For the week of May 25
Ross J. Hart, Jr.
MERCERVILLE Ross J. Hart, Jr., 78, died May 18 at home.
He was born in Heilwood, Pa., where he lived for 25 years before moving to Hamilton Township in the late 1950s.
Mr. Hart was employed with Pacific Intermountain Express for 15 years and was also a member of the Teamster’s Local 701 of New Brunswick. He was an avid fisherman for many years.
Mr. Hart was an Army veteran, private first class, and also served in the Air Force.
Son of the late Ross J., Sr. and Vina (Jackson) Hart, brother of the late Charles and Thomas Hart, he is survived by his wife of 52 years, Dorothy M. (Rice) Hart of Mercerville; four sons and daughters-in-law, Robert H. and Patricia M. Hart of Hamilton Square, Ross M. and Denise Hart of Hamilton, Kevin M. and Trish Hart of Chesterfield, and David J. and Jennifer Hart of Bordentown; two sisters and brothers-in-law, Mildred and Harry Whitlow of Levittown, Pa. and Mary Catherine and Peter Malzi of Sidman, Pa.; a sister-in-law, Edith Owens; nine grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews.
Funeral services were private at the convenience of the family.
Contributions may be made in Mr. Hart’s memory to Fox Chase Cancer Center, 333 Cottman Ave., Room C-223, Philadelphia, PA 19111.
Carmen Gutierrez
BORDENTOWN TOWNSHIP Carmen Regina Gutierrez, 76, died on May 17 at the Capital One Nursing Home in Hamilton Township. Born in Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico, she had lived in Bordentown Township for the last 35 years.
Wife of the late Victor Manuel Gutierrez, she is survived by three daughters, Idalie R. Gutierrez Meely of Bordentown, Aixa Acklan (Rulenz) of Bordentown and Vivian Gutierrez Reading of Hamilton Township; a son, Victor Gutierrez of Lawrenceville; and 10 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Funeral services were held Saturday at the Peppler Funeral Home in Bordentown.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Puerto Rican Community Day Care Center, PO Box 3747, Trenton, NJ 08629-3747.
Mary T. Morrison
GEORGETOWN Mary Tutek Morrison, 92, died on May 16.
She had moved to Georgetown with her parents in 1928. She was a graduate of MacFarland High School of Bordentown and Rider Business College.
She was an active member of St. Andrews Church and its Altar Rosary Society. She enjoyed reading and crossword puzzles.
Daughter of the late George and Mary Tutek and sister of the late John Tutek, Helen O’Connor and Annabelle Bates, she is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Mary and Andrew Herdan of Philadelphia, Pa.; two brothers and sisters-in-law, George and Joyce Tutek of Georgetown and Henry and Betty Jane Tutek of Bordentown; three grandchildren, Eric and Ruth Herdan and Sarah Dorr; three great-grandchildren, Innes, Andy and Lindsey; and 10 nieces and nephews, George Bates, Catherine Jones, Patricia O’Connor, MaryAnn Guertler, Sandra Tutek, Thomas O’Connor, George Tutek, Jr., Darren Tutek, Patrick Tutek and Michael Tutek.
Mass of Christian burial was held on May 19 at St. Andrews Church in Jobstown.
Memorial contributions may be made to St. Andrews Church, 2489 Monmouth Road, Jobstown, NJ 08041.
Paul E. Walker III
TRENTON Paul E. Walker III, 39, died on May 15 at home.
Born in Trenton, he was a life-long Trenton-area resident.
Mr. Walker was employed by the Mercer County Parks Commission for the past 19 years and was an avid NASCAR fan.
Son of the late Paul E. Walker Jr., he is survived by his mother, Frances Perrone Walker of Trenton; a son, Paul E. Walker IV, of Bordentown; a sister and brother-in-law, Lynn and Jeffrey Simone of Hamilton Township; aunts and uncles, Vincent Perrone, Chris Perrone, Chuck and Carol Perrone, Patricia and Joseph Sargenti, and Eileen Walker; two nephews, Jeffrey and Nicholas Simone; a special friend, Carol Mang; and many cousins and friends.
Funeral services were held on May 19 at Brenna Funeral Home in Hamilton.
A Mass of Christian burial was celebrated on May 19 at Our Lady of the Angels Parish at Saint Joachim’s Church in Trenton.
Joseph J. Kais
FORT PIERCE, Fla. Joseph J. Kais, 70, died on Jan. 11 after a short illness.
Mr. Kais was born in Roebling and was the son of the late Mathew and Mary Kais. For the past 15 years, Mr. Kais resided in Florida.
