David Posner died peacefully on Sunday, October 9, surrounded by his family. Those who will miss loving and antagonizing him forever include his wife of 49-years Lori, his sister Amy, his mother Nita, his mother-in-law who loved him like a son, Ruth, and his children Joshua (Kara), Zachary (Mia) and Jonathan (Molly). His surviving family is devastated that his grandchildren Juliette, Izzy, Henry, Samson and Lou will be deprived of the opportunity to spend time with their grandpa who loved them so dearly.
David was New Jersey through and through. He was born in Bayonne and raised in Millburn. David wanted the best for his children, so he upgraded towns and bought a house in Maplewood where he raised his family. Once all of the children were out of the house, Lori and David moved down the road to South Orange, where they designed a house together that they absolutely adored and lived happily until David’s passing.
David was a child of the 1960s with all that entails. He was a hippie, but wasn’t obnoxious about it. A committed progressive and activist, David was involved in numerous social justice projects as a teenager. As a child, he had a love for music and was an accomplished guitarist who played in various local rock bands.
After graduating from Millburn High School, he attended Brandeis University, where after a brief sojourn at the Berklee School of Music, he graduated with a bachelor’s degree, majoring in Economics with a minor in Mind-Expanding Studies in 1972.
David Posner
David married the love of his life Lori (who also grew up on the same street in Millburn!) and went to work running the family business, a clothing store named Posner’s in Bayonne, with his parents Nita and Alvin. With some of his questionable sartorial choices you might not know that he ever worked in fashion, but that could be attributable to the fact that he literally gave the shirt off his back to his family. Or more accurately, his son Josh stole every nice piece of clothing he owned. But as Lori often said, “he cleans up real nice, you gotta give him that.”
David later went on to have a long and successful career in commercial real estate where he leased and sold industrial warehouses and developed a knowledge of directions in Northern New Jersey that would put Google Maps to shame.
David was usually the smartest person in the room, but he wasn’t a jerk about it. Unless you were watching Jeopardy with him, then he’d mop the floor with you. He was a voracious reader whose life revolved around the municipal library system. He would bring books with him wherever he went. Even to the movies which drove his sons insane. (There’s five minutes before the previews, why can’t you just sit there and eat popcorn with your family like a normal person?!).
David loved playing the guitar and talking about various obscure Blues musicians. So if you ever wanted to know more about Joe “Wingy” Manone or “Jelly Roll” Morton, all you had to do was ask David. He was also a fantastic cook and made dinner for his family each night, graciously sparing his kids from their mother’s cooking. His home was the center of every extended family Sunday night dinner and holiday gathering, where the food was always amazing and everyone had a good time before his sons started screaming and fighting. David loved traveling the world with his wife, helping others and had a top-notch sense of humor.
David died because of a weak heart, but it was a heart full of love. He would’ve found that line corny, but it’s true.
