Fair Haven-raised Edith Antoniette Albert Blake, a beloved matriarch and longtime resident of Red Bank, passed away peacefully on March 7, at the age of 108, surrounded by her loving family in Toms River.
Rumson-raised longtime Fair Havenite and Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School (RFH) graduate, Pauline Ann Sorrentino Smith, passed away peacefully in her sleep on Feb. 25. She was 85.
RFH guys spread winter cheer circa 1970s 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.
Sally Van Develde at the Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair in 1969.
Sally Van Develde and Mary Farley
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.
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!
Call it Valentine’s sustenance. Since Cupid’s arrow was first slung back in the dark ages, there have been hard hits, softer ones and total misses since. But there’s always been a little bit of sweet, sour and downright doughy satiation for the Valentine’s Day palate, with a little kooky sprinkled on top.
It was his smile that said it all — soft and clear. It whispered “hold each homegrown memory close for comfort.” It exhaled without letting go. His happy sigh said, “Everything is just fine, because we’ll always just be kids walking back home together.”
“The most authentic person on earth,” Ty Yolac, of Fair Haven, peacefully passed away on Jan. 27 at Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, surrounded by loved ones. He was 82.
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