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Catherine Stamberger, 80
Catherine Stamberger, 80, of Plainfield died on Tuesday, April 11, 2000 at Genesis ElderCare The Woodlands in Plainfield.
Born in Perth Amboy, she had lived in Piscataway and Jamesburg before moving to Fort Myers, Fla. 12 years ago.
Mrs. Stamberger was a graduate of Mount Saint Mary Academy in Watchung and Georgian Court College in Lakewood.
She received her Master of Business Administration Degree from Rutgers University in New Brunswick.
She had been employed as a teacher at Our Lady of Peace in Fords and then at St. Joseph’s Grammar School in Bound Brook before retiring in 1971.
She was a member of the Plainfield Country Club in Edison.
Surviving are her husband, Geza Stamberger; a son, G. Richard Stamberger of Scotch Plains; a daughter, Gail Rohrbach, and five grandchildren.
Private funeral arrangements were handled by the Memorial Funeral Home, 155 South Avenue in Fanwood.
Memorial donations may be made to the American Cancer Society, P. O. Box 815, Elizabeth, 07207.
Albert Palentchar, 83
Albert Palentchar, 83, of Burlington Township died on Saturday, June 3, 2000 at his home.
Born in Bridgeport, Conn., he had lived in South Plainfield for 42 years before recently relocating to Burlington Township.
Mr. Palentchar had been employed by the American Can Company of Hillside for 31 years before retiring in 1979.
Earlier, he was a member of the Civilian Conservation Corps, fighting forest fires in California.
Surviving are his wife of 58 years, Helen Armatys Palentchar; two sons, Robert Palentchar, Jr. of Burlington Township and Albert Palentchar, Jr. of Medford; a sister, Sophie Daidone of Woodbridge; two brothers, Steven Palentchar of Scotch Plains and Rudy Palentchar of North Arlington; five grandchildren and two great-grandsons.
A Mass of Christian burial was held yesterday, Wednesday, June 14, in St. Paul’s Roman Catholic Church in Burlington.
Arrangements were handled by the Page Funeral Home in Burlington.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society, 400 Birchfield Road, Mount Laurel, 08054.
Elsie Mary Taylor, 87
Elsie Mary Taylor, 87, a former Westfield resident, died on Monday, May 22, 2000 at the National Health Care Center of Coconut Creek, Fla.
Born in Brooklyn and raised in Summit, she had lived in Westfield from 1941 to 1974 and in Scotch Plains from 1974 to 1980.
Mrs. Taylor retired in 1980 to Stuart, Fla., where she was active in both her church and community.
She was predeceased by her husband, H. Lawton Taylor, in April of 1999.
Surviving are a son, Richard Taylor of Jim Thorpe, Pa.; a daughter, Nancy Ahringer of Coral Springs, Fla., and four grandchildren.
A memorial service was held on Saturday, June 3, in St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Stuart.
Interment will take place in Fairview Cemetery in Westfield at a time to be arranged by the family.
Arrangements were under the direction of Premier Funeral Services and Cremations, Inc. of Oakland Park, Fla, 33311.
George Keenen, Jr., 83
Was Supporter Of Family Counseling Agency, Hospice
George E. Keenen, Jr., 83, of Scotch Plains died on Friday, June 16, 2000 at his residence.
Born in Bayonne, he had lived in Westfield for 45 years before relocating to Scotch Plains three years ago.
Mr. Keenen retired in 1986 as owner and President of the Keenen-Cashman Company of Bayonne after 44 years with the firm.
He was a Past President of the American Supply Association in Chicago.
He was a past member of the Board of Directors of St. Elizabeth Hospital in Elizabeth and had also been President of its Foundation.
He additionally had been a board member of Alexian Brothers Hospital in Elizabeth.
Mr. Keenen was a former Vice President of the Chamber of Commerce in Bayonne and served as Director of The Community Chest of Eastern Union County.
He also was Vice President of the Mayor’s Advisory Council on Community Affairs in Westfield; was a Past President of the Youth and Family Counseling Service of Westfield and was a member of the board of the Westfield Foundation.
