Obituaries Top

The Record    Fri, Sep 22, 2006  IRA NEWDOW

The Record    Wed Jan 21, 2004  DONALD HORSEY

The Record    Sat Jan 11, 2003 ADA LUNARDONI HUTCHEON

The Record    Sun Nov 03 2002  MARGARET BUTLER MANGINI

The Record    Thu May 02 2002  JEREMY APRIL

Ira Newdow, 79; led Teaneck staffing firm for 4 decades

By JOSEPH AX
STAFF WRITER

ROCKLEIGH -- They met at a dance in Asbury Park. Ira Newdow, a 21-year-old Farmingdale resident who immigrated with his parents from what is now Israel when he was 2 years old, asked out a young woman from Asbury Park. Soon enough, they were on a triple date, along with the young woman's 17-year-old sister, Rosalyn. It didn't take long for Ira to realize his mistake.

"He evidently liked me better," Rosalyn Newdow said Thursday, laughing. "From there, we just went on." The couple were married for 57 years until Tuesday, when Ira Newdow died at the age of 79 after a battle with Parkinson's disease.

Mr. Newdow of Rockleigh, and formerly of Teaneck, was the president of Teaneck-based General Research for four decades. The company provided technical staffing, including engineers and architects, for clients.

Mr. Newdow made headlines in 1976, when the New Jersey Civil Rights Division sued him for racial bias after it sent a black woman to rent an apartment from a building he owned in Englewood. Mr. Newdow rented the apartment to a white woman, later explaining that he had done so because her husband was a doctor and therefore had less financial risk.

Mr. Newdow argued his own case, eschewing an attorney, and defeated the lawsuit at every court level, including the state Supreme Court, which ruled unanimously in his favor.

Nearly 30 years later, his son, Michael, would make national headlines when he filed a lawsuit to remove the words "under God" from the Pledge of Allegiance on the grounds that it violates the separation of church and state. The case eventually reached the Supreme Court, which rejected Michael Newdow on procedural grounds; he has since filed another suit over the same issue.

"I think standing up for what you believe -- I definitely got that from him," Michael Newdow said Thursday.

Mr. Newdow's son and wife described him as a man full of love and humor who was nevertheless tough when he had to be and used to getting his own way. He was a classical-music lover who also played handball for years.

"He was absolutely brilliant," his wife said. "He was never afraid to try something new. He was interested in everything."

Mr. Newdow mixed an inquisitive spirit with a dedicated work ethic. He received his master's degree in electrical engineering from New York University while working a full-time job and delivering milk in the morning, his son said.

"When he'd help me with my homework, he'd never give me the answer," Michael Newdow said. "He'd always make me work through it. He made me realize that the answer isn't the issue -- it's understanding the concepts. I used to hate it, but looking back, I think it was one of the most important lessons he taught me."

Other survivors include another son, Mark; a daughter, Julie; a sister, Miriam Elliot; and six grandchildren.

I am writing to inform you with deepest regret of the death of my grandmother, 
ADA LUNARDONI HUTCHEON, long time resident of Gerson Lane, Rockleigh, and widow of  GORDON HUTCHEON, long time mayor. ADA died Saturday, January 11, 2003. 

Funeral arrangements are with Costa Funeral Home, Hasbrouck Heights. 

With regrets,
Judith Ann Bosco

The Record    Sat Jan 11, 2003

ADA LUNARDONI HUTCHEON, 91, of Hackettstown, formerly of Rockleigh, died Saturday. Before retiring, she was a seamstress. Arrangements: Costa Memorial Home, Hasbrouck Heights

Aerial skier kills himself in college dorm

ADAM LISBERG

Everyone saw the potential in Jeremy April - everyone but him.

On the ski slopes, his coaches saw him as a future Olympic contender. In the college classroom, his professors saw him as a serious student capable of handling advanced work. His friends saw him as funny and sharp, with a bright future.

But April, an 18-year-old who grew up in Rockleigh and graduated from Dwight-Englewood School last year, saw something else. Monday morning, two weeks after he was named to the U.S. Freestyle Ski Team, he killed himself quietly in his dorm room.

"He kept it well-hidden," said his father, Ernest April, a professor at Columbia University. "There was no reaching out."

April's death stunned his friends in Bergen County, at Union College in Schenectady, N.Y., and on the national ski circuit, where he had competed for years.

"Jeremy was one of our best and brightest," said Nick Preston, who started coaching April when the boy was 10. "It's just unimaginable that somehow that seemed to be obvious to everyone except Jeremy."

April specialized in aerial skiing, which sent him roaring down slopes at 45 mph and looping into twists and flips 50 feet in the air. He could have been one of America's best, his coach said.

"You could count on one hand - not including your thumb - the number of young skiers who had the potential to be on that Olympic podium in 2006," Preston said. "This is a huge blow, not just to his family, but to the world of skiing."

To his friends and his instructors, April gave the appearance of someone who was able to balance his studies, his training, and his competitive nature, much as he was able to balance himself on slender skis while rocketing down the slopes. He took honors classes at Dwight-Englewood School in Englewood, even though he filed much of his homework by fax while training and competing around the country.

"He had a very strong plan in place for his life," said Tim Massucco, a 19-year-old from East Otis, Mass., who roomed with April at many skiing camps and events. "He was the person to beat on the hill. Off the hill, he was really cool."

The Web site of the Vermont ski area where April often competed established a section where friends could post their thoughts and condolences. Many messages were posted, expressing shock and grief.

In his application essay to Union College, April described the thrill of a perfect run: "Shooting into the air, executing a floating spin, landing cleanly, I retain my rhythm: Up - Down - Left — Right. I move smoothly and effortlessly through the midcourse moguls. Blasting over the mounds of snow, my heart races and the adrenaline rushes through my body. My senses are heightened. This is why I compete."

April's roommate found him dead in his bed Monday morning, with no signs of trauma or foul play, the medical examiner said. His death was ruled a suicide, and authorities are waiting for the results of toxicology tests.

April left a five-page handwritten note, in which he apologized to his parents and his girlfriend and said goodbye to his friends. He gave no explanation for his act, but wrote: "Being depressed for as long as I've been, it just gets to a point where even the most precious thing can't save you."

Link to Jeremy's Page