Obituary of Eleanor H. Aiken

On December 4, 2022, Eleanor Haase Aiken, loving wife of Richard (Dick) Aiken and mother of Deborah Marty and David Aiken, passed away at the age of 84.

Eleanor was born on April 5, 1938 in Pittsburgh, PA to Kenneth and Catherine (Lohr) Haase.  While attending Carnegie Mellon University, she met her husband of 61 years, Richard Aiken.  Eleanor graduated with a B.A in Music and Education in 1961.

Eleanor and Richard married on November 4, 1961, and after several moves, they settled in Morristown, NJ to raise their children Debbie and David.

Eleanor enjoyed several careers, as a music educator in secondary school, Music Director at Church of the Redeemer in Morristown, NJ, a private piano instructor, and a music textbook editor.  She also was an active member of Literacy Volunteers of Morris County and of many local choral groups, most recently Coro Lirico.

Eleanor will be remembered as a giving person of many loves; a love of family, friends, community service, music, cooking and travel.  Her joy for life and love of all people was infectious.  She could rival Julia Child in the kitchen and lead a crowd in holiday songs and carols like none other.

She is survived her husband Richard Aiken, daughter Deborah Marty and husband Dominique of Lexington, MA, son David Aiken and wife Evalyn Jack of Chevy Chase, MD, and grandchildren Phillip Marty, Noëlle Marty and Natalie Aiken.   She will be deeply missed by all who knew her as a dear friend and as Aunt Ellie, a devoted second mother. Eleanor was predeceased by her sister Charlotte Baker.

Visitation will be held at Burroughs Kohr & Dangler Homes, 106 Main Street, Madison, NJ, on Thursday December 8, 2022 from 4:00 – 7:00 p.m.  The funeral service will be celebrated at 11:00 a.m. Friday at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 125 South Street (corner of South Street and Miller Road), Morristown, NJ.  Streaming for the funeral service is available, https://www.stpetersmorristown.org/livestream.  Interment will be at Evergreen Cemetery, 65 Martin Luther King Avenue, Morristown, NJ.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you consider a donation to nourish.NJ.  This organization creates lasting solutions to the problems of hunger, homelessness, and poverty.