Blogfinger

Hal Mante helping his men install railings at the south end of Ocean Grove. PG photo 4/13/13.  Click left for full view

By Paul Goldfinger, Editor  @Blogfinger

Hal Mante was raised in a small town that dates back to the Revolutionary War.  Forty Fort is in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania.  It was named after the forty men who founded it.

In the 1970’s Hal entered the fence business and built his company American Fence and Flag located in Whitehall, Pennsylvania. He currently lives in Easton.

Hal began coming to Ocean Grove with his family when he was four years old. They stayed on Broadway.  He loved the fishing and the beach. He continued to vacation in the Grove when he had his own family  and he has been coming here for over forty years.  When he heard about Sandy, his immediate impulse was to help.

In Forty Fort, Hal and his neighbors found out what nature’s destruction can do, because in 1972, his town was flooded by the Susquehanna River, and there was great destruction of homes. In  2005, after Katrina, he closed his factory for a week and took a group of volunteers from his business and went to work in New Orleans.

He feels grateful for his good fortune in life, and he wants to “give back.” He immediately emailed Bill Bailey  of the OGCMA and asked, “How can I help?” He thought he would come here to “tear down sheet rock” and do other kinds of construction work, but after  he spoke to Mr. Bailey, it was evident that he could help by doing what he always does:  fencing and railings.

Hal closed his business again and brought a crew of 12 volunteers  to OG after Sandy.   They put up extensive areas of sand fencing and other protective barriers. They also installed railings that were reclaimed from the storm or were donated by the community of Sea Bright.  They worked here for 3 weeks.

Hal is active in his church, the Calvary Baptist Church of Bethlehem.   So he returned today with his wife Joyce, 6 of his workers, and a busload of church people  to help with the Beautification Project removal of sand and with restoring 167 feet of the pier, complete with safety railing and fencing.  His workers also were busy on the boardwalk with installing, sanding and painting metal railings .  When we interviewed Hal Mante, he was busy forcing a large  metal pipe into the sand.

Hal said that he is grateful for the many years of good times in Ocean Grove, and, as he sees it, helping our town recover  is something essential that he must do.  At the age of 59, “give back” is on his mind.