Carmen Barragan Harris, age 69, of Hillsborough Township NJ passed away peacefully at home on July 8, 2020.

Carmen was born on November 7, 1951 in Marianao, Cuba to Roberto and Elvira Del Cristo Barragan. She had one brother Roberto Barragan who passed at the age of 58. At the age of 10 she and her family left their home in Marianao, Cuba to immigrate to America in 1961. Carmen became a US citizen in 1967.

Carmen attended Rutgers University and graduated with a bachelors degree in Economics & Labor Services. She had a long career at the Johnson & Johnson family of companies in the greater New Jersey area. She was the Director of Human Resources at Ortho-McNeil-Janssen when she retired. In her spare time Carmen enjoyed volunteering. She often volunteered at the Alliance of the Blind reading and translating things like the newspaper for the blind. Carmen was a member of many clubs at Princeton University including the Science Club. She was also an avid reader and a member of several book clubs.

In 1974 Carmen & Reggie met while bike riding in a park and discovered they were biking back to the same location. Their courtship included many date nights out exploring the New York city restaurant scene. One of Carmen’s favorite things was a late-night stop by Mamoun’s Falafel in the West Village. In 1977 they were married at The Manor in West Orange, NJ in a beautiful ceremony surrounded by all their friends & family. They then kicked off their wedded bliss with a honeymoon in Hawaii.

Carmen & Reggie’s calendar was always kept full due to Carmen’s excellent planning. Carmen was the chairperson of the Saturday Evening Dance Club of central NJ and played an integral part of planning the events for the over 200 members of the group. There were regular trips to various plays, operas, ballets, orchestras but travel was their absolute favorite activity. Together they traveled extensively around the globe. Carmen was the perfect travel partner because she spoke five languages fluently and could understand another four. They have been to more than 295 countries and 200 different destinations. Carmen and Reggie also found a love for cruises and have set sail on 75 cruises. Carmen would say the best part about a 36 day cruise was only packing and unpacking once. She loved that on the cruises there were five different bands for dancing every night.

What do you say about a women who owned over 150 gowns? The only thing more beautiful than all those gowns was Carmen. She can best be described as caring and nurturing with a love for life. She loved nature and was a hopeless romantic. She was committed to a healthy lifestyle and loved cooking all types of food. She had a great sense of humor but also had a very calming and soothing manner about her. She believed education was important and never stopped learning. She had a passion for volunteering and sharing her knowledge with others. She was an exceptional mother and wife and her love for her family could not be measured.

– Life is not measure by the number of breaths you take, but by the moments that take your breath away –

Her life is celebrated by her husband Rigdon Harris of Hillsborough NJ; son Jonathan Harris and his wife Lori of Bethlehem PA; son Jason Harris of New Brunswick NJ; daughter Richelle Harrell and her husband Anson Laytner of Seattle WA; daughter Yolette Cox of Upper Malboro MD; two grandchildren Adriana and Genesis; brother in law Paul Harris of New Bern NC; sister in law Patricia White and her husband Stephen of Garner NC; sister in law Sharon Greene and her husband Bobby of New Bern NC; sister in law Sheila Downs and her husband Gary of Columbus GA; sister in law Denise Powell and her husband Chandler of New Bern NC; nieces and nephews Fernando, Ronnie, Mark, Paul, Pauline, Patrice, Stephanie, Joe Jr., Porsche, Ashley, Shanae, Gary Jr., Tameka, Olten, Nicole, Chandler Jr., Denzel.

A memorial gathering for relatives and friends will be held Sunday, July 12th, from 1 – 4pm in the Hillsborough Funeral Home, 796 Us Hwy 206, Hillsborough NJ 08844.

In lieu of flowers please consider donating to the following causes that meant so much to Carmen:

Sarcoma Foundation of America (https://www.curesarcoma.org/)
Breastcancer.org (https://www.breastcancer.org/about_us)

To send flowers or plant a tree in memory of Carmen B Harris, visit the Tribute Store.

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