[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 52 (Friday, March 21, 2025)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E237-E238]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CELEBRATING THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF PINE BEACH
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HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH
of new jersey
in the house of representatives
Friday, March 21, 2025
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, nestled along the southern
shore of the Toms River, in Ocean County, New Jersey, just near the
mouth of the beautiful Barnegat Bay, is the Borough of Pine Beach.
This picturesque Jersey town boasts of a warm and robust community
where residents cherish American values, dependable, friendly neighbors
and a storied history with a limitless future, full of promise.
On March 25, 2025, Pine Beach will mark its 100th anniversary of its
founding with celebrations, dedications, contests and great fanfare.
Dubbed ``The Pearl of the Toms River,'' the Borough's beginnings are
rooted in the work and vision of two retail merchants from
Philadelphia, Robert M. Horter and George Kelly, who launched a small
summer colony along the coast of New Jersey by acquiring land in 1908
under the name of the Pine Beach Improvement Company. To fulfill their
dream of a home away from home--at no better place than the remarkable
Jersey coastal area--they borrowed many street names from the
Philadelphia area that soon saw construction workers raise sturdy
attractive summer and retirement homes. By 1910, 109 deeds were
recorded and 22 homes built, with groundbreakings for new homes
continuing each year.
As this small desirable community began to grow, local leaders looked
towards establishing a stand-alone borough. On March 25, 1925, a
majority of electors residing in the Pine Beach area voted to
incorporate the borough of Pine Beach in the County of Ocean. Residents
of the newly minted Borough of Pine Beach voted on April 21, 1925, for
their first Mayor, Council, Assessor, and Collector.
We are grateful to the members of the Pine Beach Preservation Society
Historical Committee, who led the research and preservation work that
has helped secure and share the history of the Borough's founding.
President George Roksvaag and Vice President Justine Saxton, are
credited with pouring through Borough and Berkeley Township archives,
as well as documents of the Ocean County Historical Society and the New
Jersey State Library. The Committee's efforts culminated in its strong
recommendation that the current Mayor and Council celebrate and adopt
the date of March 25, 1925, as the Borough's official Founders Day.
And celebrate they will. The official kick-off begins on Monday,
March 24, 2025, with Mayor Lawrence Cuneo, and the Borough's Council
Members James Keesling, Lori McGee, Raymond Newman, Richard Polhemus,
James Saxton, and Barry Wieck at a town hall ceremony where they will
proclaim the official date of Pine Beach Founders Day.
Day-long ceremonies will follow on Tuesday, March 25, led by the Pine
Beach Preservation Society's Events Committee at Borough Hall.
Additionally, delightful artwork depicting scenes of Pine Beach life
composed by local artists will be on display at the nearby Pine Beach
Elementary School, home to the Pine Beach ``Panthers'' and its 400
students.
To cap off the day, Borough celebrations continue with a Pine Beach
Founder's Day Reception at the Pine Beach Yacht Club. Older than the
Borough itself, the Yacht Club has been a true ``anchor'' of the
community since 1916, hosting social and civic activities like dinners,
dances, skits, fairs, auctions, moonlight cruises, and teas. Its Junior
Sailing Program helps train, shape and prepare New Jersey's next
generation of sailors. The evening will include a presentation by
Gretchen Coyle, a writer and member of the New Jersey Maritime Museum
who has written about Pine Beach.
A landmark in the midst of Pine Beach's history is the Pine Beach
Volunteer Fire Company No. 1. The original members--including Howard
Hutchinson, LeRoy Hutchinson and Charles Creamer, Jr.--answered the
first calls nearly 100 years ago and today's Company President, John
Kubilewicz, Chief David McKay and all the dedicated Executive Officers
Line Officers carry the same first responder attributes of courage,
selflessness dedication to their community. Fire Company No. 1 is known
for also hosting great community events and it too will celebrate its
100th anniversary on December 11, 2025.
The heart of the community, Mr. Speaker, may be its historic chapel,
a ``summer church'' built in 1910 by the Reverend August Pohlman, who
is believed to have built the first summer home in Pine Beach in 1909.
Then a pastor of the Temple Lutheran Church in Philadelphia, he became
the first pastor of the chapel. Initially used by both Protestants and
Catholics and even doubling as a schoolhouse for a time, it was put to
year-round use in 1932 with a resident pastor. Today, Pine Beach Chapel
continues its inspiring worship traditions with Sunday services, Bible
studies and other faith activities.
When recapping Pine Beach landmarks, we must also highlight the
original home of the Admiral Farragut Academy, named after the Civil
War naval hero who famously declared in battle ``Damn the torpedoes,
full speed ahead!'' For six decades, between 1933 and 1994, the school
operated as one of only two Naval Honor Schools in tha Nation. Future
Navy aviator and astronaut Alan B. Shepard, Jr. once attended the
school. The history of the academy lives on today at its southern
campus in St. Petersburg, Fla.
It's been a remarkable, impressive 100 years for Pine Beach. Today,
the Borough has more than 900 households and more than 2,100 people,
according to the most recent U.S. Census Bureau figures. As the
congressman for Pine Beach, it is my pleasure to congratulate the
entire community and join you in celebrating this important milestone.
You are truly blessed to call Pine Beach your hometown, an amazing
place to visit, live, and raise a family.
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