It is with great sadness that the family of Barbara (Cosgriff) Ahmed announces her passing May 24, 2021.
To know her was to love her. At the center of her life was her dear husband, Sobhy, her cherished daughters, Emily and Hannah, and their friendly labradoodle Oscar. In a fulfilling second career after her days at Sullivan & Cromwell in New York City, Barbara provided her girls with thousands of rides to school, games, dance recitals, coffee runs and various area retail establishments. Lately, she had embraced her role of picking up her brother at the Little Silver train station.
As an active and enthusiastic resident of Tinton Falls, she was often called “The Mayor of the Cul-de-Sac.” She loved her neighbors and looking out for them, often being the first homeowner to spot fallen trees, suspicious characters and unfamiliar cars in their driveways. Barbara and Sobhy’s summer parties around the family pool are memorable for their incredible menus, the reliably high turnout of friends and family, and an enjoyment factor that would extend the festivities well into the evenings.
Barbara was also a devout and devoted family member of her local Catholic church and school, St. Leo the Great. After being active as a parent and volunteer throughout her daughters’ years at St. Leo’s, Barbara had begun working as a teacher’s assistant at the school during the time immediately before her death.
To her siblings – Mary Anne, Steve, and Joe – she was the baby sister but also the brightest beacon and the glue who held things together after their beloved sister Joan died in 2005. Barbara is also fondly missed by her Aunt Helen and a small army of close cousins with whom she shared so many happy summers at Point Pleasant Beach.
There was a viewing May 27 at the Bongarzone Funeral Home in Tinton Falls and a funeral Mass of celebration for Barbara at St. Leo the Great Church in Lincroft May 28. Interment followed at Saint Anne’s Cemetery in Wall.
In lieu of flowers, Barbara’s daughters have asked that you consider donating in her name to Lunch Break at lunchbreak.org or to a charity whose mission you support.
The article originally appeared in the June 3 – 9, 2021 print edition of The Two River Times.
