Harry A
Putnam, BORDENTOWN - Harry A. Putnam, 81, died on Dec. 11, 2009, at Samaritan Hospice in Mt.
Holly, NJ. Born in Worcester,
MA, Mr. Putnam had resided in Bordentown
with his family since 1968. He served in the United States Army for 22 years,
including tours in Panama,
Japan, Korea
and Germany. He
was a member of the 24th Infantry Division in Japan
in 1950, and upon the outbreak of the Korean War was among the first units sent
there, where he served from 1950 to 1951. He was a member of "Operation
Gold," a successful CIA project in Berlin,
Germany, from 1954 to
1955. Mr. Putnam retired in 1968 and was the administrator/instructor for the
Junior ROTC Program at Bordentown Military Institute. While there, he completed
his B.S. degree at TCNJ, then Trenton State
College, in 1972. Mr. Putnam taught in the Clara
Barton School
from 1972 to 1978. After receiving his MA in education and supervision from Rider
College, he became the assistant
principal at the Beverly Elementary
School, and subsequently the administrator of the
Stockton Elementary
School, Stockton,
NJ. In 1984 Mr. Putnam joined the NJ
Department of Corrections as an assistant supervisor of education programs,
serving at Southern State Correctional Facility, the Edna Mahan Correctional
Facility for Women at Clinton, and
the Garden State Reception and Youth Correctional Facility until his retirement
in 1993. He was ordained a permanent deacon on May 13, 1995, by the Most Reverend John C. Reiss, Bishop
of Trenton, and served at St. Mary Roman Catholic Church in Bordentown until
his retirement in 2009. Mr. Putnam was a member of American Legion Post 26,
Bordentown; past grand knight, Bordentown Council 570, Knights of Columbus, and
a member of the Bishop Ahr Assembly, 4th Degree
Knights of Columbus, and a volunteer at the McGuire AFB Pharmacy. He was a past
member of Hope Hose Co. No. 1; the City of Bordentown
Planning Board from 1988 to 2000, and its chairman for
the last seven years of his tenure. He is survived by his wife, Anne S. Putnam
of Bordentown; two daughters and sons-in-law, Dr. Elizabeth A. Putnam and Dr.
Mark A. Pershouse of Missoula, MT, and Daria K. Putnam-Steinhardt and James J. Steinhardt of
Frederick, MD; son and daughter-in-law, John W. and Patricia S. Putnam of
Exton, PA, and seven grandchildren, Rebecca and Anna Pershouse,
Anne, James and John Steinhardt, and Jonathan and Leah Putnam. He is also
survived by a sister-in-law, Agnes V. Sulak, and
nephew Gene Shuman both of Florida; brother and sister-in-law, Bernard and
Betty Sulak of Pennsylvania; sister-in-law, Helen Sulak of Virginia; brother-in-law, Andrew Hrebenar of Pennsylvania; two nieces and spouses, Deborah
and Robert Morrisey of Massachusetts, and Joanne and
Robert Colbert of Virginia; niece, Deborah Sulak of
Texas, and several other nieces, nephews, grand-nieces and grandnephews. A Mass
of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Tuesday, Dec. 15, at 11 a.m. at St.
Mary's Roman Catholic Church, 45 Crosswicks St.,
Bordentown, with the pastor, Reverend Michael J. Burns, celebrant. Calling
hours will be held on Monday evening from 6
to 8 p.m. and on Tuesday morning from
9 to 10:30
a.m. at the church. A private burial will be at the convenience of
the family. In lieu of flowers, donations are suggested to the Samaritan
Hospice, samaritanhospice .org, and St.
Mary Roman Catholic Church. Arrangements are under the direct care and
supervision of Robert L. Pecht, Bordentown Home for
Funerals, 40 Crosswicks St.,
Bordentown, www.bordentownhomeforfunerals.com.