Marie Kaptein Adams

Mrs. Marie Kaptein Adams, 87, of Fredericksburg passed away peacefully in her home, on Saturday, December 3, 2022. She was born in Patterson, NJ, on February 10, 1935 to the late Heindrich and Johanna Boutma Kaptein.

She grew up in East Patterson with her parents and sister, Lee, until they moved to Verona, NJ, where she graduated from Verona High School. Her parents then moved to Elberon (Long Branch), NJ, where Marie studied bookkeeping at the nearby Monmouth (then, Junior) College.

There, she met Ralph Ellison Adams, and they were married in New Jersey just five months later. For their honeymoon, Ralph and Marie visited family from New England to Ohio; and Marie enchanted all her new nieces and nephews.

Shortly thereafter, Ralph took a job in Massachusetts, so they moved to Framingham, where Marie studied Nutrition at Framingham State Teacher’s College for a year. In June of 1958, Ralph and Marie, moved to Newtonville, MA, and they had their first daughter, Louisa-Marie “Lou”. 

In 1962, they moved to Silver Spring, MD. Marie occasionally worked summer months and Christmastime in the bookkeeping department at The Hecht Company store. She was a frequent chaperone on school field trips, an assistant brownie leader, and very active in church and neighborhood activities.

In 1971, Ralph and Marie had their second daughter, Johanna “Jo”. In 1976, they moved their family to Columbia, MD.  And, in 1983, they moved to their forever town, in Fredericksburg, VA, and joined Hillcrest United Methodist Church.  

Marie is survived by her beloved husband of 65 years, Ralph; her two daughters, Lou Shapiro (Jay) and Jo Kornberger (Jim); four grandchildren Rachael Fury (Nick), Madeline Shapiro (Chris Ferguson), AJ Kornberger, and Zachary Kornberger; and her sister, Lee Kolbach.

A service of remembrance and celebration of Marie’s life will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, December 27, 2022, at Hillcrest United Methodist Church. Friends and family are welcome. Anyone wishing to honor Marie with a touch of whimsy is invited to add a dash of green in their attire.

Interment will follow at a later date at the Rosedale Cemetery, in Montclair, NJ.

In lieu of flowers, contributions are welcome to Hillcrest United Methodist Church, 2208 Lafayette Blvd, Fredericksburg, VA 22401 (540-898-2180).