Mila Gibbons, Esther B. Aresty
Mila Gibbons
NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – Mila Gibbons, founder and director of the Aparri School of Dance in Princeton, died Dec. 16 at the home of her son. She was 87.
Born in Paris, she was a resident of Princeton early in her life, attending Miss Fine’s School, and returned to Princeton in 1950, where she lived until 1999.
She attended the Ecole Alsacienne in Paris during her high school years.
Devoted to dance, she was a professional ballet performer for 10 years. She trained in Paris under Leo Stats and Vaslav Veltchek and became part of the Paris Opera and the Theatre du Chatelet. She later joined Les Ballets Fantastiques de la Loie Fuller on European and Far Eastern tours.
She trained as a dance teacher at the Dalcroze Institute in Geneva and the Columbia Teachers’ College in New York. Her performance career was interrupted in 1939 by World War II.
Following her marriage in 1941, she lived in Connecticut with her two children while her husband was in the military service. After the war, she joined him in Germany, living there from 1946 to 1950 as part of the American military occupation forces.
On her return to Princeton in 1950, she re-opened the Aparri School of Dance, which operated between 1933 and 1935.
The school flourished for four decades in Princeton and at one time had four faculty members and 130 students.
Continuing her involvement in the ballet world, she was founding secretary of the National Academy of Ballet in New York.
Wife of the late Fentress Gardner, mother of the late Eve Bishop Gardner, she is survived by her son, Darien Gardner of Northampton, Mass.; grandchildren Nolan Gardner, Clara Gardner and James Gardner Toner; niece Louise Bachelder of Princeton; and many cousins, great nieces and nephews.
A funeral service will be held 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 14, at Princeton University Chapel.
Esther B. Aresty
Esther B. Aresty of Princeton died Saturday, Dec. 23, at her home. She was 92.
Born in Syracuse, N.Y., Mrs. Aresty lived in Chicago, Milwaukee and Trenton before moving to Princeton 26 years ago.
She attended DePaul University.
Mrs. Aresty wrote several cookbooks: "The Best Behavior," "The Delectable Past" and "Exquisite Table." She also wrote children’s story books and romance novels.
Mrs. Aresty was a collector of antique cookbooks and a cooking historian. Her collection recently was donated to the library at the University of Pennsylvania.
In her early years, Mrs. Aresty was the producer and writer of the "Elsa Maxwell Show" for radio and television.
Mrs. Aresty was a member of Har Sinai Temple, Greenacres Country Club, the Harmonie Club and Les Dames D’Escoffier.
She was the daughter of the late Jacob and Bertha Bradford and the wife of the late Julian J. Aresty.
She is survived by a son, Robert J. Aresty of Princeton; a daughter, Jane Silverman of Princeton; and three grandchildren, Jacob, Rachel and Sarah Silverman.
The funeral will be private. Burial will follow at Ewing Cemetery.
The period of mourning will be observed Dec. 26 between 7 and 9 p.m. at the Silverman residence.
Contributions may be made to The Aresty Foundation, P.O. Box 3065, Princeton, NJ 08543.
Funeral arrangements are by Orland’s Ewing Memorial Chapel, Ewing.