Ezra (Zeb) Ripple Harris, a devoted husband, father and grandfather, passed away peacefully in his sleep on September 14, 2025, at Capitol Hill assisted living in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was 87 years old.
He will be celebrated on Saturday May 9, 2026 at 11am, at the Granby Congregational Church, 219 North Granby Rd., Granby, CT.
Born on June 8, 1938, in Hartford, to Reese Harris Jr. and Dorothy Ripple Harris, Zeb was a younger brother to Reese Harris III. He grew up in West Hartford, attending Philips Exeter Academy and earned an English degree from Brown University in 1960.
In 1961, Zeb joined the Navy, serving on the USS Newman K. Perry, cruising the Mediterranean and Europe. He continued his service in the Naval Reserves until 1978, achieving the rank of Commander.
During one cruise, while docked in Charleston, SC, Zeb met the love of his life, Mary Serena Jones, a schoolteacher, who would light up Zeb’s life for 54 years. They married on February 22, 1964.
Upon returning to Hartford, Connecticut, Zeb began a distinguished 40-year career in banking. He started as a loan officer at Connecticut Bank and Trust, and later held positions at Simsbury Bank & Trust, and was President of New London Savings & Loan.
Zeb and Serena raised their two sons, Ezra (Rip) Harris Jr. and Frederick (Derick) Harris, in West Hartford and Simsbury, before settling in North Granby, Connecticut.
His time in Granby featured summer weekends at the Granby Tennis Club, and winter trips with the family at Springfield Ski Club. Zeb and Serena developed their most cherished friendships with the members of “Camp Granby”.
Zeb was a devoted community member. Over the years, he gave his time generously—as a Deacon at First Congregational Church, First Selectman, and a member of the Granby Board of Education.
Grandpa Zeb will be especially missed by his grandchildren in Utah — Emily, Isabel, and Jack Harris — and by his grandsons in New Jersey, Rhys and Finn Harris. His memory will live on in the stories they share and the traditions they carry forward.