Marilyn Griffith Van Zoeren

Marilyn Griffith Van Zoeren, 88, died on December 3rd , 2018 in Boston, MA.
Born on Christmas day, 1929 in Saint Cloud, Minnesota, Marilyn was the daughter of the late Ione Velona Pickle Griffith and Donald Henry Griffith. She lived in numerous towns in North and South Dakota and Minnesota. She graduated from Washington High School in Sioux Falls, SD, attended Augustana College in Sioux Falls and graduated from Macalester College in Saint Paul, MN with a B.S. in Sociology and Primary Education. Marilyn taught primary education at Miss Woods Trainer School and in the Denver, Colorado school system before joining United Air lines as a stewardess and before marrying in 1954.
Marilyn and her husband Jack Van Zoeren lived in Glen Ridge, NJ for 38 years where she was active in various civic and church activities. As a member of the Glen Ridge Congregational Church, she served on numerous church committees, including the Board of Directors and as President of the church choir, where she sang mezzo tenor in the choir. Marilyn was also a long-term member of the Junior League and the Children’s Hospital Guild of Newark, the Glen Ridge NJ Community Service Committees
and the Glen Ridge Country Club where she was an avid golfer and served on and/or chaired numerous activities. In 1972-1975, she officiated as the first lady of Glen Ridge. In 1992, she and her husband retired to Pinehurst, NC where she continued to play golf, attend luncheons and have dinner parties.
During the last 5 years of her life, she lived in Connecticut and then Massachusetts to be cared for by her daughters.
Marilyn was predeceased by her husband John Burr Van Zoeren of Pinehurst, NC in 2013, a brother Donald Henry Griffith Jr. of Boulder, CO and an infant granddaughter Abigail Grace Cox of Mendham, NJ. She is survived by her daughters Susan Van Zoeren of Montclair, NJ; Peggy Vanzoeren-Byram and her husband, Arthur and their sons Nick and Jack of Glastonbury, CT; Barbara Van Zoeren of Arlington, MA and Diane Cox and her husband, Bill and their daughters Christine, Jennifer and Grace of Mendham, NJ.
There will be a celebration of Marilyn’s life at a later date in New Jersey. If you would like to contact the daughters, please email:
vzdaughters4@gmail.com.