Thank you for allowing me to share the story of my life after Livingston High School. It was clear to me early on that I wanted to become a shop teacher, much like Mr. Tonnesen, my mentor and woodshop teacher at LHS. Starting after graduation, I attended Montclair State College and got my degree in Industrial Arts Education.
During my final semester of college, while in the midst of completing my student teaching requirements, an unexpected opening for a teacher developed at Parsippany High School. I was truly fortunate to be hired by the Parsippany school district as a High School teacher even before I actually graduated from college and with a temporary (emergency) teaching certification. For the next 35 years, I taught Woodworking, Auto shop, Vocational Building trades, Drafting, Stagecraft and coached varsity football. Over the years, many of my students that I taught opened their own businesses in the carpentry field and I have gotten a lot of satisfaction when in a Home Depot or lumber yard I see former students getting supplies to do work on their own houses using the skills that I taught them. Not only that, but there were also two players that I helped coach who ultimately played professional football.
While a teacher, I started J. Groome and Sons Construction, a company which I operated alongside the teaching and coaching during the school year and full time in the summers. I was a hands-on contractor, along with my sons, and we worked on thousands of home projects over many years.
Back in the summer of 1982, I rented a house down the shore in Belmar with a bunch of guys from Livingston. This is where I met my beautiful wife of 40 years, Jean, at a bar called “Gallaghers”. We were married in April of 1984 and settled for a brief time in Lake Hopatcong. Our next home was then in Byram Township (Sussex County) for 27 years, where we raised our four wonderful, successful sons. Jean does real-estate work and three of my sons are in finance in NYC and the fourth works in law enforcement.
When our youngest son graduated Lenape Valley High School, we decided to move to the town where it all began, Belmar. We bought a rundown duplex with a cottage one block from the beach. While we lived in the cottage, I spent most of 2013 tearing down the house (leaving only two exterior walls) and then building it into the home we live in now. I commuted from Belmar to Parsippany for a short time until retiring from teaching in 2015. Since then and continuing to the present, each of my sons have bought rental properties which keeps me busy with the renovations. I had also volunteered on the Belmar First Aid for a few years. And I belong to the Belmar Fishing Club and once a week I volunteer time there with the “Tuesday Work Crew” doing repairs on the building. We also have three grandchildren whom we often babysit. As you can imagine there isn’t much rest time for us, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.
Jean and I have started to travel a bit. We have gone to Scottland, Ireland, and Portugal. Our trip to Portugal was made more special as it included the baptism of our granddaughter Amalia. Our daughter in law’s family lives in Portugal. Our son Mike is getting married in October 2024, and our other son James will be getting married next October 2025. Jean and I frequently enjoy bicycling along the ocean to Asbury or south to Spring Lake. There is lots going on every day in the Groome house which keeps us moving and young. I live a good life and enjoy every day to the fullest and I hope you do too.
