· ad populos, non aditus, pervenimus our 116th year – issue no. 17-2006 sixty cents (908)...

Ad Populos, Non Aditus, Pervenimus

OUR 116th YEAR – ISSUE NO. 17-2006 SIXTY CENTS (908) [email protected], April 27, 2006USPS 680020

Periodical – Postage Paid at Westfield, N.J.Published Every Thursday Since September 3, 1890

www.goleader.com

PAGE INDEXRegional ........ 2-3Editorial ........ 4-5Community ... 6-7

Obituary ........ 8Education ...... 9-11Sports ............ 13-18

Real Estate .... 13-21Classifieds .... 20A&E .............. 22-24

Inc. and Elder Garg Law Group LLCin Summit since 1999. Prior to that, heworked with International SpecialtyProducts, Inc., serving in the capaci-ties of counsel, director and vice presi-dent for environment, health and safety.He also has served on the Union CountyDemocratic Committee.

According to his résumé, Dr. Gargholds a law degree from Rutgers LawSchool in Newark and a doctoratedegree in physical chemistry fromStevens Institute of Technology inHoboken.

He has a master’s degree in chem-istry from Stevens and a bachelor’sdegree in chemistry from the Univer-sity of Delhi in India.

Calls placed to Rahway Mayor JamesKennedy, UCUA chairman, were notreturned. Commissioner Sharda Bardi,who works for the consumer affairsdivision for the County of Union, de-clined comment other than to say Dr.Spatola had “retired” and not resignedhis post. Ms. Bardi referred calls to Mr.Cohen. The Leader was also unable toreach Alternate Commissioner GeorgeJorn of Cranford.

Meetings of the nine-member au-thority are held the third Wednesday ofthe month at the UCUA offices, locatedon the third floor of the 1,540-ton perday Union County Resource RecoveryFacility on Routes 1 and 9 in Rahway.

Spatola Resigns, UtilitiesAuth. Hires New Director

By PAUL J. PEYTONSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader

RAHWAY – The Union CountyUtilities Authority (UCUA) has hireda new executive director followingthe resignation of Dr. Joseph Spatola,which became effective last Thurs-day. Dr. Sunil Garg of Summit, ascientist and attorney, has assumedthe role of director.

Dr. Spatola, who has been at thehelm of the authority for more than adecade since replacing JeffreyCallahan, resides in Scotch Plainswith his wife, State Superior CourtJudge Joanne Spatola.

Neil Cohen, a state assemblymanwho serves as general counsel to theUCUA, told The Westfield LeaderTuesday that Dr. Spatola holds anengineering degree from SyracuseUniversity.

“He is a great guy,” the assemblymansaid, noting that Dr. Spatola is an “en-gineer by trade” and “very detailed.”

Dr. Spatola will assist the new di-rector in the operations of the UCUAuntil late June. The new director, As-semblyman Cohen said, has “exten-sive scientific background and is alsoan attorney.”

“He has a great background,” Mr.Cohen said.

Dr. Garg has been employed as aconsultant with The EcoShelf Group,

Gina Levine-Levy for The Westfield LeaderNEW BOARD...The 2006-2007 Mountainside School Board met Tuesday night.Pictured: (back row from left) Business Administrator/Board Secretary RodericMcLaughlin, Raymond Haggar, Board President John Perrin, Gene Nagel andScot Worswick; (front row from left) Carmine Venes, Chief School AdministratorDr. Richard O’Malley, Board Vice President MaryBeth Schaumberg.

Mountainside BOE Reorganizes;Childcare Program Rates to Rise

Horace Corbin for The Westfield LeaderSPRING FLING...Residents enjoy themselves in downtown Westfield on Sunday afternoon at the annual Spring Flingsponsored by the Chamber of Commerce. A break in the rainy weather came just in time for everyone to have a good time.

By GINA LEVINE-LEVYSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader

MOUNTAINSIDE — The boardof education (BOE) swore in its newlyelected members Tuesday evening.

After returning board memberMarybeth Schaumberg and new boardmember Joseph Tinnirella took theiroaths of office, the board reelectedJohn Perrin and Ms. Schaumberg tothe positions of president and vice-president, respectively.

Business Administrator RodericMcLaughlin was reappointed secretary.

The board also appointed represen-tatives to various state, county and localorganizations. Mr. Tinnirella will serveas board representative to the UnionCounty Educational Services Commis-sion board. Ms. Schaumberg will con-tinue to represent the board to the Ber-keley Heights Board of Education andMountainside Parent-Teacher Asso-ciation (PTA). Carmine Venes willserve as the New Jersey School BoardsDelegate for Mountainside andRaymond Haggar will serve as the NewJersey School Boards alternate forMountainside. Gene Nagel will con-tinue on as board representative to theMountainside Borough Council.

New committe chairs are Mr. Nagel(budget and finance), Mr. Haggar(building and grounds), Ms.Schaumberg (personnel) and ScotWorswick (curriculum).

The board will conduct meetingsthe second and fourth Tuesday of themonth at 7:30 pm.

Following the reorganization meet-ing, the new board conducted its firstofficial board meeting.

Subsequent to last week’s schoolboard and budget election, the boardapproved a motion to submit a tax levyof $11,276,433, approved by voters onApril 18, to the borough. The figureincludes $10,884,860 in the generalfund and $391,573 in debt service.

In other business, the board approved

a rate increase for the 2006-2007Mountainside Child Care program.

The current rate of $6 for “sched-uled base hours” and $6.50 “unsched-uled” and “beyond base” hours willincrease to $8 and $8.50, respectively.

The current rate of $1 per minuteafter 6 p.m. will remain.

Mr. McLaughlin said that a first-timeaudit of the program, based on one yearof data, reflected that the program is notadequately covering its costs.

He said the program showed a profitof $2,000 last year but the cost ofutilities and supplies, among otherthings, was not accounted for.

“It’s hard to say the program wasself-funding when there was that smallof a margin,” he said.

Several parents in attendance voicedtheir concern over the rate hike.

Kelly Waters, parent of a Beechwoodstudent in the program, said the new fee“is the going rate of what parents wouldpay for one-on-one babysitting.” Shesaid that parents with more than onechild in the program may not be able toafford the increase.

Mrs. Schaumberg said, “I sympa-thize with the hardship it might createbut we have an obligation to the tax-payers of this community not to spreadthe cost of this program.”

Mrs. Waters asked the board to ex-amine whether the program can affordstaff cuts as a cost-saving alternative.

Parent Cathy Jakositz, who ran in lastweek’s school board election, suggestedthat the board explore alternate areas tocut operating costs, such as utilities.

Mrs. Schaumberg said the pro-gram has been successful in its cur-rent locations and “you do what’sbest for the program.”

In other business, the board ap-proved a $2,800 contract with Auto-mated Building Controls, Inc. (ABC)to service the rooftop heating, venti-lation and air conditioning (HVAC)units at Deerfield Elementary School.

