Carol Anne Hall née Fagan passed away peacefully Sept. 8, 2026, surrounded by her loving family, just one day shy of her 88th birthday.
Born Sept. 9, 1938, in the Bronx to Lawrence and Anne Fagan (Haggerty), Carol grew up in Queens and attended St. Luke’s grammar school, then went on to attend St. Agnes, an all-girls Catholic high school in College Point, where she made countless friends with whom she remained close until her final days.
Carol trained in classical piano from childhood, attended the New York College of Music, and developed a lifelong passion for the great composers, particularly Chopin.
She met her future husband, George, when she was 14; they married in 1958 and had their first of five children in 1960. They lived in Flushing, Queens, until 1966, when they moved to Williston Park on Long Island.
In addition to building lasting relationships in the community, she worked in the music department at St. Aiden’s Elementary School and taught piano to many young students. She also wrote poems for every occasion and won a few poetry contests. In 1972, the family moved to Freeport, where their home on the water became the center of countless family memories. They spent summers boating, swimming and enjoying time together as a family. She continued to give piano lessons and eventually became music director at Curé of Ars grammar school. She loved working with the kids, accompanying them in drama productions, and putting on lavish Christmas shows.
Carol was an amazing sight reader; music and the piano were her passion, second only to her deep devotion to family, friendship and faith. Many family parties centered around her and her father, aunts and uncles sitting at the piano or playing the accordion with everyone singing in the background. She passed on her talents to her children and grandchildren who similarly gather around the piano with other instruments whenever possible. Her example of playing piano and appreciating all types of music shaped each member of her family. Nothing pleased Carol more than watching her children, and later grandchildren, perform in the home or at recitals.
In 1992, she and George retired to Hobe Sound, Florida, where she made countless new friends, enjoyed boating and picked up golf, painting and sculpting. In 2017, six years after George’s death in 2011, she moved to New Jersey to be closer to her children and grandchildren. She remained active in the Seabrook community in Tinton Falls before moving in with her oldest daughter, Deborah, in 2024, where she was lovingly cared for until her passing.
Carol was predeceased by her husband George and her grandson Teddy. She is survived by her sister Althea Jackson (James); her children, George (Lori), John (Jeannette), Deborah (Henry), Victoria (Justin) and Jessica (Brian); and 17 grandchildren, Emma, Julia, John, Caroline, Alexandra, Andrew, George, Henry, Kathryn, Ainsley, Christopher, Ronan, McLane, Parker, Sarah, Luke and Charlotte. She is also survived by her best friends, Angela and Rudy Parisi, and many great friends from St. Agnes and Williston Park.
Visitation will be held from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 17, at John E. Day Funeral Home in Red Bank. A funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, Sept. 18, at The Oratory of St. Anthony of Padua in Red Bank.
Donations may be made to the Carol Anne Hall Performing Arts Fund at Trinity Hall by contacting the school at trinityhallnj.org.
The article originally appeared in the September 17 – 23, 2026 print edition of The Two River Times.
