John Stearns

John “Jack” Stearns, 95, died on April 16, 2011 in the Kaplan Family Hospice House. Jack was born on July 18, 1915, in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of the late Edward and Helen (Harris) Stearns. He grew up in New Jersey and received his B.S. degree in biology and mathematics from Amherst College, Amherst, MA. He married his first wife, Helen Martin, in 1940. They settled in Orange, NJ where she gave birth to their daughter Elizabeth in 1941. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, he enlisted in the Army and was stationed in Hawaii. He was honorably discharged in 1945 and resumed his life in NJ with his wife and daughter. He passed his actuarial exams and became an actuary with Prudential Insurance Company, a job he kept until his retirement in 1977. Jack was widowed for the first time in 1955 when Helen died. He was active in the Morristown Unitarian Fellowship, serving as president for two years. There he met Thelma, and they married in 1964. Thelma’s daughters, Laura and Amy, also joined the family. Jack and Thelma enjoyed socializing and playing tennis with their many friends in the area. After Thelma’s death in 2005, Jack moved to Sunrise Assisted Living at Gardner Park in Peabody, MA, where he made many new friends and was very well looked after by the caring staff. His family owes special thanks to the staff and the residents at Sunrise for making the last few years of life happy. He is survived by his daughter Elizabeth and his beloved son-in-law Arthur Thomas of Gloucester, MA, two stepdaughters, Laura Hall of NH and Amy Paul of Utah, stepgrandchildren, Matthew and Peter Hall, several nieces and nephews, Peter and Roberta Conant of Jamaica Plain, MA who were especially kind to Jack and concerned for his welfare, Catherine Trembicki of Danvers, Michael Trembicki of Somerville, Mary Stack of Colorado and Stephen Conant of California. A Memorial service will be held at 2PM on Sat., April 30, 2011 at C.R. Lyons & Sons, Funeral Directors, 28 Elm St., Danvers, MA. In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made in John’s name to Open Door Food Pantry, 28R Emerson St., Gloucester, MA, 01930.