“It’s a huge milestone … that we’refinally getting these air conditioningunits up and running,” said Mr. Perrin.Chief School Administrator Dr. Rich-ard O’Malley said that this project isjust one of several improving the school.

The board approved the dates forthe borough’s summer camp and en-richment programs. Camp will runJune 26 to August 4, and the enrich-ment program will run June 26 to July28. Both programs, held at BeechwoodSchool, are closed July 3 and 4.

Mr. McLaughlin said a budget forcamp will be created, and there is stilltime to “propose a rate change” fromlast year if need be. The cost of theprogram varies depending upon whatactivities the child chooses.

“There’s been some evidence to sug-gest that summer camp has operated ina break even capacity,” he added.

The board revised wording in the2006-2007 school district calendar.The December 26 to 29 break willnow read “winter recess,” instead of“Christmas” recess.

Mr. Perrin said the change came inresponse to “public concern and com-ment to calling winter recess theChristmas holiday.”

Dr. O’Malley commended two

David B. Corbin for The Westfield LeaderDESERVED RECOGNITION…Legendary Westfield High School (WHS) var-sity football/wrestling/golf head coach and former athletic director Gary Kehler,left, WHS Athletic Director Ed Tranchina, center, and WHS Boosters PresidentVince Wilt stand underneath the two plaques donated by the WHS Boosters tocommemorate Kehler’s career at WHS.

Council to Introduce OrdinanceTo Repeal Redevelopment Zone

By MICHAEL J. POLLACKSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader

WESTFIELD – During conferencesession Tuesday, the Westfield towncouncil announced plans to formallyrepeal the redevelopment distinctions.In addition, the town will enter into acontract for Boulevard improvementsand Rahway Avenue quiet-zone work;the council stated intentions to helpforge solidarity between the Down-town Westfield Corporation (DWC)and the Westfield Area Chamber ofCommerce (WACC). In closed ses-sion, the council discussed the Gre-gory Kasko lawsuit.

Under the Code Review and TownProperty Committee report, FourthWard Councilman Jim Foerst said therepeal of the redevelopment zones andamending of the zoning map was pre-viously referred to the planning boardand unanimously approved. “They sentit back with their blessing,” he said.

He indicated the issue was dis-cussed at committee level and gar-nered unanimous support in referringthe repeal to the full council. “This isthe final nail in the coffin of the pro-posed parking decks of old,” he said.

The council will conduct first read-ing on the repeal ordinance next week.

The councilman’s committee metwith Verizon on Monday, who dis-cussed bringing cable service throughfiber-optic cable to the town. Verizonwill conduct a public hearing on June20. “It has the potential to provide thepeople of Westfield additional com-petition and choice in terms of cable,telephone and Internet service pro-vider,” Councilman Foerst said.

Mr. Gildea reminded the councilthat Westfield does have a franchiseagreement with Comcast. “We do getrevenue from them (Comcast),” hesaid. “We can negotiate on a franchiseagreement (with Verizon), but we wantto make sure we’re not compromisingour own status with Comcast.”

Public Works Committee Chair-woman Jo Ann Neylan, the liaison tothe WACC, met with David Martoneof the DWC and Neil Sullivan of the

chamber. “The objective was for thetwo entities to work better and moreefficiently,” she said.

She said that what came out of thatmeeting was a desire on the part ofboth contingents to work together.

She said the heads of both bodieswould meet monthly to work on col-laborative efforts. The councilwomanenvisions a promotional committee,which will formulate “at least threemajor events over the year.”

The council will award a bid forBoulevard improvements to Jenicarat $272,000. Assistant Town Engi-neer Kris Macaloon noted that therewere nine bidders, ranging fromJenicar’s low bid of $272,00 to$397,000. “This will take care of thenew curb section between Grove andClifton (Streets) and paving fromGrove to Clover (Streets),” he noted.

Pursuant to the council’s intention toincorporate the Rahway Avenue im-provements with the first 2006 roadcontract, “we are working with (Jenicar)to add the quiet-zone improvements,”Town Administrator Jim Gildea said.

On the border of Clark andWestfield, there is a grade crossingon Rahway Avenue where the streetintersects the railroad tracks. Estab-lishing a quiet zone at the crossingwill eliminate whistle blowing, whichhas had residents in the Summit Courtarea citing quality-of-life concernsfor more than a decade. The RahwayAvenue job, Mr. Gildea noted, is smalland requires curbing and paving work.

Public Safety, Transportation andParking Committee Chairman SalCaruana said McKinley ElementarySchool’s parking and traffic-flow im-

CONTINUED ON PAGE 12

BOE Reappoints Riegel And LeizPresident, VP; Clancy Takes Seat

By MEGHAN GILLSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader

WESTFIELD — Anne Riegel, BethCassie, and new board member JaneClancy were sworn in at Tuesdayevening’s board of education organi-zational meeting held at the districtadministrative offices on Elm Street.

The board reappointed Ms. Riegeland Ginny Leiz to their positions asboard president and vice president.

“The collaborative effort that Ginnyand Anne do together is an incrediblemodel,” Alice Hunnicutt said as shenominated Ms. Leiz.

“I have had the privilege of serving

with Anne for four years…Anne hasdone an excellent job as a leader,”Ms. Cassie said.

“I would like to thank the 5,000residents for coming out to vote. Wereceived the largest voter turnout in30 years, but we also received thelargest ‘no’ votes this year,” Ms.Riegel said, “and we want to get feed-back on the “no’ votes.”

She acknowledged the effort of themembers of the board, the parents, par-ent-teacher associations, parent-teacherorganizations, the Westfield EducationAssociation and the local press for theirassistance in getting the vote out.

“We can learn more going forward,and now need to focus on the hiring ofa new high-school principal and en-rollment issues at the elementary andmiddle school levels,” she said.

Dr. Foley presented a preparedstatement extending his appreciationto the Westfield and Union CountyPolice Departments for their pres-ence at Westfield High School (WHS)on April 20 following a threat ofviolence at the school.

“Although there was no verbal orwritten threat at the school, the anxi-ety leading up to the day prompted usto take every precaution,” he said.

Nearly three weeks ago, a swastikawas spray painted on an inside doorof the high school and reported in theschool newspaper, the Hi’s Eye.

“Other than the media frenzy andanxiety experienced by some parentsand students, it was a quiet day atWHS,” Dr. Foley stated. He also con-firmed that 35 percent of students didnot attend school that day.

The board approved the appoint-ment of Stephen Maczynski as actingdirector of guidance for the upcom-ing academic year. He will be paid asalary of $113,000 per year. This sum-mer he will complete two coursesneeded to remove his acting status.

Mr. Maczynski has been directorof college counseling at GeorgetownPrep in Bethesda, Md. He obtainedhis bachelor’s and master’s degreefrom Georgetown University and an-other master’s degree from GeorgeWashington University.

“Steve is going to do some coun-seling, too,” Dr. Foley said. “He is avery impressive gentleman.”



