“It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our mom,” longtime Rumson resident, real estate agent, wife, grandmother and great-grandmother as well, Ann Doran, on Feb. 21. Just eight days shy of her 96th birthday, Ann was 95.
Continue reading In Memoriam: Longtime Rumsonite, Real Estate Agent, Ann Doran, 95All posts by Elaine Van Develde
Retro St. Patrick’s Scout Chorus Line
Photo/Jack Croft via Mary Croft
Shamrock-topped scout chorus line? Not quite, but close. It is that time of the year when those St. Pat’s Day festivities begin, after all.
Continue reading Retro St. Patrick’s Scout Chorus Line
In Memoriam: Longtime Rumsonite, Lori Slavin, 86
Longtime Rumsonite, Lorraine “Lori” Slavin, passed away peacefully at home on Feb. 28, surrounded by her loving family. She was 86.
Continue reading In Memoriam: Longtime Rumsonite, Lori Slavin, 86
Retro RFH Boys’ Wintry TGIF Toast
Photo/courtesy of George Day
Raise your plastic cups and party on! It’s time for a little chill and retro toast to the impending weekend of breaking out of all the snow and taking the snap out of the cold snap with the warmth of some RFH guys of the late ’70s and early ’80s.
Continue reading Retro RFH Boys’ Wintry TGIF Toast
Prosecutor: Area Teacher Charged with Weapons Offense
An area teacher has been charged with the possession of an illegal weapon, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago announced on Thursday.
Retro RFH Snow Day Hill Thrill
Photo/George Day
Snowy days — or, rather, snow avalanche of late — bring back memories of winters past and how RFHers of yesteryear found some simple fun pretty fast when the school bell didn’t ring … or it did, but there was an escape to a thrill of a hill.
In Memoriam: Mary Gagliardi, Mom, Grandmother to Rumson Family, 88
Mary Gagliardi, “a treasured soul known for her loving nature and friendly demeanor,” passed away on February 20, 2026, at the age of 88. Her final days were spent in Rumson, where she passed, surrounded by the love and warmth of her family.
Continue reading In Memoriam: Mary Gagliardi, Mom, Grandmother to Rumson Family, 88
A Birthday Wish: Going Back Home with Mom
Our annual reprise honoring the inspiration for R-FH Retro — my mom, Sally Van Develde — on what would have been her 103rd birthday. A birthday wish … Happy Heavenly Birthday, Mom. You remain in the hearts of so many … Besides, I won’t let them forget.
“If I ever go looking for my heart’s desire again, I won’t look any further than my own back yard. Because if it isn’t there, I never really lost it to begin with! Is that right?” ~ Dorothy, The Wizard of Oz
For the love of home and a Fair Haven mom … that’s right.
Sometimes a birthday without her is about lighting the candles, making the wish, sustaining the simple legacy of going home, staying home with my mom, Sally Van Develde.
Today would have been her 102nd birthday. If she had lived to blow out all those candles on her cake, I wondered what she would have done. What her wish would have been.
Continue reading A Birthday Wish: Going Back Home with MomProsecutor: Area Teacher/Coach Gets 51/2 Years for Sexual Assault of Student
A 36-year-old Middletown High School North teacher and girls’ basketball coach has been sentenced to five-and-a-half years in state prison for engaging in a sexual relationship with one of his students, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago announced on Tuesday.
Focus: Filling Up On Community, Spaghetti and Meatballs
Plates weren’t just full, they were overflowing — with spaghetti, meatballs and community love.
In Memoriam: Longtime Rumsonite, ‘Queen of Social Intoxication,’ Diane Dey, 95
Longtime Rumsonite Diane Merrall Dey, 95, more recently of Atlantic Highlands, “received her angel wings on Saturday evening, Feb. 7. She departed peacefully at home, in the presence of her loving daughter, Merrall, while the Commendation of the Dying was invoked by Father Hank Hilton.”
Continue reading In Memoriam: Longtime Rumsonite, ‘Queen of Social Intoxication,’ Diane Dey, 95
Old News: Stirring the Pot at the Spaghetti Dinner
The following is a reprise of our Old News column, originally posted on Jan. 30, 2024, about the Fair Haven Fire Department’s Spaghetti Dinner, because tonight’s the night for the longtime annual tradition. Mangia!
People have been filling their gullets with a heaping helping of spaghetti and meatballs at the Fair Haven Fire Department’s annual spaghettini dinner for several decades. And tonight will be no exception.
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