Post by Marc LeVine on Aug 17, 2006 17:18:52 GMT -5
In Memory of Edna Kelly
Kelley’s legacy stands as board member, teacher
By dick metzgar
Staff Writer
FREEHOLD — Nobody who knew Edna Carey Kelley will ever forget her.
For some 60 years she was involved with the education of the borough’s children, both as a teacher and a member of the borough’s Board of Education. She became a legend in her own time, something few people accomplish.
Kelley spent 40 years teaching in the borough, from 1934 until her retirement in 1975. She would spend 33 years on the elementary school board, from 1963 until her defeat while seeking a 12th straight term in the 1996 election.
She began by teaching physical education in borough schools and later finished her career by teaching driver’s education in Freehold High School.
Kelley, 86, died on July 16 at Kimball Medical Center, Lakewood. At the time of her death, she was a member of the borough’s Planning Board.
"Edna was an institution," Freehold Borough Superintendent of Schools Janet Kalafat said. "I thought she was going to be around forever. I miss her already."
Kelley was the last member of the old guard who guided the borough school district into the modern era, including two new facilities on Park Avenue and Dutch Lane Road.
When she joined the board in 1963, the complex on Park Avenue was relatively new.
"I recall that I won the third and final open seat on the board that year with 550 votes," Kelley recalled in an interview with the News Transcript after leaving the board in 1996. "I was approached by some local teachers who wanted me to run for the board. That was during the days when teachers’ salaries were very low, not like they are today."
James Higgins, a 28-year member of the board, was a member of that old guard that guided the district through important transitional years, along with Kelley and others.
"Edna and I saw a lot of major changes in the district when we were on the board," Higgins said this week. "The Park Avenue complex was already opened when she joined the board, but she was here all through the time when the Freehold Learning Center on Dutch Lane Road was built and opened. We were on the board when the Hudson Street, Bennett Street and Broad Street schools were closed for good."
Kelley, who earned a reputation as a vigilant watchdog on school spending during her last years on the board, said during her 1996 interview with the News Transcript that she supported closing down the old schools in favor of constructing the Park Avenue complex and the learning center elementary school.
"Edna was an extremely vocal person," Higgins said. "She was very conscious about spending money. She was very conservative."
Higgins recalled that Kelley was already teaching when he was attending Freehold High School in 1937.
"I had gone to grammar school in Marlboro," Higgins said. "I entered Freehold High School from the sending district of Marlboro. Edna was already there teaching when I was a student."
Kelley, the daughter of a prominent local family doctor, Dr. David Carey, was a product of the borough’s public school system herself. She attended and then taught in educational facilities that she would later be involved in closing down when she was a board member.
"I attended the intermediate school when it was in the Bennett Street building that is now the borough’s police department," Kelley said during the 1996 interview. "I attended an elementary school that was located where Hudson Manor now stands. The high school on Robertsville Road, which I attended, was built in the mid-1920s while I was attending the lower grades."
In 1996, in recognition of her years of service in the field of education in the borough, Kelley received the John G. McGackin Award, which is given annually to the individual who contributes most to the renaissance of the borough.
Her 33 years on the school board were unparalleled.
"I’m still not over the shock that Edna’s not going to be on the board," then-board member James Piccarello, the panel’s president, said after winning a second term as Kelley lost in 1996. "She had become an institution and a legend for her many years of service to the board."
At the time, Kelley said she had no regrets about the decisions she made as a teacher and a board member.
"If I had to do it all over again, I would do it the same way," she said. "The years flew by so quickly. I just don’t know where they went. But it was a lot of fun."
Kelley’s legacy stands as board member, teacher
By dick metzgar
Staff Writer
FREEHOLD — Nobody who knew Edna Carey Kelley will ever forget her.
For some 60 years she was involved with the education of the borough’s children, both as a teacher and a member of the borough’s Board of Education. She became a legend in her own time, something few people accomplish.
Kelley spent 40 years teaching in the borough, from 1934 until her retirement in 1975. She would spend 33 years on the elementary school board, from 1963 until her defeat while seeking a 12th straight term in the 1996 election.
She began by teaching physical education in borough schools and later finished her career by teaching driver’s education in Freehold High School.
Kelley, 86, died on July 16 at Kimball Medical Center, Lakewood. At the time of her death, she was a member of the borough’s Planning Board.
"Edna was an institution," Freehold Borough Superintendent of Schools Janet Kalafat said. "I thought she was going to be around forever. I miss her already."
Kelley was the last member of the old guard who guided the borough school district into the modern era, including two new facilities on Park Avenue and Dutch Lane Road.
When she joined the board in 1963, the complex on Park Avenue was relatively new.
"I recall that I won the third and final open seat on the board that year with 550 votes," Kelley recalled in an interview with the News Transcript after leaving the board in 1996. "I was approached by some local teachers who wanted me to run for the board. That was during the days when teachers’ salaries were very low, not like they are today."
James Higgins, a 28-year member of the board, was a member of that old guard that guided the district through important transitional years, along with Kelley and others.
"Edna and I saw a lot of major changes in the district when we were on the board," Higgins said this week. "The Park Avenue complex was already opened when she joined the board, but she was here all through the time when the Freehold Learning Center on Dutch Lane Road was built and opened. We were on the board when the Hudson Street, Bennett Street and Broad Street schools were closed for good."
Kelley, who earned a reputation as a vigilant watchdog on school spending during her last years on the board, said during her 1996 interview with the News Transcript that she supported closing down the old schools in favor of constructing the Park Avenue complex and the learning center elementary school.
"Edna was an extremely vocal person," Higgins said. "She was very conscious about spending money. She was very conservative."
Higgins recalled that Kelley was already teaching when he was attending Freehold High School in 1937.
"I had gone to grammar school in Marlboro," Higgins said. "I entered Freehold High School from the sending district of Marlboro. Edna was already there teaching when I was a student."
Kelley, the daughter of a prominent local family doctor, Dr. David Carey, was a product of the borough’s public school system herself. She attended and then taught in educational facilities that she would later be involved in closing down when she was a board member.
"I attended the intermediate school when it was in the Bennett Street building that is now the borough’s police department," Kelley said during the 1996 interview. "I attended an elementary school that was located where Hudson Manor now stands. The high school on Robertsville Road, which I attended, was built in the mid-1920s while I was attending the lower grades."
In 1996, in recognition of her years of service in the field of education in the borough, Kelley received the John G. McGackin Award, which is given annually to the individual who contributes most to the renaissance of the borough.
Her 33 years on the school board were unparalleled.
"I’m still not over the shock that Edna’s not going to be on the board," then-board member James Piccarello, the panel’s president, said after winning a second term as Kelley lost in 1996. "She had become an institution and a legend for her many years of service to the board."
At the time, Kelley said she had no regrets about the decisions she made as a teacher and a board member.
"If I had to do it all over again, I would do it the same way," she said. "The years flew by so quickly. I just don’t know where they went. But it was a lot of fun."