Marie-Denise Lane (Marise), age 89, passed away on March 13, 2023, surrounded by family and friends who had known nothing but her unconditional kindness.
Over her lifetime, Marise used her history degree from The College of New Rochelle in New York to research, then write exacting genealogy for many of her mother’s French and her father’s American ancestors.
In 1958 she began a 34-year career in the Far Eastern Department of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. She also travelled extensively, meeting her future husband, Harry Lane, in New Zealand where the married couple spent the next 18 winters before permanently residing in Waitsfield, Vermont.
Widowed in 2013, Marise not only created flowered landscapes when not welcoming guests, but also served on the board of the senior center where she volunteered wholeheartedly.
Marise is survived by her stepson, Rick Lane; two sisters, Alice Hitchens and FranÇoise Morgan; two brothers, Alphonse Johnson and Charles Johnson; and their children, Kelly Johnson, Denise Johnson, David Johnson, Steven Johnson, Brian Johnson, Amy Levonis, Kristen Shanley, Jennifer Dankowski, Elizabeth Brown, Suzanne McConnell, Christopher Morgan; nine great nieces and nephews, and her loyal friend Kitty Werner.
The Ahearn Funeral Home at 783 Bridge Road, Northampton, MA, will host visitors on Saturday, March 25, in the morning between 8:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. A mass of Christian burial will follow at the Annunciation Chapel at 85 Beacon Street, Florence, MA. Afterwards a reception will be held at The Hotel Northampton in the Northampton Room, 36 King Street, Northampton, MA. Please consider a donation to Mad River Seniors, 5308 Main Street, #20, Waitsfield, VT 05673.
