Rigmor Sheldrick, Martha L.A. Norris, Leonard M. Runko, Margaret M. James, Elfrieda H. Jaffin.
Rigmor Sheldrick
Princeton University librarian
Rigmor "Mossik" Sheldrick died Saturday at the Princeton home of her daughter, Randi Scott, with the help of Princeton Hospice. She was 87.
A resident of Princeton for 35 years, she had lived at Pennswood Village in Newtown, Pa., for the past seven years.
Born in Kristiansand, Norway, she emigrated to the United States in 1937. She married Robert Burlingham Jr., an architect and city planner, in 1938. Together they had five children. She was remarried to Malcolm B. Sheldrick, head of a New York securities firm, in 1966.
She studied library science at the University of London and later served as librarian at the Hampstead Child Therapy Course and Clinic, founded by Anna Freud and Dorothy T. Burlingham, her mother-in-law, in 1947.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, she worked at Princeton’s University’s Firestone Library, where she assembled a collection of right-wing literature.
Each summer, she returned to her cabin on the southern coast of Norway to enjoy the land of her birth.
She is survived by her children, Christine Burlingham of Warren, Conn., Randi Scott of Princeton, Lynn Burlingham of Lawrence, Kan., Stephen Burlingham of Princeton and Michael Burlingham of Irvington, N.Y.; sister Annelise Kennan of Princeton; brother Per Svein Sorensen of Kristiansand, Norway; 10 grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
A memorial service is planned for May.
Memorial contributions may be made to Princeton Hospice, 208 Bunn Drive, Princeton, NJ 08540 or the Democratic National Committee, 430 S. Capitol St. SE, Washington, DC 20003.
Martha L.A. Norris
Founded foundation
Martha L.A. Norris of Princeton died Saturday at home. She was 80.
Born in Indianapolis, she was the founder of the Martha L.A. Norris Foundation, a member of the Colonial Dames of America and Trinity Church, Princeton.
Mrs. Norris also volunteered for many years at Lawrenceville Nursing Home.
Daughter of the late Robert A. and Mary Ellis Walker Adams and wife of the late Alfred Norris, she is survived by a daughter and son-in-law, Roberta and Shawn Ellsworth of Princeton; stepdaughter and her husband Emily and Gilbert Daniels of Indianapolis; and grandchildren John L. Griffith III and Alyssa A. Ellsworth, both of Princeton.
A memorial service is scheduled for 3 p.m. today at Trinity Church, 33 Mercer St., Princeton.
Memorial contributions may be made to Princeton First Aid & Rescue Squad, P.O. Box 529, Princeton, NJ 08542.
Arrangements are by Mather-Hodge Funeral Home, Princeton.
Leonard M. Runko
Retired mason
PLAINSBORO Leonard M. Runko died Sunday at home. He was 80.
Born in Shamokin, Pa., he had resided in New York City and more recently in Plainsboro.
He was a Marine veteran of World War II, serving in the Pacific Theater.
Mr. Runko was a union mason with Bricklayers & Allied Craftsworkers Local 5, retiring in 1991 after 41 years.
Son of the late Michael and Frances Runko, he is survived by his wife, Patricia; son Jeffrey; daughter Diane Metzger; granddaughters Lauren Bird and Susan Metzger; grandson Lawrence Metzger; and great-granddaughter Taylor Bird, all of Plainsboro; and many nieces and nephews.
A memorial service is scheduled 3:30 p.m. today at the A. S. Cole Funeral Home, 22 N. Main St., Cranbury.
Visiting hours will be from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. at the funeral home.
Burial will be in Brainerd Cemetery, Cranbury.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Sunshine Foundation of Mercer County, PO Box 55130, Trenton, NJ 08638-6130.
Margaret M. James
School administrator
PLAINSBORO Margaret Marshall James died Jan. 25 at home from complications following a fractured hip. She was 90.
Born in Rigby, Idaho, she was raised in Oakland, Calif., and lived in Santiago, Chile, Chevy Chase, Md., Greenwich and Essex, Conn., and moved to the Princeton area in 2000.
She was alumnae secretary at Rosemary Hall school in Greenwich, Conn., beginning in 1954. She became director of admissions and, finally, assistant headmistress. When the school moved to Wallingford, Conn., in 1972, she became special assistant to the president of Choate Rosemary Hall. She retired in 1979.
A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of California at Berkeley, she began her education career in 1935 as the head of the drama department and English teacher at Centerville Union High School, Centerville, Calif. Beginning in 1937, she taught American literature at the University of Chile in Santiago and soon began working at the American embassy in Santiago in various capacities, including secretary to the ambassador. She returned to the United States in 1944.
She was active in many community groups while living in Greenwich, Conn., including president of the Girl Scouts, president of the Women’s Club of Greenwich and president of the Greenwich branch of the AAUW. She also was active in many community organizations in Essex, Conn., including the Women’s Club of Essex, Essex Winter Series and Goodspeed Playhouse and Ivoryton Playhouse.
Wife of the late Daniel James, she is survived by daughter and son-in-law Anne M. and Richard L. Henry of Pottstown, Pa.; sons and daughters-in-law John K. and Anne E. Marshall of Addison, Maine, and James C. and Cynthia C. Marshall of Shaftsbury, Vt.; stepdaughters Mary J. Staehelin of Brugg, Switzerland, Meg J. Rapp of Doylestown, Pa., and Lila J. Staples of Pacific Grove, Calif.; brother Dr. Bruce Fisher of Castro Valley, Calif.; five grandchildren; eight stepgrandchildren; and 12 stepgreat-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Margaret F. Marshall Scholarship Fund at Choate Rosemary Hall, 333 Christian St., Wallingford, CT 06492.
Elfrieda H. Jaffin
Daughter lives in Princeton
AMBLER, Pa. Elfrieda H. Jaffin died Wednesday at Chestnut Hill Hospital of complications from congestive heart failure. She was 91.
Born in Tamaqua, Pa., she was an elementary school teacher in Tamaqua and later in Ambler, retiring in 1983 after 35 years. She continued as a substitute teacher following her retirement.
She attended Bloomsburg State Teachers College and graduated from the School of Education at Temple University with both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education.
She was a member of St. John’s Lutheran Church, Montgomery County Women’s Club and the Colony Club of Ambler. She supported many child-welfare organizations and was a strong advocate for animal welfare. She was an avid sports fan.
Daughter of the late John R. and Clara H. Hartung, wife of the late Frederick T. Jaffin Sr., also a teacher and coach in the Ambler school system, she is survived by a son, retired Navy Capt. Frederick T. Jaffin Jr. of Warrington, Pa.; daughter Barbara L. Jordan of Princeton; twin sister Linda Hartung of Washington; five grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
The funeral is scheduled for 10 a.m. Monday at Upper Dublin Lutheran Church, 411 Susquehanna Road, Ambler.
Interment will be at Odd Fellows Cemetery, Tamaqua.
Calling hours are from 7 to 9 p.m. Sunday at Shaeff-Myers Funeral Home, 145 Tennis Ave., Ambler, or from 9:30 to 10 a.m. Monday at the church.
Memorial contributions may be made to St. John’s Lutheran Church, 24 North Ridge Ave., Ambler, PA 19002 or Wissahickon School District, c/o Frederick T. and Elfrieda H. Jaffin Scholarship Fund, 601 Knight Road, Ambler, PA 19002.

