Anita VanLente ’57 TeHennepe

Anita Jean TeHennepe, 88, of Franklin, passed away peacefully at home on Wednesday Dec. 20, 2023, in the company of her family. A gifted musician, artist, cook, teacher, friend, mother, and wife, she will be dearly missed and fondly remembered by her family and friends.

Anita was born in Central Park, Holland, Mich. She attended Hope College where she received a bachelor’s degree in English and met her future husband, Eugene, whom she married in 1959. They moved to Connecticut in 1964 where she received a master’s degree in music from Connecticut College. She was a driving force in a variety of musical activities at the college including the Chapel Choir, the early music ensemble Ars Nova, and Make We Joy. They moved north in 1992 to retire to a wonderful house in Franklin that they have deeply enjoyed. Her life in Maine continued to include arts and community, with her singing with and being secretary of the Acadia Choral Society for many years, leading and being very involved with the Franklin Garden Club, as well as starting and leading both an arthritis pool exercise group at the Downeast Family YMCA and Wednesday Painters with her sister, Trudie. She painted and shared an untold number of watercolors over many years, with remarkable skill and beauty, and was still beautifully painting this past fall.

Anita is survived by her husband Gene ’58, sisters Trudie ’61 and Joyce, daughter Laura, son Gregg, and grandson Sam.