Mr. Keenen was recognized by Youth and Family Counseling Service in 1993 and was recently named Honorary Chairman of the agency in tribute to his fundraising efforts on behalf of the organization.
The annual concerts by the Orchestra of St. Peter by the Sea at St. Helen’s Church, which benefit Youth and Family Counseling, were the result of Mr. Keenen’s efforts.
He first contacted the group’s conductor, the Reverend Alphonse Stephenson, a decade ago about a performance to raise funds for the agency.
He was Vice-President for the Laity of the first Arch-Diocesan Pastoral Council and was a member of St. Helen’s Roman Catholic Church of Westfield.
He served on the editorial board for The Advocate and was an editor for “The Flame, ” a quarterly publication for the Center for Hope Hospice in Lyons.
Mr. Keenen was honored by the center as Man of the Year in February of 1999 for his efforts on behalf of the organization.
He was active with the Community Drug and Alcohol Program for Hudson County.
He was one of the first lay members to the Board of Trustees for Immaculate Conception Seminary and was named Man of the Year and Irishman of the Year by the Notre Dame Alumni.
Mr. Keenen graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1938.
He was a member of the Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield and the Knights of Columbus No. 253.
He was predeceased by his parents, George E. and Frances Higgins Keenen, and a sister, Virginia Keenen O’Brien.
Surviving are his wife, Lucille K. McCauley Keenen, whom he married in 1941; six daughters, Cathy Donohoe of Short Hills, Christine Kealy of New York City, Priscilla Egan of Maplewood, Theresa Pressley of Sharon, Conn., Elizabeth Keenen of Oakview, Calif. and Mary Jo Keenen of Los Angeles; two sons, George Keenen of Ojai, Calif. and John Keenen of New York City; 21 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
A Mass of Christian Burial was held at St. Helen’s Church on Monday, June 19. Interment was private.
Memorial contributions may be made to St. Helen’s Helping Hands and Hearts Ministry, the Center for Hope Hospice or Youth and Family Counseling Service of Westfield.
Arrangements were under the direction of the G. Keenen O’Brien Funeral Home, Inc. of Bayonne.
Henry F. Koller
Career in Banking Had Spanned More Than 50 Years
Henry F. Koller of Scotch Plains died on Thursday, June 15, 2000 in the Ashbrook Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Scotch Plains.
Born and raised in New York City, he lived in Scotch Plains for many years.
Mr. Koller’s career in banking spanned some 55 years, from messenger to Executive Vice President.
He was associated with major banks in New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Providence, R. I., Boston, Newark and Dublin, Ireland.
He retired as Training Director with the New York Branch of the Swiss Bank Corporation.
After retiring from commercial and international banking, he became a consultant with Allied International Bank of New York City and an executive recruiter for the International Executives Service Corps.
He graduated from the American Institute of Banking and the American Bankers Association, Graduate School of Banking.
Mr. Koller was a Director of the International Trade Center in Boston; Chairman of the New England Regional Expansion Council and a member of the National Export Expansion Council of the United States Department of Commerce.
He was also Chairman of the Governor’s Advisory Council on Foreign Trade in Boston; President of The World Trade Club of Providence and General Chairman of the World Trade Week in Boston.
He additionally was a trade advisor to the United States Trade Mission to Pakistan and served two terms as a member of the Finance Committee of the United States Chamber of Commerce.
Mr. Koller also was Chief of the Banking Department of UNRRA and had been an officer of a small chemical company in New York.
He was an instructor in money and banking with the American Institute of Banking in Providence and a member of the economic faculty of the American Institute of Banking in Boston.
While in Chicago, he was a faculty member of the Latin American Institute, where he was an instructor in export documentation, marine insurance and negotiable instruments.
Mr. Koller was a member of the Uniform Commercial Code Committee of the Rhode Island Bankers Association, the International Banking Committee of the New Jersey Bankers Association and served on numerous committees of the Bankers Association for Foreign Trade.
