The Central New Jersey Home News from New Brunswick, New Jersey • 14

B4 REGION THE HOME NEWS WEDNESDAY, APRIL 24, 1991-, egionalization key in S. River school board race to help reduce costs. "If we do that, we might get down to a zero tax increase," said Haider. "Some of the similar districts like South Amboy, Milltown, Helmetta have some of the same problems we do and cost would definitely come down if we regionalized our services." For example, Haider said it costs the district $23,000 to send one special needs student to Neptune. "I'm sure South Amboy or Milltown or any of those smaller districts have special needs children too, so why can't we consolidate and just send one bus instead of three or four different buses?" asked Haider.

Haider, a retired fire alarm inspector, is the vice chairman of the South River Municipal Alliance. He and his wife, Dolores, have three children, De-bra, 32; Steven, 30, and Lena, 25. Bodnar said overcrowding is the number-one issue in the borough. He said he favors the $9.1 million expansion plan at Campbell and Willett elementary schools "to help alleviate some of the overcrowding problems." He said he would like to see the abandoned Lincoln School put to use again one day, either as a kindergarten or a special education school The Lincoln School used to house the Head Start program before the board voted them out of the borough last year. Bodnar, a police office for 25 years, said he favored the neighborhood school concept, where elementary school students could continue walking to schools in their own neighborhoods instead of traveling a long distance or across town.

Bodnar said he decided to seek re-election again because he enjoyed being on the board. Bodnar and his wife, Denise, have four children, Debra, 20; Lynn, 19; Susan, 10; and Leeann, 7. several years, it's gotten to be a situation where it doesn't seem to be any harmony on the board," said Lenetti. "There are two factions vying against one another over issues, and that type of thing really has to stop." Lenetti is an industrial arts teacher at Elmwood Junior High School in Bergen County. He was formerly an industrial arts teacher at Spotswood High School.

He said he is in favor of regionalization of services between neighboring districts, but is somewhat hesitant about of schools. Lenetti said he favors the $9.1 million elementary school expansion plan, which involves an addition to Campbell School and renovations at Willett School. Davis, 25, said she felt the district should explore reopening Lincoln School before spending nearly $9.1 renovating and expanding Willett and Campbell schools. "I would like to see some kind of cost proposal done for Lincoln School first," said Davis, a public accountant with Deloitte Touche in Princeton. Davis said she favored regionalization of services, not of schools.

Davis also said she felt that South River, with its strong tradition of athletics, should be equally concerned about the education of its athletes and should institute academic requirements for students involved in extracurricular sports. "There should be academic requirements for students who play athletics," she said. "Other towns have minimum grade point average requirements for their athletes and I would like to see something like' that." Haider, 50, said he believes the two most important issues facing the district this year are overcrowding and increased costs. Haider, who made an unsuccessful bid for the Board of Education last year, said he strongly supports regionalization of services but not schools By WISAM ALI Home News staff writer SOUTH RIVER Regionalization and how to alleviate overcrowding are key issues with the candidates vying for three Board of Education seats. Several candidates said they favored consolidating services, classes and even schools in the smaller districts, such as Helmetta, Spotswood, Milltown, South Amboy and South River as a way of saving money and expanding services.

The candidates running in this year's election are Ray Eppinger, Tanya Davis, Karl Haider, Joseph Brzo-zowski, Robert Bodnar and Angelo Lenetti. All but one of the candidates running for the three-year seats are newcomers or former board members. Bodnar, 52, a borough police officer seeking his second term, is the only incumbent in the race. "We have to look past the borders of South River to solve our problems," said 28-year-old Eppinger. "The size of our school district in terms of the student body limits the options we can provide our students.

Towns like South Amboy, Milltown, Helmetta and Spotswood, with their declining enrollments and increasing taxes, have to face reality. That reality is that every small district economically, quality of education-wise can't survive and compete in the 1990s and beyond without regionalization. Eppinger said there are 100 students in this year's graduation class at South River High School, a school built to accommodate 800 students. "The high school is the newest building we have and it's only one-third occupied," he continued. "I think we've got a serious problem when we want to go out and spend $9.1 million to renovate Willett and Campbell elementary schools.

