Jay L. Hasbrouck's Obituary
OBITUARY:Mr. Jay L. Hasbrouck, age 95 of Scottville, passed away on Wednesday, March 2, 2011 at Ludington Woods Living Center. Jay was born in Graceville, Minnesota on August 31, 1915 to Josiah and Dorathea (Schwartz) Hasbrouck. Jay spent the first 10 years of his life in Graceville and enjoyed a wonderful childhood where his father owned a restaurant and four theaters. When the depression hit the country’s economy, they moved to Montevideo, MN then on to Minneapolis. During these difficult years, their family was divided and Jay went with his father to the Catskill Mountains area in New York where he attended a one-room schoolhouse for a year. In 1938 the entire family moved to Newark, NJ and then to East Orange where Jay graduated from High School in 1933. In spite of the difficult economy, he was able to find a job with Prudential Insurance at the home office in Newark. In 1941 he was drafted into the United States Army and he served in the Pacific Area – Hawaii, Australia and New Guinea, and was honorably discharged in 1945 at the rank of Staff Sergeant. Near the end of his time in the service, he married his love Ruby Fiscus on December 15, 1944 in Ridgeway, PA. They had three children, sons Jay, Jr. and Gary, and daughter Susan. They moved their family to Clearfield, PA in 1954 where Jay had a long career as an agent for Prudential Life Insurance. At the age of 62 he retired and then spent many years as a gardener for a large estate. Jay and Ruby enjoyed traveling together, wintering often in South Padre Island, TX and sharing trips to Holland & Germany, as well as to the British Isles – Ireland, Scotland, Wales & England. In 2001, Jay & Ruby moved to Scottville, MI to be near their daughter Susan, and spent their winters in Leesburg, FL. While in Michigan, they were faithful members of the Scottville United Methodist Church. Jay and Ruby spent 64 years as husband and wife until Ruby’s death on July 26, 2009. He was also preceded in death by his parents and his sisters, Lillian Eichele and Dorothy Wells.Jay is remembered as a jovial and positive man and will be greatly missed by his children, Jay L. (Bea) Hasbrouck, Jr. of Amity, PA, Gary M. (Tamara) Hasbrouck of Oakland, CA and Susan E. (David) North of Ludington, MI; his grandchildren Jenny Hasbrouck and Kevin, Samantha, Matthew and Jennifer North; his brother-in-law James (Alverta) Fiscus of Missouri, as well as many nieces, nephews and friends. A private family gathering has been planned to honor and remember Jay. Those who wish to make memorial contributions are asked to consider Harbor Hospice or Scottville United Methodist Church.
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