MIDDLETOWN: GEORGE BOWDEN DIES

George Bowden, right, with Historic Preservation Commission members Charles Nickerson and Michaela Ferrigine in 2016. Below, Bowden spearheaded the borough’s centennial celebration and parade in 2009.(Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

George Bowden, once dubbed “the Energizer bunny” of historic preservation in Red Bank, died at home in Middletown Sunday. He was 92 years old.

Galvanized into action in 2001, after the borough allowed the demolition of an old house on West Front Street, Bowden became a champion for old and neglected structures in town.

Not least of those was the T. Thomas Fortune House, which was resurrected from near-oblivion earlier this year, more than a decade after Bowden and others launched a campaign to save it.

December 11, 2019 - 9:45 am | Comments ()

MIDDLETOWN: FIELD OF FLAGS DEDICATED

WPC Field of Flags (WPC Photo Library)

Westminster Presbyterian Church (WPC) of Middletown officially dedicated its 2019 Field of Flags during a special ceremony on Saturday, November 2nd, 2019. The event took place on the WPC Great Lawn where the Field of Flags is located.
The Field of Flags was created in 2012 to honor United States military men and women who have died in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Each flag in the field represents a serviceman or woman who has given their life in those conflicts. This year’s striking memorial contains 6,972 flags. The Field of Flags will remain standing until November 16th. The public is welcome and encouraged to visit the field, and invited to be part of the flag take-down event on November 16th.

Speakers Group at Field of Flags Ceremony

The Field of Flags was created in 2012 to honor United States military men and women who have died in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Each flag in the field represents a serviceman or woman who has given their life in those conflicts. This year’s striking memorial contains 6,972 flags. The Field of Flags will remain standing until November 16th. The public is welcome and encouraged to visit the field, and invited to be part of the flag take-down event on November 16th.
The dedication ceremony included welcomes from Middletown Township Mayor Anthony S. Perry and Monmouth County Freeholder Gerard P. Scharfenberger. Keynote remarks were offered by Marine mothers, Patricia Malloy and Debbie Dailey, whose sons served in Iraq but who suffered from PTSD upon their return and died shortly after their return. From the two family’s tragedies the group Angel Warriors was born the organization raises money to provide trained service dogs to returning veterans.
The Dedication ceremony also featured the posting and retiring of the colors by the 25 member U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps from across the state; the Pledge of Allegiance from local Boy and Girl Scouts of America and special bagpipe music by Bob Phelan.

November 5, 2019 - 6:27 pm | Comments ()

MIDDLETOWN: BOATER PULLED FROM MUD

Members of the Red Bank volunteer fire department’s dive team helped a boater on the Swimming River shortly before noon Tuesday. (Photo by Carl Colmorgen. Click to enlarge)

September 24, 2019 - 1:30 pm | Comments ()

ON THE GREEN: IN MEMORY

September 11 2001 memorial gif

Dozens of residents of the Greater Red Bank Green died in the horrific attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001.

Let’s not forget those who died, and their families.

September 11, 2019 - 12:00 am | Comments ()

ON THE GREEN: REMEMBERING SEPTEMBER 11

Red Bank-area residents will have several opportunities Wednesday to participate in commemorations marking the 18th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on America.

September 10, 2019 - 1:00 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: EX-JUDGE FACES DISBARMENT

hot topic red bank nj A former municipal court judge who is said to have a law office in Red Bank is facing disbarment one year after he admitted illegally diverting more than $600,000 in court fines from Monmouth County to municipal coffers, the Asbury Park Press reported Thursday.

February 14, 2019 - 3:00 pm | Comments ()

MIDDLETOWN: GLADYS BOWDEN DIES

Gladys Bowden, a longtime Red Bank resident and volunteer injured in a December 15 fire at her home in Middletown, died early Saturday.

January 14, 2019 - 7:00 am | Comments ()

MIDDLETOWN: FUNDRAISER FOR BOWDENS

Family and friends have raised more than $12,000 to help two former Red Bank volunteers injured by a fire in their Middletown home earlier this month.

George Bowden, 91, and his wife, Gladys Bowden, 88, were both injured when their condo in the Shadow Lake Village complex in the River Plaza section of the township was heavily damaged by an electrical fire on December 15.

December 24, 2018 - 7:46 am | Comments ()

RED BANK: GROWING TOURNEY RAISES $15K

A Fair Haven ball carrier looks for an opening against Rumson, and cheerleaders go airborne, below. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

A flag-football tournament that grew out of a pickup game in Little Silver marked its 17th anniversary last Friday with gridiron contests for kids, women and men from eight towns.

Along the way, the event, now held in Red Bank, raised $15,000 for Lunch Break, the social services organization based just a block away.

November 27, 2018 - 12:30 pm | Comments ()

IN MEMORY: SEVENTEEN YEARS LATER

Red Bank-area residents will have several opportunities Tuesday to participate in commemorations marking the 17th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks.

September 10, 2018 - 10:00 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: MURPHY TOUTS LOWER COSTS

Governor Phil Murphy appeared at Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank Friday to tout an expected drop in healthcare insurance costs for New Jersey customers of Obamacare. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

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September 10, 2018 - 12:00 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: MURPHYS TO RUN AGAIN

Governor Phil Murphy and First Lady Tammy Murphy, seen here passing the Red Bank Public Library while out on a run in May 2017, are expected to pound borough pavement again Saturday, this time with about 1,000 other runners. (Photo by Trish Russoniello. Click to enlarge)

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June 15, 2018 - 1:00 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: BRIDGE RENAMED FOR KYRILLOS

State Senator Joe Kyrillos at the opening of the new bridge in May, 2015. Freehold John Curley is at left. Below, a Google Satellite view of the bridge. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

For who knows how long, the West Front Front Street bridge connecting Red Bank and Middletown has been colloquially known as “Hubbard’s Bridge.” To Monmouth County, which owns the span and replaced it three years ago, it’s “S-17.”