That's not what we should be looking to do. And to even consider reopening Lincoln School is. ridiculous. We should be looking beyond our borders. We have to worry about stabilizing our tax rate." Eppinger works with U.S.

International ReinsuranceThe Home Insurance Co. in New York City. A member of the South River Parking Authority and the Planning Board, Eppinger and his wife, Monica, have three children, Laura, 5, George, 3, and Rachel 1. Brzozowski, 55, also favored regionalization, saying it was the only way for small districts to survive economically in the future. "One of the things South River has to do for self-preservation is to look to talk to some neighboring communities Milltown, Spotswood and South Amboy and consolidate services," said Brzozowski, a teacher in North Brunswick for the past 33 years.

Brzozowski, who previously served on the board from 1985-88, said he would also like to see the district institute a pre-school program to help give young students, particularly the Portuguese students whose English may need some polishing, an educational head start Brzozowski and his wife, Pat, have two children, and Ken, 24. Brzozowski was a former councilman, having served from 1987-88 before resigning for health reasons. He is the program chairman for the South River Municipal Alliance drug and alcohol abuse program. Lenetti, 50, who completed a 15-month unexpired term on the board in 1978-79, said one of the most pressing issues facing the district was getting some harmony back on the board. "Having attended and followed board activities over from Wagner College in Staten Island, N.Y., in 1969, and earned a master's degree from Boston State College.

Mrs. Herbst was a member of the Parent-Teachers Organization for LaMonte School and for the junior and senior high schools in Bound Brook. Surviving are her husband, Donald D. Herbst; a son, Timothy A. of Bound Brook; a daughter, Sandra 5 K.

of Bound Brook; her parents, Otto and Marion Tobiason of Lexington, and two brothers, David Tobiason of Yarmouth, Maine, and John Tobiason of Amherst, Mass. Services will be held at 10:45 a.m. Friday at Piscataway Funeral Home, 18 Stelton Road, Piscataway, followed by services at 11 a.m. at All Saints Lutheran Church in Piscataway. Home, 555 Georges Road, North Brunswick, followed by a 9 a.m.

Mass at St. Mary of Mount Virgin Church. Entombment will be at Franklin Memorial Park Mausoleum, North Brunswick. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society, P.O. Box 601, Edison, N.J.

08818. Beatrice George, 78 ENGLEWOOD, Fla. Beatrice Cooke George, formerly of New Brunswick, died Monday at her home in Englewood, Fla. She was ,78. Mrs.

George was born in Hobo-ken and resided in New Brunswick before moving to Florida 20 years She was an administrative secretary at the New Brunswick Theological Seminary. Surviving are her husband, Mitchell, and a son, Dr. Clayton B. Cooke of Bermuda, A memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. Friday at Lemon Bay Funeral Home, 2 Buchans Landing, Englewood, Fla.

Cremation will be private." Memorial contributions may be sent to the Hospice of Southwest Florida, 73 Palm Ave. South, Suite 222, Sarasota, Fla. Theresa Gilbert, 75 PERTH AMBOY Theresa E. Schmedes Gilbert died April 17 at Raritan Bay Medical Center, Perth Amboy division. She was 75.

Mrs. Gilbert was born in Scars-dale, N.Y., and resided in Metuchen most of her life before moving to Perth Amboy five years ago. Surviving are a son, Leslie L. of Edison, and a grandson. Funeral services were private.

A memorial service will be announced at a later date. Arrangements are by Boylan Funeral Home, 10 Wooding Edison. Church in Manville. Burial will be at Sacred Heart Cemetery, Hillsborough. Esther Schacht MONROE Esther Schacht of the Clearbrook section died yesterday at The Medical Center at She was born in the Bronx, N.Y., and lived there before moving to Clearbrook 15 years ago.