He was a 1953 graduate of Florence Township Memorial High School and studied for two years at Rider College.
He was traffic and distribution manager at three major corporations including McGraw Hill. His last 12 years he worked for Home Depot.
He was an avid sports fan. He enjoyed boxing, baseball and football.
He was in the U.S. Navy and served from 1956 to 1960. During his enlistment in the Navy Airdale, he was the lightweight boxing runner-up champion at Bambridge Naval Base, Md.
He is survived by his wife, Francois "FiFi" Kais; two daughters and a son-in-law, Lisa and Butch of Martha’s Vineyard, Mass., and Deborah of Greenfield, Mass.; two sons and two daughters-in-law, Joseph and Terry of Fairfield, Conn. and Matthew and Dori of Cape Cod, Mass.; eight grandchildren; a sister, Lorraine Piro of Hazlet; five brothers and four sisters-in-law, Fred and Betty Kais of Trenton, Mathias Kais of Roebling, Edward and Sue Kais of Edgewater Park, James and Shelly Kais of Burke, Va., and Tony and Sue Kais of Roebling.
A memorial Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. Saturday, May 27, at St. Benedicts Catholic Church, 165 Bethany Road, Holmdel, NJ 07733.
Rosemarie Fairburn
TRENTON Rosemarie (Beard Diaz) Fairburn, 48, died on May 18 at home.
Ms. Fairburn was born in Texas and lived in Trenton most of her life. She graduated from Trenton High School and worked at Triangle as a manager of the Ammonia Free Department for the past 14 years. Before that she worked at Truckman’s D&W.
Ms. Fairburn was an avid Elvis fan, enjoyed reading, spending time with her friends and family, especially her grandson, loved rooting for her favorite team, the Dallas Cowboys, and country dancing.
Daughter of James Beard and the late Elizabeth Beard of Tennessee, and niece of the late Robert and Carol Beard, she is survived by a son, Juan Diaz, Jr. of Hamilton; a daughter Tabatha Diaz; a son-in-law, Mark Sheridan; a grandson Kashe Michael, all of Hamilton; a sister, Mary Jane Williams; nephews James and Harold Joseph Williams, all of Hamilton; two sisters Valerie Diaz of Tennessee and Deborah Hendershot of Florence. Special angel, Paul Tessein, the Hoenisch family, special niece, Helen Copernico and special friend, Mary Wertz. Also left behind were many aunts, uncles, cousins and loving friends.
Funeral services were held on Monday at Chiacchio Southview Funeral Home in Trenton.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Relay for Life, c/o American Cancer Society, 3076 Princeton Pike, Lawrenceville, NJ 08648.
Norman A. Bartron
BORDENTOWN TOWNSHIP Norman A. Bartron, 73, died Friday at home.
He was born in Trenton and had resided all of his life in the area.
An Army veteran of Lorea, he was presently employed by Princeton Tec and had retired from Acme Stores where he had over 40 years of service.
He was a member of Gothic Fraternal Lodge 270, Free & Accepted Masons.
He is survived by his wife, Ingrid; three sons and a daughter-in-law, Jack and Eileen Billetdoux of Burlington Township, George Billetdoux and Norman A. Barton Jr., all of Bordentown; a brother and sister-in-law, Larry and June Bartron of Missouri; a sister and brother-in-law, Luise and Bob Stinson of Florida; a grandson, Joseph Billetdoux; his mother-in-law, Mina Bucco of Bordentown; brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, Ray and Gerda Mich and Pat and Chris Bucco, all of Bordentown, Bruce and Vicky Reiodan of Florida and several nieces and nephews.
The funeral was held on Wednesday at the Huber-Moore Funeral Home in Bordentown.
Vera E. Rhubart
FLORENCE Vera E. Rhubart (nee Evans), 70, died on May 18 at home.
Born in Gilberton, Pa., she lived in the Roebling area most of her life.
She was a graduate of Florence High School and then went to work in the office of John A. Roebling Corp. in Roebling. Later she was a data entry specialist at Oxy Chemical Co. in Burlington Township for several years until its closing. She then worked as a clerical worker at the GSA Co. in Burlington Township before recently retiring.
Ms. Rhubart was a member of St. Clare’s Church in Florence and the Altar & Rosary Society of the church.
She was a former Columbiet of the Knights of Columbus, and some of her interests included crocheting, needlepointing, crafts, collecting dolls and watching the QVC network on television.
