RED BANK, N.J. — Charlotte (Greene) Harpell, 89, of Red Bank, New Jersey died peacefully, at her daughter’s home in Bridgton, on Thursday, July 19, 2018.

Charlotte was born on May 1, 1929, during the Great Depression to Laurie (Young) and Edmund Blaine Greene in East Orange, N.J. She was the youngest of three, and considered her childhood, her parents and her siblings, and their simple life together among the happiest of her life. They spent hours going ‘out to the country’ to Sussex County, where they picnicked or went ‘nutting,' all squeezed into a small car. Her love of New Jersey, family, friends, all animals (but especially cats) and nature was defining for her.

In 1946 after WWII, Charlotte’s older brother, Edmund Greene Jr., drowned during a geologic expedition in Newfoundland, Canada. She, and her family missed him every day, and her dedication to nature and travel was in large part an homage to him and her dearly loved mother.

In 1947 Charlotte graduated from East Orange High School, and still stayed connected to many of her childhood friends. She married Richard Earl Harpell, of East Orange, in 1954. They lived in Verona, and then in Sparta, N.J., and Charlotte worked as a writer/editor for Picatinny Arsenal until her retirement in 1996, moving to Red Bank in 2001. Charlotte and Rich spent many wonderful hours with friends and family, with lots of laughter and ‘good times.' She was a people person who blossomed in a social gathering, and made everyone feel welcome.

She was predeceased by her beloved son, Richard Edmund Harpell, in 1988; her husband Rich in 1988, her sister Lorraine Mills in 2014, and her brother Edmund in 1946. She is survived by her daughter, Maureen, and husband Bernie Vigna of Bridgton, Maine, and their children Trinity, Jordan with wife Suzy, Tareyn, Peter and Paul; and her son, David, and wife Randy of Manasquan, N.J., and their children Allison and Kyla. She was able to welcome her beloved great-granddaughter, Emma Rose Vigna into the family before she died. Her fierce love surrounded her family and she will be missed by many nieces, nephews and friends.

A simple family celebration and interment will be held at Hanover Cemetery, where the family has rested since 1886, in Hanover, New Jersey. In lieu of flowers, Charlotte would have loved a donation to any animal rescue, or habitat protection organization. The family would like to thank the nurses and doctors at Bridgton Hospital, and the staff at the Bridgton Health Care Center for their kindnesses and excellent care during her last month of life.