Obituary of Bonnie Mae Elbaz

Bonnie Mae Elbaz (nee Friedman), 72, of Toms River passed away at her home on September 13, 2015 surrounded by her loving family. Bonnie was born on December 22, 1942 in Hillside, NJ to parents Irving and Frieda Friedman. She graduated from Hillside High School (1960) and Rutgers University (1964). While attending graduate school at New York University, Bonnie met Yaacov “Jack” Elbaz in a night club in New York City in 1965. Adventuresome young artist Bonnie followed Yaacov to Beit She’an Israel, where they married in 1966. Bonnie reveled in meeting Yaacov’s large Israeli family and participating in a work/study program on a kibbutz. Bonnie and Yaacov decided to return to the United States in the late 1960s, and settled in a waterfront community in Toms River, NJ. At that time, Bonnie began her career as an art teacher in the Toms River School District. The family grew quickly to include children, Jennifer, Rachel, and David. While raising the children, Bonnie substitute taught art in Toms River Schools and delighted her students (as well as her own children), with her creative art projects. While not working, she enjoyed painting abstract art, sewing and photography. Bonnie returned to the work force full time in the mid-1980s when she began writing for The Ocean County Reporter. Her writing won local and national awards including The American Legion’s Golden Press Award, The Distinguished Achievement Award of the Educational Press Association of America, and The Excellence in Community Media Award from The Association for Retarded Citizens/New Jersey. Bonnie and her editor and longtime best friend, Nancy Semon, relished their work together at The Reporter, which also included reviewing shows at The Garden State Arts Center and reviewing cuisine at shore area restaurants. In the 1990s, Bonnie returned to her first love, teaching, by accepting a position with the Monmouth /Ocean Educational Services Commission engaging in art therapy with at-risk teenagers. In 1996, Bonnie was honored as an outstanding teacher in New Jersey public schools by both the NJ Department of Education and The Ocean County Board of Freeholders. She was known to go above and beyond for her students, always showing deep concern for their wellbeing and success both in and outside of the classroom. Bonnie took extraordinary pride in helping students obtain employment after graduating and successfully transition to adulthood. In recent years, Bonnie was a social worker at Children’s Home Society of New Jersey. She assisted caregivers in providing a nurturing and engaging environment for pre-school children. Bonnie retired in 2008, but continued volunteering for Big Brothers/Big Sisters and other local charities. Bonnie’s caring and compassion for others will live on through her surviving family including husband Yaacov Elbaz of Toms River, NJ, daughter Jennifer Branson and her husband David Branson of McKinney, TX, daughter Rachel Niedzwiecki and her husband Steven Niedzwiecki of Pennington, NJ, son David Elbaz and his wife Lauren Webb of Playa Vista, CA, and her beloved grandchildren Jacob Niedzwiecki, Liam Niedzwiecki, Mason Elbaz, and her fourth grandchild expected in early 2016. Bonnie often referred to a section of the Talmud that, roughly translated states “And whoever saves a life, it is considered as if he saved an entire world.” Indeed, helping a child one at a time is, in addition to her own children, the greatest part of her legacy that will live on for generations to come. Graveside funeral services will be held 1:00pm Wednesday, September 16, 2015 at Ewing Cemetery, 78 Scotch Road, Ewing, NJ 08628. Memorial contributions in Bonnie’s honor may be made to Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Ocean County, 20 Hadley Ave., Toms River, NJ 08753 and The Colon Cancer Alliance, 1025 Vermont Ave., NW, Suite 1066, Washington, DC 20005. Funeral arrangements are under the direction of Belkoff-Goldstein Funeral Chapel, Lakewood, NJ.