Ann Smith Adams

(Margaret) Ann S. Adams, age 90, passed away peacefully at home on June 5th, 2018 after a few months of illness. She was born in upstate New York, where she lived through her college years. She married Gordon Beckhart in 1948, and they moved to Haddon Heights in 1951. They worked together to help found the Haddon Glen Swim Club, and she also once ran for Town Council while he ran for State Assembly, both to no avail.  She is survived by her three children: Katharine Temel, Wendy (Heinz) Bachmann, Gordon Jr. (Stella); four grandchildren: Canan Temel, Sarah Temel, Deren Temel, Henry Bachman; and one great-granddaughter. She is also survived by her namesake niece and four nephews and their families.

Ann had a lifelong interest in education, having received a BA from Vassar College in mathematics and an MA from Rutgers University in statistics. In the 1960s, she taught mathematics and statistics at Rutgers Camden.

She and Gordon both learned computer programming in the late 1960s and opened a franchise of Automation Institute -  a valiant but short-lived endeavor. With her new programming skills, she became employed at Smith, Kline, and French where she worked throughout the 1970s and 80s. In the computer world she loved everything Macintosh. She had the first Apple computer and many versions thereafter, up to the recent MacBook. She was a member of a Mac User Group for many years.

She was a Life Member of the Camden County Branch of  AAUW (the American Association of University Women). She was a very active member, publishing the newsletter and engaging in numerous study groups - especially in art.

In 1973, her first marriage ended in divorce and she married Earle Adams (who predeceased her). Their life together included a great deal of travel, which she loved, including trips to Europe, especially Norway, all around the US and Canada, the Galapagos, and she even went to Greenland on her own after Earle passed away.

One of her favorite places was Manhattan where she shared her interests in the city’s culture and museums with her friends and family. She always had a wide range of interests, including current events, science, art, music, theater, and historic preservation. Ann was a member of both Questers and the Geographic Society of Philadelphia.

Ann was a very active member of the Unitarian Church, first at the church in Cherry Hill, and then at First Unitarian Church of Philadelphia when she started working in Center City.

Ann was a bright woman with a lifelong quest for knowledge, which she gladly shared with and encouraged in her family and friends.

A Memorial Service will be held on Tuesday, July 10th at 6 PM at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 401 Kings Highway North, Cherry Hill, New Jersey, with reception to follow.

Memorial donations, in lieu of flowers, may be made to the AAUW Education Fund at  aauw.org  or AAUW Education Fund, PO box 98045, Washington D.C., 20090-8045.