Keren Shultz for The Westfield LeaderGARWOOD WINNERS…The winners of last Tuesday’s board of election, fromleft to right, Lisa Marano, Susan Groning, Adelle Lewis and Barbara Greet. Ms.Marano defeated incumbent James Matheson while the other three candidatesare incumbents who were uncontested.

Tax Collector OfficeExtends Hours May 1WESTFIELD — The office of the

tax collector will be open from 8:30a.m. to 7 p.m. on Monday, May 1.

The last day to pay taxes withoutinterest is on Friday, May 5. Interestwill be charged on Monday, May 8,and interest will revert back to theoriginal due date of May 1.

For more information contact TaxCollector Susan Noon at (908) 789-4051, or [email protected].

GW Council Adopts Budget;Taxes to Increase $257,000

By KATHY MARQUESSpecifically written for The Westfield Leader

GARWOOD – The borough coun-cil adopted a 2006 municipal budgetof $6,164,871 Tuersday night, whichreflects an increase of more than$240,000 over last year. The amountto be raised from taxes will rise from$3.9 million in 2005 to $4,157,080this year – an increase of $257,000.

Councilwoman Kathleen Villaggiosaid the owner of a home assessed at$100,000 would pay an increase of$115 over last year for municipalservices.

Councilwoman Villaggio said inMarch that budget increases this yearwere mostly due to employee pen-sions and health benefits, the library’sbudget and the annual fee for theRahway Valley Sewerage Authority.

In other business, State Assembly-man Dr. Eric Muñoz discussed theproposed $30.9 billion state budget,which will take effect on Saturday,July 1. He said it’s anticipated thatresidents will be upset over severalproblems, among them that statespending is going up 9.2 percent, or atotal of $3 billion from last year andthat the sales tax is increasing from 6

to 7 percent.There, also, are numerous smaller

taxes on gyms, beauty salons, land-scaping, cigarettes and gasoline, toname a few, he said.

“Municipal and school aid is flat,which unfortunately for the townsaround here, will make people some-what unhappy,” Assemblyman Muñozsaid. He ended by expressing appre-ciation to the council members fordoing what he described as a “greatjob” representing the constituents ofGarwood. The assemblyman notedthat he served six years on the Sum-


Thursday, April 27, 2006 The Westfield Leader and The Scotch Plains – Fanwood TIMES A Watchung Communications, Inc. Publication

POLICE BLOTTER

Michael J. Pollack for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood TimesGREETINGS FROM PARK...Representative Michael Ferguson visits ParkMiddle School in Scotch Plains on Monday. He spoke to the students aboutgovernment’s impact on everyday life. The students presented him with greetingcards that he will give to troops in Iraq when he travels there next month.

WestfieldSaturday, April 15, a customer at a

store located in the 100 block of EastBroad Street reported her pocketbookcontaining credit cards, a driver’s li-cense and personal information wasstolen from a dressing room.

Sunday, April 16, Jennifer Conner,18, of Westfield was arrested onNomahegan Drive and charged withdisorderly conduct. Police said sheallegedly yelled profanities and at-tempted to strike an officer after an-other person called authorities to statethat Conner was refusing to exit amotor vehicle in which both of themhad arrived at the scene. She wasreleased on her own recognizance.

Monday, April 17, after being ar-rested at Westfield police headquar-ters, Diann Gropp-Roth, 40, ofWestfield posted $235 bail on a traf-fic warrant issued by the Scotch PlainsMunicipal Court.

Monday, April 17, James Laskaris,57, of Westfield was arrested atWestfield police headquarters on anoutstanding traffic warrant from Eliza-beth. He was released after posting$110 bail.

Tuesday, April 18, Kevin Coleman,Jr., 20, of Piscataway and KeriMauldin, 19, of Plainfield were ar-rested following a motor vehicle stopat Ross Place and Carleton Road andcharged with possession of less than50 grams of suspected marijuana andunderage possession of an alcoholicbeverage.

Coleman also was arrested on anoutstanding traffic warrant from EastOrange, for which he posted $114bail. He and Mauldin were both is-sued summonses on the Westfieldcharges and released on their ownrecognizance.

Wednesday, April 19, after beingstopped in the 1100 block of BoyntonAvenue during a police investigationof a suspicious vehicle, Gail Ellerbe,37, and Rasheem Moore, 27, both ofWestfield, were arrested and chargedwith possession of a controlled dan-gerous substance, identified by po-lice as suspected crack cocaine, andpossession of drug paraphernalia.

Moore was additionally chargedwith hindering apprehension for al-legedly providing false informationto police. He was held on $2,500 bail,while Ellerbe was held on $1,000.Both were committed on default ofbail to the Union County jail.

Thursday, April 20, ElviraVairinhos, 31, of Avenel was arrestedin the 100 block of Central Avenueand charged with theft by deceptionfor allegedly crediting merchandisefrom the store where she worked toher personal account. She was re-leased on her own recognizance afterbeing served with a summons.

Thursday, April 20, Darren Jenkins,20, of Piscataway was arrested atWestfield police headquarters on a$90 Bloomfield traffic warrant. Hewas released after posting bail.

Thursday, April 20, Howard Brown,22, of Plainfield was arrested at theBoonton Police Department on anoutstanding Plainfield criminal war-rant for $1,000 and two Westfieldtraffic warrants for $500 each. Brownwas committed on default of bail tothe Union County jail.

Friday, April 21, Steven Jacobsen,19, of Westfield was arrested at SouthAvenue and Elmer Street and chargedwith possession of fraudulent identi-

fication and underage possession ofan alcoholic beverage. He was re-leased on his own recognizance.

Friday, April 21, Kylle Taylor, 25,of Jersey City was arrested at Centraland Elizabeth Avenues on two out-standing Jersey City warrants for con-tempt of court. Taylor was releasedafter posting $2,650 bail.

MountainsideWednesday, April 19, Joseph

Lynaugh, 35, of Mountainside wasarrested for an outstanding warrantafter police were summoned to aneighborhood where residents re-ported a suspicious male walkingthrough their backyards. The suspectwas taken to police headquarterswhere bail was posted.

Wednesday, April 19, a patron of aRoute 22 indoor tennis facility re-ported that upon exiting the club shenoticed the front windshield of hervehicle was smashed and several au-diocassettes were taken from insidethe vehicle. The victim’s garage dooropener was also reported missing.

Friday, April 21, Rosemarie Powel,57, of Plainfield was arrested for anoutstanding warrant in the amount of$500 at the Plainfield Police Depart-ment.

Monday, April 24, Isaac Nickerson,44, of Newark was arrested at theEast Orange Police Department foran outstanding warrant. Bail was setin the amount of $500.

Monday, April 24, Fonzo Wynn,25, of Plainfield was arrested follow-ing a motor vehicle accident on Route22 and charged with driving withouta valid license. Robert Gilbert, 22, ofNewark, a passenger in the vehicle,was arrested for an outstanding con-trolled dangerous subject (CDS) war-rant in Essex County.

Scotch PlainsThursday, April 20, an employee of

School One reported someone re-moved cash from her pocketbook,which had been left in an unlockedfile cabinet.

