Ellen Molwitz Tabell
Ellen Molwitz Tabell, 93, of Exeter, NH, and formerly of Princeton, NJ, died peacefully with her daughters at her side, on Sunday, January 14, 2024.
She was born in New York City on May 5, 1930 to Henry and Roberta (McClenahan) Molwitz. Ellen grew up and attended schools in New York City until her family moved to Connecticut in 1944. She graduated in 1948 at the top of her class at Greenwich Academy, and went on to study history at Wellesley College, from which she graduated in 1952. She married her high school sweetheart, Anthony W. Tabell, in 1953. They were married for 67 years before his death in 2020.
She embraced the roles and responsibilities of a woman of her generation with grace, determination, and patience. She chose not to have a job outside the home after having children, opting for the life of primary caregiver for her three daughters. She was an indefatigable household manager and parent, and an active community volunteer. She never missed a school event. She contributed countless hours of service to the Wellesley Club of Princeton and Stuart Country Day School; she coordinated regular meetings of a local women’s investment group that she founded, and she was recognized for her longtime service as an adult literacy teacher for the Princeton Public Library. She never missed her shift at the soup kitchen in Trenton.
Ellen embraced travel adventures with her family, no matter what challenges were involved. She managed numerous solo drives to Vermont under treacherous conditions. She also presided over glorious family vacations in Africa, numerous tropical destinations, as well as ski trips to Canada, Sun Valley, Switzerland, and France.
She enjoyed downhill skiing well into her 60s. She was an avid reader, crossword puzzler, Scrabble fiend, acrostic solver, and a fiercely competitive backgammon and bridge player.
Anyone who knew Ellen knew what she was thinking. She was never shy about sharing her thoughts, and even if someone disagreed, most people seemed to appreciate her direct (at times blunt) judgments. While Ellen adhered to many of the traditional values of her generation, her mind remained open, and she never expected or pressured her daughters or grandchildren to replicate her choices. Instead, she remained engaged in and curious about their lives. Her firmly held opinions about many subjects may have belied this open-mindedness, a paradox that perhaps best defined her.
She is survived by her three daughters: Meg Kasprak and her husband John; Roberta Jordan and her husband Bob; and Sarah Nocka and her husband Steve. She will be missed by her eight grandchildren: Alex Kasprak; Nicholas Kasprak (wife
Emily Burton); Chris Kasprak (husband Danny Chin); Molly Jordan Kim (husband Andrew Kim); Sarah Jordan (wife Elle Yesnes); and Andrew, Kristen, and Thomas Nocka. She leaves behind one great-granddaughter, Alice. She is also survived by her brother, Harry Molwitz, of Katonah, NY, several nephews, and a niece.
In lieu of flowers, please consider donating in her honor to Stuart Country Day School, 1200 Stuart Road, Princeton, NJ 08540 (give.stuartschool.org) or The Fresh Air Fund, 633 Third Avenue, 14th Floor, NY, NY 10017 (freshair.org/june-mid-donate).
For more information, visit brewittfuneralhome.com.
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Robin Fox
Robin Fox, 89, passed away on January 18, 2024, while in skilled nursing at Stonebridge. He had noticeable dementia in the last year of his life. He was born in Yorkshire, England. He told stories of his boyhood that included visiting prisoners of war near his home. His parents, John, a British soldier, and Nancy, a nanny, predeceased him. He had no siblings.
Robin attended Harvard and the London School of Economics. He taught anthropology at Exeter University, and later returned to the LSE to teach.
His early lectures were turned into the book Kinship and Marriage. He later wrote The Imperial Animal with Lionel Tiger, whom he met at the London Zoo.
From his first marriage he had three sweetheart daughters: Kate, Ellie, and Anne, all of whom live in England. He also had grandsons and great-grandchildren. They knew their Pappy adored them.
Robin became an American citizen in 2002. On that rainy day he immediately went to a diner and had Yankee pot roast to celebrate.
In between writing other books, he enjoyed sailing around Sanibel Island with friends and his loving wife, Lin, where they kept a winter retreat. His other interests included choral groups, watching football, and even entering into the fray around the Shakespeare authorship question.
Robin started the Graduate Dept/Anthropology at Rutgers University in 1967. He retired after 50 years.
Near the end, he struggled to play Bingo with his wife and devoted sister-in-law Charmaine Smiklo.
Lin and Robin’s 49 years together nurtured each other. They were married at West Point at the Hotel Thayer. The military connection always made Robin smile.
Robin was Lin’s sunshine, and the last song they sang together a week before he died was “What’ll I Do When You are Gone.”
Lin expresses her gratitude to all who cared for Robin in his final days. There will be no memorial service.
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