Two new names – Virginia “Ginny” Wright Westphal and Albert P. Ratz Sr. – both late residents of Sea Girt, are being added to a Memorial Park monument in recognition of their lifelong dedication to the community. The name of James Bogan Sr., who was selected in 2024, will also be placed on the memorial stone.
The Memorial Monument Committee accepts, reviews and selects nominees annually as a way of permanently recognizing those who have contributed to the borough in outstanding ways.
The monument, relocated to inside The Plaza, currently features a stone with 12 names, with three more to be added. The committee suggested adding some sort of extension, such as wings, to the existing monument, committee chairman Bob Ferguson said, and have also considered adding another monument.
“Wright Wesphal embodied the spirit of Sea Girt, through her unwavering dedication to her community, her historical preservation efforts and her remarkable leadership. (Her) life was a testament to the ideals of community, service and preservation,” the nominee application states. She and her family moved full-time to Sea Girt in 1946, where she attended St. Catharine School and Manasquan High School, and returned back after attending college out of state.
Wright Westphal was involved in Sea Girt in many different capacities, most notably in her 18-year role as a Sea Girt Lighthouse trustee.
Check out our other Sea Girt stories, updated daily. And remember to pick up a copy of The Coast Star—on newsstands Thursday or online in our e-Edition.
Subscribe today! If you're not already an annual subscriber to The Coast Star, get your subscription today! For just $38 per year, you will receive local mail delivery weekly, with pages and pages of local news and online access to our e-edition on Starnewsgroup.com.
 6x10 4c.jpg)