As of Thursday, though, the 488-foot connector over the upper Navesink River has a new name: the “Senator Joseph M. Kyrillos Bridge.”

June 15, 2018 - 10:42 am | Comments ()

ON THE GREEN: MEMORIAL DAY SERVICES

The Veterans Monument on Monmouth Street is the setting for Red Bank’s annual Memorial Day observance, Monday morning at 11 a.m.

Memorial Day weekend represents the start of the summertime season and, for many longtime residents of our coastal communities, a time to readjust those daily routines and recalculate those normal routes in anticipation of the visiting throngs.

It’s also, of course, a time to remember those who gave their lives in service to our nation, and wherever you happen to make your home here on the Greater Red Bank Green, Monday presents a chance to join the people of your community in honoring their sacrifice.

Following is a roundup of Memorial Day observances scheduled for May 28, with rainy-day alternate arrangements listed where available.

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May 25, 2018 - 5:40 am | Comments ()

RUMSON: NAVESINK QUALITY IMPROVES

A view of the Navesink from Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank last month. Below, Bill Heddendorf of the New Jersey DEP discusses the need for additional testing along the Spring Street storm sewer line in Red Bank. (Photo above by Trish Russoniello, below by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

An effort to reverse biological contamination in the Navesink River is “working,” and could result in the reopening of closed shellfish beds a year earlier than previously expected, a New Jersey environmental scientist told a gathering in Rumson last week.

April 2, 2018 - 12:30 pm | Comments ()

RUMSON: JUDGE AVOIDS PRISON

A former Rumson municipal court judge who admitted illegally diverting more than $500,000 in court fines will avoid prison, and could have his crime expunged from official records, the Asbury Park Press reported Friday.

March 23, 2018 - 1:30 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: COP CHARGED WITH DWI

A Red Bank cop arrested in Middletown last week was charged with driving while intoxicated, redbankgreen has learned.

The DWI charge and others against Patrolman Benjamin Springer followed an accident in the township while the officer was off-duty, Red Bank Chief Darren McConnell said,

March 2, 2018 - 5:30 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK COP ARRESTED

A Red Bank police officer was arrested on an undisclosed charge or charges last week.

APP.com, the website of the Asbury Park Press, reported Friday afternoon that Patrolman Benjamin Springer, a four-year member of the borough police force, had been arrested in Middletown.

March 2, 2018 - 3:46 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: PAIR CHARGED IN MARINA SPREE

An intact utility stanchion abuts one damaged by vandalism at the borough-owned marina. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

Two teens were charged with a recent vandalism spree in Marine Park after a Red Bank police stakeout caught them in the act Wednesday night, Chief Darren McConnell tells redbankgreen.

February 8, 2018 - 8:30 am | Comments ()

RUMSON: JUDGE ADMITS $500K SCHEME

Rumson’s former municipal court judge has pleaded guilty to a five-year scheme in which he diverted to local coffers more than $500,000 that should have gone to Monmouth County, according to an announcement Friday by the county prosecutor.

February 2, 2018 - 5:10 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: UNITY RALLY DRAWS A MURPHY

Tammy Murphy reacts as her husband, Governor-elect Phil Murphy, calls her while she’s delivering a speech at Saturday’s Unity Rally in Red Bank. The event drew a full house to Pilgrim Baptist Church, below. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

Ignoring biting cold, dozens of Red Bank-area residents participated in a “unity” march and rally Saturday in honor of two civil rights champions: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and journalist T. Thomas Fortune.

Anchored at Pilgrim Baptist Church, the event featured a cameo appearance by the spouse of Governor-elect Phil Murphy as part of a whirlwind, pre-inaugural tour of New Jersey.

January 15, 2018 - 8:20 am | Comments ()

RED BANK: DOG FOUND 80 MILES FROM HOME

Wanda greets Jennifer May, center, and her children Bryn and Dennis Tibus on their reunion in Red Bank Saturday. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

A dog who wandered off in Warren County on Wednesday and wound up in Red Bank later that day was reunited with her owners Saturday.

How the 15-year-old black Lab-border collie mix turned up 80 miles from home remained a mystery, however.

September 23, 2017 - 3:30 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: MURPHY TOUTS ‘SENSE’ ON GUNS

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Phil Murphy, with Brett Sabo of Moms Demand Action at right, in Riverside Gardens Park Friday. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

At a no-surprises event held in Red Bank, Democratic gubernatorial nominee Phil Murphy picked up an endorsement from a group pushing for “common sense gun laws” Friday.

Addressing a clutch of supporters and at least two local GOP officials in Riverside Gardens Park, Murphy pledged to reject an “us versus them” approach to dealing with gun-rights advocates while pressing for ways to reduce firearms violence in New Jersey.

September 22, 2017 - 3:00 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: MURPHY TO ADDRESS GUN ISSUES

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Phil Murphy, seen here jogging through Red Bank with and wife, Tammy Murphy, in May, is expected back on West Front Street Friday morning.

September 22, 2017 - 8:00 am | Comments ()

RED BANK: MAN CAUGHT IN CHILD PORN SWEEP

A Red Bank man was among 14 Monmouth County residents arrested in a summer-long investigation focused on online consumers of child pornography, county Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni said in a statement issued Friday.

September 15, 2017 - 2:25 pm | Comments ()

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