Daughter of the late Morgan (Corky) and Lily Johnson Evans, and sister of the late Patsy Murphy Cubberly, she is survived by her beloved husband of nearly 49 years, P. Ronald Rhubart; a daughter and son-in-law, Renee and Lou Ranfone of Burlington Township; two grandchildren, Anthony and Alyssa Ranfone; a niece, Debi (Frank) Burg of Burlington Township; a nephew Michael Murphy of Manahawken; and friends Sandy Maloney Frank of Medford and Joan Buddie of Florence.
Mass of Christian burial was held on Tuesday at St. Clares Church in Florence.
Contributions in her memory may be sent to the Hospice of Moorestown VNA, 10 East Stow Road (Suite 100), Marlton, NJ 08053 or to the St. Claire’s Church Improvement Fund.
Ray E. VanSyckle
HAMILTON Ray E. VanSyckle, 82, died on Friday at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital at Hamilton.
He was born and grew up in Blairstown where he married Gertrude Hicks in 1950. He lived in Hamilton for the last 52 years. He worked in the construction business his entire life.
Son of the late Homer D. and Anna M. VanSyckle and brother of the late Howard VanSyckle, he is survived by his wife Gertrude VanSyckle of Hamilton; three daughters, Mary Lou VanSyckle of Ewing, Carol and her husband Eddie Lownacki of Jobstown and Paula and her husband David Maxwell of Hamilton; a son, Ray Van Syckle of Hamilton; three sisters, Frances Newcamp of Hamilton, Betty Huff of Chesterfield and Marie Kosenbader of Blairstown; four grandchildren and their spouses, Shannon and Shawn Borden, Eddie and Traci Kownacki, Ashley Maxwell and Jessica Maxwell; and three great-grandchildren, Sara and Sophia Borden and Anthony Edward Kownacki.
Funeral services were held on Wednesday from the Saul Colonial Funeral Home in Hamilton Square.
Contributions may be made to Deborah Hospital Foundation, 212 Trenton Rd., Browns Mills, NJ 08015.
Margaret M. Russo
TRENTON Margaret M. "Maggie" Gargarella Russo, 86, died on May 18 at home. Born in Bristol, Pa., she was a lifelong area resident. She is remembered as a kind woman to whom maintaining her Italian traditions was very important.
She was a member of the Altar and Rosary Society of St. Anthony’s Church.
Wife of the late Alfred W. Russo, mother of the late Virginia Orgel and daughter of the late Nicholas and Virgina Gargarella, she is survived by two sons, Alfred J. Russo and his companion Rosina of Berlin, and David Russo of Levittown, Pa.; four daughters, Marie A. Parrish of Bordentown, Loretta Russo and her companion Gregory Grainger of Fieldsboro, Michelle Russo-Goodman and her husband Jack Goodman of Port Washington and Carolyn Russo of Allen, Texas; three sisters, Catherine Hamilton of Blue Bell, Pa., Angelina Williams of Bristol, Pa. and Rita Pett of Levittown, Pa.; one brother, Nicholas Gargarella of Doylestown, Pa.; six grandchildren, Christine Russo, Jessica Parrish, Serena and Justin Orgel, Aaron and Georgia Goodman; two great-grandchildren, Riley O’Malley and Jocelyn Cody; and several nieces and nephews.
Funeral services were held on Monday at the Mullen Funeral Home in Trenton.
Mass of Christian burial was celebrated on Monday at St. Anthony’s Church in Hamilton.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial contributions be made to the American Heart Association, 2550 U.S. Highway 1, North Brunswick, NJ 08902 or VNA Hospice, 171 Jersey St., PO Box 441, Suite 201, Trenton, NJ 08603.
Dorothea V. Paul
FLORENCE Dorothea (Dot) V. Paul (nee McDermott), 88, died on Monday at Virtua Health and Rehab Center in Lumberton.
Born in Florence, she was a lifelong area resident.
Ms. Paul retired as a sales clerk for the Burlington Coat Factory after 20 years of service. She was a homemaker in later years and enjoyed cooking and canning.
She is survived by her husband of 65 years, Walter G. Paul. She was the sister-in-law of Alice and Carl Friday, Ella McDermott and Jean Megules, all of Florence, and Henry (Doc) Biwald of Millville; a dear friend of Fritz and Jean Wainwright of Florence. She was also the aunt of Donald Savalli, Richard Horvath, Winnie Wojcik, John Wojcik, Lynn Roberts, Keith McDermott, Dorothy Friday, Sue Friday, Dr. Nathaniel White and Dr. Paul Friday.
The funeral was held on Wednesday at the Dennison Funeral Home in Florence.
Contributions in her memory can be sent to The Seeing Eye Inc., PO Box 375, Morristown, NJ 07963-0375.

