Patricia Gallagher from Worcester, PA wrote on July 20, 2016 at 9:29 pm:
Hi Donna, I am a friend of your mom’s – we enjoy our dancing and she gave me your card. Your website is so interesting, and it makes me want to take a drive down the shore now. I was in Belmar yesterday. Our family always went to Ocean City. My memory is that my parents were always quick to take a ride down the shore just for a night. We lived in King of Prussia which was 2 hours away. We always went down for 2 weeks in August too…. and my family welcomed all of my friends too. Best wishes on your wonderful project!
One of the miracles of Facebook was discovering Donna’s new book, Jersey Girl! My mom and her girlfriend grew up on the same street in Fort Lee, NJ. They both wed Jersey boys who worked at Lever Brothers in Edgewater, NJ and again moved into homes on the same street. From there both bought summer/retirement homes in Forked River on the Barnegat Bay! Fishing, crabbing, swimming, skiing, sailing, sailboarding, bicycling, picking cranberries at the bogs, beer on the beach, mini-golfing, HUGE family gatherings – I could go on and on. But of course my most fond memories are bringing my little Jersey Girls, Vanessa and Amanda, to the ocean with their brother, Daniel.
Donna, I am so excited and proud of you. This is wonderful and I couldn’t wait to read your book. You are a special person who has always appreciated EVERYTHING. For you to take your appreciation and run with it and share it with the world is amazing. Good luck my friend!! After receiving and reading your wonderful book I am thinking of many other Jersey Girls that I need to share your book with. People that live outside of NJ have a difficult time understanding what the infatuation with the Jersey Shore is or why there is such pride to be a Jersey Girl. You have delicately and eloquently shared all the reasons why “Down the shore everything’s all right” when you’re a Jersey Girl. Alicia
My fondest Jersey shore memories are those that Donna and I created together every summer, as I stayed with her family at Port Royal Hotel in Wildwood Crest. I was thankful to have been Donna’s guest and to have that opportunity to build on our memories year after year. Donna’s family became mine, and preparing dinner with Mrs. Lynskey in our little kitchen and catching up with Irish Granny was priceless. Mr. Lynskey took our traditional picture out on the balcony after dinner, as I was realizing just how burnt I got…again! If only I could have stayed awake at the Port Royal’s pool, long enough to reapply the lotion! Donna’s brother Dan would always get a laugh or two with us, as brothers always do! Then Donna and I would fill in the gaps with fun at the waterpark and boardwalk, all the while catching up on what we had missed in each other’s lives and what our hopes and dreams were for the future. Donna and I are true Jersey girls. I truly wish you, my friend, all the best on sharing this childhood feeling of growing up as a Jersey Girl and making it come alive for others!
My greatest memory of the Jersey Shore is the first day little Donna Lynskey knocked on my door in Wildwood Crest, NJ. I was a third grade CCD teacher at Saint Joan of Arc School in Marlton, New Jersey and Donna was in my class. She was a very bright and beautiful little girl. I told my class that I was moving to the Jersey Shore and that would be my last year teaching there. After class Donna asked me for my new address so she could write to me. I told her I did not have an address yet because we had to build the house first. So she asked me on what street I was going to build my house and I told her. Two summers later, there was a knock at my door. To my surprise, there was beautiful little Donna Lynskey with her father. She looked at me and excitedly and said, “Mrs Monti, I found you!” Needless to say, there were tears in my eyes and a joy in my heart to see her. Her dad told me that they walked my street the year prior looking for me, but could not find my house. This year, when they walked down the street Donna said “Dad, I know that this is her house.” I thank God she found me. It is a real blessing to me to be a part of her family. Every year we meet at the Jersey Shore and spend time together. I love each and every member of of her family. Congratulations Donna! I can not wait to read your book God Bless you always Love, Mrs Monti
This book was meant to be written by Donna who I so enjoyed having visit our beach house. She is a Jersey Girl! I am too, born and still living in NJ. The beach centers me. Three generations of my family have enjoyed our little nine block town of Normandy Beach since 1933. It doesn’t matter if it is winter, fall, spring or summer,…my tranquil place is the beach. Low tide walks collecting seaglass, sunbathing, sun napping, reading and moonlit social gatherings are just some of the things we do in Normandy. My fondest memories include my first kiss, being proposed to, watching my young children run along the coast like sandpipers and having my parents teach their grandchildren the secret of the sea. Love, Love, Love the Jersey shore!
This book reminds me of how wonderful it is to be a Jersey Girl! My family and I spent summers at the beach in Wildwood Crest. I can still see my sister and I starting the day with a bike ride on the boardwalk. My parents even rode a bicycle built for two! I remember days spent at the beach having fun in the sun. We spent hours with our dad playing in the ocean “jumping” the waves. The fun was not limited to just the daytime hours, though. Spending evenings on the boardwalk was amazing. How I loved feeling that cool ocean breeze! It was the perfect reason to wear a warm and cozy hooded sweatshirt. We loved going on rides and playing games. Of course you couldn’t leave without ice cream, fudge, or some other delicious boardwalk treat! Jersey Girl brought back those simple pleasures. It is a beautiful book. Thank you!
I remember spending many summer days and nights on the shores of Jones Beach in Wantagh, Long Island. The boardwalk extended for miles with many pleasant memories of dancing in the bandshell when my husband and I were younger as well as taking our children to the beach to collect shells and build sand castles along the shore. Years ago there were magnificent plays and water shows at night, an ice cream parlor, retail shops and delicious clam chowder, also occasional fireworks around the pool area all while clowns pretended to jump off the high diving board. The ocean had a magnetic effect on a person drawing you into the healing powers of the salt. The sound of seagulls and waves crashing against the shores – miss it very much since moving here to PA. Good Luck with your book signing!
One of the gifts I have found in writing this book is that once someone reads it or hears the message, they start reminiscing and sharing the first memories that come to mind regarding the shore. I love hearing about these experiences!