Family mourns Howell man felled by blow at area party

HOWELL — Gwen Love was a little worried when her son Milton Love Jr. announced he had found a job driving a cab in Red Bank a few months ago.

“When he first told me he was going to get the job, that was my first concern, security and safety,” she said. “But he absolutely loved it. He got to meet a lot of people. He liked to talk and liked to have a lot of fun.”

In the end, it was not Love’s new job that his parents, wife and close family had to worry about.

Love, 33, and his wife, Tracy, attended a Jan. 29 party on Romana Drive in Toms River for a cousin’s girlfriend who just graduated from a technical school, his mother said.

The party began at about 9 p.m. Four hours later, Milton Love was dead.

The Ocean County Medical Examiner’s Office has ruled Love’s death a homicide following an autopsy conducted on Jan. 30, Toms River Police Chief Michael G. Mastronardy said.

Problems began when two women showed up at the party with four males at about 11 p.m. the chief said. At about 1 a.m. an argument broke out, Mastronardy said.

“We don’t know what the argument was about,” the chief said. “They went outside, apparently there was some exchange of words. One punch was thrown and he [Love] went down.”

Police have identified the woman responsible for bringing the men to the party, Mastronardy said. The woman and the male subjects left the scene after the incident, he said.

Several people at the scene tried performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation on Love, to no avail. He never regained consciousness, Mastronardy said.

Love was taken to Community Medical Center in Toms River, where he was pronounced dead, the chief said.

Love leaves his wife, Tracy, two daughters, ages 6 and 3, his stepson, Kevin, his parents, Gwen and Milton, two brothers and a sister.

“He’s going to be missed by a lot of people,” Gwen Love said. “Our main focus now are the children he left behind. We ask people to keep them in their prayers. They are going to miss their daddy.

“We told them that their father went to heaven to be with the Lord,” she added. “The good thing is that my son had been baptized at the Macedonia Baptist Church in Lakewood. The girls went to church quite often. We were able to discuss with them that we love him, but the Lord loves him more and he’s at peace.”

Gwen Love said the close family is grateful for the support from the community.

“We are all heartbroken,” his mother said. “No mother or father ever wants to bury a child. No young wife wants to say goodbye to a young husband. Our faith in God is what is sustaining us now. We know that whatever trials we have in life, He is going to be with us and see us through.”

Love, a Howell High School graduate, was a member of a Honda car club. He had just purchased a Honda several days before he died, his mother said.

“He loved cars and sports,” she said. “Typical guy. He loved his Hondas. He liked to laugh. He liked to make people laugh. He left his legacy in terms of being a friend to those he met.”

Love’s wake will be held from 10 a.m. to noon Feb. 5 at the Macedonia Baptist Church, John Street, Lakewood. The funeral will follow immediately, his mother said.

Contact staff writer Patricia A. Miller at pmiller@gmnews.com.