MIDDLETOWN – For almost 40 years, Carolyn “Sue” Self was an integral part of the township school district as well as of township government and local politics.
The longtime district teacher, who died Sunday night at the age of 65, was remembered Monday as an “incredibly dedicated woman,” according to Middletown Schools Superintendent Karen Bilbao.
Self was born and raised in Birmingham, Ala. She was married to Frank Allen Self, then a U.S. Air Force aviator who later became mayor of Middletown Township, for 46 years and lived throughout the United States while continuing her college education.
A 40-year resident of Middletown, Self was a mathematics teacher in the Middletown district for 33 years and served for the last five years as a member of the Middletown Board of Education.
She was active in the PTA/PTO organizations in Middletown and served in municipal government as vice chairman of the Middletown Zoning Board and as a member of the Middletown Planning Board.
She was a member of the Republican County Committee and the first female president of the Middletown GOP Club, as well as treasurer of the Monmouth County Federation of Republican Women.
“She came to our meetings up until May,” Bilbao said. “It shows how dedicated she was to the district.”
Bilbao said that Self ‘s work as a teacher in the district made her a very important board member.
“She had a great sense of importance and responsibility,” Bilbao said. “She was a very principled woman.”
Bilbao said that she worked with Self not only on the Board of Education but as a member of the Municipal Alliance Against Drugs and Alcohol.
“We both attended the meetings every month,” Bilbao said. “That gives a good indication to her commitment to the children of Middletown.”
Self is survived by her husband, Frank A., former Middletown mayor and Monmouth County Freeholder; her son, Frank Jr., and daughter-in-law Julie and grandchildren Benjamin, Ryan and Heidi, of Colorado Springs, Colo.; and a daughter, Sharon, and son-in-law Jason and granddaughter Hope, of Lawrenceville.
Friends and family may pay their respects from 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesday at the John F. Pfleger Funeral Home, 115 Tindall Road, Middletown.
A funeral service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Thursday at Middletown United Methodist Church. Burial will follow at Fair View Cemetery.