Jacqueline Mowery Vender, 70, of Atlanta, Georgia died September 12. Born in Trenton, she was raised in Plainsboro and attended Plainsboro Elementary School and Princeton High School.
Survivors include her sons Robert Jackson of Rocky Hill and David Vender of Dallas; daughter Penny Jackson of Molina, Georgia; sister Kathy M. Brown of Atlanta; and nine grandchildren.
Jeffrey C. Vervuurt, 40, of Lawrenceville died September 19. Born in Queens, New York, he was a resident of West Windsor before moving to Lawrenceville.
A graduate of West Windsor Plainsboro High School, Class of 1984, he received a bachelor’s degree in science from West Chester University of Pennsylvania. He was employed with the state Department of Environmental Protection.
Survivors include his father, Hugo Vervuurt; his sister, Audrey Vervuurt; his aunt Ninon Lapidus of New York. Donations may be made to the American Cancer Society, 3076 Princeton Pike, Lawrenceville 08648.
Margaret Schaefer, 56, of Plainsboro died September 20 at the University Medical Center at Princeton. A 30-year Plainsboro resident, she was a research director for Johnson & Johnson Health Care Systems.
Survivors include her husband, Henry Schaefer; sister Katherine Wade of Stockton; and parents William and Mary Scrivo of Fairmont, West Virginia.
Donations may be made to SAVE: A Friend to Homeless Animals, 900 Herrontown Road, Princeton 08540.
Ruth Toth, 84, of Monroe died September 21 at the University Medical Center in Princeton. Survivors include her son and daughter-in-law, Thomas J. and Joanne of West Windsor. Donations may be made to The Smile Train, 245 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2201, New York, NY 10016.
Bette E. Fisher Kohen Bloom, 72, of Monroe died September 21 at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick. Born in Queens, New York, she was a longtime West Windsor resident before moving to Monroe Township 15 years ago.
She worked for 16 years as an executive secretary for Merrill Lynch in Plainsboro. Bloom served on the National Council of Jewish Women and did volunteer work for Recording for the Blind.
Survivors include a son, Harris Kohen, of Trenton; a daughter, Sheila Kohen of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and brother and sister-in-law, Martin and Estell Fisher of Henderson, Nevada.
Donations may be made to the American Heart Association, 2550 Route 1, North Brunswick 08902-4302, or the National Kidney Foundation, 1250 Broadway, Suite 2001, New York, NY 10001.
Dirk John Muyskens, 78, of Houston, Texas died on September 21, in Galveston. Born in Mandepalle, India, he was a longtime West Windsor resident and a member of the West Windsor Lion’s Club until he moved to Houston in 1978.
Muyskens, who received a master’s degree in chemistry from Rutgers University in 1955, worked in the chemical industry as an engineer and as a consultant.
Survivors include his wife, May Ann Muyskens of Houston; children: Wendy and Kenny Burch of Galveston, and Garrit Muyskens of West Virginia; brother and sister-in-law, David and Ann Muyskens of Sparta, New Jersey; sister and brother-in-law, Bernie and Pat Lettermier of Federal Way, Washington; sister-in-law, Dee Muyskens of Houston; five grandchildren: and one great grandson.
William Nathaniel Parris, 25, of West Windsor died on September 22 at home. Born in Princeton, he lived with his family in the Penns Neck section of West Windsor. Parris, who overcame the challenges of autism, had a productive life.
He began attending the Princeton Child Development Institute in Lawrenceville at age 3 and received his high school diploma from the West-Windsor Plainsboro School District. He was currently employed by the Westin Hotel in Plainsboro through the Adult Life Skills Program at PCDI. He was a member of the Trenton Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends.
Survivors include his parents, Susan and David Parris; his brothers Daniel and Timothy; his maternal grandmother Louise Connolly, all of Penns Neck; and his paternal grandmother Melba Parris of Sandy Spring, Maryland.
The funeral was at the Princeton Baptist Church of Penns Neck with burial in the church cemetery. Donations may be made to the Princeton Child Development Institute, 300 Cold Soil Road, Princeton 08540.
Esther H. Highland, 90, of plainsboro died September 23 at University Medical Center at Princeton. Born in New York City, she lived at the Residence at the Pavilions at Forrestal since 1998.
A member of Phi Beta Kappa, she retired as a professor at Queensboro Community College. She was the author and co-author of numerous college textbooks focusing on business mathematics, co-author with her late husband, Harold J. Highland, or several “How and Why Wonder Books” for children.
Survivors include a son and daughter-in-law, Joseph and Dorothy Highland of Montgomery; sister Sylvia Kleinberger of Jerusalem; and grandchildren REbecca, Michael, and Vladi. Donations may be made to Childreach, 155 Plan Way, Warwick, RI 02886.
Wayne M. Phillips, 100, of Aberdeen died September 24, at Avera Mother Joseph Manor, South Dakota. Survivors include a granddaughter and her husband, Lynne and John delaRosa, of Plainsboro.
Serafine Marino Filopanti, 94, of Bear Creek Assisted Living in West Windsor. died September 25 at University Medical Center at Princeton. Born and raised in Philadelphia, she worked on military aircraft during World War II while her husband served in the Philippines.
Survivors include her daughters Louise M. Yorke of Allentown and Jeanette Filopanti of Lansdale, Pennsylvania; five grandchildren; and great-grandchildren. Donations may be made to Princeton Health Care System Foundation, 253 Witherspoon Street, Princeton 08540, or ASPCA, 424 East 92nd Street, New York, NY 10128.
Katharine Baker, 89, of Munster, Indiana, died September 26. Survivors include her son and daughter-in-law Thomas Baker and Suzanne McSorley of West Windsor; and grandchildren Katherine, Margaret, and Colleen Baker, also of West Windsor.
Jennie Platt, 88, of North Port, Florida, died September 30. She was a former West Windsor resident. Survivors include daughters and sons-in-law Susan and Louis Pilato of North Port, Florida, and Dale and John Leoni of Montgomery; son and daughter-in-law Gregory and Jane Platt of Cream Ridge; daughter-in-law Terry Platt; sister Gladys Winklehofer of Hightstown; nine grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren. Donations may be made to the charity of the donor’s choice.
David C. Peaslee, 84, of Michigan died September 30, at his daughter’s home in Parsippany. Survivors include a stepson, Robert Horton of West Windsor. Donations may be made to the American Cancer Society, 669 Littleton Road, Parsippany 07054-4834, or the Compassionate Care Hospice Foundation, 140 Littleton Road, Suite 200, Parsippany 07054.
