Myrtle M. Elson

With heavy hearts and eyes full of tears, we announce the passing of our beloved matriarch, Myrtle Maude Elson, who left this world peacefully at the age of 92, surrounded by the love she spent a lifetime cultivating.

Myrtle was not just a mother - she was a force. A quiet storm of grace and grit, she raised eight children with unwavering devotion, fierce protection, and boundless love. Her hands bore the marks of labor, her heart the weight of sacrifice, and her soul the light of unconditional care. She gave everything, and somehow always had more to give.

She taught us how to live with dignity, how to fight with kindness, and how to love without limits. Her laughter was the soundtrack of our childhoods, her prayers the shield that guarded our dreams. She remembered every birthday, every heartbreak, every triumph. She was our historian, our healer, our home.

Myrtle's legacy lives on in the lives of her children - each one a reflection of her strength, her wisdom, and her warmth. She was the kind of woman who made strangers feel like family and family feel like royalty. Her kitchen was a sanctuary, her hugs a cure, her stories a treasure.

She is survived by her eight children: Sherley, Claudette, David, Clive, Raymond, Lester, Jennifer, and Lascelles, and their spouses/partners, 20 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren; her two sisters: Carmen Cooper and Ena Russell and her brother, Lenworth Lopez, along with countless nieces, nephews, cousins, other relatives and many friends each carrying a piece of her heart into the future. Though our world feels dimmer without her, we find comfort in knowing she is finally resting, reunited with love from her life journey, and watching over us with the same fierce tenderness that defined her every breath.

Myrtle was love incarnate. And though she is gone, her love remains etched into our bones, whispered into our memories, and blooming in every act of kindness we carry forward.

Rest well, Mom. You were our beginning, our middle, and our most precious memories of a mom.

A viewing will be held on Sunday, September 28, 2025, from 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm at the Lehrer-Gibilisco Funeral Home, located at 275 West Milton Avenue in Rahway, NJ.

Funeral Services will begin at 10:00 am on Monday, September 29, 2025, at the First Baptist Church of Rahway, located at 177 Elm Avenue in Rahway, NJ.