Friday, April 21, David Carson, 19,of Plainfield was arrested and chargedwith eluding police after leading offic-ers on a vehicle pursuit. According topolice, officers attempted to pullCarson over for a motor vehicle viola-tion, but the suspect continued drivingwithout stopping. Carson reportedlycrashed his vehicle into the woods onRoute 22 at Westfield Road, at whichtime he attempted to run on foot.

An officer was able to arrest Carsonwithout incident, police said. Carsonhad several outstanding warrants outof Essex County. He was transportedto headquarters where he was pro-cessed and sent to the Union Countyjail on $22,500 bail. No injuries werereported during the incident.

Friday, April 21, a Willow Avenueresident reported that he entered astore on East Second Street whenseveral juveniles yelled at him.

Sunday, April 23, police reportedthat someone pried opened the doorof a donut shop on Route 22 andremoved cash from the drawer.

Monday, April 24, Luis Cotto, 28,of Union was arrested and chargedwith driving while intoxicated (DWI).Cotto was stopped for a motor ve-hicle violation at which time officersdetected a strong odor of alcohol.

After the investigation, he was ar-rested and transported to headquar-ters, where he was processed andreleased, police said.

David Samsky for The Westfield LeaderTAKING OVER…Richard Stender (center at left), president of the Board of Trustees of the Union County Arts Center,presents Union County Freeholder Chairman Al Mirabella with the key to the arts center during a ceremony on Sundaymarking the county’s purchase of the theater. Also pictured, from left to right, are Freeholder Angel Estrada, Rahway MayorJames Kennedy, Freeholder Deborah Scanlon, Freeholder Chester Holmes and Assemblywoman Linda Stender (far right).

provements have received positivefeedback.

Recommendations included re-striping, re-signage and amendedpickup and drop-off areas. The townhas enacted temporary signage andstriping. The police will then admin-ister the changes and gauge resultsbefore making their own recommen-dations.

When discussing demolitions, thecouncil determined three propertiesto be “questionable” for next week’sagenda. Two are related demolitionson 430 and 500-512 Central Avenue,which the planning board recentlyapproved. Asking for a deferral onthe Central Avenue properties, Coun-cilman Foerst said, “I don’t think atime limit for an appeal has expired.”

In addition, the council favoreddeferring a resolution approvingdemolition of a home and garage on1020 Columbus Avenue. “Columbusappears to be two lots, which arebeing consolidated and then one houseconstructed,” Town Engineer KenMarsh said. Issues of common own-ership arose, as did questions on thelegality of the lots merging. The townwill approve single-lot teardowns on210 Lynn Lane, 1080 Lawrence Av-enue and 54 Mohawk Trail.

Mr. Gildea updated the council onPSE&G’s easement and right-of-en-try requests to expand their substa-tion adjacent to Houlihan Field. Their“extensive landscaping plan” willeliminate many mature trees. There-fore, PSE&G agreed to donate$10,000 specifically earmarked forlandscaping or future plantings intown.

After the conference meeting, thecouncil discussed in closed sessionthe matter of Kasko vs. The Town ofWestfield. Officer Kasko filed suitlast fall alleging he was retalliatedagainst by former chief Bernard Tracyafter reporting information per thetown’s “whistleblower” policy. Of-ficer Kasko was also the subject ofdiscliplinary hearing held earlier thisyear.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

WF Council


Garwood Council

teachers who recently won awards.First-grade special education teacher

Maria McGrath received a full schol-arship to a Fairleigh Dickinson Uni-versity graduate program. K-8 enrich-ment teacher Elaine Fass was chosen,from 1,000 applicants worldwide, toattend the Honeywell Educators SpaceAcademy this summer. She was one of200 teachers selected.

Dr. O’Malley also announced thatthe borough has met all 184 statestandards for special education.

“Another good thing to put ourfuture on the right track,” he said.

The next board meeting will takeplace Tuesday, May 9 at 7:30 p.m.

CorrectionA page 1 story in last week’s

Westfield Leader incorrectly statedthat Geraldene Duswalt waselected to the Mountainside Boardof education.

The two open seats were won byincumbent Mary Beth Schaumbergand newcomer Joseph Tinnirella.Ms. Duswalt finished third fol-lowed by Cathy Jakositz.

Mr. Maczynski will attend theboard’s next meeting on Tuesday, May2 at Jefferson School.

The board’s curriculum committeereported that it is planning to conducta “parent academy” on the EverydayMath program at the middle school inresponse to parents’ request for furtherinformation regarding this program.

Ms. Leiz, chairwoman of the com-mittee, said that no date has beenfinalized, but they hope to schedulethis evening forum in the near future.

Next week’s meeting at JeffersonSchool will feature the report find-ings of the Citizen’s Advisory Com-mittee on Enrollment (CACE).

Public meetings on the report willbe held on Tuesday, May 9 at 7:30 p.m.at the WHS auditorium and Wednes-day, May 17 at 9 a.m. at the WestfieldMemorial Library community room.

mit city council.Councilwoman Villaggio, chair-

woman of the committee on aging,said she was pleased with the increasein funding received by the borough forrecreation and senior citizen programs.

The borough received a $3,000 al-lotment for the senior handyman pro-gram, which will aid senior citizenswith minor labor work around the house,such as fixing a leaky faucet. The pro-gram will begin after September.

The borough also will receive anadditional $5,000 from the Commu-nity Block Grant Board (CBGB). “Weare very happy with the program sinceit will help out our senior citizens andit doesn’t cost a lot of money,” Coun-cilwoman Villaggio said.

In other business, Borough Engi-neer Donald Guarriello spoke aboutthe tree planting bids on the 100 and200 blocks of Second Avenue. Healso spoke about the section of side-walk that had deteriorated around the400 block of Second Avenue.

Other streets that had the sameproblem with their sidewalks, such asthe 300-block area of Hickory Av-enue and Walnut Street, have beenrectified.Yet Mayor Dennis McCarthysaid he would still like someone toassess the area and make sure thework has been done sufficiently.

SP Reaches Accord onDiscrimination Lawsuit

By FRED T. ROSSISpecially Written for The Westfield Leader

SCOTCH PLAINS — The townshiphas reached a settlement with four town-ship police officers who had filed areverse discrimination lawsuit againstthe Scotch Plains Police Department,an African-American former policechief and the chief’s white predecessor.

While declining to provide details ofthe settlement that was reached on April13, Township Attorney Brian Levinetold The Westfield Leader that the long-standing matter had been “amicablyresolved.” The settlement, he added, issubject to the approval of the townshipcouncil. Mr. Levine said he expected tosubmit the proposed settlement termsto the council early next month.

