Services And Memorial To Be Held For Hoboken Activist Who Died Tuesday

HOBOKEN, NJ — Longtime Hoboken resident, community activist, and volunteer Aaron Lewit died Tuesday at age 75. Services will be held Thursday, Feb. 29, with a memorial next month.

"Last night, I leaned of the tragic passing of Hoboken resident Aaron Lewit," Mayor Ravi Bhalla wrote Wednesday. "Aaron was a rock in our community, who shared his love of our Mile Square with everyone who came in contact with him. Aaron and his wife Lynne helped found Elysian Charter School, he served on the Board of FBW, the Hoboken Shelter, the Hoboken Community Center, and most recently as a commissioner on the Hoboken Housing Authority."

He added, "May Aaron’s memory be a blessing to us all and I hope we all can share a portion of our lives with Hoboken, the way that Aaron did."

According to the Fund for a Better Waterfront, of which Lewit was a long-serving board member, "Tragically, this past year, Aaron had been afflicted with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. This progressive neurodegenerative disease quickly took its toll, sapping his strength and energy. On February 27, 2024, Aaron’s life came to an end."

On Wednesday, FBW wrote in a message:

"Aaron Lewit’s life began in 1948 in the Weequahic section of Newark, New Jersey, a community immortalized in several of Philip Roth’s novels. His father, Herman Lewit, was the Director of the Newark Housing Authority, and his mother, Ruth, worked as a school nurse for the City of Newark. Aaron’s family instilled in him a life-long commitment to social justice issues and progressive causes. When I first met him in 1992, he worked for the Enterprise Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to building affordable housing and promoting racial equity."

Here are details of the service and events:

Aaron Lewit's Funeral

Thursday, Feb. 29 at 2 p.m., King Solomon’s Cemetery, Clifton, N.J. After the funeral, shiva will take place at 627 Garden St. and continue from 12 p.m. onward Friday through Sunday.

Memorial Service

Saturday, March 9 at 11 a.m., Community Church of Hoboken, 600 Garden St.

Read more about Aaron Lewit here.