Accomplished Community Activist Dies at 92

Nina Sydney Ladof (nee Baker), 92, of Moorestown, died on July 31.

Ladof was born June 23, 1920, in St. Louis, MO. She was the daughter of Sidney Baker and Nina Brown and grew up in the Chicago area.

She leaves behind three children: Katherine Schwartz and her partner, Katherine Hoyne, of Chicago; Anne Ladof and her husband, William Anderson, of York, PA; and Ethan Ladof and his wife, Kathie, of Southampton, NJ. She is also survived by five grandchildren: Duane Bell, Bernard Schwartz, Liam Anderson, and Levi and Molly Ladof, as well as two great granddaughters, Elliot and Clara Schwartz.

Ladof had a long and very interesting life. She graduated from Rutgers University in 1957. This was her sixth college, as her education was punctuated by such events as the Depression, World War II, marriage and children. She was also the first woman accepted to Rutgers Law School in Camden.

She held many jobs, but her foremost career was that of a librarian. She was the director of Camden County Library, retiring in 1990, after which she started her own business as a consultant, which she ran for nearly 20 years.

She was also an avid music fan and as a young woman sang in the Chicago Lyric Opera, as well as other choirs, and was a mainstay of the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Metropolitan Opera and many others.

Ladof had an abiding interest in questions of such things as censorship, mostly due to her work, and wrote several articles about censorship and public institutions. Her passion for politics kept her involved in the League of Women Voters, as well as doing all sorts of volunteer work in political campaigns. She was very interested in social justice and was a member of the of Moorestown and was active in several projects including MEND.

She left her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren a legacy of caring about other people, working toward that end, and having a good time doing it. She was a terrific storyteller and never lost her interest in politics and what was going on in the world. The world will be a much quieter—not to mention less fun—place without her.

Relatives and friends are invited to a memorial service at 11 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 11 at the First Baptist Church of Moorestown. Inurnment will take place in the First Baptist Church of Moorestown cemetery. The family will greet friends following the service.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Ladof’s memory to either MEND, PO Box 828 Moorestown, NJ 08057, or Planned Parenthood, 4313 Route 130 South Suite A-10, Park Plaza Mall, Edgewater Park, NJ 08010.  

Funeral directed by Bradley Funeral Home, Marlton.

Courtesy of Bradley Funeral Home