The roots of the lawsuit date backsix years, when police officers KevinLonergan, Brian Cheney, MatthewFugett and Brian Garbinski were rep-rimanded by then-Captain MarshallNelson for their performance duringan April 2000 traffic stop involvingfour African-American men. The fourofficers alleged that Mr. Nelson, anAfrican-American who served aspolice chief from 2002 to 2004, hadimproperly reprimanded them fortheir performance during the trafficstop, had said that excessive forcehad been used on the men beingstopped and had made racially-bi-ased comments regarding the mannerin which the four white officershandled the stop of the vehicle.

The lawsuit claimed that,despitethen-Chief Thomas O’Brien’s aware-ness of Captain Nelson’s alleged un-professional conduct, no measureswere taken against Captain Nelson.

In February 2004, retired State Supe-rior Court Judge Edward Beglin in UnionCounty said the officers had failed toprove they had been discriminatedagainst and had failed to show any ad-verse effects on their employment in theaftermath of being reprimanded.

In a ruling last July, an appellatecourt concluded that Judge Beglin haderred in dismissing the officers’ claimthat Mr. Nelson’s alleged disciplinaryremarks had created a hostile workenvironment. The court said that theofficers, to support a hostile work en-vironment claim under the state LawAgainst Discrimination, had to showthat Mr. Nelson’s conduct occurredbecause the officers were white. Thecourt concluded that this had occurred“because the facts and the legitimateinferences that may be drawn fromthose facts suggest that Nelson wouldnot have reacted as he did if the offic-ers in question were black.”

The Garwood Baseball LittleLeague will have its opening dayceremony on Saturday, April 29, sincethe scheduled date for last week wasrained out. The league parade willbegin at 9 a.m. at the Lincoln/FranklinSchool and conclude at the littleleague field. The grand reopening ofthe Garwood Library will be held onSaturday between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.


MS BOE

Meghan Gill for The Westfield LeaderTAKING THE OATH…Jane Clancy, Beth Cassie and Ann Riegel are sworn into terms on the Westfield Board of Education by Board Attorney RichardKaplow, right, as Board Secretary Robert Berman looks on.


WF BOE

T I M E Stimesnj.com

Serving

The Township and

The Borough since 1959

THE

SCOTCH PLAINS-FANWOOD

SIXTY CENTS(908) [email protected] 47TH YEAR – ISSUE NO. 17-2006 Published Every Thursday Since 1959

www.goleader.comUSPS 485200

Periodical – Postage Paid at Scotch Plains, N.J.Thursday, April 27, 2006

PAGE INDEXRegional ........ 2-3Editorial ........ 4-5Community ... 6-7

Obituary ........ 8Education ...... 9-11Sports ............ 13-18

Real Estate .... 13-21Classifieds .... 20A&E .............. 22-24

SP Council to Adopt Budget In MayWith $1 Million Hike In Spending

Board OKs Drive-Up WindowAt Local Popeye’s Restaurant

SP Reaches Accord on PoliceOfficers’ Discrimination Lawsuit

By FRED T. ROSSISpecially Written for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times

SCOTCH PLAINS — The town-ship has reached a settlement withfour township police officers whohad filed a reverse discrimination law-suit against the Scotch Plains PoliceDepartment, an African-Americanformer police chief and the chief’swhite predecessor.

While declining to provide detailsof the settlement that was reached onApril 13, Township Attorney BrianLevine told The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times that the long-stand-ing matter had been “amicably re-solved.” The settlement, he added, issubject to the approval of the town-ship council. Mr. Levine said he ex-pected to submit the proposed settle-ment terms to the council early nextmonth.

The roots of the lawsuit date backsix years, when police officers Kevin

Lonergan, Brian Cheney, MatthewFugett and Brian Garbinski werereprimanded by then-CaptainMarshall Nelson for their perfor-mance during an April 2000 trafficstop involving four African-Ameri-can men. The four officers allegedthat Mr. Nelson, an African-Ameri-can who served as police chief from2002 to 2004, had improperly repri-manded them for their performanceduring the traffic stop, had said thatexcessive force had been used onthe men being stopped and had maderacially biased comments regardingthe manner in which the four whiteofficers handled the stop of the ve-hicle.

The officers’ lawsuit also claimedthat, despite then-Chief ThomasO’Brien’s awareness of CaptainNelson’s alleged unprofessional con-duct, no measures were taken againstCaptain Nelson.

In February 2004, retired StateSuperior Court Judge EdwardBeglin, Union County, dismissed theofficers’ lawsuit, saying they hadfailed to prove they had been dis-criminated against by Mr. Nelsonand Mr. O’Brien and had failed toshow any adverse effects on theiremployment in the aftermath of be-ing reprimanded.

In a ruling on July 5 of last year, anappellate court said the officers couldpursue certain aspects of their law-suit, which alleged that Mr. Nelsonhad improperly reprimanded them fortheir performance during the April2000 traffic stop.

The appellate court concluded thatJudge Beglin had erred in dismiss-ing the officers’ claim that Mr.Nelson’s alleged disciplinary re-marks to the officers had created ahostile work environment. The courtsaid last summer that the officers, tosupport a hostile work environmentclaim under the state Law AgainstDiscrimination (LAD), had to showthat Mr. Nelson’s conduct occurredbecause the officers were white. Thecourt concluded that this had oc-curred “because the facts and thelegitimate inferences that may bedrawn from those facts suggest thatNelson would not have reacted as hedid if the officers in question wereblack.”

All of Mr. Nelson’s comments dur-ing the course of his investigation ofthe officers’ conduct during the traf-fic stop “could reasonably be foundby (a) jury to be sufficient under theLAD to have created a hostile workenvironment,” the appellate court said.The court added that those remarks“could be understood as being in-fused with a divisive ‘black againstwhite’ view of the workplace that ajury would be entitled to concludewas ‘severe’ within the LAD.”


SCOTCH PLAINS — The $22million municipal budget that will bevoted on by the township councilnext month includes slightly morethan $1 million in spending increases.Most of the increases are due to man-dated hikes in several areas beyondthe control of the local government.

The council is scheduled to hold apublic hearing and then a vote on the2006 budget, which makes up about17 percent of the local property taxbill, at its Tuesday, May 9 meeting. Ifit is adopted, the municipal portion oftownship property taxes will increaseby 4.5 percent to $13.7 million, or$73 for the average taxpayer. Themunicipal tax levy is up $754,284over last year.

Last year’s property tax rate formunicipal government purposes onan average assessed home of $121,000was $1.33 per $100 of assessed value,or $1,609. This year’s rate on a simi-larly valued home will be $1.39 per$100, or $1,682, if the budget is ap-proved.

According to a copy of the budgetobtained by The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times, the biggest item inthe budget is the $4.71-million ap-propriation for the police depart-ment, of which $4.37 million is forsalaries and wages. Last year’s po-lice department budget was $4.52million.

Other line items within the publicsafety area include $190,000 for thefire department and $386,000 for firehydrant service.

Maintenance of the approximately100 miles of streets in Scotch Plainswill cost $2.28 million this year, withjust over half of the amount beingappropriated for salaries and wages,according to the budget. The overallexpenditure for this area is downslightly from the 2005 level. Another$240,000 will pay for street lighting

throughout the township.Parks and recreation, which in-

cludes not only ballfields, play-grounds and parks but also theScotch Hills Country Club and se-nior citizen transportation, will seean increase from nearly $946,000last year to $976,700. Two-thirds ofthat amount is for salaries andwages.

