Long Valley Man Known For New Year's Eve Ball Drop Passes Away

LONG VALLEY, NJ — Obituary and image provided by the Willian J. Leber Funeral Home:

Anthony D. D’Urso, 68, of Long Valley, NJ passed away on Tuesday, July 31, 2018 peacefully at home surrounded by family. Anthony was born on December 8, 1949 in Newark, NJ. He has lived in Long Valley for 39 years and previously lived in Pitman, NJ and grew up in Nutley, NJ. Anthony most recently was a project manager for Verizon but has worked for numerous Telecom companies, including AT&T, over the years. Prior to the telecom industry, he taught high school math for 8 years. Anthony was a graduate of Glassboro State College and received his Masters from Rutgers.

Anthony was the biggest family man and always put his family first. He enjoyed traveling across the world, especially with his family. Anthony made it a priority to be involved in his children’s lives and was a very hands on dad, who coached many of his children's sports teams throughout the years. Anthony loved cigars, tequila, and red wine. He was also an avid golfer. Anthony was most known in the Long Valley community for the New Years Eve ball drop that he would coordinate on his property. In year 2000 it started as a 30 foot ball drop and eventually grew to 72 feet where hundreds of people attended.

Anthony is survived by his wife of 44 years, Ida (nee Pivirotto) D’Urso, his children, Jessica Tarlton and her husband Kevin, and Christopher D’Urso, his grandchildren, Reese and Conor Tarlton, his siblings, Joe D’Urso and wife Deb, Elissa Fischer and husband Joseph, Martin D’Urso and wife Gail, Pamela Marsiano and husband Robert, and George D’Urso and wife Regina, and many nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his parents, Martin and Rose D’Urso.

A Celebration of Anthony’s Life will include a memorial gathering on Friday, August 3, 2018 from 5pm to 8pm at the William J. Leber Funeral Home, 15 Furnace Road (corner of Rt. 206), Chester, NJ (908) 879-3090. An 11am funeral mass will be held on Saturday, August 4, 2018 at Our Lady of the Mountain Church, 2 East Springtown Road, Long Valley NJ. Interment will be held privately by the family.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, https://www.stjude.org/donate.

For online condolences and information visit www.leberfuneralhome.com.