James Kerney Kuser II

1960 – 2022

James Kerney Kuser II, an estate lawyer in Princeton for over three and a half decades, passed away at home July 31, 2022, following a brief illness. Sixty-two years old, Kerney was born in Troy, Ohio, on February 15, 1960, the son of R. George Kuser Jr., a newspaper publisher, and Clare McHugh Kuser, a homemaker. He is survived by his partner, Jeremiah Edwin Obert; by three of his six siblings; by two uncles and one aunt; and by many nieces, nephews, and cousins.

After four years at the Lawrenceville School, Kerney attended Kenyon College, graduating with a bachelor of arts degree in 1982 before studying law at Seton Hall University. He was admitted to the New Jersey Bar in 1985. He was active in many civic and professional organizations. Kerney used his lawyering skills with a light touch and a sure hand, and was always available to help friends and family.

In 1984 he donated a kidney to his older sister, Cricket, and the organ continued to function and support life until her death in 2014. He traveled around the world to support her when she competed in the World Transplant Games, including visits to Budapest in 1991 and Sydney, Australia, in 1997. When Cricket passed away in Vancouver, he was able to sell her home for the highest price possible and distribute the estate proceeds to her survivors.

More recently, he helped the widow of an eminent scientist at the Institute for Advanced Study remain in her home for several years and later sell it for more than the family thought possible.

An avid gardener, Kerney planted his one-acre property with thousands of flowers and dozens of ornamental trees,
always with an eye to providing birdbaths and feeders as well as color throughout the long growing season.

Kerney also had a knack for speaking to children as thoughtful people capable of making rational decisions. When his 7-year-old niece, Eylül Isabella Kuser, moved to the United States from Istanbul she planned on adopting her middle name as being easier for Americans to handle. Uncle Kerney told her that her new country was a land of immigrants, that she was a special person in her own right, and that she should make people deal with her on her own terms, including being known by her actual name. Eylül was persuaded … and has lived to regret it as a teacher, fellow student, or coach is sure to mangle her name every day.

His unique way with young people made a difference in the life of Errol McDowell, son of Kerney’s close friends, Rider and Victoria McDowell. Kerney and Errol hit it off right away when the boy was 8 years old, and maintained their special bond through a years-long ordeal for all when Errol was stricken with a type of brain cancer called medulloblastoma. Errol passed away at the age of 18 in 2018, but conceived of a charity called Canceragogo, which is seeking $1 from every American to cure cancer through immunotherapy.

According to the National Pediatric Cancer Foundation, only 4% of cancer research funding in the U.S. goes towards treating childhood cancer, a disparity which leads to few drugs having been developed for children with cancer while hundreds have been created for adults.

The family encourages donations to Canceragogo. A celebration of life is being planned for late summer or early fall.

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Eileen A. Dow

Eileen Anne (Maxim) Dow died peacefully of natural causes at home in Princeton, NJ, on August 7, 2022 surrounded by her loving family. Born in the Bay Ridge section of Brooklyn, NY, Eileen graduated with honors from Fort Hamilton High School and was working in Manhattan when she met her husband of 63 years, Kenneth Dow, then attending Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute on the GI bill. After their marriage in 1950, Mr. Dow was employed as an engineer by the JM Huber Company and the couple was stationed in Borger, Texas, and later in Macon, Georgia, where they welcomed the arrival of the first of their five children.

Upon returning to New York in 1955, the young family soon moved into a new house in suburban Greenlawn, NY, on Long Island. For the next 25 years Eileen was a full-time homemaker. She was active in the PTA, the Girl Scouts, and other civic groups during this time, and she especially enjoyed the family’s annual camping trips throughout the Northeast.

In the 1980s Mrs. Dow returned part-time to the workforce, holding an administrative job in an orthopedic surgery group. Later, after her husband’s retirement and the arrival of grandchildren, the couple moved to Hampton Bays, NY, where they enjoyed an active social life. During retirement they also traveled throughout the United States and the United Kingdom. In final years the couple moved to the Princeton Windrows community to be closer to family members. Mr. Dow passed away in 2018.    

Eileen was an avid reader, enjoyed swimming, and was an accomplished bowler, regularly scoring over 200 points and once nearing a perfect game. Her grandchildren fondly recall her penchant for chocolates. She always will be remembered as a devoted wife, mother, and friend.

