, and attended Immaculata Junior College. In 1949 she married David Darton Kerlin, moved to New Jersey in 1955, settling in Westfield for 18 years. As their three children reached adulthood, Amy used her literacy and organizational skills working at the Westfield Board of Education in records and administrative support.
They moved to Princeton in 1972 where David was the local agent for State Farm Insurance. Amy once again employed her skills at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs for eight years in administrative support capacities. Her public spirit was demonstrated in her 30 years as volunteer for Recording for the Blind.
Amy’s interests were varied. With other family members she traced her Buck ancestry to 1635 when early English settlers arrived in Tidewater Virginia. For 35 years she and her husband enjoyed summers living aboard the BLUE WHALE docked on Barnegat Bay, where they hosted friends and family and were the life of dock parties. Extensive travel took them on driving trips across the USA, visits to many countries in Europe, a safari in Kenya, as well as numerous cruises with good friends. She also enjoyed swimming, gardening, and tennis, winning some friendly tennis championships at the Bay Head Yacht Club. At Windrows she was known for arranging group trips to the Met Live in HD opera performances at local theatres, participating in the poets group and the Windrows Warblers, and singing humorous duets with her daughter Marie at celebratory functions.
Predeceased by her husband of 59 years, she is survived by immediate family: Christine Kerlin in the state of Washington, John Buck Kerlin of Hamilton, NJ, and Marie Kerlin of Princeton; her sister, Elizabeth Rogers of Bethesda, MD; grandchildren Kayla and Clarissa Kerlin and Mandy Murphy, whom she loved so much; and many nieces and nephews. She will be sorely missed by her family and friends.
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Charles F. McManus
Charles F. McManus, age 100, of Princeton Junction, died peacefully in his sleep on March 22, 2020, at his home.
The son of the late Edward J. and Lenore Giblin McManus, Charles was born on June 27, 1919, in Omaha, Nebraska, where he lived for 22 years — experiencing the Dust Bowl, catching many of the Swing Era’s most renowned big bands, and, on Prohibition Era summer trips, sitting on the gate of his uncle’s ranch watching for unwanted visitors while his uncle and friends ran a still in the barn. After graduating from Omaha Central High School in 1937, he entered Creighton University, where he was Commander of the Battalion of Cadets and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics and Physics in 1941.
In 1949, Charles married Hattie Crute of Danville, Virginia. Together they had five children, of whom four survive him: Edward McManus (and wife Patricia) of Bristow, Virginia; Mary Bowden of Burlington, New Jersey; Frances McManus (and husband Herb) of Princeton, New Jersey; and Trent Liakris (and husband Christos) of Fieldsboro, New Jersey. After 13 years of marriage, Hattie passed away in 1963. In 1967, Charles married Marjorie (Jerry) Quick of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, who survives him; as does their son Andrew McManus (and wife Stacy) of Chesterfield, New Jersey. He was predeceased by his son William C. McManus in 1994 and his brothers Robert E. McManus in 2009, Leo G. McManus in 2019, and Thomas F. McManus in 2020. He is also survived by six grandchildren.
Upon graduation from college in the summer of 1941, Charles entered the U.S. Army as a second lieutenant and served throughout World War II — deploying to the European Theater of Operations in January 1945 with the 13th Airborne Division and returning home in August 1945. He was one of the original members of the Army’s Airborne Corps and trained those that followed: the 11th, 17th, 82nd, and 101st Airborne Divisions. After leaving active duty at the rank of Captain in 1946, Charles entered the Army Reserve, retiring in 1969 as a Colonel. Serving in the American military was one of the greatest joys of his life and provided him with many close friendships and fond memories, especially of Fort Bragg where he served a number of tours.
Charles worked in the investment banking industry for 45 years in a career that began with Harriman & Ripley and concluded with Merrill Lynch where he retired in 1991. Along the way he also worked at Salomon Brothers, Blyth Eastman Dillon, Dean Witter, and William Sword & Co. Upon retirement, he and Jerry settled on a golf course in Sedona, AZ, where they enjoyed life for 15 years before moving back to NJ to be near family.
A devout man of faith for his entire life, Charles belonged to several Catholic parishes around the country where he served on boards and chaired various committees and support campaigns. He was an avid golfer who played into his nineties and was a member of the Springdale Golf Club in Princeton, New Jersey, for almost 50 years. He was also a lifelong fan of swing music and a lifetime member of the University Club in New York City.
Having grown up during the Depression and seen the ravages of war up close, his optimism and positive attitude were an inspiration to all. His Irish sense of humor served him well as he always remained focused on the bright side of life. He will be missed by all those who knew him.
A Memorial Mass will take place at a future date at Saint David the King RC Church.
Arrangements are under the direction of the Saul Colonial Home, 3795 Nottingham Way, Hamilton Square, NJ. www.saulfuneralhomes.com.