Jean Ironside Stover Sickles, 95, of Hackettstown, NJ passed away peacefully into everlasting life, October 26, 2020 at the Clarence W. Sickles Health Care Center at Heath Village.

She was born on May 19, 1925 in Morristown, NJ to the late Henry Stover and Alice Ironside Stover and married Clarence William Sickles on February 11, 1950; a marriage lasting 70 years.

A woman of strong faith, Jean was guided through her life by an unshakable sense of what was right. She had a gift of recognizing the humanity of every individual and treated them as such, even when social pressures dictated otherwise. Based on a lifetime rooted in education and reflective thought, her sense of right and wrong was never instilled to inflate an ego, but simply to fulfill her civic duty and make the world and her community a better place. 

To this aim, and many others, her life was an unmistakable success filled with impact and purpose.

Jean was a caretaker. The mother of eight children, she always ensured there were extra seats at the dinner table for family friends or anyone in need of a warm meal. Outside of her role in her home, she devoted herself to service in healthcare. 

After graduating from the nursing program at Adelphi University in New York, following her graduation from Morristown High School in 1942, she focused her efforts on eldercare. She saw a gap between the healthcare available to the elderly and what she believed to be basic human dignity. Together with her husband Clarence, the two co-founded the Heath Village Retirement Community and vastly improved the healthcare available in Long Valley. There, Jean served as its first Director of Nursing and Social Services.

Jean met Clarence, the love of her life, on Halloween night in New York. Having just received her first paycheck from her new job at a doctor’s office, she misplaced her wallet. Clarence approached her that evening and asked, “What’s the matter? You look a little glum.”

Luckily for Clarence, she shared his appreciation for direct communication and unmitigated honesty.

After marriage, the couple relocated to Hackettstown. There, the Sickles made a home not just for their eight children, but for anyone in need who needed a roof and a warm meal — even if just for a night. The two shared a passion for helping others and contributed often and in many ways to improve the local community. Her love, support and compassion for others inspired her husband to focus his life on service. Clarence always said, “Fortunate is a man who has a good wife to support him and keep him on a sound realistic path of pursuit.”  Jean was this wife and so much more.  

Jean was no stranger to hard work. While raising her family, she worked the night shift in the nursery at Newton Hospital. She obtained her nursing home administrator’s license and completed her accomplished career devoted to the elderly as the Chief Administrative Officer at Warren Haven Nursing Home in Oxford, NJ for twelve years, until her retirement. 

Jean was always reflecting on her capacity to improve the station of others in any way possible. This moved her to be a strong advocate for the residents and led to the introduction of rehabilitative services to Warren Haven. During this time, she also served two four year terms on the New Jersey Licensing Board for Nursing Home Administrators, even heading this state board as chairwoman during her second term.

Jean knew how to get things done and was described as, “The woman with an iron fist who wore velvet gloves.” As a devoted swimmer, she moved through the water with grace, barely displacing any water with her flawless freestyle stroke. In a way, this is how she navigated her life: sensible, efficient, determined and always focused on the goal ahead.

As practical and serious minded as she could be, she also held a deep appreciation for beauty in the world around her. She loved to sing and dance to all genres and, with her tremendous sense of humor, even the sound of laughter was music to her ears. 

Jean was a masterful cook, the “hostess with the mostest,” and the dinner table was the place where all of her qualities coalesced to illustrate the wonderful woman that was Jean. Even serving a family of ten and countless guests, meals were carefully considered, presented and always delicious. 

Sickles dinners were a social event served in the formal dining room with cloth napkins. Condiments had to be served in a dish with a serving spoon because placing a plastic bottle on the table simply wasn’t done. With four boys at the dinner table, she would serve Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwiches as she prepared supper to ensure there was always enough to go around for the family and any guests who joined that evening.

For Jean, preparing and serving food was a way to express her love and connection she felt for her family and community. These dinners provided the most basic of human needs but were also a celebration, every detail directed by Jean. The conversation around the table was always focused on the days and experiences of her children and filled with laughter, even as Clarence’s joke repertoire often left much to be desired.

Jean is survived by her four daughters Mary Roberts and her husband John, Martha Sickles, Margaret Sheldon and her husband Jim, Monica Cook and her husband Pete; and her four sons, Mark Sickles, Michael Sickles and his wife Barbara, Martin Sickles and his wife Jean, and Matthew Sickles; along with, thirteen grandchildren, and seven great grandchildren.  She was predeceased by her husband Clarence Sickles earlier this year, her brother, Hank Stover, and her sisters Marion De Lattre and Alice Thompson Keihl.    

A memorial visitation will be held on Friday, August 6, 2021 from 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm at Cochran Funeral Home, 905 High Street, Hackettstown, NJ 07840.

A funeral service will be held on Saturday, August 7, 2021 at 10:00 am at St. James Church, 214 Washington Street, Hackettstown, NJ 07840, with a burial a Pequest Union Cemetery, Cemetery Road, Great Meadows, NJ following the service.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the:

Heath Village Employee Appreciation Fund, 151 Heath Village, Hackettstown, NJ 07840 GoFundMe Link or the Clarence W. Sickles Friendship Fund to support residents at Heath Village. Friendship Fund or by check to 151 Heath Village Hackettstown, NJ 07840

Arrangements have been entrusted to the Cochran Funeral Home, To send an online condolence please visit http://www.cochranfuneral.com.