Her survivors include a daughter Susan (Dow) Connolly; sons Michael, Kenneth, Thomas, and David; son-in-law Peter Connolly; daughters-in-law Gianina, Catherine, Mae, and Colette; and eight grandchildren: Jacqueline Connolly, Thomas Connolly, Emily Dow, Melissa (Dow) Ortega, Charlotte Dow, Abigail Dow, Grace Dow and Harrison Dow. After a funeral mass at Queenship of Mary Catholic Church, Plainsboro NJ, interment was at Calverton National Cemetery, NY. Memorial contributions to Greenwood House Hospice at greenwoodhouse.org/giving/tributes are appreciated.

Extend condolences and share memories at TheKimbleFuneralHome.com.

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Rabbi Daniel Grossman

We mourn the loss of Rabbi Daniel Grossman, beloved teacher, father and husband, who passed on August 2, 2022 at the age of 71. 

Rabbi Grossman is survived by his wife Dr. Elayne Robinson Grossman, his son Sam Grossman, daughter Rabbi Miriam Grossman, and son-in-law Jeremy Siegman and granddaughter Shayna. He is also survived by his brother Dr. Larry Grossman, sister-in-law Joanne Grossman, and a cherished extended family.

Born July 24, 1951 to Jackie and Murray Grossman in Philadelphia, PA, he was an infant survivor of the RH factor. Rabbi Grossman was a lifelong lover of music, storytelling, and Jewish community. 

He graduated Temple University with a B.A. in religion in 1973 and was later ordained at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in 1978. He was a cherished leader in disability and deaf inclusion efforts within the Jewish community. Rabbi Grossman was a pulpit rabbi for over 40 years, the majority of them at Adath Israel in Lawrenceville, NJ, where he led the congregation for 25 years.  As a rabbi his passions were adult education, disability inclusion, and serving families in times of loss.

Rabbi Grossman will be missed by many. May his memory be for a blessing.

Funeral services were held on August 3 at Adath Israel Congregation, with burial at Roosevelt Memorial Park in Trevose, PA.

Memorial contributions may be made to: the American Kidney Fund, Sharim v’Sharot, Adath Israel Congregation, and Congregation Kol Emet.

Funeral arrangements are by Orland’s Ewing Memorial Chapel.

To send condolences to the family please visit Rabbi Grossman’s obituary page at OrlandsMemorialChapel.com.

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Augustine F. Mosso

June 7, 1931 – July 30, 2022

Gus Mosso, of Cape May, NJ, and formerly of Princeton, NJ, passed away peacefully in the comfort of his home on July 30, 2022. Born in Brooklyn, New York, to Joseph and Mary Mosso, Gus was the youngest of six children, sisters Sadie Frances, Janet, Isabel, and brothers Pat and Frank. He excelled in school and was the first college graduate in his Italian immigrant family. He studied Pharmacy at St. John’s University in New York City and he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in 1952 and he maintained lifelong school friendships.

Gus enlisted in the U.S. Navy and served as a Lieutenant during the Korean Conflict (1953-1956) and received an honorable discharge. He met the love of his life Mary Ann (nee Turano) and they married in 1960 and had four children by 1965! Gus earned his MBA in Marketing and Management from New York University in 1959 after he attended evening classes especially designed for the 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.  business management employees located in the downtown Wall Street area.

From 1960 to 2005 Gus’s very interesting work in a diverse and exceptional pharmaceutical career included positions of increased executive responsibility in sales, advertising, international marketing, and creative services. He was awarded the Squibb President’s Award for Outstanding Individual Performance in 1973. Gus later became Director of Worldwide Marketing and Creative Services and in 1985 his role included managing the Squibb Gallery in Lawrenceville, NJ. Gus was presented with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Gold Medallion in 1989 for this work and for his role in promoting corporate support for arts education. Gus retired early and started his own medical conference planning firm, The Mosso Group Inc., from 1990-2005.

As well as being an avid theater fan Gus turned his talents to producing plays for the Princeton Community Players. Gus and Mary Ann traveled the world and visited six continents. After 37 years in Princeton, he and Mary Ann relocated permanently to Cape May, NJ, where Gus served as President and later Vice President of the Village Greene Civic Association. He advocated for reduced speed limits on local roads and other measures to protect walkers and bicycle riders. Gus and Mary Ann served as volunteers for the Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts and supported local theater and many cultural events in Cape May. Gus was gifted in painting with acrylics and writing, especially poetry with rhyming couplets. His organizational and meeting planning skills for national and international medical educational symposia, and for several family reunions and celebrations, were extraordinary.

