SAYREVILLE – A lifelong Sayreville resident who was the director of recreation is mourned by the community.
Jerry Ust, 66, died on Oct. 3 at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, New Brunswick. At the time of his death, Ust had been serving as Sayreville’s director of recreation.
Members of the Borough Council and the Sayreville School District Board of Education recognized Ust at meetings that were both held on Oct. 13.
According to his obituary, Ust was a graduate of Sayreville War Memorial High School and The College of New Jersey. After operating his own business, he became the director of recreation in the borough. He was also an active member of the Sayreville Athletic Association where he coached his son and daughter.
An avid golfer, he was a member of Glenwood Country Club and Forsgate Country Club.
School board President Anthony Esposito described his experiences with Ust during the Oct. 13 meeting.
“I met Jerry 12 years ago and from the very first time I spoke with him up until two weeks ago in my last conversation, he has been nothing but a gentleman,” Esposito said. “At the forefront of his mind every day was how he could better the children of Sayreville. I got to witness this firsthand, working under him on the recreation board. He was an amazing man, he loved this town and he was loved. Please remember him in your thoughts.”
A reflection on Ust and his contributions to the borough were shared by Mayor Victoria Kilpatrick.
“I know that many people have a lot of things to say about Jerry,” the mayor said. “It’s very difficult, I think, for most of us to speak on him because there are just too many things that come to mind when I think of him. But as my friend, Jerry, every single time I walk onto a field, every single time that we look up at a firework going off in the sky, or we have a trick-or-trunk, Easter egg hunt, or movie in the park, we know that you’ll be shining down and smiling at us all. You’re with us forever, Jerry.”
Both the Borough Council and Board of Education held a moment of silence in Ust’s memory.