A funeral mass took place July 27 at St. Aloysius Church, Jersey City, for Kenneth M. French, of Bradley Beach, retired captain, JCPD. He passed away on July 24 at the Jersey Shore Medical Center. He was born in Jersey City on Friday, December 13, 1940, which he always considered to be his ‘lucky’ day. Ken joined the army when he was only 17 years old and served in Munich and Augsburg, Germany. After his honorable discharge, he held jobs at Westinghouse and Maxwell House Coffee for short periods before he found his niche and dream job, the Jersey City Police Department. His career with the JCPD took him to much advancement, spanning 1969 1999, during which he held various commands: detective, motorcycles, tactical squad, medical bureau and finishing his 30 plus years of public service as Captain and Commander of the South District in Jersey City for 7 years. His ‘spit and polish’ demeanor from being in the Army Airborne never left him. He was to be in charge of the JCPD Honor Guard and marched in too many parades to remember. He was a true native son of Jersey City retiring to Bradley Beach in 1999.
He was a parishioner of The Church of the Ascension, Bradley Beach. Ken was a life time member of the AMVETS, loved to work crossword puzzles, was an avid reader and a diehard NY Yankee and Giants fan. He especially enjoyed many years of ‘snowbirding’ in Florida since retiring in June of 1999. He was predeceased by his father, Howard French. Leaving to cherish his memory are his mother, Rose French; the love of his life, Bonnie, who was his wife, best friend and partner for 32 years; sons, Lt. Kenneth M. French (JCPD) and his wife Olivia, Sgt. Joseph P. French (JCPD) and Michael E. French, daughters Kelly A. French, and Jennifer H. and her husband Fred Mueller. He was grandfather to twelve wonderful grandchildren: Nicole, Corie, Lisa, Joseph, Isabella Garrett, Oliver, Wyatt, Kenneth, Freddy, Cole and Rylie; he is also survived by his brother Stephen, sister, Lori and former wife, Helen French. Services arranged by the McLaughlin Funeral Home, Jersey City.