Elise A. Tatum

Elise A. Tatum was born in January 12, 1979, to Lisa Tatum of Trenton, New Jersey and Gathan Allen of Durham, North Carolina. Her passions were music, water and beaches, reading, journaling, dancing, driving, and, most of all, doing hair.
 

A resident of Princeton, she graduated from Princeton High School in 1996. She attended Clark Atlanta University to pursue a degree in biology, which she later completed in 2014. She eventually moved to North Carolina, where she earned an associate's degree in cosmetology from Guilford Technical Community College and honed her skills at the Professional Image Salon & Spa in Greensboro.
 

Although she was diagnosed with her heart condition in the early 2000's, she did not let that slow her down or dim her bright smile. She lived with her sister-friends in North Carolina for approximately ten years off and on. In 2016, she returned to Jersey for good and stayed with her mother's family. In 2020, she partnered with her cousin Stacey Wilson to open The Mane Studio hair salon on Westampton, NJ, where she was a master stylist with a loyal clientele until she had to step down years later for health reasons.
 

Elise grew up participating in church activities at the First Baptist Church of Princeton. However, she considered her home church Bethel United Holy Church in Trenton, which was pastored by her uncle Richard Wilson and located right
across the street from her grandmother, with whom she had a very close relationship. For the ten years she'd been home, she attended and tithed at Morning Star Church of God in Christ back in her hometown of Princeton, where her pastor was Pastor Kevin E. Bynes Sr.; and she would also visit Bethel under Pastor Edwin B. King.
 

Elise had a strong love for family, and she was proud of that. She was raised with her brother, Cedric Thomas, and she loved reconnecting with her sisters, Sharon Wilson of Delaware and GaiBrealle Williams of North Carolina. She treasured the relationship she had with her brother, Terry Beard of Illinois and sisters, Phylis Fennell and Tahira Parker, both of New Jersey.
 

It was Elise's desire to spend Thanksgiving "at home with family" and not at the rehabilitation center where she'd been staying for quite some time, and God granted her request: her brother Cedric picked her up from Clark, NT and drove her down to Westampton to spend Thanksgiving Day with her family. Less than one week later, on the evening of December 3, 2025, the Lord freed Elise from her pain and suffering and called her home. She,called her sister Tahira the Saturday morning before and told her, "..I just keep praying and praying...I'm ready to be saved.
 

She leaves to mourn her father, Gathan Allen; her stepfather, James Thomas; two sisters, GaiBrealle Williams and Sharon Wilson; two brothers, Cedric Thomas and Terry Beard; two adopted sisters, Phylis Fennell and Tahira Parker; one god daughter, Jayla Conover; one uncle, Torrian Allen; three aunts, Demarlo Allen Lovelady, Stephanie Baker, and Cynthia Murphy McKinney; one great-aunt, Geraldine S. Wilson; and a host of cousins, nieces and nephews, clients, and friends, all of whom loved her greatly and will miss her dearly.

Funeral service will be 12pm Saturday, December 13, 2025 at New Bethel Holy Church, 25 Weber Ave., Ewing Township, NJ 08638. Calling hours will be 10am until the time of service. Interment will be 10am Tuesday, December 16, 2025 at Ewing Cemetery, Ewing, NJ.

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