2006
Jean Ashleigh Harpster, 79, a retired elementary school teacher in Prince George's County, died after a stroke Aug. 10 at Laurel Regional
Hospital. She lived in Laurel.
Mrs. Harpster taught for 15 years at Beacon Heights Elementary School in Riverdale and, before that, at Woodridge Elementary in
Hyattsville for two years. She retired in 1988 and pursued her interests in aviation and space education and published several articles on
those topics in a local newspaper and an educators' newsletter.
She was an Alexandria native who was raised in Washington. She graduated from Eastern High School. During World War II, she worked
for the FBI and the Bureau of Public Roads, now part of the Commerce Department. She graduated from the University of Maryland, where
she also received a master's degree in education in 1967 and 30 additional hours toward a doctorate.
Mrs. Harpster won a Maryland senior citizens' writing award from then-Gov. William Donald Shaefer in 1990. She was also an advocate for
the mentally disabled, volunteering with a number of organizations, including Calmra in Beltsville, where she served on the board. She was
a member of Christ United Methodist Church, Lanham Methodist Church and Emmanuel United Methodist Church in Laurel. She was also
a member of Seniors of Scaggsville.
Her husband of 57 years, Ivan L. Harpster, died in 2002. Two children also preceded her in death: Ivan C. Harpster in 1967 and Kristine
Joan Harpster in 1953.
Survivors include two daughters, Sheila Saville of Laurel and Karen Harpster of Silver Spring; two grandchildren; and a great-granddaughter.