Category Archives: Local Life

A look, in photos, of latest area events, local everyday people and places.

Local Life

Retro RFH Class of ’73 Reuniting & 50th Rev-Up

It’s summertime and the RFH reunions are revving up with a big “Cheers to the class!” — whichever it may be.

In fact, the RFH Class of ‘73 is celebrating half a century since graduation with its 50th reunion on the same night that the Class of ’78 is having its 45th — Aug. 26.

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Local Life, Regional Interest

Living the Dream: A Girl and Her ‘Oops a Daisy’ Horseplay

No horsing around. Sometimes it’s just all about a Monmouth County girl, her miniature horse and some big advice.

The girl? That’s 17-year-old incoming Freehold Township High School senior Dallas Blair, the new New Jersey Miss Agriculture USA 2024. The mini horse? That’s 8-year-old Daisy in the stable, or Chrome’s Oops a Daisy in shows. Her equine stage name, in other words.

And speaking of words, if you happened to see Daisy and Blair at the 4-H tent at Monmouth County Fair on Sunday or sometime last week, you may have not only been treated to a good showing. Blair may have horse-whispered her words of teen “love what you do” wisdom to you.

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Local Life

Scene Around: Rumsonite Renee Swartz’s Literacy Honor Among Friends

You could say she’s booked. In fact, she’s been booked for quite some time.

Longtime former Rumsonite Renee Swartz was recently (on July 19), and quite literally, booked at an event honoring her work with Monmouth County Library System since 1960 and, mostly, her retirement from her work since 2001 as founder and chair of the NJ Center for the Book at the Molly Pitcher Inn in Red Bank.

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Local Life

Focus: Washed in River Daze

Gallery

Call it a wash. Down came that rain and washed the murky, humid muck in the air away.

And like the song, it seems like “you can see forever more,” especially from the iconic shores of the Navesink down by Barnacle Bill’s. No matter how far a hometown Rumsonite or Fair Havenite roams, the riverfront always calls them back to hold them tight.

It’s never a fishing expedition. The line was cast long ago and the anchor never rusts. This one’s a diamond. Unbreakable, it glistens with magnetic light shining, calling from deep in the river’s sandy floor.

The precious anchor stone’s gleam reflects in that hometown kid’s eyes, offering the view no one else has. It’s from that river’s shores that, murk or not, that kid at heart can see more clearly every inch of beauty that’s always been there, yet still lies ahead. They look back while looking ahead to see those little big things that brought them there. Held them there.

Those things? They’re still holding … with soothing tightness.

Hold those thoughts and keep them … like a kid collecting shells down by the river.

Click on one photo in the above gallery to enlarge and scroll. Enjoy the view!

— Elaine Van Develde

The weather forecast …

Heatwave humidity and wildfire smoke has cleared. Here’s what’s in store with the weather in the Rumson-Fair Haven area through the weekend and into next week.

Local Life

Retro Sizzling Rumson Dock Girls’ 50s Summer

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Rumson girls Alice Coyle Mansfield and Linda Zerr Feeny in the late 50s
Photo/Ken Card, courtesy of Alice Mansfield
Alice Mansfield and Linda Feeny now

Reprise, because everyone’s asking about those hot Rumson girls of the 1950s dock days. And they’re still around the towns …

Well, we are steeped in steamy summer heat. And there’s really nothing more sizzling summer hot than two Rumson girls of the 1950s who took the plunge into and out of summers together — suited up, off the Rumson Dock and into a longtime friendship.

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