c. 1952-
Ramona Santiago was appointed deputy mayor in 1994. Her grandfather came from Spain to Newark in 1914. She operated the Santiago Funeral Home of Lafayette Street.
At her appointment as deputy mayor she stated, “I’m raising my two children here and I want to see a better life for them and all children”.
Later Ramona was appointed as the third Hispanic municipal judge in Newark in 1998. She was appointed to the Superior Court of New Jersey in 2003, retiring in 2022. Ramona also served on the Mayor’s Commission on the Status of Women and the Ironbound Ambulance Squad board.
Ramona lived in Newark as a child before moving to Colonia in 1964. Santiago was named “Miss Middlesex County” in 1973 when she was living in Colonia. She went to Upsala College and the McAllister School of Funeral Services, as well as Seton Hall Law School. Her parents were chiropractors who died in a 1993 car accident.
Bibliography
Cummings, Charles. Rich Spanish Influence Runs Deep In City.
Sterling, Guy. State Law Change Cost Inexperienced Woman Her Position As Judge. Star Ledger. Aug 28, 1994.
Kukla Barbara. The Deputy Mayor Newark administrator is also a mother, businesswoman. July 18 1994.
She’s a coed pageant winner and embalmer, July 24, 1973
New Jersey Law Journal profile: https://judges.njlj.law.com/profile/Superior_Court,_Criminal_Division,_Essex_County/Ramona_Santiago/Ramona_Santiago-207.xml (lists wrong birth date, she’s 20 in 1973, making the year 1952 not 1942)
“Dr. Joseph Santiago 76 Sports Physician” Star Ledger Nov 13, 1993
Photo from Newark Library.