Gasoline prices have risen morethan 20 percent in the past year and,after declining during the wintermonths, have begun to climb anew inrecent weeks. The higher cost of gasis also reflected in the increase ofnearly 50 percent for gasoline expen-ditures, from $95,000 in 2005 to$140,000, according to the budget.This is not the only area that will beseeing such increases in appropria-tions.

Much of this year’s budget increaseof nearly 5 percent is due to higher

mandated contributions to the Policeand Firemen’s Retirement System,which is nearly doubling from$188,302 last year to $374,603, andto the Public Employees RetirementSystem, which is increasing from$28,754 to $74,700; fees to theRahway Valley Sewerage Authority,which are increasing by about$194,000 to $965,414, and more ex-pensive group health insurance pre-miums, which are increasing by$176,000.

The increases in these four lineitems alone will account for about 60percent of the overall rise in munici-pal spending this year.

In addition to the property tax levy,the township government, in financ-ing local government activities andservices, will also rely on about $2.1million in surplus and $3.127 millionin state aid, according to budget fig-ures.


SCOTCH PLAINS — The town-ship planning board gave its assentMonday night, subject to approvalfrom Union County officials, to anapplication from the operators of thePopeye’s chicken outlet on TerrillRoad to make improvements to thesite, including the addition of a drive-up window and a dedicated drive-through lane.

Robert Kraus, the attorney forMascot Corp., the owners of sixPopeye’s franchises in New Jersey,including the Scotch Plains outlet,told the board that “85 percent of thebusiness at Popeye’s three other (NewJersey) stores with drive-ups are take-out” orders, adding that the drive-upwindow will lessen the number ofcustomers inside the store and reducethe number of cars having to park inthe parking lot.

Plans call for the entrance to theproperty from Terrill Road to bemoved toward the southern border ofthe property, further away from thebuilding itself. The right side of thenew driveway will lead cars towardthe parking lot behind the building,while the left lane will be for thosewishing to use the drive-through ser-vice. There will be two menu boardsalongside the driveway, with the pick-up window being situated at the rearof the building.

John Palus, an engineer who de-signed the site plan, told the board

that Popeye’s “very limited menu”should cut down on the potential forexcessive stacking of cars waiting forservice. There will be room for up toseven cars to idle between the pick-up window and the entrance fromTerrill Road. Given the restaurant’slimited menu offerings, Mr. Palussaid he doesn’t foresee a situationwhere more than seven cars would be

waiting to place or pick up orders atone time.

Marc Gillman, a principal of Mas-cot Corp., told the board that therestaurant’s peak hours are usuallybetween noon and 1 p.m. and 6 and 7p.m. During these times, he said thatas many as 25 cars will enter theproperty, to either utilize the drive-up

Michael J. Pollack for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood TimesGREETINGS FROM PARK...Representative Michael Ferguson visits ParkMiddle School in Scotch Plains on Monday. He spoke to the students aboutgovernment’s impact on everyday life. The students presented him with greetingcards that he will give to troops in Iraq when he travels there next month.

RAISING FUNDS…Area residents enjoy themselves during the recent “CasinoNight” fundraiser for the Frazee House restoration project. The fundraiser forthe 18th-century farmhouse was held at the Shackamaxon Country Club inScotch Plains.


said, noting that Dr. Spatola is an “en-gineer by trade” and “very detailed.”

Dr. Spatola will assist the new di-rector in the operations of the UCUAuntil late June. The new director, As-semblyman Cohen said, has “exten-sive scientific background and is alsoan attorney.”

“He has a great background,” Mr.Cohen said.

Dr. Garg has been employed as aconsultant with The EcoShelf Group,

Spatola Resigns, UtilitiesAuth. Hires New Director

By PAUL J. PEYTONSpecially Written for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times

RAHWAY – The Union CountyUtilities Authority (UCUA) has hireda new executive director followingthe resignation of Dr. Joseph Spatola,which became effective last Thurs-day. Dr. Sunil Garg of Summit, ascientist and attorney, has assumedthe role of director.

Dr. Spatola, who has been at thehelm of the authority for more than adecade since replacing JeffreyCallahan, resides in Scotch Plainswith his wife, State Superior CourtJudge Joanne Spatola.

Neil Cohen, a state assemblymanwho serves as general counsel to theUCUA, told The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times Tuesday that Dr.Spatola holds an engineering degreefrom Syracuse University.

“He is a great guy,” the assemblyman

Horace Corbin for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood TimesSPRING FLING...People enjoy themselves in downtown Westfield Sunday afternoonat the annual Spring Fling sponsored by the Westfield Area Chamber of Commerce.A break in the weather came just in time for everyone to have a good time.

PROUD OF OUR YOUTH...The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Girls State Championship Swim Team is honored at the DECA“Student in Government Night” during the Scotch Plains Council meeting Tuesday night. Councilman Frank Rossi said,“this is a real good representation of what our youth can do.”

High School StudentsConduct SP Council Meeting


SCOTCH PLAINS — As they havedone for a number of years, studentsfrom the Scotch Plains-FanwoodHigh School DECA program con-ducted Tuesday evening’s townshipcouncil meeting, where they ap-proved several ordinances and reso-lutions and congratulated the girlsvarsity swim team on winning thestate championship for a secondstraight year.

DECA is a marketing club that isadvised by Joseph Franzone, a mar-keting teacher. In addition to beinginvolved in a number of communityprojects, DECA competes on a re-gional, state and national level inbusiness competitions, where stu-dents go through role playing andpresent various business plans andideas.

At this week’s council meeting,David Ginsberg sat in for MayorMartin Marks; Mike Goland sat infor Deputy Mayor Nancy Malool;

Katie Devlin filled in for Council-woman Carolyn Sorge; AndrewGoldberg sat in for CouncilmanFrank Rossi; Jon Birnbaum filled infor Councilwoman PauletteCoronato; Dan Rogan sat in forTownship Manager Thomas Atkinsand Angela Smith filled in for Town-ship Clerk Barbara Riepe.

The council approved two resolu-tions authorizing the police depart-ment to purchase two new vehicles,one a marked patrol car and the otheran unmarked vehicle. Another reso-lution hired Bill McCloney as thegolf pro at the Scotch Hills CountryClub. McCaffrey Tree Service wasawarded a $17,400 contract to per-form tree work in various townshipparks.

The council also named Chief Fi-nancial Officer Lori Majeski to as-sume the duties of township tax col-lector.

At the start of the meeting, JimFawcett, president of the Scotch Plains-


MS BOE Reorganizes;Childcare Rates to Rise


By GINA LEVINE-LEVYSpecially Written for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times

MOUNTAINSIDE — TheMountainside Board of Education(BOE) swore in newly re-electedboard member Marybeth Schaumbergand new board member JosephTinnirella Tuesday night. The boardre-elected John Perrin and Ms.Schaumberg to the positions of presi-dent and vice president, respectively.