He penned articles for several banking and financial publications and was listed in “Who’s Who in the East, ” “Who’s Who in Banking” and “The International Dictionary of Biography” (London).
He was a member of the Parish Council and the Communications Committee of St. Bartholomew the Apostle Roman Catholic Church in Scotch Plains.
Mr. Koller was an instructor and leader of the Columbus Cadets of the Knights of Columbus in Hoboken and West New York.
As a youth, he was a Captain of the Catholic Boys Brigade of the Most Holy Redeemer Church in New York.
Surviving are his brother-in-law, Edward Gluck of Queens; two nephews, Peter H. Dunckelmann of Garden City, N.Y. and Dr. John Gluck of Albuquerque, N. M., and a niece, Susan Niebuhr of Fishkill, N.Y.
A Funeral Mass was held on Monday, June 19, at St. Bartholomew the Apostle Church.
Interment took place at Fairview Cemetery in Westfield.
Arrangements were under the direction of the Gray Funeral Home, 318 East Broad Street in Westfield.
Memorial contributions may be made to St. Bartholomew the Apostle Church.
Charles Bright, 85
Earned Bronze Star; Former Principal at Roosevelt School
Chester H. Bright, 85, of Basking Ridge died on Tuesday, June 13, 2000 in the Bethesda Health Care Center in Basking Ridge.
Born in Sinking Spring, Pa., he had lived in Scotch Plains before relocating to Basking Ridge four years ago.
Mr. Bright had been a teacher at Roosevelt Junior High School in Westfield, now Roosevelt Intermediate School, for 29 years.
He retired in 1975 as Principal.
He graduated from Kutztown State Teachers College in 1938 and received his master’s degree in education from Columbia University in New York City in 1949.
Mr. Bright served in China as a Captain in the United States Army during World War II and was awarded the Bronze Star.
He was a member of the New Jersey Education Association, the National Education Association, the Union County Education Association, the American Legion in Westfield and the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Bernardsville.
Surviving are Carol Davis Bright, his wife of 56 years; two daughters, Ellen R. Bowes of Franktown, Colo. and Molly Davis Bright of Edison, and a granddaughter.
A memorial service was held on Saturday, June 17, in the Liberty Corner Presbyterian Church in Liberty Corner.
There was no visitation.
Arrangements were handled by the Gallaway & Crane Funeral Home in Basking Ridge.
Memorial donations may be made to the Visiting Nurse Association of Somerset Hills, Somerset Hills Hospice, 12 Olcott Avenue, Bernardsville, 07924.
Marion Robinson Keat, 80
Was Active In Westfield and With Hawaii Groups
Marion Robinson Keat, 80, of Makaweli, Kauai, Hawaii, died on Tuesday, June 13, 2000 at home.
Born on May 26, 1920 in Makaweli, she was the daughter of Sinclair and Ethel Robinson.
She had lived in Westfield from 1945 to 1975 before retiring with her husband to her hometown in the Hawaiian Islands.
She attended Katherine Branson School in Ross, California and Pine Manor Junior College in Massachusetts, graduating from the University of California at Berkeley in 1941.
She was a member of the Kappa Kappa Gamma fraternity.
Mrs. Keat worked for the Bishop Bank during World War II.
While living in Westfield, she was active with St. Paul’s Episcopal Church and the Westfield Memorial Library.
On Kauai, Mrs. Keat was involved with the Kauai Museum, Hui o Laka Kōkeʻe, the Kauai Humane Society, the Kauai Historical Society and the Outdoor Circle.
She was also a member of the Daughters of Hawaii, St. John’s Episcopal Church in Eleele and the United Church of Christ, formerly the Waimea Foreign Church, in Waimea, Kauai.
She was predeceased by her husband in 1976.
Surviving are two sons, Jack Keat and Philip Keat, and three grandchildren.
Memorial services were held on Saturday, June 17, at the United Church of Christ.
Memorial contributions may be made to Kauai Hospice, St. John’s Church in Eleele, or the United Church of Christ.
