Elias Chalet

Elias Chalet, obtained from NJ True Jersey.

On April 20, the world lost Elias Chalet, a former councilman for New Jersey’s First Ward. Elias was a friend and family member to several in his community.

Elias was born and raised in Lebanon by his loving parents, Nicholas and Mariam Chalet. His upbringing helped him to become the respectable man he was. Elias and his family immigrated to the United States in September of 1981, where they moved to Bloomfield. Elias grew up with seven other siblings and continued to be a stable force for his family during the major transition of moving to the States.

Elias later married his wife Berno and together they raised their wonderful son, Justin, in Bloomfield. Eilas was a very generous person and helped many people within his community with the successful real estate business that he built. In addition to helping town residents, Elias worked to improve schools while he served as a City Council Member.

Elias died at 58 years old at St. Francis Medical Center in Trenton, New Jersey. While serving time at the James A. Hemm House, a halfway house in Newark, he became ill and was moved across the city to Northern State Prison and then finally to St. Francis Medical Center.

Elias' lawyer, Peter Till, urged the Superior Court judge to lighten the sentence because Elias had a serious heart condition and had suffered strokes in the past. After contracting the virus, Elias’ health quickly took a turn for the worse, and he passed away two weeks later.

Elias will be missed by those whose lives he has touched, and his work for the community will not be forgotten.

This memorial was written by MOL team member Maya Page with information from Elias’s online obituary at the Brookdale funeral home and reporting by Eric Kiefer of Patch and Joe Atmonavage of New Jersey NJ True Jersey.