The story of a kayaking fisherman gone missing on Thursday night in the Navesink River came to a tragic end as the body of Bordentown resident Nedim Aksoy, 50, was recovered in Sandy Hook Bay near Plum Island on Monday morning, U.S. Coast Guard authorities said.
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A Fair Haven-Raised Man’s George Floyd Protest Perspective
A Fair Haven-raised man on Friday walked with his son in peaceful protest of the knee-to-throat death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis, MN police officer Derek Chauvin, police brutality and injustice in the black community — a walk calling for unity.
“Unity, all ages, all races,” said that man, Skip Hawkins. “I’m so proud of these kids today.”
Continue reading A Fair Haven-Raised Man’s George Floyd Protest Perspective
Retro Forever Fair Haven Eighth Grade Friendship Snapshot
Photo/Sally Van Develde
Eighth graders in the Rumson-Fair Haven area are going through graduation rites of passage of a different kind right now — the COVID-19 pandemic era kind.
And what’s different about it is that there are no photos of friends clustered together, arms wrapped around one another or stiff shoulder-to-shoulder stances, signaling the end of a grade school era and beginnings. It’s definitely a missed moment or several this year.
Those ends and beginnings always involve childhood friends, some who stay with us throughout each milestone in our lives. They’re always there, if not in physical presence, in our hearts and on our minds. Those friends were markers in the milestones that are rooted in all that’s home. Our history.
So, while those friendship poses won’t be struck in the isolated pandemic Class of 2020 photos, the kinships inherent in them remain a hallmark of homegrown, hometown life.
Even if you were one of those kids that just didn’t like school all that much, the awkward, trying and exhilarating moments marked with those childhood friends are the ones that stay forever etched in minds and hearts. It’s the stuff that makes you who you are. The stuff that keeps you grounded, or up in the air — always home.
Those questionable fashion pics and fumbling adolescent moments also comprise great friendship blackmail material. Who else would have such epic fashion failure photos to go along with a string of clumsy, trouble-making memories up for grabs?
Your oldest friends. That’s who. And when the time comes to say your final goodbye, a standard eulogy by the most stable adult in the bunch just can’t compete with the memories of childhood, adolescence, teen years and adulthood and all of its ugliness, awkwardness and beauty with best friends.
Crews of grade school cronies, regardless of fashion or common sense, have something special — dating back to the beginning of graduating times.
Continue reading Retro Forever Fair Haven Eighth Grade Friendship Snapshot
Retro Eighth Grade Grad Close Encounter
Photo/Elaine Van Develde
The Fair Haven Knollwood School grads have always been a styling, close-knit crew — a crew of cohorts that’s always shared many Kodak moments, in pairs, trios, cliques and all together.
Just as photography has evolved from Brownie camera to Instamatic to Polaroid, to phone camera, to full-on professional photo shoots, graduation photo ops have devolved back to single inspired family front lawn shots. That’s where the photo blitz usually began. Now it’s where it ends, too. So, some things never really change — much.
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Prosecutor: Teens Charged with Conspiracy, Attempted Murder & Related Charges in Tuesday Shooting
The two teen men suspects who were taken into custody in connection with a Tuesdsay night shooting in Asbury Park have been arrested and charged in the incident, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced on Thursday.
Continue reading Prosecutor: Teens Charged with Conspiracy, Attempted Murder & Related Charges in Tuesday Shooting
Retro Fair Haven 8th Grade Grads
Photo/courtesy of Jane Croft
It’s an unprecedented graduation time in Rumson and Fair Haven this year. These pandemic days, in Fair Haven, eighth grade students are being met with a diploma, Superintendent Sean McNeil, Knollwood School Principal Amy Romano and a mini front-yard graduation snapshot in time and ceremony. It started this week.
While eighth grade graduations have taken place in various venues over the years, from what was Willow Street School (now Viola L. Sickles School) to Knollwood and then to Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School, there’s never yet been a front lawn march to Pomp and Circumstance. Yet, this year’s comes close.
So, in honor of the eighth grade students graduating Knollwood School’s Class of 2020, we take a look back in a reprise of an eighth grade graduation post from June 18, 2018, featuring the Class of 1946.
Prosecutor: Shooting Leaves Teen in Critical Condition
Authorities are investigating a Tuesday night Asbury Park shooting that left a teen in critical condition, officials from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office announced on Wednesday.
