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Gertrude la Cour Olsen was born Dec. 12, 1910, to Axel and Ellen Olsen in Perth Amboy, N.J. As a teenager, she attended Hartridge Academy before going to Smith College where, while majoring in geology, she met John Porter on a field trip. After she graduated from Smith in 1933, she and John were married. In 1936, they moved to Bronxville, where John began his teaching career at the Bronxville High School, and Trudy was active in numerous volunteer capacities, including Planned Parenthood and the League of Women Voters.
After John’s death in 1993, Porter moved to Parker Ridge in Blue Hill, Maine, where she started the next phase of her life. She was active in the Parker Ridge community and the Blue Hill community at large. She volunteered with Meals-on-Wheels and other community organizations well into her 90s.
She was predeceased by her husband of 59 years, John Porter. She is survived by her son, Edward and his wife, Elaine Snow Porter of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia; her daughter, Anina Porter Fuller of Sonoma, California; and her son, David and his wife, Jean Marie Porter of Brooklin, Maine. She also is survived by seven grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.
There will be an informal remembrance gathering for friends and family from 1-2:30 p.m. March 28 at Parker Ridge. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in her name to one of her favorite charities: Maine Coast Heritage Trust, Peninsula Ambulance Corps or Doctors without Borders.
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