MILLVILLE, NJ — The Cumberland County Democratic Party announced their selection of Robert “Tony” Surace, a former Millville football coach and school administrator, as their next Freeholder candidate in the November 2011 election. The announcement was officially made at a press conference held on Thursday, July 21, 2011 at the American Legion in Millville, NJ.

Surace worked in the Millville School District for 37 years primarily as a teacher of Health & Physical Education. During his tenure, he served for 25 years as head coach of the Millville High School Football Team and 14 years as Supervisor of Health, Physical Education, Intramural Sports and Athletics.

Surace will be running for a seat on the Cumberland County Board of Chosen Freeholders that is being vacated by Freeholder Jane Jannarone, who announced in June that she will not be seeking reelection.

“We looked at a number of potential Freeholder candidates from across the County,” said Doug Long, who along with Bob Balicki serves as Co-Chair of the Cumberland County Democratic Party. “Thanks to his superb record of leadership and commitment to his community, both in his teaching career and on the sports field, Tony Surace stood out as the person most fit to join our team and help take Cumberland County in a new direction.”

Joining Surace on the November ballot will be Freeholder Director William Whelan and Sheriff Robert Austino, both running for reelection, along with Deerfield Township Committeewoman Carol Musso who is running to replace outgoing Freeholder Rev. James Dunkins.

“Tony Surace has established a stellar reputation in both Millville and Cumberland County as someone who is humble, honest and dedicated to community service,” said Freeholder Director Whelan. “I’m proud to have him as a running mate and I look forward to working with him to resolve the challenges facing our County.”

“There have been several opportunities for me to run for elected office in the past and when asked, I have always respectfully declined,” said Surace. “But this is a new day. Since my retirement there has been a void in my life, and I believe that serving as County Freeholder will grant me another opportunity to have a positive impact on peoples’ lives. If elected, I will adhere to the same principles that defined me as a successful coach and educator – honesty, discipline, integrity, teamwork and a passion for serving others.”

Surace’s long list of career accomplishments include being inducted into the South Jersey Coaches Hall of Fame, the New Jersey Football Coaches Hall of Fame and the New Jersey Interscholastic Coaches Hall of Fame. His 25 years of coaching led the Millville Senior High School football team to eight Conference Championships, ten County Championships, five State Play-off Appearances and one State Championship.

After retiring from teaching, Surace first served as Vice President of Salmon Ventures Limited, a government affairs firm based in Millville, and then later transitioned into an associate role at the company. In 2007, he helped produce a 170-page efficiency study on all aspects of the Passaic County government operations. Surace has also played a lead role in assisting the Bridgeton School District raise nearly $5 million from public and private sources to build a new High School Stadium.

Surace earned his Bachelor of Science (BS) from West Chester State College in 1969 and his Master of Arts (MA) in Health & Physical Education from Glassboro State College in1979. He received his Principal Certificate and Supervision Certificate from Glassboro State College in 1981.

Married for 43 years to the former Barbara Nauss, Surace has two sons: Bob and Brian. Bob is married to Dr. Lisa Tanners Surace and they have two children, Alison Lilly and AJ. Bob is the current head football coach at Princeton University. His brother Brian, married to Susan McAllister Surace, serves as the head football coach at Fairleigh Dickinson University.

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