SOUTH RIVER — School leaders remembered Board of Education member Margaret “Peggy” Marino, 50, as a tireless advocate who worked to ensure that each South River student was provided with a thorough education.
Marino passed away unexpectedly at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick on Jan. 27.
In a statement, Superintendent of Schools Michael J. Pfister reflected on Marino’s contributions to the district.
“For many years, Mrs. Marino gallantly helped lead the South River Public School District, always striving to provide our children with the highest-quality education,” Pfister wrote. “Mrs. Marino will long be remembered for her zest for life, positive contributions to the lives of many, and her courageous leadership. She will be greatly missed.”
Board President Regis Wyluda described Marino as an outstanding person who always kept the students’ quality of education at the forefront.
“We’ve lost an asset, not just for the school board but the town itself. You’re not going to find another person like Peggy,” Wyluda said. “She was a person that stood above the crowd. She’s someone that you meet once in a lifetime.
“I know her family is going to miss her very terribly and we’re going to be right there with them,” he added.
Wyluda said the state’s recognition of the board’s fiscal prudence a few years ago was a testament to Marino, who also served on the board’s Negotiations Committee.
“There’s going to be a big hole there that I don’t think is going to be overcome for a good number of years,” he said, noting that her dedication will not be soon forgotten.
“The good Lord has taken her, but if you look up at the sky at night and you see a blinking star that wasn’t there before, it’s just Peggy saying ‘Just keep going.’ ”
Originally elected to the board in 2003, Marino had been re-elected to her fourth term in November and had served as Finance Committee chair for six years.
During last year’s campaign, she told Greater Media Newspapers that after the successful modernization of the high school, her focus was on improving district technology and student test scores.
According to her obituary, Marino was born and raised in Jersey City. She moved to South River in 1999.
For the last three years, she was employed as a paralegal with the law firm of Wilentz, Goldman & Spitzer of Woodbridge.
She attended Corpus Christi Roman Catholic Church in South River and was a member of the Jersey Girls Multi-Sport Club.
She is survived by her husband, Michael; and her children, Amanda, of East Brunswick, and Jamie and Michael, both of South River.
She is also survived by her mother and her husband, Carolyn and Michael R. Yakubik, of Toms River; her father, Dennis McBride, of Florida; her sister, Carolyn Wessel, and her husband Dale, of Crystal River, Fla.; her brother, Dennis McBride, and his wife Amanda, of Palm Harbor, Fla.; and many nieces and nephews.
Funeral services were held Jan. 31 at the Maliszewski Funeral Home, South River, followed by a funeral Mass at Corpus Christi Roman Catholic Church and a burial at Holy Cross Burial Park, South Brunswick.
Contact James McEvoy at [email protected].