Oliver A. Newton, Jr.

Obituary For Oliver A. Newton, Jr.

Oliver Allen Newton, Jr, 98, of Glen Rock, NJ, passed away peacefully at home on July 19, 2023.

Oliver was born on January 31, 1925 to Oliver A. Newton, Sr and Edna Dangler Newton in Long Branch, NJ. After graduating from Long Branch High School in 1942 he went on to study botany at Howard University. His undergraduate years were interrupted by service in the US Army Air Corps (now the US Air Force) during World War II. He served state side and returned to Howard to complete his BS and MS degrees. He was a member of the Beta Chapter of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.

While an undergraduate student, Oliver was introduced to co-ed Eleanor M. Simmons by her sister Ruth, also a Howard student. They married on May 20, 1950 in the Howard Chapel. By January of 1951 they were living in Turrialba, Costa Rica at the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (now known as the Center for Tropical Agricultural Research and Education). Oliver researched coffee and his bride Eleanor worked in one of the offices. By 1953 they were living in Los Angeles where Oliver continued his studies at USC until mid-1956. After returning to Washington, DC Oliver started job hunting and was offered a teaching position at Paterson State Teachers College (now William Paterson University) in Wayne, NJ. He taught undergraduate botany and biology for more than 30 years.

Oliver was active in the borough of Glen Rock after moving there in 1958. He served two terms on the Glen Rock Board of Education, was an active member of the Glen Rock Community Church, and served on the Ridgewood Community Relations Advisory Board (now the Community Relations Board of Glen Rock and Ridgewood). He also remained active as a member of the Air Force Reserves until he was eligible for retirement.

Oliver was well known by neighbors and generations of kids on Henry Street and surrounding blocks for his stories, advice, and sense of humor. He was an intrepid world traveler, tennis player, and skier. He started jogging 3 miles a day 6 days a week at the Glen Rock High school track in the early 1970s and could be seen walking around town well into the aughts after jogging became too much for his joints. His “indoor” passion was collecting. He enjoyed collections of African American art, coins, stamps, Big Band vinyl records, models (planes, cars, trucks), books, antiques, and other collectibles.

“Uncle Oliver” was always an enthusiastic participant in family and in-law activities and is remembered by nieces, nephews, great nieces and nephews and great, great nieces and nephews. He was proud and supportive in every way of his wife, Eleanor and daughter, Martha. They will miss him terribly.

Oliver is also survived by his sister Elaine N. Dunn of Neptune, NJ. He was preceded death by his brother Conwell of Los Angeles, CA.

There will be a memorial at the Community Church of Glen Rock (354 Rock Road, Glen Rock NJ) on September 17 at 2:00 pm. For those unable to attend in person, the service will be livestreamed.

The family would be honored by contributions to Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, NY in Oliver’s memory.

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