New Jersey moves fast. People are always in a rush on the Parkway, coffee in hand, heading toward the next thing. But there is one corner of the local media landscape where everything slows down: the Star Ledger obituaries. Honestly, if you grew up in Jersey, you know the drill. Someone passes away, and the first thing the family does is make sure it gets into the "Ledger." It’s not just about a death notice; it’s about a final stamp of presence in the Garden State.
Lately, there’s been a shift in how people find this information. You’ve probably noticed that the physical paper is thinner, but the digital archives are booming. The recent Star Ledger obituaries from January 2026 tell a story of a changing state, from the passing of local political legends like former Scotch Plains Mayor Gabriel A. Spera to the quiet, hardworking lives of people like Frank O’Brien from Hoboken.
Who We Lost: Recent Star Ledger Obituaries in January 2026
If you’ve been scanning the listings this month, you’ve seen some names that really define what it means to be from this area. Take Gabriel A. Spera, who passed away on January 9, 2026. He was 90. Gabe wasn’t just a name on a page; he was a two-term mayor of Scotch Plains and a guy who literally grew up on a dirt road in Canarsie. He fought against overdevelopment in his town and spent his summers canning tomatoes and making wine. That’s a classic Jersey life.
Then there’s Frank O’Brien, a Hoboken guy through and through, who we lost on January 10. Frank worked at the legendary Quality Deli (Hank’s) and even spent time at the Imperial House in NYC, where he once met Liza Minnelli. His obituary mentions his 50-year marriage and his love for dapper hair and cologne. It’s these small, human details that make the Star Ledger obituaries more than just data points. They are mini-biographies of the people who built our neighborhoods.
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Other notable names from the first half of January 2026 include:
- Thomas F. LaMore (81) of Toms River, a veteran and youth sports coach.
- Erin Coughlin (60) from Jersey City, a high-level product manager at DIRECTV.
- Francis "Frank" Michael Simmons (52) of Warren, an antiques expert and investigator.
- Rose Mary Robertson (92) of Lyndhurst, a vibrant soul from the "Greatest Generation."
Why Searching for Star Ledger Obituaries is Getting Tricky
Look, the way we find these records is kinda confusing now. You used to just flip to the back of the B-section. Now, everything is split between NJ.com, Legacy.com, and various genealogy databases.
If you’re looking for someone specific, you basically have three options. First, the NJ.com obituary search is the most direct. It’s updated daily. However, if you are doing deeper research or looking for someone who passed away a few years ago, you might need to hit the Newark Public Library archives. They have the Ledger on microfilm going back to 1916 and digital records from 2019 onward.
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Pro-Tip for Researchers
When you're digging through the archives, don't just search for a full name. Back in the day, editors weren't always great with spellings, and many women were listed under their husband's names (like "Mrs. John Smith"). If you're hit with a dead end, try searching by just a last name and a specific town like "Kearny" or "Elizabeth."
The Real Cost of Saying Goodbye
Submitting to the paper isn't exactly cheap. For 2026, a basic obituary in the Star Ledger starts at around $244. That price goes up quickly if you want to add a photo, a longer story, or keep it running for multiple days.
Most people don't realize that the "deadline" for the Ledger is actually pretty strict. If you want it in the next day's edition, you usually have to have it submitted by 4:30 p.m. (though Wednesdays and Saturdays have earlier cutoffs). It's a stressful time for families, which is why most funeral homes handle the submission for you. They’ve got the direct lines to the "post-an-obit" desk and know how to format things so they don't get rejected.
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Dealing with "Obituary Pirates"
Here is something nobody talks about: the rise of fake obituary sites. If you search for recent Star Ledger obituaries, you might see weird, low-quality websites popping up with semi-accurate info. These sites "scrape" information from real news sources to get clicks.
Always stick to the official sources like NJ.com, Legacy.com, or the specific funeral home's website. If a site looks like it was written by a robot or asks you to click a bunch of suspicious links to see "service details," get out of there. It’s a shame, but even the business of grief has its scammers.
Actionable Steps for Finding or Placing a Notice
If you need to find a specific person or are tasked with writing a notice right now, follow this sequence:
- Check the Daily Feed: Start at the Star Ledger's official browse page. It’s sorted by "Today," "Yesterday," and "Last 30 Days."
- Verify via Funeral Home: If the name isn't there yet, find the funeral home in the town where the person lived. Places like Stellato Funeral Homes or Higgins Home for Funerals often post the full text on their own sites 24 hours before it hits the paper.
- Use GenealogyBank for History: If you're looking for an ancestor from the 1980s or 90s, this is your best bet for a digitized copy of the actual print page.
- Drafting the Text: When writing, focus on the "why." Mention the hobbies—the gardening, the bowling league, the secret recipe for meatballs. These are the things people search for years later when they want to remember who that person really was.
The Star Ledger obituaries continue to be the definitive record for North and Central Jersey. Even as the media world changes, the need to see a life summarized in black and white—whether on a screen or a newsprint page—remains a core part of how Jersey says goodbye.