Jacob Mosser

KENNEBUNK — Jacob Mosser, 93, died Friday, March 28, 2008, at Mount Auburn Hospital, Cambridge, Mass., following a brief illness.

Jacob was born Aug. 31, 1914, in the town of Williamsport, Pa., to the late Marguerite Gray Mosser and Paul S. Mosser. He was raised in Waban, Mass., and attended Lenox Academy. He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1937 with a B.A. in French, and the Teachers College of Columbia University with a masters degree in mathematics in 1939.

A World War II veteran, he served in the U.S. Navy as a Lieutenant and was aboard ship as part of the D-Day invasion. During the war he met Mariana (Gooch) Mosser in Kennebunk, where they both had family homes. The two were married in 1942 in Miami, Fla.

After teaching at Lawrence Academy, Tilton School, and Winchester Junior High School, he and his family settled in Westfield, Mass., in 1952. There he was the head of the mathematics department at Westfield High School until his retirement in 1979.

His choice of an academic career allowed him and his family to continue to spend summers in Kennebunk. Eventually he and his wife Polly retired to Kennebunk and spent many happy years there. They especially loved walks on the beach with their King Charles spaniel, Sam. They were active members of the community and the Sea Road Church. In addition, they were extremely generous contributors to numerous charities, tithing 10 percent of their income. In 2001 they moved from their beloved 18th century home to Atria, an assisted living community in Kennebunk. In late 2007, Jake and Polly relocated to an assisted living home in Cambridge, Mass., to be closer to their children.

Jake was an intellectual and a lifelong devotee of classical music, literature and crossword puzzles. As a young man he would attend classical performances and was particularly proud of his collection of signatures of famous conductors. He loved puns and limericks and was known for his wry, modest sense of humor. As a traditionalist, he only recently agreed to a cordless phone, refused to learn the computer or buy CDs, but carried on a lively correspondence with friends from afar. He remained quick-witted and intellectually sharp until the end of his life, and continued to complete the Sunday New York Times crossword puzzle until just days before he died.

Jacob's beloved sister, Willetta Mosser Olssen, died in Tampa, Fla., at age 95 only 11 days before his death.

He is survived by his wife of 65 years, Mariana (Gooch) Mosser; his son, Jacob Mosser III of North Reading, Mass.; and his daughter, Molly (Mosser) Downer of Cambridge, Mass.

SERVICES: He will be buried in the Evergreen Cemetery in Kennebunk, Maine later this summer at a small family gathering.