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Police Report: Theft, Aggravated Sexual Assault, Drug Possession, Assault, Harassment, DWI, Criminal Mischief
The following recent criminal incidents and arrests were reported by Red Bank police. An arrest does not constitute a conviction.
Continue reading Police Report: Theft, Aggravated Sexual Assault, Drug Possession, Assault, Harassment, DWI, Criminal Mischief
Retro Happy RFH Campers
Photo/George Day
Since NJ Gov. Phil Murphy sanctioned camping again in the state, there have been some, well, happy campers.
Continue reading Retro Happy RFH Campers
Rumson Police: Car Thieves are Back
It has happened before and it’s happening again. Car theft in Rumson is on the rise. And most of the thefts involve unlocked cars with key fobs left inside.
Continue reading Rumson Police: Car Thieves are Back
Retro Stoked Stokes Trippers
Photos/(left to right) Angela Carpenter, Doug Borden, Peter Mauger, Lisa Ericson
Every year, for more than half a century, Fair Haven sixth graders get stoked to go to Stokes State Forrest for a week of cabin camping and outdoor schooling and socializing. It’s a tradition.
And for the first time in more than half a century, the tradition has been broken due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Today would have been the day that the happy little campers came home from their post-Memorial Day week of adventure with classmates, teachers and parents.
So, we take a look back at some Stokes moments of bunking, hiking, pranking, do-se-doing your partner and all-around exploring back in the 70s, from youngsters to those high school counselors. Remember those?
There were RFH seniors chosen to be counselors, dubbed CATS. Each couple of CATs was assigned to teach/counsel sixth graders in their area of expertise. There were bug experts, hiking troopers, rowing aficionados, swimmers, and story tellers, dancers, singers and guitar players.
There was a square dancing night. And there was plenty of practice that ensued before it. What square dancing song stands out in your memory? And how about those campfire nights? Song always sung? How about the traditional story told? Who got lost in the woods with the compass/pathfinders class? Who was a CAT?
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Whale of a Shrewsbury River Sighting
UPDATE: Since the initial Friday morning release from the NJ State Police Marine Services Bureau, the type of whale cited was edited by police from their original “blue” classification to humpback. In addition, it was reported that the whale had been seen swimming toward Sandy Hook after having been hit at a low speed near Highlands by a boat.
It was also reportedly entangled in a net from which those certified in handling such entanglements of a whale from Atlantic Large Whale Disentanglement Network (see below) are working out a plan to free it.
Today, Saturday, as of 2 p.m., several people had reported on social media seeing a whale swimming in the ocean off Sea Bright Public Beach (near Anchorage). Dolphins were cited nearby. Authorities reiterate that boaters should be on the alert and avoid any close proximity to the entangled whale so that it may feed, swim and eventually become disentangled from the net without endangerment.
From the Marine Mammal Stranding Center … (about 3:30 p.m.)
Yesterday a 30-foot humpback whale was spotted in the Shrewsbury River in Monmouth County near the Highlands bridge. The Marine Mammal Stranding Center spent the day monitoring the whale from aboard a New Jersey State Police vessel.
Throughout the day the whale displayed normal behavior. As the whale swam under the bridge back out towards the bay, an aerial photo of the whale was taken that upon later review revealed fishing gear on the rostrum of the whale which was not visible when observed from the water. The Center for Coastal Studies in Cape Cod, a member of the Atlantic Large Whale Disentanglement Network, was contacted by the MMSC.
They are the only agency federally-permitted to perform large whale disentanglements. These highly specialized teams receive intensive training on performing these highly dangerous operations.
Planning the logistics of disentangling a large whale is quite complicated due to the high risk factors to both the rescuers and the whale. Unfortunately one cannot simply remove netting from a large free-swimming whale right away after being spotted, so please be patient as our colleagues at CCS work on a plan.
We are asking the public to please report any whale sightings to the MMSC (609) 266-0538. Special thanks to NOAA, NJ Fish and Wildlife Marine Division, NJ State Police, US Coast Guard and Monmouth County Sheriff Marine Unit for their collaboration today, and to our volunteers Danielle Brown, Bill Schultz, Lorraine MCartney and Debbie DiGianno for helping to monitor the whale. Signed- MMSC STAFF
The original post from Friday …
Continue reading Whale of a Shrewsbury River Sighting
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