'His injuries are indescribable': Photographer still unresponsive after alleged racial attack

Steph Solis | Asbury Park Press

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When Noel Olivarius joined the Freehold First Aid Squad 21 years ago, she said it was Jerry Wolkowitz who welcomed her into the family.

"Other crew members were treating me like I was some kid off the street," said Olivarius, who had served on another squad for three years prior to joining Freehold. "But Jerry understood that, yeah, I did know something. He kind of treated me like an equal and protected me and encouraged me to not take it personally."

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That's the kind of person he is, an "innocent soul," says Olivarius and other friends of Wolkowitz. That's why they say that a violent attack on the squad member and Asbury Park Press freelance photographer on May 1 came as such a shock.

Weeks after the brutal assault on Wolkowitz, 55, of Freehold Township, in the parking lot of his residence, friends and loved ones wonder why he was the target of what police have described as a race-based attack and whether he will recover.

"Jerry is the type of person that would be more happy helping other people than he would be worrying about himself," said Eddie Parze, a close friend of Wolkowitz, "the type of person who would go out of his way for others, wouldn't expect anything in return."

"The ironic thing about it," he added, "is the gentlest guy in the world gets attacked by an animal."

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Authorities said Wolkowitz was attacked from behind in the parking lot of the Harding Road apartment complex where Wolkowitz lives. He was punched in the head and then dragged into the parking lot before being run over by a Chevrolet Malibu. His blue Kia Forte was then stolen.

Police found Wolkowitz lying in the parking lot area around 7:15 a.m. with injuries to his head and body. Medics rushed him to an undisclosed hospital where he remains in critical condition.

Police charged Jamil S. Hubbard, 25, of Sayreville, with attempted murder, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and first-degree bias intimidation.

Authorities said Hubbard did not know Wolkowitz, but that Hubbard targeted Wolkowitz because of his race. Hubbard is black and Wolkowitz is white.

Several friends of Wolkowitz remain on the first aid squad, either as life members like him or active members who respond to calls. They say they weren't on call the day of the attack and heard about the incident the next day.

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That's when they learned about the extent of his injuries: shattered bones and an unresponsive state.

"When I walked into his room, the first time I saw him, I was halfway between bursting into tears and screaming in anger," says Olivarius, the squad chaplain, who has visited Wolkowitz twice in the hospital. "His injuries are indescribable."

Family members were unavailable for comment.

Wolkowitz, a graduate of Farleigh Dickinson University, started his career producing traffic reports for radio stations, according to his LinkedIn page. He went on to take photographs for Greater Media Newspapers and the Asbury Park Press while working for local ambulance companies and supervising traffic reports at Transcom in Jersey City. He has juggled the jobs while volunteering for Freehold First Aid and taking care of his late father and his mother, both Holocaust survivors.

"Jerry has always had a strong connection and commitment to his family," said friend Dave Weiskopf, citing family members.

Parze, who met Wolkowitz more than three decades ago, says he remembers when they were active members of the squad. He ran out to first aid calls and saw Wolkowitz with a camera in one hand.

Close friends like Parze say they saw firsthand how far Wolkowitz is willing to go to help out his friends. Wolkowitz has photographed birthday parties, graduations and other milestones for Parze's four daughters, now ages 12 through 25. He took a few shifts at Parze's limousine company when it was short-staffed.

First responders already form close bonds, like a secondary family, but Parze said Wolkowitz is more of a brother to him than anyone else.

They collect model trains and attend train shows together. Wolkowitz joined Parze's family on vacations. So the news of the attack hits twice as hard, he says.

"I've seen a million assaults," Parze said. "I can't imagine how many things I've seen, stuff twice as horrific, but when it's somebody that's a part of the family, part of both families, it's a whole new outlook. It really hits home."

Weiskopf, who met Wolkowitz more than two decades ago at a now-defunct ambulance company, said he was looking for a way to help. With the family's blessing, he started organizing a fundraising event to offset Wolkowitz's medical bills.

"It's astounding because Jerry couldn't hurt anybody," he said. "We have to do something."

Steph Solis: @stephmsolis; 732-403-0074; ssolis@gannett.com.

Help for Jerry Wolkowitz

Friends are planning a fundraising event at a later date in Freehold. For more information, contact Dave Weiskopf at weiscrackin@gmail.com.