State of New Jersey
Executive Order #74

Governor James E. McGreevey

WHEREAS, John J. Fay, Jr. served honorably and with distinction during World War II onboard the U.S.S. Thorn, the U.S.S. Snap and with the U.S. Navy Underwater Demolition Team; and

WHEREAS, after his Naval Service, Jack Fay returned to civilian life to pursue a lifetime of distinguished public service in New Jersey;

WHEREAS, for more than two decades, Jack Fay inspired high school students by teaching and instilling in them an appreciation for history, economics and public service; and

WHEREAS, through his career, Jack has been a teacher and mentor to numerous young leaders of our State; and

WHEREAS, in every elected office he has held - as a Councilman in Woodbridge, as a Middlesex County Freeholder, as a member of the State Assembly and as a State Senator - Jack Fay has been a clarion voice rallying support and protection for people in need; and

WHEREAS, Jack Fay has provided visionary leadership as the Executive Director of the New Jersey Commission on Cancer Research and as a volunteer for the Center of Hope and Emmaus House; and

WHEREAS, for over four decades, Jack Fay's articulate advocacy for the rights of the elderly and veterans has been legendary; and

WHEREAS, in the 1970's and 1980's, Jack's leadership as Vice Chair of the Health and Institutions Committee helped to organize the first hearings at the State's psychiatric institutions; and

WHEREAS, Jack Fay was instrumental in securing the passage of legislation to protect the frail elderly in nursing homes, residential health care facilities, and boarding homes, and as a State Senator, was a leader in the movement for New Jersey to adopt the Bill of Rights for nursing home residents that gave residents a legal right of action for violation of any of their enumerated rights; and

WHEREAS, Jack Fay drafted and sponsored the legislation that created the Office of the Ombudsman for the Institutionalized Elderly - the strongest Ombudsman legislation in the nation; and

WHEREAS, in 1978, Governor Brendan T. Byrne appointed Jack Fay as the first Ombudsman for the Institutionalized Elderly, where he served with extraordinary effectiveness to ensure the adequacy of care and the quality of life for our institutionalized elderly until 1985; and

WHEREAS, in 2002, the Community Health Law Project, a Statewide legal aid society dedicated to people with disabilities, presented Jack the Ann Klein Advocate Award for his many years of service fighting for the rights of nursing home residents; and

WHEREAS, Jack Fay's lifetime of selfless and distinguished service to New Jersey citizens warrants permanent recognition and appreciation; and

WHEREAS, the East Hall at Senator Garrett W. Hagedorn Psychiatric Hospital in Glen Gardner, Hunterdon County, is a stand-alone building housing a 100-bed unit serving geriatric/psychiatric residents, the very citizens Jack Fay worked so hard to protect and support;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JAMES E. McGREEVEY, Governor of the State of New Jersey, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and by the Statutes of this State, do hereby ORDER and DIRECT:

  1. The East Hall at Senator Garrett W. Hagedorn Hospital is hereby renamed the "Senator John J. Fay, Jr. Hall."

  2. This Order shall take effect immediately.



GIVEN, under my hand and seal this 18th day of October
in the Year of Our Lord, Two Thousand and Three, and
of the Independence of the United States, the Two Hundred
and Twenty-Eighth.

/s/ James E. McGreevey

Governor

[seal]

Attest:

/s/ Michael R. DeCotiis

Chief Counsel to the Governor