Obituary of Jeanette May Mattson

In Memory of Jeannette "Jean" Squier Mattson 1927 – 2020 Jean Mattson died at 93 on May 1 at her beloved home in Plainfield. She was born and bred in Plainfield with a brief stint in Chickasaw Oklahoma where her father taught flying. She returned to Plainfield for her senior year at Plainfield High School and graduated in 1945. She went to Upsala College in East Orange NJ where she majored in history. She left at the end of her sophomore year to marry Norman "Moose" Mattson, BMOC at Upsala. She moved a lot during her early marriage years: Rock Island Illinois, Ortonville Minnesota, Calgary Alberta Canada and finally back to New Jersey where she and her husband bought an 1842 house in Plainfield which she treasured to her death. She returned to college in the late 1960's and graduated Suma Cum Laud in 1971 with a BA in history. She earned a Master of Arts in Media at Temple University and a Masters in History at Columbia University with an specialty in African history. She taught media courses at Kean University (formerly Newark State College) and was also an administrator in the Resource Center. Words like passionate, avid, fastidious could define her "interests", more like her life: Jean was a passionate photographer, specializing in black and white photos, many of which were portraits. She had many art shows one of which was at Lincoln Center in NYC. She was very proud of her ancestry, the Squier family, which can be traced back to the late 1600's in New Jersey. This led her to her involvement with the Plainfield Drake House where she served on the Board of Directors and President of the Board. She was also appointed to the Plainfield Cultural and Heritage Commission and also worked for many political campaigns in Plainfield. Jean traveled to Russia prior to the dissolution of the USSR in 1982, a feat unto itself. She took a sabbatical in Dublin Ireland working for a TV station and making many life-long friends, and got to know many "traveling people" and was able to do intimate photographs. She spent two weeks in Cuba, traveling on an educational tour with Kean University. There were many more trips, Indonesia to visit her son Keith and daughter-in-law Krisna. Jean was the mother of four children: Lois (husband Cory Storch), Kenneth, Joy and Keith (wife Krisna Suryanata). Grandchildren are Alexa, Matthew, Nicholas and Andrew. She lived a full and long life, may she rest in peace. Private interment service Thursday May 7 will be officiated by Rev. Robert Griner. A memorial service will be announced after quarantine measures are lifted. Donations may be made to the Drake House 602 W. Front Street, Plainfield NJ 07060