By clare MARie celano
Staff Writer
CLARE MARIE CELANO Freehold Borough Mayor Michael Wilson reflects on the life of Elijah Jenkins during a vigil for the borough man who was killed in what authorities are calling an arson at the Walter J. Conley Elks Lodge, Throckmorton Street.
FREEHOLD — Members of the borough’s black community came out to say goodbye — to a friend, a brother and a piece of borough history on July 22.
Under a gray and gloomy sky, people gathered at a candlelight vigil on Throckmorton Street in front of what was once the Walter J. Conley Elks Lodge. They came to pay their last respects to Elijah "Slick" Jenkins.
Jenkins, 68, died in a fire on July 20 that destroyed the lodge that had meant so much to so many people. Tomango Sims, 38, of Manalapan, has been arrested and jailed in connection with the fire that authorities are calling arson.
More than 50 friends and neighbors took their places in front of the rubble and debris that was once a home away from home for many of them.
Remnants of the sign bearing a part of the lodge name were strategically centered and placed behind the remembrance memorial atop layers of bricks, layers of rubble, and layers of memories.
Behind the yellow wooden barriers, friends and loved ones designed their memorial to the man who will never walk among them again: bouquets of flowers, all signed with special messages; and a small beige teddy bear wearing a tiny halo sat in the center of the floral creations. A tiny bottle of rum and two large candles, one white and one yellow, sat below the flowers and the bear.
Standing against the wooden barricade was a large white poster that friends and visitors stopped to sign. Messages of friendship, messages of love, and messages of "missing you Slick" lined the white cardboard in numerous waves and patterns.
The smell of smoke still permeated the air around the memorial site as Robert L. Roach of Plainfield, state chaplain of the Elks, gave a blessing and some words of comfort to those who came to say goodbye to their friend.
Friends who came to the service remembered Jenkins with fondness, with laughter and with smiles.
"We lost a dear, dear friend and so much of our history here," said Darnell Perry, chaplain of the Freehold lodge.
After expressing sadness at the loss of his friend and fellow lodge member of 35 years, Perry mentioned cherished memories that were also lost, including the first signed charter of the 50-year-old lodge.
"Some members couldn’t even sign their names then. They just signed their name with an X," he said quietly.
Sidney Blacknall, the chairman and a trustee of the lodge, said he was saddened to lose a such good friend.
"I heard it on the scanner. By the time I got there the building was already in flames," Blacknall said. "I knew he was in there, I knew it. I called to him but I never heard a response. It was just too late. The firefighters tried but the flames were just too high, too much."
Many friends came to pay their last respects and say their farewells to Jenkins, who was remembered by many people as a
person who was "always there."
"He’d cuss you out," said one visitor, smiling, "but he was always there for you no matter what."
Anderene Schwartz said Jenkins was a "sweet man" and that she had wonderful memories of her friendship with him.
Dorothy Myers said Jenkins was her "good friend" and said it was a "horrible" death and that she was so sorry for his family.
"We can always build another lodge," Myers said, "but we can never get another Slick."
Mayor Michael Wilson and Councilman Robert Crawford were both present at the ceremony. Wilson knelt to sign the poster with his own message to Jenkins.
Jenkins’ son, Darryl, 39, came from Florida for his father’s funeral.
"I wouldn’t have traded him for the world," he said. "I only hope I have a chance to do what he’s done in his life. He touched everyone and talked to everyone."
Jenkins said he was always mindful of some advice his father gave him as a child.
"Teach a kid the right way to work things out. Trouble is easy to get into and hard to get out of. The choice you choose is yours," he said.