Erik VanMarcke
It is with deep sadness and heavy hearts that we share the news of the passing of Erik VanMarcke, who died on July 7.
Erik was born in 1941 in Menen, Belgium. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Leuven and a doctorate in Civil Engineering from MIT in 1970. He joined the MIT faculty soon after and, in 1985, moved to Princeton, where he served as Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering until his retirement in 2013.
Erik was a pioneering scholar in the fields of random fields, structural reliability, and risk assessment. His landmark book Random Fields: Analysis and Synthesis is foundational to probabilistic approaches across scientific and engineering disciplines. The ideas and methods Erik developed in this work have been widely applied in earthquake engineering, wind engineering, and coastal engineering. His influential research earned him numerous honors, including the Alfred M. Freudenthal Medal, the Raymond C. Reese and Walter L. Huber Research Prizes of the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Distinguished Probabilistic Methods Educator Award of the Society of Automotive Engineers, and election to the Royal Academies for Science and the Arts of Belgium.
Erik’s deep curiosity led him to explore a remarkably broad and diverse range of research areas. He extended the application of his theory of random fields to cosmology; his great enthusiasm for the topic led to his most recent book Quantum Origins of Cosmic Structure and continued research throughout the latter part of his career and through his retirement.
Son of the late Louis E. and Rachel (VanHollebeke) Vanmarcke, he is survived by his wife Lynne Durkee; three children and their spouses Lieven and Manisha VanMarcke, Anneke and Edward Forzani, Kristien and Damon Webber; eight grandchildren Thomas, Joseph, William, Christopher, Dax, Ian, Jayson and Anya, three step-daughters; five sisters Frieda Vanmarcke-Van Belle, Rosa Vanmarcke-Gilissen, Hilde Vanmarcke-Schoonjans, Christa Vanmarcke-Verhaeghe and Gerda Vanmarcke-Cauwenberghs and their families.
The funeral service will be held at 10 a.m. on July 18, 2025 at The Mather-Hodge Funeral Home, 40 Vandeventer Avenue, Princeton.
Burial will follow in the Princeton Cemetery.
A Visitation will be held 6-9 p.m. on July 17, 2025 at the funeral home.
A Princeton University departmental gathering to commemorate Erik will be held at the end of August.
In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to The Institute for Advanced Study.
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Jean “Jeannie” Harwood Davidson
Jean “Jeannie” Harwood Davidson, 88, passed away peacefully on June 14, 2025, in Wayland, MA.
Jean was born in Brooklyn, NY, the second daughter of Melbourne “Mel” Kimbel Harwood and Ruth Cherrington Harwood. She grew up in Merrick, NY, and attended W. C. Mepham High School in Bellmore, NY. After graduation, she studied at the State University Teachers College in Potsdam, NY, and at the Katharine Gibbs School, the New York School of Interior Design, and the French Fashion Academy, all in New York City. In 1958, Jean took a break from her studies to travel to Europe on the R.M.S. Queen Mary. She went with her sister Joan, after they saved and paid for the trip themselves.
Jean married Richard “Dick” M. Davidson at Central Presbyterian Church in Manhattan on October 24, 1964. Their son William was born in 1968. The couple and William moved to Garden City, NY, in 1969. Their daughter Susan was born soon after.
Jean opened Jean Harwood Davidson Interior Design and Decoration in 1974 in Garden City, NY, and moved it to Princeton, NJ, in 1978. Jean’s work was featured in numerous Princeton designer showhouses in the 1980s through the Junior League of Central Delaware Valley and was published in House Beautiful and Family Circle magazines.
Before she launched her interior design career, Jean held administrative positions in New York City at J. Walter Thompson, Jacques Bodart and Bodart Furniture, The American Home magazine, and Governor Nelson Rockefeller’s office.
Jean engaged in fundraising activities for Twigs of Nassau Hospital and Garden City Nursery School. She enjoyed gardening, maintaining her beloved home in Princeton, and entertaining family and friends, particularly hosting the annual family Thanksgiving. She loved animals and had cats as pets for most of her life. A poodle named Dolly was her first “child.”
Jean was praised for her elegance, exceptional taste, and hard work. She will be remembered as a loving wife, mother, and grandmother. She adored her grandchildren and loved visiting their imaginary restaurant Banana Peels for bottomless cups of coffee, which happened to be one of her favorite drinks.
Late in life, Jean became a fan of golf, which she enjoyed watching with her husband, Dick. After Dick passed away, she continued to watch golf because doing so reminded her of him.
Jean is predeceased by her parents Mel and Ruth, her sister Joan Harwood Beckmann, and her husband Dick. She is survived by her brother Melbourne Kimbel Harwood, Jr. and his wife Kathleen Harwood; her son William Spencer Davidson and his wife Michelle Quinn-Davidson; and her daughter Susan Davidson Serreze, her husband Peter Serreze, and their children Wesley and Sara Serreze.
A virtual celebration of Jean’s life will take place later this year. In lieu of flowers, donations in Jean’s memory may be made to the ASPCA or the Hearing Health Foundation.
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Dorothy E. Pennino
Dorothy E. Pennino, 88, of Princeton passed away on July 2, 2025, at Penn Medicine Princeton Medical Center.
She was born in Philadelphia, PA. She worked most of her life as a high school teacher, and she loved her calling to teach literature to the younger generations. When she retired, she decided to get her Ph.D., which she did at George Washington University in the Department of American Studies. For over 10 years, she has been a member of the All Saints’ Episcopal Church.
Predeceased by her husband Joseph Pennino, parents Walter Henry and Dorothy Katherine (Dingler) Deisinger.
Dorothy is survived by her son, Anthony Paul Pennino, and a brother and sister-in-law Bruce and Darlene Deisinger.
A Memorial Service will be held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, August 13, 2025 at All Saints’ Episcopal Church in Princeton.
Arrangements are under the direction of The Mather-Hodge Funeral Home.