Harold “Sonny” Melander

If you asked him for a favor, you knew what he’d say: “No problem.” Sonny was a shirt off his back kind of a guy. He loved being a dad; generous with his time and a Little League Coach to his boys. Of course, it wasn’t just his kids who adored him: they all did. He worked the overnights for Shop Rite. Over the years he had worked for all the Eikhoff stores, starting in his teens with his father-in-law as a carriage boy. For fun he played a little pool, fished a little and did a little crabbing. If his T.V. was on, he’d probably be watching some WWE (he even had a real championship belt) and he loved to bet the ponies at the Meadowlands. He was the quickest shopper unless it was for his grands when he played with every toy in the store. Though he was in the Philadelphia area he never forgot his New York roots: Sonny cheered for the Giants, Yankees, Nets and Rangers.
He met a pretty girl named Lynn in High School in Dumont. They’d share a 50-year marriage blessed by three children: Ricky (Kimberly), the late Scott and the late Harold, and later by grandchildren, Alyssa, Ava and Autumn. He is survived by many neices and nephews.
Come celebrate 68 great years Monday, April 22, 1 to 4 p.m. at Sweeney Funeral Home, Riverside.