Rosa V. Lakin
Mrs. Lakin, 61, of the Lincroft section of Middletown, died Sept. 1, 2007, at St. Barnabas Hospice, Long Branch. Born in Palermo, Sicily, Italy, she resided in Union Beach prior to relocating to Lincroft in 1979. She was a cafeteria worker at Brookdale Community College, Lincroft, the past five years. Prior to that, she was employed at Wachovia Bank (formerly First Fidelity) for 25 years. She was a communicant of St. Leo the Great Roman Catholic Church, Lincroft. She enjoyed cooking, gardening and Atlantic City. She was predeceased by her first husband, Joseph Miller, in 1986. She is survived by her husband of 20 years, Herbert Lakin; a son, Joseph Miller of Middletown; a daughter and son-in-law, Lisa and Victor Ruiz of Tinton Falls; a brother and sister-in-law, Angelo and Marsha Grigoli, of Lincroft; five sisters and three brothers-inlaw, Lina Mascolino of Lincroft, Gina and Ovidio Santa of Lincroft, Mamie and Richard McNally of Howell, Josephine Pecyno of Sea Bright, and Rita and Otto Zeiser of Tinton Falls; her mother-in-law, Etta Lakin of Matawan; and three grandchildren. A Mass of Christian Burial was offered at St. Leo’s Church. Interment followed at St. Joseph’s Cemetery, Keyport. Arrangements are by John E. Day Funeral Home, Red Bank.
Jerome “Jerry” J. Torbik
Mr. Torbik, 74, of Old Bridge, died Aug. 25, 2007, in Raritan Bay Medical Center, Old Bridge division. A tool-and-die maker with New Jersey Tool & Die Co., Kenilworth, he also worked for Lincoln Mold Co., Roselle, for more than 10 years before retiring in 1991. He was a U.S. Navy veteran of the Korean War and a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the Knights of Columbus, Old Bridge. He was a communicant of St. Ambrose Church, Old Bridge. Surviving are his wife, Jacqueline Torbik; a son, Andrew J. Torbik, and his wife, Nicola, of Freehold; a daughter, Jennifer A. Chan, and her husband, Max, of Howell; three brothers, Andrew Torbik of Pennsylvania, George Torbik of Rahway and Donald Torbik of Linden; two sisters, Regina Lewczak of Elizabeth and Janice Montgomery of Pennsylvania; and four grandchildren, Lynsey, Carrie, Sara and Nathaniel. A Mass was offered at St. Ambrose Church, Old Bridge. Entombment was in Cloverleaf Memorial Park, Woodbridge. Arrangements were under the direction of Michael Hegarty Funeral Home, Old Bridge.
Bernard J. Goldwater
Mr. Goldwater, 74, of Sun City Center, Fla., formerly of Howell, died July 5, 2007, at South Bay Hospital, Sun City Center. Born in Newark, he had lived in Howell before moving to Sun City Center in 2004. Mr. Goldwater was a health and physical education teacher in the Freehold Regional High School District for 40 years, retiring in 1998. He taught at Freehold High School, Howell High School and Freehold Township High School, where he was also athletic director and department supervisor. He coached baseball at Howell High School and Freehold Township High School, for a total of 26 years. Mr. Goldwater was a U.S. Army veteran. He was elected to the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association Coaches Hall of Fame, the Shore Conference Hall of Fame and the Freehold Township Athletic Hall of Fame. He was a former member of the Sunrise Optimist Club, Freehold, and a member of the Sun City Center softball team. Mr. Goldwater is survived by his wife, Karen; four sons, Mitchell of Mansfield, Pa., Randy of Manhattan, N.Y., and Kyle and Brian, both of Freehold Township; and two sisters, Betty Goldsman of Livingston and Muriel Meskin of West Palm Beach, Fla. A funeral service was held at the Clayton and Mc- Girr Funeral Home, Freehold Township, followed by interment at Freehold Hebrew Cemetery, Freehold. Memorial contributions may be made to Camp Quality of New Jersey, P.O. Box 264, Adelphia 07710.