She was a homemaker. She was a member of Deborah Hospital Foundation and Hadas-sah. Surviving are a brother, 'Lawrence of Clearbrook, and several nieces and nephews. Services will be today at 11:45 a.m. at Mount Sinai Memorial Chapels, Cranbury Road at Evergreen Boulevard, East Brunswick.

Burial will follow at King Solomon Memorial Park. Clifton. Mary Silvestri, 43 FLEMINGTON Mary Keller Silvestri died Monday at Hunterdon Medical Center. She was 43. She was born in Milltown and lived there for many years before moving to Flemington seven years Mrs.

Silvestri was office manager for Dr. Kennette Sohmer in Branchburg. 1 She was a communicant of St. Magdalen Church in Flemington. Surviving are her husband, Louis P.

Silvestri; her mother, Virginia Brand Keller of Spotswood; a son, Robert, and a daughter, Lisa Marie, both at home; a brother, William Keller of Spotswood; and two sisters, Patricia Mezzetti of Kendall Park and Michelle Keller of San Jose, Calif. Service will be tomorrow at 8:30 a.m. from Holcombe-Fisher Funeral Home, 147 Main Flemington, followed by a 9 a.m. Mass at St. Magdalen Church.

Burial will be at the church cemetery. of the Board of Trustees and a member of the Administration Board and chief usher at Calvary United Methodist Church in Key-port. His wife, Elizabeth. Fisher Meissner, died in 1990. Surviving are a son, William F.

Jr. of Brandon, three daughters, Charlotte Fitchett of Sanford, Rayetta Caprio of Brick and Judy Williams of Parlin; a brother, Frederick of Island Heights; three sisters, Louise Heil of Jamesburg, Madeline Worthy of South Amboy and Alice Millward of South River, nine grandchildren, and four great; grandchildren. Services will be Friday at 10 a.m. at Calvary Methodist Church. Arrangements are by John E.

Day-Bedle Funeral Homes, 61 Broad Keyport Joseph Delfino, 83 OLD BRIDGE Joseph R. Delfino died yesterday at Raritan Bay Medical Center, Old Bridge division. He was 83. was born in Brooklyn and lived there for many years before moving to Old Bridge eight years ago. Mr.

Delfino was a clerk for Jff-seph Cory Delivery Service in Elizabeth for 20 years before retiring in 1970. He was a member of Knights of Columbus Council 585 and Our Lady of Loretta Council in Brooklyn. His wife, Nancy Delfino, died in 1983. Surviving are a son, Joseph Delfino of East Brunswick; a daughter, Eileen Burriesci of Old Bridge; four grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren. Services will be Friday at 9 am from Michael Hegarty Funeral Home, 3377 Route 9, Old Bridge, followed by a Mass at St.

Ambrose R.C. Church in Old Bridge. Burial will be at Holy Cross Cemetery in Brooklyn. Gladys Morecraft, 75 NORTH PLAINFIELD Gladys A. Morecraft died yesterday at Somerset Medical Center, Somerville.

She was 75. She was born in South Bound Brook and lived in Bound Brook for most of her life before moving to North Plainfield several years ago. For more than 30 years she was the owneroperator of the Morecraft Agency, a real estate insurance firm in Bound Brook, retiring in 1977. Before that she had managed the Brook Theater in Bound Brook from 1963 to 1977 and N.Y. She was a member of the Presbyterian Church of Englishtown, and was a member of the South Brunswick Senior Citizens, and the Retired School Teachers Association of Hackensack.

She also had been a volunteer for many years at the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, New Brunswick, and at the Freehold Area Hospital in Freehold. Her husband, Henry, died in 1953. In addition, her son Donald died in 1967, and another son, Henry, died in 1980. Surviving are a son, Eugene R. Franck of Teaneck; a daughter, Judy Franchette of North Brunswick; five grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.

Funeral services will be held tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. at the Crabiel Home for Funerals, 170 N. Main Milltown. Burial will follow in George Washington Memorial Park, Paramus. Florence Cusatis, 73 SOUTH BOUND BROOK Florence Cusatis died yesterday at Somerset Medical Center in Som-erville.

