Olive Tonneman passed away peacefully on February 25, 2024, after a long and happy life. Olive was preceded in death by her loving husband, Roger, 34 years ago.
Olive was born in Elizabeth, N.J. She was raised in an extended family environment in Linden, daughter of Albert and Olive Winans Handy, and she loved her childhood experiences. She had one sister, Edna, who was her best friend and confidant throughout her life. The two were so close in age they went through grade school in the same class, and were mistaken for twins. Sadly, Edna passed away in 2022.
Olive and Roger were high school sweethearts. Roger had perfect pitch and was a professional musician; Olive was tone deaf. Together, they made beautiful music.
In 1967, Olive and Roger moved to Colts Neck, NJ with their three children, Lynn, Noel, and Roger. Within a few years, Olive decided to go to college, while working full time as a teacher’s aide in Colts Neck, and she continued on to earn her Master’s Degree, always making sure she left a home-cooked meal for the family before leaving for work in the morning. She had a loving but no-nonsense approach to teaching, she enjoyed her 25 years of teaching in Colts Neck, and she had such an impact on students that some still corresponded with her to this day.
Family was very important to Olive. She had six grandchildren. Lynn (Bob) Miller have three children –Jeffrey (Tracy), Brian (Snow), and James. Noel has one daughter, Katie. Roger (Carol) have two children, Luke and Ingrid. The grandchildren then produced six great-grandchildren. Luke (Kirsten) have Roger, Hazel and Tiffany. Katie (Chris Kopecki) have Caroline, Jack and James. Brian (Snow) have Esean. Her grands and greats loved and respected Olive because she was a kind, supportive, encouraging, and involved grandma.
In 1975, Olive and Roger went on their first overseas adventure in celebration of their 25th wedding anniversary. That sparked a love of travel that took Olive all over the world, from China, to Singapore, to Turkey, Greece, Croatia, Sweden, and mainland Europe, first with Roger, then with her sister Edna, then with various friends, and then with her grandchildren.
Olive loved to read and watch movies, starting with the Saturday afternoon doubleheaders when she was a child and then with her “movie group” of friends. But her special project was her family tree, and she spent years researching it until finally, at age 90, the tree, dating back to 890 A.D., was declared complete.
After losing Roger in 1989, Olive moved to Fair Haven. There, now known as “Mia” to the neighborhood, she solidified the integral role she would play in Katie’s life.
Olive had joy in everyday life and in her family. She was kind-hearted to friends and honest with all. She laughed until tears fell.
She had quite a spiritual side too, and was confident she would be reunited with Roger after passing through this life. In one of the many letters her children have since found, she wrote: “The most important thing I want you to remember is that I loved my life from my childhood shared with my sister through my life with Roger and my children. I had a very happy, satisfying life. I loved my husband dearly. I don’t know what lies ahead after passing through this life. I do know that we go on existing because Roger proved that to me. I’ll be able to go on living through your memories. I will try hard to share another lifetime with you.”
We love you, Mom, and will miss you. Until we meet again.
Visitation will be held on Friday, March 1st from 4-6 pm at Thompson Memorial Home, 310 Broad St, Red Bank, NJ 07701. Graveside service will be held on Saturday, March 2nd at 10:30 am at Fair View Cemetery, Middletown, NJ.
Comments powered by CComment