Salvatore “Sal” A. Adelfio
Mr. Adelfio, 82, of Marlboro, died July 22, 2007, at CentraState Medical Center, Freehold Township. He was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., and had lived in Old Bridge and South River before moving to Marlboro three years ago. Prior to retiring, he was the co-owner of and an instructor at the Technical Career Institute, Manhattan, N.Y., for more than 40 years. Mr. Adelfio was a U.S. Navy veteran of World War II. He was a member of St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Old Bridge and its Holy Name Society, as well as a church lector. He was also president of the Holy Name Society at St. Stephen’s Church, South River, where he served as a Eucharistic minister. He was a member of the American Legion and the Amateur Radio Society. Surviving are his wife, Anita; four sons and three daughters-in-law, Steve and Pat Adelfio and Joe and Karen Adelfio, all of Old Bridge, and Sal Adelfio and Mike and Ona Adelfio, all of Freehold; two daughters and sons-in-law, Donna and Robb McQuade of Holmdel, and Mary and Joe Rizzo of Howell; two brothers, Andy Adelfio of South Carolina and Joseph Adelfio of Florida; a sister, Theresa Correale of Manalapan; and 12 grandchildren. Services were held at the Michael Hegarty Funeral Home, Old Bridge, followed by a funeral Mass at St. Thomas the Apostle Church. Interment took place at Forest Green Park Cemetery, Marlboro. Memorial donations may be made to the American Heart Association, 2550 Route 1, North Brunswick, or the American Cancer Society, 801 Broad St., Shrewsbury 07702.
Louis N. Pahountis
Mr. Pahountis, 77, of Jackson, died July 25, 2007, at Kimball Medical Center, Lakewood. Born on the Greek island of Karpathos in the village of Aperi, he came to the U.S. in 1949 and settled in Wheeling, W.Va. He had lived in Pittsburgh and in Philipsburg, Passaic, Paterson, Fair Lawn and Montville before moving to Jackson in 1999. Prior to retiring in 1997, Mr. Pahountis was a restaurateur, owning and operating the Clifton, Wayside, Dakota and Empire diners in New Jersey. He was a member of the Salaam Shrine Temple, Livingston, and a former member of St. George Greek Orthodox Church, Clifton. He was also a 32nddegree mason and a member and former vice president of the Omonoia Karpathian Society, as well as a recipient of its lifetime achievement award. Surviving are his wife of 50 years, Fotini Pahountis; three sons, Nick Pahountis, Bill Pahountis and George Pahountis, all of Jackson; a brother, George Pahountis of Elizabeth; and nine grandchildren. A funeral service was held at St. Barbara Greek Orthodox Church, Toms River, followed by interment at Old Tennent Cemetery, Tennent section of Manalapan. The Clayton & McGirr Funeral Home, Freehold Township, was in charge of arrangements. Memorial donations may be made to the Omonoia Karpathian Society, P.O. Box 8087, Paramus, NJ 07653.
Thomas W. Birdsall
Mr. Birdsall, 79, of Howell, died Aug. 5, 2007, at CentraState Medical Center, Freehold Township. He was a 1946 graduate of Freehold High School and earned a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, in 1951. Mr. Birdsall had served in the U.S. Navy Reserve He was a civil engineer and land surveyor from 1951 to the present time. He was a member of the First United Methodist Church of Farmingdale, a past president of the Farmingdale Kiwanis Club, and a past master of the Farmingdale Grange. Mr. Birdsall was predeceased by his wife, Kathryn Ketcham Birdsall, in 2003; and three brothers, Howard C., James E., and C. Robert Birdsall. Surviving are a daughter, Barbara L. Birdsall of Wall; a son and daughter-in-law, Douglas R. and Mary Birdsall of Sea Girt; a sister, Verna B. Newman of Colorado Springs, Colo.; two grandchildren; many nieces, nephews and friends; and his companion, Margaret Johnston of Brielle. A funeral service was held at Clayton & McGirr Funeral Home, Freehold Township, followed by interment in Hamilton Cemetery, Neptune. Memorial donations may be made to the Pennington School, 112 West Delaware Ave., Pennington 08534; or Stevens Institute of Technology, Office of Development, 13th Floor, Castle Point on Hudson, Hoboken 07030.