Jean Cranse Larsen, of Short Hills, N.J., passed away on Sunday, July 14, 2019.
Born in Summit, N.J., Jean was raised in Millburn and graduated from Millburn High School in 1949.
She earned a bachelor’s degree in 1953 from Skidmore College, where she majored in Spanish and was President of the Spanish Club. Her devotion to her alma mater was recognized years later with admission to the Friends of the President giving society.
Jean and her husband, Dick, lived in Short Hills, N.J., for many years and were members of Canoe Brook Country Club. Jean received certification for residing in Millburn Township for at least 50-Years in 2005 and was recognized for enhancing the Township’s quality of life. They also spent many enjoyable summers in Bay Head, N.J., where they were members of the Bay Head Yacht Club.
After college, Jean was a buyer for Hahne & Company prior to her marriage to Dick in 1956. The happy couple spent their first two years of marriage in Venezuela before returning to New Jersey and settling in Short Hills. Thereafter, she was a devoted housewife focused on raising her two sons. Jean was active in the leadership of the Young Republican Clubs of Millburn-Short Hills and Essex County. She enjoyed gardening, sunbathing, tennis and paddle tennis, as well as socializing with her many friends. Jean was also a bit of a Francophile and enjoyed a number of trips to Europe, especially France.
Jean is survived by her sons Thorvald Richard “TR” Larsen III and his wife, Liz, of Venice, Fla., and Peter Niels Larsen, his wife Kelly, and their children, Halsey and Brooks Larsen, of Chatham, N.J. She was pre-deceased by her husband Thorvald Richard “Dick” Larsen Jr.
A private family service is planned.