Herman W. Gruning ’38

Herman was born Aug. 23, 1917, in New York City and died May 24, 2017.

In the early 1920s the family moved to South Orange, N.J., where Herman attended public school, finishing at Columbia High School. At Princeton Herman majored in political science. Upon graduating in 1938, he entered Columbia Law School, where he finished at the top of his class.

He married Jane Gedney in June of that year, but they separated soon after when he joined the Coast Guard, which stationed him in Scotland. Following the war, the couple and their baby settled in Maplewood, N.J., where Herman lived the rest of his life. He practiced law in New York City with the firm of Sullivan and Cromwell, eventually leaving that firm to join the family’s ice-cream business, called Gruning’s. He successfully managed the company until it was sold in 1983.

Throughout their lives Herman and Jane enjoyed golf and tennis. He especially enjoyed watching Jane, even in her 70s, defeat her younger friends with her excellent driving. They traveled frequently to Florida for their own pleasure, and elsewhere to visit and share family vacations. When Jane fell ill, Herman nursed her at home until her death in 2005. For the remaining 12 years of his life, he lived in the same house he had bought in 1941.

Upon the announcement of his death, an outpouring of his friends and Gruning’s ice-cream lovers filled the pages of Facebook. Herman leaves behind a daughter, two sons, six grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren. The Princeton Class of 1938 extends its condolences to all of Herman’s offspring.