Obituary of Alice A Dannenbaum

Alice (Anderson) Dannenbaum passed away peacefully on March 9, 2025 in Hackettstown, NJ. In her final days, she exchanged many expressions of love and thankfulness with the numerous family members who surrounded her. She was 93 years old.

Alice was born and raised in St. Paul, MN to parents Henry B. and Bessie W. Anderson. After high school, Alice attended the Crawford W. Long School of Nursing (now part of Emory University) in Atlanta, GA, graduating with a Registered Nurse degree in 1955. Her first job was in the pediatrics department of Piedmont Hospital.

It was in Atlanta where she met and married Robert (Pete) Dannenbaum II in 1958, and gave birth to the first three of five sons before moving to New Jersey in 1963.

After initially living in Mahwah and Ramsey, Alice and Pete moved to Mendham in 1969, where Alice would spend the next 50 years.

As a mother of five boys, Alice took pleasure in managing an active household and attending the many sporting events, school plays and other activities of the day.

Alice was a dedicated member of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Mendham. She spent many happy years singing in the choir, and helped organize the church’s first annual Country Art Festival which continues to today. She was also a longtime associate of the Community of St. John the Baptist.

In addition to the dedicated care she provided her family, Alice served many through her work as a nurse. Across numerous private-duty assignments over several decades, Alice passionately cared for patients who were injured, sick, or elderly, as well as newborn infants and their mothers. After retiring from private duty, Alice spent 20 years helping manage the activities department at Holly Manor Nursing Home in Mendham, first as an employee and then as a volunteer, finally retiring again due to the pandemic at age 88. She loved serving the patients at Holly Manor, and relished being a contributing member of the dedicated team of nurses.

Alice’s other passion was in caring for the many, many pets she and her family had through the course of her life including dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, gerbils, turtles, mice and others. Her chihuahua Tippy was a faithful companion in her final years. 

As a self-proclaimed “tough Swede”, Alice took pride in “telling it like it is”.  When necessary, she was fearless in advocating on behalf of her kids, or in correcting occasional misbehaviors.

Alice’s proudest accomplishment in life was the successful raising of her five sons whom she spoke about continually in her later years: Robert III (Shelley) of Johns Creek, GA; Richard (LeeAnn) of Greenwich, CT; John (Betsy) of Philadelphia, PA; Peter (Jocelyn) of Bernardsville, NJ; and Nicholas (Jenifer) of Long Valley, NJ. She also loved her 12 grandchildren: Bradley, Andrew, Robert, Audrey, Johnnie, Patrick, Luke, Matthew, Julia, Caroline, Tyler and Griffin; her two step-grandchildren—Laurel and Quinn; and her four great grandchildren—Jake, Mason, Jack and Miles. She is predeceased by her husband, to whom she was married for 28 years before his passing in 1986, her parents, and her two brothers, Daniel and Richard.

A family burial service is being held at Hilltop Cemetery in Mendham. A memorial celebration of life service will be held on Saturday, April 12 at 11am at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Mendham.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Alice’s memory may be made to Doctors Without Borders, a favorite charity: In memory of Alice A. Dannenbaum - Fundraising For Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)