Gus is survived by his loving wife Mary Ann of 62 years, his grateful children Rev. Lauren Mosso (Mark Duckworth with their children Arthur, Genevieve, and Mireille Duckworth), Lisa Woodford (Jonathan), Joseph Mosso (Brenda), and Christopher Mosso, together with nieces and nephews of several generations, and many friends, who remember Gus with love.

There will be a funeral Mass in honor of Gus on Friday August 19, 2022, at 10 a.m. St. Paul Church, 216 Nassau Street, Princeton, N.J. Mass will be livestreamed and accessible by visiting this link, stpaulsofprinceton.org/mass-streaming, that will be active at 9:50 a.m.

In lieu of flowers please consider donations in Gus’s honor to benefit Cape May Lutheran Church, 509 Pittsburgh Avenue, Cape May, NJ 08204; Family Promise of Cape May County, 505 Town Bank Road, North Cape May, NJ 08204; or Cape May City Fire Department, 712 Franklin Street, Cape May, NJ 08204. Our family is forever grateful to Rev. Dr. Jeffrey Elliott for his love and support.

For information and condolences, visit Spilker Funeral Home, Cape May at spilkerfuneralhome.com.

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Frances Rizk

Frances Rizk, a loving mother and grandmother, and a warm and generous person, died at home in Princeton on August 3, surrounded by her three children. She had recently celebrated her 90th birthday in style, her wit and sparkle intact until the very end.

Born in Brooklyn, NY, to John Bolin and Mary O’Neill, Fran grew up surrounded by extended family who took care of her when she lost her mother at age 10. After graduating from St. Albans High School in Queens, she completed two years of study at Queens College. She worked for American Can Company then sought a more adventurous life by joining Colonial Airlines as a stewardess. This allowed her to travel to many fun destinations around the globe and began her love of travel.

She met Edward Rizk, the Lebanese delegate to the United Nations, in New York and the two were married there in 1957 at the Greek Orthodox cathedral. Thus began a more than 40-year marriage that took them to many places around the world. After New York City, they moved to London, where Eddie was the Arab League Ambassador to the United Kingdom. Fran attended several teas at Buckingham Palace, watched tennis matches at Wimbledon, made many new friends and spent summers in the mountain village of Broummana, Lebanon surrounded by Eddie’s extended family.

In 1966, the family moved to Lebanon and settled down in Beirut. The next decade represented Lebanon’s “Golden Years” and they all lived full lives amidst friends and family, moving among the family’s several homes. Fran remained as active as ever: She was President of the American Women’s Club in Lebanon, Vice President of the country’s mental hospital, a board member of the local YMCA, and Vice Chair of an arts festival in the Bekaa Valley, all while raising her three children.

In 1976, Lebanon became racked by civil war. Eddie foresaw that this would go on for a long time and urged the family to relocate to the U.S. to build their lives there. They first moved to Ithaca, NY, where their oldest daughter Nayla was accepted to Cornell. Fran was a big fan of Cornell Hockey and they held season tickets for the four years they lived there. In 1980, they moved to Manhattan. For the next two decades, Fran and Eddie enjoyed life on the Upper East Side combined with summers at their home in the hills above Cannes in the South of France. Everywhere they were, family and friends were welcomed with open arms.

As Eddie, 19 years Fran’s senior, grew older, they moved to Princeton, NJ, to be closer to their son, Amin Rizk and his wife Kim. In 2000, Eddie passed away and Fran moved into a new addition built onto Amin and Kim’s house in Princeton. She spent the next 20 years living with them and helping them raise their family, while seeing her daughters and their families as often as she could.

Fran’s life in Princeton was full. She was a docent at Drumthwacket, a member of the Present Day Club, and enjoyed many evenings at the McCarter Theatre. She also enjoyed going with friends to the Philadelphia Ballet and museums in NYC. Fran continued to travel with friends and family on trips to Asia (Japan, China, Vietnam), Egypt, England, Ireland (where her mother’s family came from), Italy, the Caribbean, and Ecuador and the Galapagos. She also traveled back to Lebanon.

Fran is survived by her three children Nayla Rizk (Robert Tarjan), Aline Rizk, and Amin Rizk (Kim); her grandchildren Peter McCall (Lucy), Andrew McCall, Alexandra McCabe, Ens. Christiane McCabe, Natalie Rizk (John), and Katherine Rizk. She was also blessed with three great-grandchildren, Mary and Luke McCall and Wynona Rizk. Fran will be missed by her many relatives and good friends around the world. She will be laid to rest next to her husband, Edward, at the Princeton Cemetery. Services are private and under the direction of Mather-Hodge Funeral Home, Princeton.