Avid horseman William “Bill” C. Mack, 73, of Upper Freehold Township died Oct. 12 at CentraState Hospital in Freehold.
Born in New Brunswick, Mack was a veteran of the U.S. Navy, serving during the Vietnam era. A 1965 graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, he earned his master’s degree from Fairleigh Dickinson University in 1977. He was the criminal division manager for the State of New Jersey, Superior Court of Monmouth, retiring in 1997. He was a member of St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Allentown.
Son of the late Raymond and Elinor Mack, he is survived by his loving wife of 21 years, Lorraine Wilkinson; his stepdaughter and granddaughter, Laurie and Lauren Gazell of Brick; his siblings, Raymond and Susan Mack of Matawan, Edward and Sandra Mack of Manasquan and Elizabeth and Tomothy Duncan of Naples, Florida; and his nephews and niece, William Mack, Jessica Tobia and Jamie Mack.
Mack owned, bred and raced many Standardbred horses, including such notables as Sally Savannah ($102,607), Sassy Savannah ($101, 242), Sammy Savannah ($117,108) and many other horses with that surname.
He had fond memories of participating in the USTA Driving School and spoke of it often. He also participated in many of the European trips taken by the USTA, of which he also had fond memories.
Mack spent over 18 years with the Neal Ehrhart stable.
Robert Tucker, 90, the owner of Stonegate Farm in Glen Gardner died Oct. 23.
Tucker and Stonegate bred and raced many top performers over the years, with his horses trained by his friend, Ed Lohmeyer. One of their first top horses together was the pacer Landslide. Among their recent stakes winners was the filly pacer Ideal Nuggets. Another recent stakes winner was the trotting mare Classic Lane. Mr. Tucker also bred this year’s Breeders Crown finalist All Bets Off.
While Stonegate Farm has been the birthplace of champions, it also was the one-time home of the great pacing stallion Cam Fella. In addition, Stonegate also stood the stallions Pacific Fella, Albert Albert and Dream Away. Stonegate has another yearling consignment in Harrisburg next month.
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Tucker was raised on Long Island, about 12 miles from Roosevelt Raceway. His father owned Standardbreds and as a youngster, Tucker attended riding camps and participated in horse shows. In 1935, the Tucker family moved to a farm in Morristown, and they had a full assortment of livestock, including horses, pigs and chickens. As a teenager, Tucker worked on a dairy farm and fell in love with farm life.
Tucker graduated from high school in Hightstown, then served in the Navy Air Corps during World War II. He then earned a bachelor’s degree at Wesleyan University and a master’s degree in economics from Brown University.
Tucker began his career at Banker’s Trust Company on Wall Street but returned to New Jersey in 1954 when he joined the Beneficial Corporation in Peapack. By 1969, he was the company’s chief financial officer.
In 1960, he purchased the property he named Stonegate Farm, growing to 350 acres, which is in the New Jersey agricultural preservation program.
Tucker served on the board of the New Jersey Sire Stakes for many years and was appointed head of the board by Governor Thomas Kean.
In 2009, Tucker received the Harness Racing Musuem & Hall of Fame’s Pinnacle Award for his support of the museum’s work. As president of the CTW Foundation of Wilmington, Delaware, Tucker arranged for significant support of the Harness Racing Museum’s traveling exhibit of its Currier & Ives art collection.
Tucker is survived by his wife, Lauren, six children and 10 grandchildren.