In Memoriam: Rumsonite, Former RFH BOE Prez, Coach, Volunteer, John Caruso, 53

“We ask that you honor him by doing a daily act of kindness, as John epitomized all that is good in this world and lived a life far greater than for just himself.”
That was the request made by family to honor the memory of Rumsonite John Michael Caruso who passed away peacefully, surrounded by family at home, on March 4. He was 53.

John was a husband, a father, a former Rumson-Fair Haven Regional Board of Education president, coach, prosecutor and avid volunteer.

Steeped in efforts in both the Rumson and Fair Haven communities, John not only served on the RFH Board of Education, he was a founding member of the Two River Little League and coached dozens of youth sports teams, including baseball, basketball, football and soccer. He was a member of the Rumson Recreation Committee. He also served on the RFH Touchdown Club and was a key member of the RFH Diamond Club, and gave his time generously to countless other organizations.

Known to “give his time generously to countless organizations, his efforts to better the community were copious and immeasurable,” his family said in his obituary.

John Caruso
Photo/family via John E. Day Funeral Home

“But perhaps his most renowned act was his annual Christmas light display. Every year, he, his wife, and his sons spent hours setting up a Christmas display that compared to no other. The greatest joy he received was when a passerby would roll down their window and share that the display gave them and their families Christmas cheer. The definition of an altruist, John erected his light display to emblematically brighten the days of visitors during the holiday season.”

Born in Red Bank to John and Rosemarie “Googie” (Scott) Caruso, John grew up in Ocean Township and graduated from Ocean Township High School in 1985. He went on to study at Muhlenberg College where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and graduated with honors in 1989. Following college, he went to law school at the University of Bridgeport School of Law, later renamed Quinnipiac Law School, where he received his Juris Doctorate Degree in 1992.

Upon receiving his law degree, he started his career in the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office. In 1997, he co-founded CJS Companies (CJS) with his twin brother, Scott. CJS is a real estate development company that has developed more than 2,000 residential lots throughout New Jersey over the past 24 years. “John personally brought each project through the regulatory approval process with aforementioned projects ranging from solar fields to low-income housing,” his obituary said.

“John was an inimitable father who preferred to be in the company of his family than anywhere else. A kid at heart, his greatest moments were spent with his sons and wife in Disney World, his most beloved place on Earth. John far exceeded all duties of a father and was much more than that to his sons: he was their coach, teacher, role model, and best friend.
“His wisdom vastly surpassing his age, John passed on boundless knowledge and life lessons to his sons, teaching them how to become men of character and live a righteous life. His love, guidance, inspiration, and what he means to his sons cannot be accurately quantified in a mere paragraph; a more felicitous writing would rival the length of the Iliad.
“Simply, John was the best father. He moved mountains for his sons and the perpetual hole left from his loss will never be mended.
“To John, his foremost accomplishment was marrying the love of his life, Kim. Their love parallels those of fairytales and is a relationship so strong and deep that it will span the tests of time.
“Each day together was filled with unceasing laughter, passion, and bliss, their love never waning. Perhaps John’s own words serve as the best testament of their eternal love: ‘I laugh the loudest when I’m with you, I love the deepest when in your arms, and every time I look into your eyes I thank God for giving me much more than I ever deserved. You are my best friend, the love of my life, and my every dream come true.'”
Loved ones of John Caruso in his obituary

John was known to many as a special friend, brother, son, and uncle.

“John was a truly selfless person who put friends and family before himself and never ceased to make everyone he met feel special. On his latest birthday, John challenged his friends and loved ones to do a daily act of kindness, for he firmly believed that when actions and words are genuine and compassionate can we truly change the world and lives of those around us.
John looked for the wonder and goodness in everything because he only had goodness within him.”

John is predeceased by his mother, Rosemarie “Googie” Scott.

He is survived by: his beloved wife of 27 years, Kimberly Armstrong Caruso; his loving sons, John “Jake” Jr. and Kyle Caruso; his adored father, John Caruso; his dear brothers, Scott and his wife Catherine, and Carmine and his wife Carol; and his mother- and father-in-law, Robert and Linda Armstrong; and his nieces and nephews, Olivia, Michael, Nicholas, Dante, Jamie, Ashley, Maya, Matthew, Colton and Gavin.

A memorial gathering will be held at the John E. Day Funeral Home, Red Bank, on Wednesday, March 10, from 4 to 8 p.m. A memorial mass will follow at 10 a.m. on Thursday, March 11. Burial of cremated remains will follow at Woodbine Cemetery in Oceanport.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent in John’s memory to the Glioblastoma Research Organization at gbmreasearch.org or the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at http://www.gifts.duke.edu/dci?technique_code=CCCWBDNN

— Edited obituary provided by family to John E. Day Funeral Home