During its regular meeting, theboard approved a motion to submit atax levy of $11,276,433, which wasapproved by voters April 18, to theborough. That figure includes $10,884,860 in the general fund and $391,573 indebt service.

In other business, the board approveda rate increase for the 2006-2007Mountainside Child Care program.The current rate of $6 for “scheduledbase hours” and $6.50 for “unsched-uled” and “beyond base” hours willincrease to $8 and $8.50, respectively.The current rate of $1 per minute,after 6 p.m., will remain.

Business Administrator RodericMcLaughlin said that a first-time audit

of the program, based on one year ofdata, reflected that the program is notadequately covering its costs. He saidthe program did show a profit of$2,000 last year; however, the cost ofutilities and supplies, among otherthings, was not accounted for.

“It’s hard to say the program wasself-funding when there was that smallof a margin,” he said.

Several parents in attendance voicedtheir concern over the rate hike.

The parent of a Beechwood El-ementary School student who is en-rolled in the program, Kelly Waters,pointed out that the new fee, “is thegoing rate of what parents would payfor one-on-one babysitting.” She saidthat parents with more than one childin the program may not be able toafford the increase.

Mrs. Schaumberg responded to theparents’ concerns. “I sympathize withthe hardship it might create but wehave an obligation to the taxpayers ofthis community not to spread the costof this program,” she said.

Mrs. Waters followed up by askingCONTINUED ON PAGE 12

Thursday, April 27, 2006 The Westfield Leader and The Scotch Plains – Fanwood TIMES A WATCHUNG COMMUNICATIONS, INC. PUBLICATION

FW GOP MeetsOn Monday, May 1FANWOOD – The Fanwood Re-

publican Club will meet on Mon-day, May 1, 7:30 p.m., at the ForestRoad Park Building located at For-est Road and Woodland Avenue inFanwood. At the May meeting, NewJersey Assemblyman Jon Bramnick(LD-21) will discuss the upcomingyear’s state budget and other topicsof local concern.

The club meets on a monthly ba-sis, usually the first Monday of themonth. At meetings, the memberslearn about what’s going on in town,such as the budget, taxes and down-town redevelopment, as well as po-litical developments at the countyand state level. For further informa-tion, call (908) 789-2557.

POLICE BLOTTERScotch Plains

Thursday, April 20, an employee ofSchool One reported someone re-moved cash from her pocketbook,which had been left in an unlockedfile cabinet.

Friday, April 21, David Carson, 19,of Plainfield was arrested and chargedwith eluding police after leading of-ficers on a vehicle pursuit. Accordingto police, officers attempted to pullCarson over for a motor vehicle vio-lation, but the suspect continued driv-ing without stopping. Carson report-edly crashed his vehicle into thewoods on Route 22 at Westfield Road,at which time he attempted to run onfoot.

An officer was able to arrest Carsonwithout incident, police said. Carsonhad several outstanding warrants outof Essex County. He was transportedto headquarters where he was pro-cessed and sent to the Union Countyjail on $22,500 bail. No injuries werereported during the incident.

Friday, April 21, a Willow Avenueresident reported that he entered astore on East Second Street whenseveral juveniles yelled at him.

Sunday, April 23, police reportedthat someone pried opened the doorof a donut shop on Route 22 andremoved cash from the drawer.

Monday, April 24, Luis Cotto, 28,of Union was arrested and chargedwith driving while intoxicated (DWI).Cotto was stopped for a motor ve-hicle violation at which time officersdetected a strong odor of alcohol.

After the investigation, he was ar-rested and transported to headquar-ters, where he was processed andreleased, police said.

MountainsideWednesday, April 19, Joseph

Lynaugh, 35, of Mountainside wasarrested for an outstanding warrantafter police were summoned to aneighborhood where residents re-ported a suspicious male walkingthrough their backyards. The suspectwas taken to police headquarterswhere bail was posted.

Wednesday, April 19, a patron of aRoute 22 indoor tennis facility re-ported that upon exiting the club shenoticed the front windshield of hervehicle was smashed and several au-diocassettes were taken from insidethe vehicle. The victim’s garage dooropener was also reported missing.

Friday, April 21, Rosemarie Powel,57, of Plainfield was arrested for anoutstanding warrant in the amount of$500 at the Plainfield Police Depart-ment.

Monday, April 24, Isaac Nickerson,44, of Newark was arrested at theEast Orange Police Department foran outstanding warrant. Bail was setin the amount of $500.

Monday, April 24, Fonzo Wynn,25, of Plainfield was arrested follow-ing a motor vehicle accident on Route22 and charged with driving withouta valid license. Robert Gilbert, 22, ofNewark, a passenger in the vehicle,was arrested for an outstanding con-trolled dangerous subject (CDS) war-rant in Essex County.

WestfieldSaturday, April 15, a customer at a

store located in the 100 block of EastBroad Street reported her pocketbookcontaining credit cards, a driver’s li-cense and personal information wasstolen from a dressing room.

Sunday, April 16, Jennifer Conner,18, of Westfield was arrested on

Nomahegan Drive and charged withdisorderly conduct. Police said sheallegedly yelled profanities and at-tempted to strike an officer after an-other person called authorities to statethat Conner was refusing to exit amotor vehicle in which both of themhad arrived at the scene. She wasreleased on her own recognizance.

Monday, April 17, after being ar-rested at Westfield police headquar-ters, Diann Gropp-Roth, 40, ofWestfield posted $235 bail on a traf-fic warrant issued by the Scotch PlainsMunicipal Court.

Monday, April 17, James Laskaris,57, of Westfield was arrested atWestfield police headquarters on anoutstanding traffic warrant from Eliza-beth. He was released after posting$110 bail.

Tuesday, April 18, Kevin Coleman,Jr., 20, of Piscataway and KeriMauldin, 19, of Plainfield were ar-rested following a motor vehicle stopat Ross Place and Carleton Road andcharged with possession of less than50 grams of suspected marijuana andunderage possession of an alcoholicbeverage.

Coleman also was arrested on anoutstanding traffic warrant from EastOrange, for which he posted $114bail. He and Mauldin were both is-sued summonses on the Westfieldcharges and released on their ownrecognizance.

Wednesday, April 19, after beingstopped in the 1100 block of BoyntonAvenue during a police investigationof a suspicious vehicle, Gail Ellerbe,37, and Rasheem Moore, 27, both ofWestfield, were arrested and chargedwith possession of a controlled dan-gerous substance, identified by po-lice as suspected crack cocaine, andpossession of drug paraphernalia.

Moore was additionally chargedwith hindering apprehension for al-legedly providing false informationto police. He was held on $2,500 bail,while Ellerbe was held on $1,000.Both were committed on default ofbail to the Union County jail.

