Linda Grunin, Toms River lawyer, developer and philanthropist, dies at 75

TOMS RIVER – Linda Grunin – who with her husband Jay – used her family's considerable wealth to support the arts, public education and healthcare in Ocean County, died Tuesday. She was 75.

The Jay and Linda Grunin Foundation, which she co-founded in 2013, announced her death in a prepared statement.

“It is with great sadness that we announce the unexpected passing of Linda Kalmanowitz Grunin, co-founder and co-chairman of the Jay and Linda Grunin Foundation. Linda was a remarkable woman, a respected lawyer, and a savvy businesswoman,” the statement read.

Jay Grunin mourned the loss of his wife in a heartbroken post on his personal Facebook page Tuesday, where he wrote: “To my wife and life partner: My love is now away from me; yet I will forever remember tenderly; her darling smile, her love of life; her inner strength in time of strife; her warmth, her beauty, her majesty. I miss you so much already — Jay.”

In its five years of operation, the Toms River-based Grunin foundation has become one of the most recognizable and generous philanthropic institutions on the Jersey Shore — having spent more than $14 million to date on various projects with an additional $17.5 million pledged on future works.

In 2014, the foundation announced a $5.75 million donation to Ocean County College in Toms River to establish The Jay and Linda Grunin Center for the Arts — a performing arts theater located on the Toms River campus.

Then last June, the Grunins announced that they would join with the Ocean County Board of Freeholders to build the county vocational technical school's first performing arts high school — also to be located on the OCC campus.

More: Grunin Foundation helps Toms River schools revamp learning

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Their foundation has also worked to expand the availability of advanced healthcare in the region. For example, at Community Medical Center in Toms River, The Jay and Linda Grunin Neuroscience Institute is the result of a $3.5 million donation given so Ocean County residents can receive local treatment for brain injuries and disorders.

But perhaps the most visible legacy of their combined work has been their efforts to memorialize Ocean County’s heritage and culture through a series of permanent statues around the Toms River area.

Local sculptor Brian Hanlon’s “Protectors of Freedom” in Bey Lea Park and “Welcome to Ocean County” at the corner of Route 37 and Main Street, both in Toms River, were built as monuments to honor and inspire. The first was created in tribute to the sacrifices of local veterans and the second in homage to ordinary people who persevered, and rebuilt their homes and communities in the aftermath of superstorm Sandy.

Linda Kalmanowitz was born in Brooklyn on Jan. 19, 1943. The daughter of Sam and Irene Kalmanowitz, the former a shoe salesman and World War II Army combat veteran, who owned Philips Shoe Shop in Toms River.

Grunin grew up on the Jersey Shore in both Ocean and Monmouth counties. She graduated cum laude from Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts before she went onto receive her juris doctor degree from New York University School of Law. There, she was one of 10 women enrolled in a class of 300, according to her obituary released by the foundation.

During her time at NYU, she met her future husband, Jay, in 1966. Three years later, the couple were married and settled in Toms River where they practiced law together. As their practice thrived, the couple invested in mainly commercial real estate projects.

The real estate market in Ocean County over the next 30 years would prove to be a lucrative venture. The county's population was booming — from 208,470 people in 1970 to 510,916 people in 2000.

By the late 1990s, the Grunins had retired from the day to day law practice to concentrate full time on land development and their philanthropy.

Grunin is predeceased by her parents. She is survived by her husband of 48 years, Jay; son, Jeremy and his wife Laura; her grandchildren, Joshua, Rebecca and Emma; her brother Stuart and his wife Pam; and nieces Karenina and Kamianna.

Jay and Linda Grunin's son, Jeremy, serves as president of the Grunin foundation and is the host of the local talk radio show “Topic A,” which airs on 92.7 WOBM on Sunday mornings.

Funeral services will take place at 1 p.m. April 15 at Congregation B'nai Israel in Toms River with burial immediately following at the Congregation B'nai Israel Memorial Cemetery.

The family will observe Shiva starting on Sunday at their residence at 9 Cranmoor Dr. in Toms River, immediately following the funeral services and until 8 p.m. Sunday; and then from noon to 6 p.m. on both Monday and Tuesday.

Erik Larsen: 732-682-9359 or elarsen@gannettnj.com