Former township mayor recalled for her candor

Barbara Rothstein, 74, died March 22.

By: Dick Brinster
   EAST WINDSOR — Former Mayor Barbara Rothstein is being remembered as a multifaceted, detail-driven person who loved acting and the entertainment industry.
   Ms. Rothstein, 74, died March 22 at University Medical Center at Princeton.
   "She was a tough taskmaster," said Calvin Iszard, a former Township Council colleague of Ms. Rothstein, who served as mayor in 1989. "We ran together and were elected, becoming the first Republicans on the council in about 20 years."
   Ms. Rothstein was deputy mayor in 1988, her only other year on the governing body after filling an unexpired term.
   Former Councilwoman Anna Lustenberg recalled Ms. Rothstein as quite demanding in her post-council years as GOP municipal chairwoman.
   "We always had to report in on what streets we’d covered in campaigning," Ms. Lustenberg said. "She was a good friend, and I’m going to miss her a lot."
   Ms. Rothstein was an aspiring actress who played summer stock, served as a personal secretary for singer Johnnie Ray and the Ray Conniff Singers, the public relations director for the Menlo Park Mall, and a confidential aide to Mr. Iszard when he was a Mercer County freeholder from 1992 through 1994.
   "Barbara was a good aide and very meticulous about details," Mr. Iszard said. "When I asked her to get something, she got it."
   But those accomplishments and her work ethic were not what Mr. Iszard remembered best when he spoke of Ms. Rothstein with laughter in his voice.
   "She loved to perform weddings, and put a little pizazz into the ceremonies," he said.
   Ms. Iszard’s favorite story about Ms. Rothstein concerns the soap opera she wrote, directed and produced for the local access channel. The show, which aired about 25 years ago, was called "Muddy Waters, the Saga of Dredgeville."
   It featured about 20 to 25 characters, all portrayed by local amateurs. Mr. Iszard remembers it was extremely popular in part because people thought it was a parody of East Windsor, which it wasn’t.
   "I played Rafe Smith, an investigative reporter, and the show dealt with bomb threats, intrigue and murder," Mr. Iszard said. "Barbara was the only person in the company who never appeared on camera."
   The show was shot in a now-defunct luncheonette in Hightstown, he said.
   Ms. Rothstein’s nieces, Alice Feibush of Clark; Donna Bernstein of Teaneck and Marilyn Starr of North Caldwell, also made reference to her days as a thespian.
   "We will always remember her with a song in our hearts," they said in a statement released by the Glackin/Saul Funeral Home of Hightstown. "Aunt Bobby, if you are listening, there is no business like show business. We would like to honor you with the Rothstein Tony Award — the final curtain call."
   She also was remembered by a former managing editor of the Windsor-Hights Herald as being forthright and enthusiastic.
   "I will miss Barbara’s candor, her love of life and all things Broadway based," Lorraine Keenan wrote in a letter to the editor.
   Ms. Rothstein was predeceased by her husband, Stephen, and a son, Nicky.