FOR REDZO

Jon Harder
May 4
6 min read

I’ll be honest. Over the past month, I’ve been incredibly reflective about life and people that have been a part of my life and the journey as of late. I do think part of it has to do with Vince Steele’s passing, but, as a guy that internalizes a lot, self-reflection is a normal part of my thought process.

I’ve been thinking about people that have helped shape me as a person, especially during my formative years. When I zone back to that time, I immediately drift back to South River, NJ.

Growing up in South River, I can honestly say that the select few I had as friends helped me in ways they can’t even imagine. I was blessed to have them.

However, to me, there is only one guy that broke the mold and just made life more fun. He was so funny and charming that he could talk his way out of a lot of situations. He could make you laugh at the best of times and the worst of times. Even if you were sitting in detention because of him, you could never be mad at him. He was truly one-of-a-kind.

This is the story of my friendship with Redzo.

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I first met Redzo Kolenovic on my first day of third grade in September 1993 in Willett School. Compared to the rest of the kids in class, Redzo was a monster. Many people were intimidated by his gruff demeanor, myself included. However, there was one thing that united us as friends:

WRESTLING. What else?

I was wrestling obsessed as a kid (funny how times change). I remember pulling my WWF Dusty Rhodes folder that my parents bought me from Caldor in North Brunswick out of my backpack and Redzo mentioned that he liked wrestling.

FRIENDSHIP ACTIVATED.

I remember throughout that school year, me, Redzo, Ed Scanlon and a few others began wrestling during recess. Time outs against the wall aside, it was a blast. I remember I only won one match that year and it was after jumping off the fence onto Redzo as a surprise for the win. Redzo always said that his shoulder was up, but over thirty years later, and quite possibly a case of creative license, that ruling stands. The pinfall was valid.

Over time, I began hanging out with Redzo outside of school. I remember he told me that in WWF Rage in the Cage for SEGA CD, you could do insane wrestling moves never before done in any game. I remember one day, I went to his house and wanted to see it. After waiting for almost a half hour, Redzo told me the game was broken. The next day, he told me he fixed it, but it now needed a code. You just had to laugh.

Sometimes, Redzo told some tall tales, but they were never malicious or mean. They were so outlandish, and he had such charisma, that you couldn’t help but believe him. That’s what made life so entertaining when he was around.

I remember in fifth grade during our Spring Concert, we were singing our closing number, “I Swear” by All-4-One. In the middle of the song, for some inexplicable reason, he started singing “I Swear I Didn’t Do It by OJ Simpson”. It was around the time the wild OJ Simpson murder trial was all over the news. When Redzo started to say it, a few of us, myself included, began to laugh hysterically…on stage…in front of everyone.

After a few days of lunchtime detention, we didn’t find it so funny. However, how could you be mad looking back? Redzo just wanted to make people laugh.

Once we hit middle school, wrestling was still in the forefront of our minds. At one point, during the peak of the Nation of Domination in the WWF, Ed Scanlon, Redzo, and our mutual friend Jared formed the Nation of Devastation. That trio was absolutely dominant in the South River backyards. I always wanted to join, but Redzo informed me that they weren’t looking for new members.

Damn.

As we all entered high school, life began to splinter a little bit. Redzo began going to a different school, so we didn’t see him as much. When we did, it was still a load of laughs. Those moments became few and far between. Once high school ended, the few became VERY far.

After graduation, Ed and I continued on our wrestling journey, backyarding at Bissett’s Pond until he, his brother Tom, and Dan Murdoch began training at the ACE Wrestling Academy in-ring and I began learning behind-the-scenes in July 2007.

A couple of weeks later, Ed, our friend Pito, and I went to the Middlesex County Fair in East Brunswick in August. We were walking around, taking it in, when we ran into a familiar face: REDZO.

It legit was like old times. He was as funny as ever, cracking jokes and making us laugh.

However, the big man had grown up a lot as well. Redzo became a dedicated volunteer firefighter and emergency service member for the South River Rescue Squad. He also became a father during this time. The one thing we all took away was how mature Redzo became. It was inspirational.

He was very happy that Ed and I were continuing into pro wrestling. After conversing about that for a little bit, we went our separate ways, promising to connect.

We actually did a few months later. Thanks to Myspace, Redzo actually contacted us via private message, telling us how happy he was, especially with Ed wrestling his first match. We, again, wanted to make plans, which we were in the process of doing, until January 2008 came around.

I’ve never told this story to many people, as it’s still surreal to me almost eighteen years later. In late January, I was driving through South River near the Rescue Squad. I remember leaving the Krausers parking lot (back when the Thirsty’s sign was still up) and making a right on George Street. I made the right onto Thomas St, passing the Rescue Squad. As I looked at the Squad, I saw Redzo outside, smoking a cigarette. I waved, but he didn’t see me. A quick flash and I made the right on Main, heading home.

A few days later, my mom gave me the shocking news. Redzo passed away due to a sudden medical issue in the hospital. He was 24 years old. TWENTY-FOUR.

Stunned, I called Ed and gave him the news. He was as shocked as I.

Over the next few days, we grieved and tried to put everything into perspective. It was just a shock to those of us who knew him. Life, especially in your early 20s, is so precarious. One day, you’re here and the next, it’s over.

The world, as it always does, continued onward.

A few years later, Ed, Pito, and I ended up in the South River Pub on a pretty busy Friday night. We walked in, and Pito caught a glimpse that Refika, Redzo’s sister, was there. We hadn’t seen her since she was a kid. Redzo always kept an eye over her and loved her dearly.

After going over to her, we all reconnected and had a fantastic conversation. We reminisced for a hot minute about the big guy and remembered him fondly. The main thing I will always hold onto is how much he made us laugh.

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Over eighteen years later following his passing, I wanted to write this article about how much Redzo Kolenovic meant to me. When I was trying to fit in as an awkward, quirky kid in the South River school system, Redzo made it easy for me, as he did countless others. He was so misunderstood, but if you understood him, you’d realize how special he was. He truly was one-of-a-kind.

I did want to share two things in this post. First, thanks to the greatness of Archive.org, I came across a memorial post that the South River Rescue Squad posted on their website back in 2008. You can view that post here. https://web.archive.org/web/20090608003706/http://www.southriverrescue.org/cgi-bin/cginews.pl?record=32

Second, I wanted to add some photos of Redzo, provided by his sister Refika.