She was 73. She was born in Shenandoah, and lived in Bound Brook before moving to South Bound Brook in 1945. Surviving are a son, Dominic of Lakewood; one sister, Valentine Usic of Somerville; two brothers, Paul Kondratowicz of South Bound Brook and Stanley Kondratowicz of Shenandoah, and one grandson. Services will be Sunday at 9 a.m. at Conroy Funeral Home, 21 E.

Second Bound Brook, followed by a 9:30 a.m. Mass at Our Lady of Mercy Church, South Bound Brook. Burial will be at Resurrection Cemetery in Piscataway. William Norris, 40 NORTH BRUNSWICK William F. Norris died Monday at St Peter's Medical Center in New Brunswick.

He was 40. He was born in Hackensack and lived in Lodi and Mercerville before moving to North Brunswick in 1982. Mr. Norris was a warehouse -manager at Sanofi Beauty Products in Edison. He was a communicant of St.

Mary of Mount Virgin R.C. Church in New Brunswick. Mr. Norris was a member of Knights of Columbus Council 6572 of New Brunswick and was a former Little League coach in North Brunswick. He was a 1972 graduate of Trenton State College, where he was a member of Chi Rho Sigma fraternity.

Surviving are his wife, Rose Marie Pedreira Norris; a daughter, Judith, and a son, William, both at home; his mother, Gloria Cevasco Norris of Wood-Ridge, and two sisters, Maureen Savarese of Lodi and Claire Norris of Wood-Ridge. Services will be at 8:15 a.m. tomorrow from Selover Funeral Samuel Yates, 71 DELRAY BEACH, Fla. Samuel Yates died Monday at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick. He was 71.

He was born in Savannah, and had lived in Guatamala, the Panama. Canal Zone and Mount Laurel, N.J., before moving to De-lray Beach 12 years ago. Mr. Yates was a computer engineer and mathematician for RCA Corp. for more than 20 years, retiring in 1970.

His avocation for the past 25 years had been numbers theory research and writing. He was a graduate of George Washington University and received a master's degree in 1962 from the University of Pennsylvania. At the time of his death, he was completing a dissertation for a doctorate in mathematics and numbers theory from the University of Pennsylvania. A world-renowned lecturer, he had taught at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, India. Mr.

Yates was one of a group of researchers who found the largest "Smith" number and was one of the developers of the gigantic and titanic prime numbers theory. He was the author of numerous published papers and two books, "Prime Numbers and Period Lengths" in 1976, and "Repunits and Repetends" in 1982. He was the associate editor, book reviewer and a contributor to the Journal of Recreational Mathematics. Surviving are his wife, Mae Ber-cow Yates; a son, James Allen Yates of New York City; two daughters, Joy Lewis of West Nyack, N.Y., and Linda Karimi of New Brunswick; a brother, J. David Yates of Delray Beach; four grandchildren, and two greatgrandchildren.

Funeral services will be at 11:30 a.m. today at Crabiel, Harding Jamison Funeral Home, 239 Livingston New Brunswick. Burial will follow at Beth Israel Cemetery in Woodbridge. Memorial contributions may be made to either the American Cancer Society, 2600 Route 1, North Brunswick, N.J. 08902, or to the American Heart Association, 2550 Route 1, North Brunswick, N.J.

08902. Catharine Franck, 81 NORTH BRUNSWICK Catharine Talman Franck died yesterday at the Raritan Bay Medical Center, Old Bridge Division. She was 81. She was born in Nyack, N.Y., and had lived in the Bogota-Hackensack area before moving to North Brunswick 17 years ago. Mrs.

Franck retired in 1973 after more than 20 years as an elementary school teacher in the Hacken-sack school district Mrs. Franck had previously taught grade school at the New York State School, Stony Point, Cremation will be private. Memorial contributions may be made to the charity or medical research foundation of one's choice. Anna Black, 77 GREENEVILLE, Tenn. Anna Black died Sunday at her home.

