Obituary of Marie Emma Lewis

MARIE EMMA VAN DEN BIESEN LEWIS, passed away on Wednesday, October 25, 2017, at her home in Suffield, Connecticut, surrounded by family and loved ones. She was 91 years old. Marie was born on October 19, 1926, in Union City, New Jersey, to Eugene and Marie (nee Dierksen) Van Den Biesen. She graduated from Emerson High School in Union City, and the Berkeley School of New York. Upon graduation she was an Executive Assistant with the American Tobacco Company in New York City. In 1950 she married Robert J. Lewis (Bob), residing first in Palisades Park, moving in 1954 to Hackensack, New Jersey, where Marie was a homemaker and where she and Bob raised their family. Marie returned to the workforce in the late 1960's and worked for 20 years in the Hackensack Fire Department as Executive Assistant to the Fire Chief, retiring in 1990. Marie enjoyed gardening, reading, and listening to opera, but her main passion was her family. Marie is survived by her husband of 67 years, Robert Lewis; a sister Betty Bizarro of Westwood, New Jersey; two daughters, Anita Glynn (Albert) of West Suffield, Connecticut, and Elisabeth Adams (William) of Chicago, Illinois; a son, Robert Lewis (Stacey) of Nashua, New Hampshire; 11 grandchildren: Timothy, Megan, Katherine, Anna, Anne, Robert, John, William, James, Mara, and Madelynn; and one great-grandchild Nathaniel. She was predeceased by her sister Jean Ann Wansor. The family is grateful for the loving care she received for several years from her aide Winnoa (Winnie) Morris. Visitation will take place at the Second Reformed Church of Hackensack, where Marie was a long-standing member, on November 1st at 9:30 am, followed by a funeral service in the Sanctuary at 11:00 AM, and burial to follow at George Washington Memorial Park in Paramus. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Second Reformed Church Memorial Fund, 436 Union Street, Hackensack, New Jersey, 07601.