John and Dianna Kibildis. (Photo provided)
History is an important subject for residents of the world. We can learn how ancients survived, grew and sustained their society. We can avoid revisiting pitfalls and learn best practices for our own nation.
In Sussex County, it is important to remember and retain our history and explain to others about the sense of place. All of us may participate but many don’t. There are some, though, who have a strong desire, a passion, to save our way of life. And there are a few, very few, who have done so during a lifetime of commitment to our county.
Five years ago, we started a program to recognize Young Historians. Part of this, the “top of the pyramid,” is to recognize the few who served a lifetime, including esteemed historians, such as Jennie Sweetman, a person who taught us as we grew up during the past 50 years.
The George Washington Award is given to an experienced Sussex County resident who has shown an interest in history, displayed the perseverance through service to the community and obtained the wisdom gained through their years to help preserve our past. This criteria is not just for those who are young at heart but for those who are part of the embodiment of the community.
This year’s recipient of the award was just such a person. John Kibildis was a pillar of Ogdensburg, serving on various borough committees, as mayor, as a schoolteacher for more than 35 years, as founder of the Historical Society, and as the organizer and moderator of Ogdensburg’s Meet the Candidates Night.
He moved into Ogdensburg as a child and developed a pride for his hometown from working at the NJ Zinc Mines Bowling Alley as a pin setter, playing baseball and competing naturally with his twin brother, Bill, as well as volunteering for the Civil Air Patrol in the late 1950s.
Ogdensburg was always front and center for John. He started teaching at Hardyston Elementary School in 1971, then at Ogdensburg Elementary school in 1972 until his retirement in 2007. During his tenure at Ogdensburg, he was the middle school history teacher, teaching more than 1,500 students the concepts of civics, the Constitution, and the value of national and local history.
In the late ’70s and early ’80s, several people recognized that there was a need to hold onto the history of Ogdensburg. John along with other distinguished town members - Majorie (Langlinais) Strohsahl, Wasco Hadowanetz, Patrica Dolan and John “Jack” Madden - started organizing a historical society to ensure recognition of the importance of Ogdensburg in the development of mining in New Jersey during the industrial age and of the world-famous zinc ore as well.
John spent 30 years organizing and hosting Ogdensburg’s Meet the Candidates Night to ensure that every voter had an opportunity to understand and hear what each candidate stood for so citizens could make an informed decision when they went to vote.
Throughout the years, John was invited and attended almost all the functions at the school and firehouse as well as town-sponsored ceremonies. Many times, he was asked to be the Masters of Ceremonies, feeling quite comfortable behind the microphone all those times.
Because of health reasons in October 2023, John and his wife bowed out. In February, he was diagnosed with ALS, which changed their lives in a very short time.
During that time, the historical society board of trustees was pointed in the direction of the Young Historian Awards and worked together to submit the application on John’s behalf. In June, Ogdensburg Historical Society celebrated its 40th anniversary with only a few original members and looked back on all the hard work that had been done to preserve Ogdensburg’s history. Much of that was driven by John Kibildis.
On Aug. 3, the president of the Ogdensburg Historical Society accepted this award on behalf of John Kibildis. John and his family were heartfelt in their review of what was submitted with the knowledge that his hard work and efforts for Ogdensburg provided a difference to the community and those around him.
Ogdensburg monitored and prayed for John and his family since his diagnosis. On Aug. 20, he succumbed to his disease. The family felt the outpouring of support as the borough rallied around him at his funeral.
He will not be forgotten easily as the pickleball portion of the newly repaved tennis/pickleball and basketball courts is dedicated to him.
He and his wife, Dianna, also were named Ogdensburg’s Seniors of the Year, with the road around Borough Hall renamed J&D Kibildis Way for 2024.
Mostly, John Kibildis will not be forgotten by Ogdensburg residents because of who he was. His outpouring of love to this little borough will live on.
Bill Truran, Sussex County’s historian, may be contacted at billt1425@gmail.com
