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Local Life

Scene Around: Christmas Crawling for Cheer & Warmth

There’s a Santa in every crowd.

Well, there was at least an elf- or Santa-hatted, ugly sweatered, light and garland-draped bunch of festive fiends on a holiday cheer-missioned pub crawl on Thursday afternoon into the night.

Yes, the cheer-filled crew of revelers in all things holiday set out on a their 19-year traditional 12 Bars of Christmas crawl for a good cause — the sub-title, Caroling for Coats. Revelers were asked to bring a coat and join in. Christmas trees were donated to Lunch Break, too.

The crawling, though, that’s another Christmas story …

The crawl started and ended at Val’s in Rumson with a finale of song by Jerry Hat Trick and the Flatliners. All showed up with their selves, not halls, appropriately decked and hopped on the trolley from Val’s to the first stop at Bahr’s Landing in Highlands.

With an invite to all to catch up with them at whichever stop you wanted, the die hard crawlers went, after Bahr’s, to Chubby Pickle, Off the Hook, Rum Runner, Rory’s Pub, Woody’s, Ocean House, Tommy’s Tavern & Tap, Barnacle Bill’s, Victory Park Tavern, Salt Creek Grille, Murphy’s, and, again, Val’s.

We’re not sure exactly how many coats were collected this year, but the group boasts a 19-year tradition of “spreading Christmas cheer and the warmth of over 10,000 coats …”

Cheers!

** Thanks to RFH grad and longtime Rumsonite Doug Borden for the glimpse into the evening with the photos! **

DoNATE Coffee Today. THanks!
Local Life

Retro RFH Winter Concert Singing & Playing

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RFH Tower Singers in Winter Concert 2022
Photo/RFH PAS

Well, the RFH Winter Concert this week was a smashing success. Songs were sung by the Tower Singers, the instrumental groups played on and color guard twirled. And, the show had a special guest — The Grinch, a/k/a Evan Callas with, of course, the Tower Singers.

Continue reading Retro RFH Winter Concert Singing & Playing →
Local Life, Opinion

Retro Firehouse Santa ‘Sleighing’

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Mary Ellen and Tim Kelly with Santa at the Fair Haven Firehouse circa 1987. Photo/Evie Connor Kelly
Mary Ellen and Bill Kelly with Santa at the Fair Haven Firehouse circa 1987.
Photo/Evie Connor Kelly

This is our annual reprise celebrates the upcoming traditional pics with Santa at the Fair Haven Firehouse and continues our hunt for those classic pics of miserable children not enduring their mandatory torturous visit with Santa very well at all. Send us YOUR miserable children on Santa’s lap photos! Email them to [email protected]. We’re checking our list and waiting!

Sometimes no matter how hard you try, that classic Santa pic with the kids just goes terribly awry. And we’re pretty sure that this Sunday’s visits with Santa at the Fair Haven Firehouse will be no exception.

Continue reading Retro Firehouse Santa ‘Sleighing’ →
Local Life

Scene Around: Where’s the Fire, Santa?

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Where’s the fire, Santa? Or were you just out for a joy ride on the big white truck? Prospective answers are questionable in the face of the Santa sighting on Friday in Fair Haven.

The answers? Well, they say that once a year, Santa parks his reindeer-drawn sleigh at the Fair Haven Firehouse and hitches a ride on the flashing, blaring firetruck to greet all the good boys and girls in town and kick off holiday festivities and a tree lighting.

Everyone accepts it as fact. And considering the joyous holiday mayhem overriding usual inquiring little minds that won’t quit, no kid ever really wondered why he couldn’t just ride that sleigh a few blocks down the street. I mean, he had already made it all the way from that North Pole. What’s a few blocks more? Something’s elfin-like mysterious about this firehouse/fire truck affinity of ol’ Saint Nick’s.

Then there’s his obvious friendship with the firefighters (ahem, as witnessed in the featured photo). Hmmmmm …

Yeah, yeah, he sees and knows all. But, what’s the Santa deal with being sleighed by all things fire company?

OK. Suspicions of decades’ long Santa and his magic firefighter connection pretty much point to one thing: In his spare time, Santa’s a fireman. Well, he’s at least a firemen groupie.

My mother always told me that the firehouse and firetruck Santa we saw around town before Christmas was an elf subbing for the real deal. Na. Sorry, Mom. I think the other deduction is more on target. Ho, no? Ho, yes!

And, hey, kids, should the suspicion be true, it’s a double the Santa pleasure for you. Let’s face it, between the trucks, the firehouse, the reindeer, the suits (fire and red) and the lights, sirens and action, there’s nothing more magical.

Oh, right. There’s the volunteer spirit and smile. Wait. Does Santa stay at the firehouse until it’s time for more of those traditional photos there? Molly Pitcher? Hmmmm …

Cheers to the Santa spirit! And thanks to the fire company elves for capturing the moments.

— Photos/FHFD media

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Local Life

Focus: Fall for a River Anchor of Warmth

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Whatever anchors your heart and floats your boat — like a crisp, sun-kissed fall day down by the river in Fair Haven.

Doesn’t matter if the boat floats. The heart fits. And it’s always anchored at the river for the soul of a Rumson-Fair Haven area kid. No matter what, when the sun’s rays warm the chill in the fall air, it’s always a reminder of what berths and soothes while cradling the heart in the warm embrace of a lapping tide down by the river.

It’s a toasty harbor, whether or not the sails are set. The boat, the heart, knows where home is — and it snuggles in, as the cold disappears with a memory and a dream of what there is “no place like.”

The sun is due to cast its rays this week, shining on the best of pre-winter moments …

Here’s the weather forecast for this week, courtesy of the National Weather Service:

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Local Life, Schools Scene

Scene Around: Caroling with RFH’s Tower Singers

RFH Tower Singers breaking from caroling on Saturday
Photo/RFH PAS

They were unmasked, on key and merrily singing their way into the holiday season.

Donning school signature purple and season-appropriate Santa hats, the Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School (RFH) Tower Singers caroled their way from Rumson to Red Bank, with four stopping points along the way and high-pitch Christmas spirit to spread.

Continue reading Scene Around: Caroling with RFH’s Tower Singers →
Local Life, Police and Fire

Scene Around: Two RFH Grads in a Sheriff’s Office Pod

It’s not every day that you see two Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School (RFH) graduates, Fair Haven- and Rumson-raised law enforcement officers, side-by-side at a Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office swearing-in. Just today.

Continue reading Scene Around: Two RFH Grads in a Sheriff’s Office Pod →