Bruce “Buddy” Freitag, 73, passed away at St. Francis Hospital on Saturday, August 20th 2016. He was born in Hightstown, NJ on January 7, 1943. He was predeceased by his parents Arthur Augustus “Yankee” and Mary Bryant Freitag, brother Arthur “Pappy” Freitag, and sister Barbara Bieber.
Bud is survived by his loving wife and partner Suzanne Freitag, sister Joan Morrissey, mother-in-law Irene Lentini, his adoring children Cheryl Gamel, Nancy Erick, Kathy Freitag, Denise Hart, Ryan Hart and Meghan DiSciullo, his seven cherished grandchildren Chelsea, Lauryn, Jenny, Hayley, Casey, Mia and Jonathan, his beloved nieces and nephews, and many dear friends whom he treasured throughout his life.
A 1961 graduate of Hightstown High School, Bud excelled in soccer, baseball, and basketball and his love of sports continued throughout his life. He played softball on the Richardson Realty team, was an avid golfer, and was inducted into the Hightstown High School Sports Hall of Fame in 2004 for his outstanding accomplishments on the Rams soccer team. Bud was also a founding member of the flag football team at Post 148 American Legion. Their quarterback Tom Dimuzio remembers Bud as, “a voice of calm with little fanfare. He assessed situations, asked for input and made the best decisions under the circumstances. He did his job as coach and player with little ego, which made it easy to listen to his counsel. He was never boastful, but you knew he was in control and in charge. I was honored to play with and for him, but I am most thankful that I got a chance to call him my friend.”
He proudly served our country in the 101st Airborne of the United States Army as a radio operator.
Bud was formerly employed as a Facilities Manager by BASF, Assistant Plant Manager at Air Products, Director of Maintenance at the Newark Museum, and retired in December 2015 from the South Brunswick Public Library as Director of Maintenance.
Funeral services will be held at Barlow & Zimmer Funeral Home, 202 Stockton Street, Hightstown on Friday, August 26 at 11am. Viewing hours will be 4pm to 8pm on Thursday.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to HAAA (Hightstown Allentown Athletic Association) Atten: Rich Scheid, 402 Grant Avenue, Hightstown, NJ 08520 or POAC (Parents of Autistic Children) 1989 Route 88, Brick, NJ 08724 http://www.poac.net/default.asp?pid=24.
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