Category Archives: News

Find all the local news updates here

Local Life

Focus: New Year River Daze Imprint

Gallery
Shrewsbury River in Rumson
Photo/Doug Borden

Sometimes it seems as if a river view is a window to heaven … on Earth.

And as the sunny late December view ushers in a new year, it offers clarity. The clarity of the beauty of home — where you can feel infinite peace emanating from a living Rumson landscape. A landscape that breathes a sigh of contentment. A landscape that beckons you at low tide into its rising tide of tranquility. The comfort of quiet solitude in its good company.

It’s always good company — the river, its inlets and marshland. It’s where all the gentlest elements meet for a nurturing hug and reflection. This time it’s the sun, the blue sky, traveled clouds mirroring in a small looking glass pool of water. The way it all looks back, casting the most golden of glows on wet sand that holds each mark of where many walks of life have been, gone and settled.

It’s a new year. Time to set out to leave more footprints, make your marks — marks of walking toward the satiety of that clear, peaceful view in your own back yard. Marks that stay. Marks emblazoned, emboldened by the sun. Marks in that sand that go out with the tide to wash up on another’s shore, leaving the grains of goodness that were once imprints.

Happy New Year.

River inlet view in Rumson
Photo/Doug Borden

Warmer days are ahead for the first week of 2023, albeit with a bit of dampness …

**Thanks to RFH alum Doug Borden for these spectacular river views!**

Local Life

Scene Around: Clamming Down in Rumson

Clam down! Dig it! A new year is coming!

In so many puns, that’s what’s going on with at least one family of Rumsonites and Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School grads. They’ve been clamming down for some time now. But, the sun came out the other day and RFH Class of ’78 grad Doug Borden and daughter Devon, also an RFH grad … were at it again. This has become a family affair habit of the bivalve kind. This father-daughter duo hit the sand by the river and dug themselves up some more clams yesterday. There have been other Borden duo digs recently, too, involving the other kids.

No, they haven’t considered the profession, which can be quite lucrative, yet arduous, raking away in the sea with a high capsizing risk on a bad day. Still, their new pastime rakes in a lot of clams.

They’re sticking with the river banks. They family clam diggity diggers have done it before and, well, gotten quite clammy over the whole idea. Dig that. And they did. They just hit the sand and dig. Dinner. River bank to table.

No doubt, the scenery is great, but the bivalves are fresh and homegrown — perfect for the holiday palate. Nothing like dinner from the back yard, especially when it’s down by the river.

Dig that, clammy! Clam down on it!

Local Life

Scene Around: A Bridge to Frosty?

Frosty & Family and a Christmas tree adorn the Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge construction equipment
Photo/John Lembeck

Where’s Frosty? Well, he and his family have apparently decided to take a stand, celebrate the holidays, bridge tend a bit and soak up the view of the Shrewsbury River.

Continue reading Scene Around: A Bridge to Frosty? →
Local Life

Oh, Holy … Crap, Santa!

Image
Santa trauma with the Winnie twins 2021
Photo/courtesy of Jessica Masi via Magical Encounters, Freehold

Reprise … just because ’tis the season … This one’s originally from Dec. 13, 2021.

Yes. ‘Tis the season. And in the true spirit of the season, we know there’s one on every Santa lap — that “scared o’ him” miserable child.

We asked and we got … a doozy in 2021, so we just have to show it again, for posterity. It’s a prime example of seasonal “Oh, holy … crap of an experience.” In this case, Santa joined in the misery while loving the company of poor little Bryson Winnie of Aberdeen. Now, that’s a new one — Santa getting in on the trauma reality show. It’s a classic, too.

Continue reading Oh, Holy … Crap, Santa! →
Local Life, News

Focus: Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge Close-Up & Travel Advisory

Gallery

The Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge replacement is well underway. Here’s a photo gallery from a bit earlier in the fall and the latest update on construction directly from Monmouth County officials, including a travel advisory for Rumson-Fair Haven and Sea Bright area residents …

(Click on one of the photos in the above gallery to enlarge and scroll for an interesting close-up view of the activity and the original bridge.)

The following is bridge replacement activity, by area, for the week of Dec. 19. All work is scheduled for Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., weather permitting.

In Rumson and Sea Bright …

  • Two bridge pile deliveries are scheduled per day, Monday through Thursday.
  • Uniformed police will assist with traffic control during the deliveries.
  • Deliveries may now be scheduled between 8:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. and will continue to avoid school drop off and pick up times. If the schedule changes based on field conditions, delivery may occur after 3:30 p.m..
  • For safe passage of all, the traffic delivery pattern involves temporary disruption of vehicle and pedestrian movement over the bridge and may affect traffic flow on Ocean Avenue (Route 36) in Sea Bright and Rumson Road (CR 520) in Rumson.
    • During staging of the pile deliveries, vehicle traffic across the bridge will be alternated in the westbound lane and the eastbound sidewalk will be closed.
    • During lifting and moving of the bridge pile to the trestle in the river, both travel lanes and sidewalks will be closed for approximately 10 minutes.
  • Additional bridge pile deliveries are anticipated every week, weather permitting.  With each delivery, vehicles and pedestrians may expect temporary lane and sidewalk closures as noted above.
  • Bridge openings for marine traffic will not be affected by the pile deliveries.

In Rumson …

  • Rumson Road will continue with one lane in each direction until further notice.
  • Flaggers or police officers may assist with traffic control during movement of construction equipment.

On the Shrewsbury River …

  • Work activity will continue in the water south of the bridge on both sides of the river.
  • The navigational channel width has been reduced from 75 to 65 feet. The reduction is expected to remain in effect until the fall of 2023.
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

Image
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’

Image
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 evd@rfhretro.com. 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?

Gallery

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

Home