Virginia “Ginny” Harker Waters, 89, of Leonardo, passed away May 13, 2023. Ginny was born Aug. 6, 1933, in Bayonne, a daughter of the late Grace and Edward Harker. She was raised in Bayonne and summered at the Jersey Shore in Sea Bright. After marrying the love of her life, she and Alan moved to Pennsylvania for a few years before settling in Haddonfield in the mid-1960s to raise their family. In the late 1980s, Ginny and Alan moved to Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina. They lived there for 10 years before returning to New Jersey in 1999.
Ginny graduated from the Katharine Gibbs School and then went to work for Standard Oil (ExxonMobile) in New York where she worked her way up the ladder to become the executive assistant to the chairman of the board.
Ginny loved music and was a gifted piano player. She also enjoyed dabbling with the ukulele. She loved spending her summers at the beach in Sea Bright where she met Alan when they were teenagers. She enjoyed swimming, fishing and rowing one of the family’s rowboats over to the island in the Shrewsbury River to explore. She was a strong rower, which came in handy years later when rescuing a cousin’s large dog that loved to chase motorboats down the river. In later years, Ginny enjoyed joining Alan on early-morning fishing trips to the ocean and Sandy Hook Bay.
She made many memories during the years spent at their summer home in Sea Bright, with family and neighbors who also became family, and all who lived close by on the “back streets.” For a particular group of little girls, Ginny was revered and admired as the greatest defender of peach pickers. She was also a lover of all animals but had a particularly large soft spot for dogs.
One of Ginny’s favorite things to do was cook and entertain her family and friends during the holidays and at cookouts during the summer. For many years she was a member of multiple bowling leagues and, while living in North Carolina, she rediscovered her love of playing bridge.
After returning to New Jersey in 1999, Ginny loved everything and anything that involved her grandson, Jacob, including T-ball games, band performances, swimming, watching movies and so much more.
Ginny did things her way: She was a devoted wife, mother and grandmother, independent and exceptionally smart and lived a full life.
Ginny was predeceased by her beloved husband of 52 years, Alan C. Waters, in 2015 and their son Timothy in 2014. Her three brothers, George Harker, Edward Harker Jr. and Amos Harker, also preceded her.
Ginny is survived by her daughter Eleanor Waters; daughter-in-law Laura Waters; and her grandson Jacob Waters.
In keeping with doing things her own way, Ginny did not want any fanfare for her funeral. The family will hold a private service June 3 from 11 to noon. A celebration of life is also being planned for later this year to honor Ginny and Alan, both of whom would have turned 90 in this year.
Please feel free to share memories and condolences on Ginny’s page at scottkedzfuneralhome.com. In lieu of flowers, consider making a memorial donation in Ginny’s memory to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center at mskcc.org or by mail to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, P.O. Box 5028, Hagerstown, MD 21741-5028.
The article originally appeared in the June 1 – 7, 2023 print edition of The Two River Times.
