Rosalind Hendrickson

Moher and grandmother, of Bridgewater, 85 Rosalind (Beatrice) Hendrickson, 85, of Bridgewater, died Sunday, Dec. 28, 2008, at Center for Hope Hospice in Scotch Plains. She was born Beatrice Tvenstrup Oct. 26, 1923, in Bronx, N.Y., the only surviving daughter of George V. and Violet Tvenstrup. Her mother preferred to call her Rosalind. She married George Sidney Hendrickson, Jr. of Brooklyn, N.Y. on April 2, 1949, who predeceased her in 1976, at the age of 70. Due to recurring illnesses of both herself and her parents, she never graduated high school. Her father died when she was 11, and so her working life began at the age of 12 (and at six feet tall), and never really ended. She provided and cared for her invalid mother until her death in 1958. She had been an executive secretary, an insurance salesperson, and tax preparer, among other employed positions. In the last year of her life, she continued to prepare tax returns for family and friends. The Great Depression and Spanish Civil War were the dominant influences on her young life and shaped her subsequent view of the world. It made her a political activist and she made a lifelong commitment to peace and social justice. Rosalind was also a dedicated vegetarian and advocate of animal rights. She was a person of intelligence and commitment, yet one with a wry sense of humor. Rosalind loved great music, from the improvisational jazz greats of the 1930s, to opera and classical. She was a fan of both Pete Seeger's and Bruce Springsteen's politics. She is survived by a son, Neil Hendrickson and his wife, Karen Mittleman, of Bridgewater; two granddaughters, Kate Hendrickson of Spring Lake Heights, and Elizabeth Gonzalez-Guillot of Salem, Mass., as well as her former daughter-in-law, Anne Leckie of Basking Ridge. A memorial service will be held at Summit Unitarian Church, 4 Waldron Ave., Summit, on Jan. 18, from 3 until 5 p.m. There will be no burial, as Rosalind was an anatomical donor to Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. Donations in her name may be sent to Center for Hope Hospice, 1900 Raritan Ave., Scotch Plains, 07076 or the Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives (ALBA), 799 Broadway, Suite 341, New York, N.Y. 10003.