She was 77. She was born in New York City and lived in Greeneville for 30 years. She worked for Greene Manufacturers in Greeneville before retiring 30 years ago. Surviving are her husband, Ken' neth Black; a daughter, Estle of Greeneville; a son, Tony A. Black of Hendersonville; three brothers, Pete and Andy Catalfamo, both of Florida, and Joe Catalfamo of Somerset, N.

three sisters, Rose She-noski of Middlesex, N.J., Minnie Thompson of North Brunswick, N.J., and Mary Stout of California, and four grandchildren. Services will be at 11 a.m. today at Jeffers Mortuary Chapel, 208 N. College Greeneville, followed by burial in Greene Lawn Memory Gardens in Greeneville. Herbert Cooper, 64 WOODBRIDGE Herbert A.

Cooper died yesterday at his home in the Fords section. He was 64. He was born in Brooklyn and lived in Fords for the past 31 years. Mr. Cooper was a self-employed calligrapher for 40 years before retiring in 1990.

He attended the Mannes School Victoria O'Donnell, 66 Robert Mulligan, 69 MANVILLE Victoria Lis O'Donnell died Monday at Somerset Medical Center, Somerville. She was 66. She was born in Pottsville, and had lived in Manville for most of her life. Mrs. O'Donnell retired in 1989 as a head waitress at the Bridgewater Diner in Bridgewater after working there for more than 12 years.

She is survived by her husband, John P. O'Donnell; a son, James P. O'Donnell; and two daughters, JoAnn P. O'Donnell and Patricia O'Donnell, all at home; two thers, Henry Lis of New Jersey and John Lis of Bound Brook; two sisters, Jenny Procacci of Piscataway and Frances Gutkowski of Kansas City, and two granddaughters. Services will be Friday at 8:30 a.m.

at Fucillo Warren Funeral Home, Manville, followed by a 9 a.m. Mass at Sacred Heart R.C. LADY LAKE, Fla. Robert J. Mulligan, a former resident of New Brunswick, N.J., died Sunday at Monroe Regional Medical Center in Orlando.

He was 69. He was born in. New Brunswick and lived there for many years before moving to Toledo, Ohio, in 1973. An inventor, Mr. Mulligan hand-' designed the first pop-up folding tent for a pickup truck.

He received a patent for it in 1983. He was also the manager of Bradley's Industries in Toledo for six years before retiring in 1979. Mr. Mulligan was a communicant of St. Timothy's Church in Lady Lake.

Surviving are his wife, Thelma Kruse Mulligan; two sons, Robert J. Jr. of Chihuahua, Mexico, and Gregory E. of Wheaton, a daughter, Linda Lynett of Clarks Summit, a sister, Margaret Mulligan of New Brunswick, and nine grandchildren. Services will be Friday from Albert P.

O'Donnell Funeral Home, 2025 Green Ridge Dunmore, followed by a Mass at 10:30 a.m. in St Gregory's Church, Clarks Green, Pa. Burial will be at St Catherine's Cemetery, Moscow, Pa. Louise Herbst, 43 BOUND BROOK Louise E. Herbst died Saturday at Molokai General Hospital in Molokai, Hawaii.

She was 43. She was born in Boston and lived in Lexington, before moving to Bound Brook 12 years ago. Mrs. Herbst was a schoolteacher at Bound Brook Elementary School for seven years before retiring in 1988. She earned a bachelor's degree i had worked as a corporate secretary for Morecraft Building Co.

from 1935 to 1970. Miss Morecraft was the first female president of the Independent Theater Owners of New Jersey, and also was the first female president of the New Jersey Independent Insurance Agents. She had worked for more than 35 years with the Salvation Army in the Bound Brook area. She was also a member of the Presbyterian Church of Bound Brook. Surviving are three sisters, Lillian M.

