A “tale as old as time” came to Fair Haven’s Knollwood School’s stage when 40 young middle school students performed a production of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast Jr. a few weeks ago.
With the recent death and impending memorial of former longtime Fair Havenite and River Rats purser, Warner White, thoughts turn back to some good old days of being a kid rat, so to speak, and hanging out down by the river.
It’s a rite of passage in the Rumson-Fair Haven area that kid life be rife with river-oriented activities.
River Rats was the king of that sort of thing — especially in the summertime. The little riverfront nook at the foot of Battin Road in Fair Haven was that special place where kids and boating-bonded buddies learned how to sail and navigate riverfront life with the sand between their toes and perpetual smiles on their faces. It was a unique little sailors’ club. Still is.
River Rats has been a Fair Haven institution since 1955.
It all started like this: “In October 1955 shortly after he moved from New York, Captain Walter Isbrandtsen wrote to a friend: ‘I have purchased a house in a small community on the New Jersey coast where I am gradually becoming active … in an organization known as Dads Incorporated … whose activities include a newly established program designed to take full advantage of a neighboring river …'”
Captain Isbrandtsen organized the family-oriented sailing group and became the first Skipper of River Rats, as it is written in the River Rats’ biographical history.
So, the Retro Pic(s) of the Day takes us back to the U.S.A. bicentennial year of 1976 and a bunch of young River Rats.
This crew is comprised mostly of RFH classmates who gathered by the boat launch at the end of Battin Road in Fair Haven to offer a glimpse of their day as a reminder of what growing up by the river is all about.
Well, the sun was shining brightly on the first day of spring, anyway. And while last week’s lingering patches of snow remained in spots throughout the Rumson-Fair Haven area, buds were popping up from underneath them.
The scene on the banks of the Navesink River at the foot of Battin Road in Fair Haven was still, mild and calming — signals of springing into a warmer sunset took hold.
It was a stark, black-and-white kind of scenario. Take a look. (Oh, and don’t forget to click to enlarge …)
With the sting of the cold and longing for that breath of warm fresh air, thoughts turn to days spent in the young teen sweat-infused gym at RFH. Oh, the ritual of that mandatory indoor exercise.
Ahhh, memories. More like a little PTSD remembrance of the torture the class was for some — especially when stuck inside. When you’re not an athlete and, for that matter, can barely volley a ball (and I mean barely), gym class day was the day of trying to get some sort of note of excuse from your mom to get you out of the embarrassment. Forgery became a talent. Though some moms could feel the uncoordinated kids’ pain and easily relented with prompt penning.
Brrrrrrr! Oh, a cold sting may have been in the air, but it was quickly warmed by a sunny Irish spirit at the fifth annual Rumson St. Patrick’s Day Parade on Sunday.
So it goes again … If you’re planning on traveling over the Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge any time between 8 p.m. tonight and 6 a.m. tomorrow, Thursday, morning, you’ll need to plan an alternate route.
A released statement from Monmouth County officials on the previous week’s work said:
“This critical work is necessary to keep the Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge’s movable span in working condition,” said Freeholder Thomas A. Arnone, liaison to the County’s Department of Public Works and Engineering. “Monmouth County works diligently to keep its bridges in safe, working order. The goal of the overnight construction is to minimize the disruption of travel.”
The bridge will be closed to all vehicle and pedestrian traffic while the work is conducted. Motorists should plan an alternate route during the overnight hours.
Detours will be posted. Motor vehicle traffic from Rumson Road in Rumson can travel west to Bingham Avenue over the Oceanic Bridge through Middletown and Highlands to reach Sea Bright.
Motor vehicle traffic in Sea Bright can travel south on Ocean Avenue through Monmouth Beach to Atlantic Avenue to Monmouth Boulevard (Oceanport) to Seven Bridges Road (Little Silver) to reach Rumson Road in Rumson.
McHeffey, an RFH grad, avid athlete and good friend to many in the Rumson-Fair Haven area, was a victim of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City on Sept. 11, 2001.
His friends created the KDM Foundation in 2002 to keep his memory alive and fund several charitable causes in his name.
Since then, the Fun Run has been known as an annual memorial to Keith in a setting truest to his nature.
To register for the run, either go to the Sea Bright Municipal Building or click here.
Call it a reflective moment. With crystal clear reflections cast on the Navesink River from Fair Haven Dock just about at sunset, thoughts are turning to a forecasted break in the chilly temperatures — but not without a little precipitation to go with that reflection.
The National Weather service says that while temperatures will go up to roughly 56 degrees, the chance of rain is 40 percent after 5 p.m. on Tuesday. That chance increases as the night goes on.
Another reflection: thoughts of clear skies and sunny warmth.
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