Paul S. Sullivan
Paul S. Sullivan, 58, of St. Petersburg, Florida, formerly of North Arlington, died May 18, 2023. Paul leaves behind his loving partner, Lynn Hettrich.
Paul loved life. He enjoyed the Florida beaches, boating, fishing, music and spending time with friends. Those who knew Paul will certainly miss his distinctive laugh and sense of humor.
He was predeceased by his parents Frank and Florence Sullivan and his brother Daniel Sullivan of North Arlington. He is survived by his sisters, Susan Hunkele and Janice Cahill along with nieces and nephews.
A celebration of life will take place at a later date.
James S. Burns
James S. Burns died May 12, 2023.
He was 88.
Born in Jersey City, he was a lifelong Kearny resident.
Visiting will be Wednesday, May 24, at the Armitage Wiggins Funeral Home, 596 Belgrove Drive in Kearny, from 9 until 11 a.m. and burial will follow in Holy Cross Cemetery in North Arlington.
Jim served in the United States Army from 1958 until 1960. He was a retired clerical assistant having worked for AT&T in Jersey City.
He is survived by his life partner Bill Conover and his brother Peter G. Burns (his wife Lyndal). He was the brother of the late Patricia Steinbrick and Margaret Robertson. Also surviving are loving nieces, nephews and their families.
In lieu of flowers, kindly make a donation to your own favorite charity in Jim’s memory.
Michael Padovano
Michael Padovano died May 20, 2023.
He was 69.
Born in Newark, he lived in Harrison before moving to Manahawkin 20 years ago.
Visiting will be on Tuesday, May 23, 2023, from 3 until 7 p.m. at the Armitage & Wiggins Funeral Home, 596 Belgrove Drive, Kearny. Family and friends will gather again on Wednesday, May 24, at 11 a.m. and leave for Holy Cross Cemetery at noon for graveside funeral prayers.
Mike was a Captain on the East Newark Police Department. After retiring, he worked for the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission. He was a proud member of the Fraternal Order of Police. He was also a member of the Harrison Lions Club as well as the Elks both in Harrison and Manahawkin.
Son of the late Anthony and Dolores (nee Casey) Padovano, he was the husband of Bernice (nee Wnorski) and father of Dawn Padovano (Sam), Crystal Cortacans (Henry), Michael Gilmore (Gabriela), Danielle Taylor (John) and the late Brian Gilmore. Brother of Darlene Capobianco (Mark) and the late Allan Padovano, he is also survived by his grandchildren, Adrian, Nicolette, Jake, Tyler, Logan, Cameron and Mason along with loving nieces and nephews and their families.
In lieu of flowers kindly consider a donation to the Boomer Esiason Foundation for Cystic Fibrosis in Mike’s memory at www.esiason.org/donate.
George Vlachos
George Vlachos died May 17, 2023.
He was 90.
Born in Vagia, Greece, he came to the United States in 1958 and he lived in Jersey City before moving to Kearny in 1962.
Visiting and the funeral was at St. George Greek Orthodox Church, Clifton. Burial was in Crest Haven Memorial Park in Clifton.
George served in the Greek Airforce during World War II. He was Past President of the Society Theveon Epaminodas and was a member of AHEPA. George was also an accomplished chef.
Husband of Panagioula (nee Golematis) Vlachos, he was also the father of Konstantina Vlachos Keastead and Alexandra Kontos. Brother of Demetria Vlachakis, Thomas Vlachos and the late Efrosini Potamousis, also surviving are his grandchildren Christie, Julia and Mikayla and his great-granddaughter Calliope.
The greatest joy in George’s life was loving his family and spending every free moment with them celebrating life.
In lieu of flowers, kindly consider a donation to St. Jude Children’s Hospital in his memory.
Charles Goble
Charles Goble, a lifelong Kearny resident, died May 14, 2023 at Clara Maass Medical Center, Belleville.
He was 49.
Visiting was at the Armitage & Wiggins Funeral Home, 596 Belgrove Drive, Kearny. A Celebration of Life service took place at the funeral home. Cremation was private.
Chuck was the son of the late John and Elizabeth (Murray) Goble. He is survived by his wife Fran Martinez, his daughters Kristin and Ashlynne Goble and his step-children; Grace and Michelle Quinteros. He is also survived by his sister Elizabeth Castro.
In lieu of flowers, kindly consider a donation to www.shatterproof.org. The mission of Shatterproof is to protect children from drug and alcohol addiction and to end the stigma and suffering of those affected by the disease of addiction.
Learn more about the writer ...
Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, an organization he has served since 2006. He is responsible for the editorial content of the newspaper and website, the production of the e-Newspaper, writing several stories per week (including the weekly editorial), conducting live broadcasts on social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook, and X, including a weekly recap of the news — and much more behind the scenes. Between 2006 and 2008, he introduced the newspaper to its first-ever blog — which included podcasts, audio and video. Originally from Jersey City, Kevin lived in Kearny until 2004, lived in Port St. Lucie. Florida, for four years until February 2016 and in March of that year, he moved back to Kearny to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.