Franklin Harris, Jr.

Franklin Harris, Jr., age 69, of Hamilton, NJ passed away Wednesday, July 9th, 2025 at his summer home, Dennisville, NJ. 

Born on November 1, 1955 in Salem, NJ, he was the son of the late Franklin Harris, Sr. and Joyce Weatherbee Harris.  He graduated from Salem High School in 1974, the College of New Jersey in 1979 and attended Temple University.  Before his retirement, Frank was the Assistant Athletics Director and  Director of Athletics Facilities for the College of New Jersey, formerly Trenton State College, from 1980 until 2006.  He gave his heart and soul to this job.  Frank was the recipient of the Special Achievement Award from the New Jersey Special Olympics, making him the first honoree outside the organization. Frank was also recognized by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association with the organization's Service Award for his contributions to interscholastic athletics. Frank was honored with the Peter Apostolires Memorial Award by the TCNJ Athletics Department in 2007 and also received the All-American Football Foundation's Outstanding Assistant Athletics Director Award.  Frank was inducted into The College of New Jersey Athletics Hall of Fame in 2015. Frank enjoyed fishing, golfing and going to his trailer at Dennisville Lake Resort.  He was a BIG Philadelphia sports fan. We will miss him at our crab gatherings.  He is survived by his sister, Robin Stepler (Jeff) of Elsinboro; his nephew, Michael Stepler (Melissa) of Pennsville; his niece, Betsy Covaleskie (Will) of Barrington; his great nieces, Hailey and Veronica and his great nephew, Mikey.  He also leaves behind many friends from high school,  the College of New Jersey, special neighbors from Hamilton and Dennisville Lake Resort. 

There will be a memorial gathering at the home of his sister, 7 Schrier Avenue, Salem, NJ 08079 (located in Elsinboro Twp.) on Saturday, August 2, 2025 from 1:00 - 4:00 PM.  

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the College of New Jersey Scholarships Fund in  memory of Franklin Harris, Jr. or a charity of the donor's choice.  Donations can be made at https://give.tcnj.edu/give-now or mailed to Development and Alumni Engagement Green Hall, Room 215, The College of New Jersey, PO Box 7718 2000, Pennington Road Ewing, NJ 08628.

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