Leon of Richmond Hill, Maude M. Pederson of Bridgewater and Virginia Santomen of Bound Brook. Funeral services will be held Friday at Taggart-Chamberlain Funeral Home, Bound Brook. Interment will follow at Bound Brook Cemetery in Bound Brook. Contributions may be made to the North Plainfield Rescue Squad.

of Music in New York City and was a member of the International Society of Scribes. He was an actor with the East Brunswick Community Theater, where he played many leading roles. Mr. Cooper also acted in many off-Broadway productions. An Army Air Corps veteran of World War II, he served in Special Services Ernie Pyle Theatre and in cryptography services.

Surviving are his wife, Marilyn Rapport Cooper, three daughters, Wendy Fitzgerald of Edison, Laurie Keller of Iselin and Cara Peterson of Fords; a son, David S. of Wood-bridge; a brother, Abraham of East Brunswick; a sister, Ethel Cooper of Brooklyn, and a granddaughter. Services will be today at 1:30 p.m. from Flynn Son Funeral Home, 23 Ford Fords. Burial will be at Beth Israel Memorial Park in Woodbridge.

William Meissner, 73 KEYPORT William Francis Meissner, a former resident of Spotswood, died yesterday at his daughter's home in Brick Township. He was 73. He was born in South River and lived in Spotswood before moving to Keyport in 1948. Mr. Meissner worked in the photo products division at I.E.

Du Pont in Parlin for 42 years before retiring in 1978. He was a member of Du Pont's 10- and 25- year club. Mr. Meissner was vice president Georges Road, North Brunswick, followed by a 9 a.m. Mass at St.

Mary of Mount Virgin R.C. Church in New Brunswick. Entombment will be in the Franklin Memorial Park Mausoleum, North Brunswick. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society, P.O. Box 601 Edison, N.J.

08818. Friends and relatives may call Wednesday 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. at the funeral home. choice. Friends and relatives may call at the funeral home Thursday 7-9 p.m.

and Friday a.m. MEISSNER In Brick, on April 23, 1991, William Francis of Keyport. Husband of the late Elizabeth Fischer Meissner; father of William Charlotte Fitchett, Rayetta Caprio and Judy Williams; brother of Frederick, Louise Heil, Madeline Worthy and Alice Mill-ward; grandfather of nine and greatgrandfather of four. Services will be Friday at 10 a.m. at Calvary Methodist Church in Keyport.

Arrangements are by John E. Day-Bedle Funeral Homes, 61 Broad Keyport. Friends and relatives may call at the funeral home Thursday 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. NORRIS In New Brunswick, on April 22, 1991, William of North Brunswick, Services will be 8:15 a.m. Thursday from Selover Funeral Home, 555 FRANCK In Old Bridge, on April 23, 1991, Catharine Talman of North Brunswick.

Funeral services will be held Thursday at 10:30 am. at The Crabiel Home for Funerals, 170 N. Main Milltown. Burial will follow in George Washington Memorial Park, Paramus. Friends and relatives may call Wednesday from p.m.

only. HERBST In Molokai, Hawaii, on April 20, 1991. Louise E. of Bound Brook. Wife of Donald D.

Hcrbst; mother of Timothy A. and Sandra sister of David Tobiason and John Tobiason; daughter of Otto and Marion Tobiason. Services will be held Friday at 10:45 a.m. at Piscataway Funeral Home, 18 Stelton Road, Piscataway, followed by services at 11 a m. at All Saints Lutheran Church in Piscataway.

Cremation will be private. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the charity or medical research foundation of your SILVESTRI In Raritan, on April 22, 1991, Mary Keller of Flemington. Service will be held Thursday at 8:30 a.m. at Holcombe-Fisher Funeral Home, 147 Main Flemington, followed by a Mass at 9 a.m. in St.

Magdalen Church in Flemington. Burial will be in the church cemetery. Friends and relatives may call at the funeral home Wednesday 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. Correction An obituary yesterday for Jea-nette Meehan of Jamesburg omitted a sister, Rose Vingara of Jamesburg..