Thomas Connell

He was born on January 6, 1953, in Newark, NJ, the son of Joseph and Kathleen (nee Haggerty) Connell. His mom always referred to his birthday (same date as Epiphany) as the celebration of the Three Wise Men and One Wise Guy! He resided in Union, Rahway, Brick, and Barnegat, NJ.

He was an alumnus of St. Michael’s Elementary School (Union) and Roselle Catholic High School. He went on to earn his B.A. from Kean University and his master’s degree in public administration from Rutgers University.

He dedicated his professional life to bettering communities by working for various NJ municipalities and government entities such as the Finance Department in Union Township. He held leadership positions in Clark as the Business Administrator, Rahway as the Community Development Program Director, and finally the County of Union as the Director of the Community Development Program.

Throughout his adult life, he also served on various non-profit Boards of Directors including YMCA of Eastern Union County, Merchants and Drovers Tavern Museum in Rahway, Union County Performing Arts Center, including overseeing its historic preservation restoration, and also served as the President of the Princeton Commons Men’s Club in Brick.

As a young child, he served as an altar boy at Holy Spirit Catholic Church. He enjoyed playing sports such as basketball as well as track and field. He also learned to sail as a youth, which fostered a life-long love of sailing. He joined the Shore Acres Yacht Club (SAYC) and spent many hours on Barnegat Bay racing with members of the SAYC or just sailing with friends.

Another interest that began in his childhood was enthusiasm for Lionel Trains. What started as cherished gifts from his parents eventually became a hobby with a dedicated train room in his adult home. He enjoyed working on the trains with his friends, and he would spend hours watching the miniaturized locomotives go round.

Tom also loved watching Green Bay Packers and NY Yankees games. He enjoyed listening to country music, British Invasion bands, and songs especially by Electric Light Orchestra, Tom Petty, The Eagles, and Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young. His love of music inspired him to begin guitar lessons when he retired. He was a voracious reader of history books on the Revolutionary, Civil, and World Wars as well as novels by Patrick O’Brien and Clive Cussler. On TV, he could often be found watching WWII and history documentaries, old Johnny Carson shows, Fred Astaire movies and series such as “Star Trek”, “Outlander”, and

“Vikings”. Always ready to laugh, he loved watching stand-up comedians like Robin Williams and George Carlin. In addition, Tom enjoyed vacations with his family to places such as Nova Scotia, Cozumel, Cape May, Colorado, and the Netherlands.

Most beloved to Tom were his friends and family. He remained closely connected to his classmates, including his best friends from kindergarten and high school, and throughout his life he valued those friendships deeply. Tom’s vivacious spirit led him to making new friends throughout his days, relationships which he truly treasured. Above all else his greatest joy and proudest achievement were his children and grandchild. The love he had for them was unwavering and profound.

Tom leaves behind a legacy of love, laughter and treasured memories that will live on in the hearts of all who knew him. His quick wit was always at the ready, never missing a chance to bring a smile to those around him. He will be deeply missed and forever loved.

Remaining to cherish Tom’s memory are his wife, Susan Connell (nees Ucci and Dimetros) who regarded him not only as her spouse, but as her best friend, children Kathleen (nee Connell) Travis and Brian Connell, son-in-law Thomas Travis, granddaughter Molly Travis, his “Big Sister” Kathleen Kierce, and sisters-in-law Linda Eldred and Linda Kelly.

Preceding Tom in death are his parents and brother-in-law, Wayne Kierce.

A celebration of Thomas' life will be held on Thursday, June 25, 2026 from 4-7 pm at the Quinn-Hopping Funeral Home, 26 Mule Rd., Toms River. A funeral service will begin promptly at 6:30 pm.

In lieu of flowers donations can be made to: National World War II Museum 945 Magazine St. New Orleans, LA 70130 504-528-1944 ex. 786 www.NationalWW2museum.org or Meals on Wheels of Ocean County 179 South Main St. Building A, Stafford Township, NJ 08050 609-978-6869