Julia K. Boehm

Boehm, Julia McLaughlin, of Absecon, at 83, aptly, in the early hours of Independence Day, our spirited Julia passed quietly away from a newly diagnosed brain tumor. She had retained her independence until her dying days, living in her own Absecon home for nearly six decades. With the unstinting aid of AtlantiCare Hospice, she was able to live her final week mere blocks away from her beloved property at her daughter's home, attended around the clock by her large, lively family. Still the boss of her life, even cancer could not break her wild will.

Born to Mary (nee O'Donnell) Kohler and Joseph Kohler on 6 December 1929, the third of eleven children, she was predeceased by her parents; her husband and father of her four children: Joseph McLaughlin; her second husband: James Boehm; sisters Marie Kohler, Maris Guardiana, and Sister Kathleen Kohler MSBT; brother: Joseph Kohler; close cousin: Janice Sweeney; former daughter-in-law: Anna McLaughlin; and son-in-law: poet Hayden Carruth.

Left to celebrate her life are: daughter, Joe-Anne McLaughlin Carruth of Absecon and New York; son Joseph McLaughlin of Absecon; John McLaughlin (Alex Scanlon) of Sneads Ferry (JUMBO II), North Carolina; Jef McLaughlin (Dawn Ricci) of Absecon; grandchildren Adam (apple of her eye) McLaughlin of Absecon; beloved grand daughter and grandson: her Starr and Seth McLaughlin, both of Absecon; and cherished grand daughters: Kristin Freeman and Shannon Russell of North Carolina; and her truly great Great Grand Children: Joey and Makayla McLaughlin, along with their mother, Amanda Carl, all of Mullica Twp. and Ian and Kaye Freeman and Owen Russell, all of North Carolina; special friends: Dina Calabrese and Mary Harper.

In addition, she is survived by sisters: Rita Schmidt; Dorthy Di Mattia; Rosemary Salvatore (who aided in her final care); and Margie (Nicky) Campagna; and brothers: Donald (Josephine) Kohler; William (Brigitte) Kohler; and Barry (Kathy) Kohler. Memories of her great open-handedness and quick wit will be recalled by countless other relatives and friends.

She was a woman of many passions and wide tastes, for whom kindness was the highest of all virtues. One abiding passion was to nurture aesthetic and moral imaginations in her Children, and, then, her Grand Children, and, finally, her Great Grand Children. Her house might be a mess, but you just might wake up to a breakfast of Bananas Foster. Another governing passion was the purchase and renovation of properties, employing techniques she acquired as a Design major at The Philadelphia College of Art. A proud member of UNITE HERE Local 54, she was employed by restaurants and hotels throughout the area, retiring from Resorts in her 70s.

Of a firmly independent mind, she wished us to avoid all forms of prejudice, and often cited Matin Luther King's observation that 'an eye for an eye makes everyone blind.'

Services will be held on 8 July, from 6:00 to 8:00 (service time 7:30) in Absecon at Parsels Funeral Home, www.parselsfuneralhome.com. Another celebration of her life and work will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Absecon Volunteer Ambulance Corp.