Obituary of Robert W. Kulessa

Robert William Kulessa, 75, of Point Pleasant Beach, passed away, Wednesday, September 23, 2015 at Jersey Shore Medical Center, Neptune. Mr. Kulessa was born in Jersey City and resided in Fairview. He graduated from Cliffside Park H.S. in 1959 and Jersey City State in 1963. Shortly thereafter he moved to the Jersey Shore where he began his career in teaching at Central Regional. Three years later, he was hired as a teacher and coach at Point Pleasant Borough, retiring in 2001 after serving 35 years as a history teacher. Bob also coached men's basketball and soccer at the high school, and in 1976, he began the first women's soccer program at Point and one of the five newly created women's programs at the Shore. As coach he led his teams to several Shore Conference Championships. He was especially proud of being a leader in the emerging role for women in the 1970's. He also coached men's basketball at both Stockton and Kean Universities. In addition to his long career as a history teacher, Bob loved coaching, traveling to historical places, reading, and watching sports of all types. Mr. Kulessa was predeceased by his parents, Hugo and Dorothy Kulessa. Bob is survived by his wife of 29 years, Constance Maas, his brothers, Gordon and his wife Marilyn and Bill and his wife Patricia, his brother-in-law, Joe and his sister-in-law, Wendy, his nieces and nephews, Lauren, Geoffrey, Aaron, and Alexa. He is also survived by his dear friends, Corinne and Tom Brennan and their children, Sarah and her husband, Bill, and Tommy and his fiancée, Katelee. Visitation will be from 2 – 6 p.m., Monday, Sept. 28 at the Pable Evertz Funeral Home of Point Pleasant, 901 Beaver Dam Road. His burial will take place on Tuesday in a private family gathering. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his name to The Center in Asbury Park, 806 3rd Ave., Asbury Park, NJ 07712 www.thecenterinap.org To express condolences to the family please visit www.pableevertzfuneralhome.com