Thursday, April 20, ElviraVairinhos, 31, of Avenel was arrestedin the 100 block of Central Avenueand charged with theft by deceptionfor allegedly crediting merchandisefrom the store where she worked toher personal account. She was re-leased on her own recognizance afterbeing served with a summons.

Thursday, April 20, Darren Jenkins,20, of Piscataway was arrested atWestfield police headquarters on a$90 Bloomfield traffic warrant. Hewas released after posting bail.

Thursday, April 20, Howard Brown,22, of Plainfield was arrested at theBoonton Police Department on anoutstanding Plainfield criminal war-rant for $1,000 and two Westfieldtraffic warrants for $500 each. Brownwas committed on default of bail tothe Union County jail.

Friday, April 21, Steven Jacobsen,19, of Westfield was arrested atSouth Avenue and Elmer Street andcharged with possession of fraudu-lent identification and underagepossession of an alcoholic bever-age. He was released on his ownrecognizance.

Friday, April 21, Kylle Taylor, 25,of Jersey City was arrested at Centraland Elizabeth Avenues on two out-standing Jersey City warrants for con-tempt of court. Taylor was releasedafter posting $2,650 bail.

David Samsky for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood TimesTAKING OVER…Richard Stender (center at left), president of the Board of Trustees of the Union County Arts Center,presents Union County Freeholder Chairman Al Mirabella with the key to the arts center during a ceremony on Sundaymarking the county’s purchase of the theater. Also pictured, from left to right, are Freeholder Angel Estrada, RahwayMayor James Kennedy, Freeholder Deborah Scanlon, Freeholder Chester Holmes and Assemblywoman Linda Stender (farright).

Fanwood Soccer Association, an-nounced that the league, in conjunc-tion with the township rescue squad’sMay fundraising drive, will donate $5to the squad for every goal scored inMay by one of its travel team players.Mr. Fawcett hopes the “Golden Goal”program will raise at least $1,000 bythe end of May. He urged townshipresidents and local organizations tomatch in some way the soccer league’scontribution, “whether it’s a nickel ora dime or a dollar.” He said additionalinformation will soon be available onthe league’s website atwww.scotchplainsfanwoodsoccer.com.

The council also congratulated thehigh school’s girl’s varsity swim teamfor repeating as state champions.About 30 members of the team werein attendance along with their coachesand parents. Each team member re-ceived a copy of the council’s con-gratulatory resolution and a video-tape of highlights from their season.

At the close of the hour-long meet-ing, the elected members of the coun-cil passed a resolution accepting theactions taken by the DECA studentsas their own. Mayor Marks congratu-lated the group, saying they “did quitenicely.”

At its next regular meeting on May 9,the council will hold a public hearingon the $22 million municipal budget.

GW Council Adopts Budget;Taxes to Increase $257,000

By KATHY MARQUESSpecifically written for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times

GARWOOD – The borough coun-cil adopted a 2006 municipal budgetof $6,164,871, which reflects an in-crease of more than $240,000 overlast year. The amount to be raisedfrom taxes will rise from $3.9 millionin 2005 to $4,157,080 this year – anincrease of $257,000.

Councilwoman Kathleen Villaggiosaid the owner of a home assessed at$100,000 would pay an increase of$115 over last year for municipalservices.

Councilwoman Villaggio said inMarch that budget increases this year

were mostly due to employee pen-sions and health benefits, the library’sbudget and the annual fee for theRahway Valley Sewerage Authority.

In other business, State Assembly-man Dr. Eric Muñoz (LD-21) dis-cussed the proposed $30.9 billion statebudget, which will take effect on Sat-urday, July 1. He said it’s anticipatedthat residents will be upset over sev-eral problems, among them that statespending is going up 9.2 percent, or atotal of $3 billion from last year andthat the sales tax is increasing from 6to 7 percent.

There, also, are numerous smallertaxes on gyms, beauty salons, land-scaping, cigarettes and gasoline, toname a few, he said.

“Municipal and school aid is flat,which unfortunately for the townsaround here, will make people some-what unhappy,” Assemblyman Muñozsaid. He ended by expressing appre-ciation to the council members fordoing what he described as a “greatjob” representing the constituents ofGarwood. The assemblyman notedthat he served six years on the Sum-mit city council.

Councilwoman Villaggio, chair-woman of the committee on aging,said she was pleased with the in-crease in funding received by theborough for recreation and senior citi-zen programs.

The borough received a $3,000 al-lotment for the senior handyman pro-gram, which will aid senior citizenswith minor labor work around thehouse, such as fixing a leaky faucet.The program will begin after Sep-tember.

The borough will also receive anadditional $5,000 from the Commu-nity Block Grant Board (CBGB). “Weare very happy with the program sinceit will help out our senior citizens andit doesn’t cost a lot of money,” Coun-cilwoman Villaggio said.

In other business, Borough Engi-neer Donald Guarriello spoke aboutthe tree planting bids on the 100 and200 blocks of Second Avenue. Healso spoke about the section of side-walk that had deteriorated around the400 block of Second Avenue.

Other streets that had the same prob-lem with their sidewalks, such as the300-block area of Hickory Avenueand Walnut Street, have been rectified.Yet, Mayor Dennis McCarthy said hewould still like someone to assess thearea and make sure the work has beendone sufficiently.

The Garwood Baseball LittleLeague will have its opening dayceremony on Saturday, April 29, sincethe scheduled date for last week wasrained out. The league parade willbegin at 9 a.m. at the Lincoln/FranklinSchool and conclude at the littleleague field. The grand reopening ofthe Garwood Library will also beheld on Saturday between 11 a.m.and 1 p.m.

Inc. and Elder Garg Law Group LLCin Summit since 1999. Prior to that, heworked with International SpecialtyProducts, Inc., serving in the capaci-ties of counsel, director and vice presi-dent for environment, health and safety.He also has served on the Union CountyDemocratic Committee.

According to his résumé, Dr. Gargholds a law degree from Rutgers LawSchool in Newark and a doctorate de-gree in physical chemistry from StevensInstitute of Technology in Hoboken.

He has a master’s degree in chem-istry from Stevens and a bachelor’sdegree in chemistry from the Univer-sity of Delhi in India.

Calls placed to Rahway MayorJames Kennedy, UCUA chairman,were not returned. CommissionerSharda Bardi, who works for the con-sumer affairs division for the Countyof Union, declined comment otherthan to say Dr. Spatola had “retired”and not resigned his post. Ms. Bardireferred calls to Mr. Cohen. The Timeswas also unable to reach AlternateCommissioner George Jorn ofCranford.

Meetings of the nine-member au-thority are held the third Wednesdayof the month at the UCUA offices,located on the third floor of the 1,540-ton per day Union County ResourceRecovery Facility on Routes 1 and 9in Rahway.

window or to park and then go inside.He added that a goal of his employeeswould be to reduce the time betweenthe placing of a pick-up order and itsactual pick-up at the window to two-and-a-half minutes, something thatwould also reduce the potential forexcessive stacking of cars.

The board’s 8-0 vote in favor of theapplication is contingent on approvalfrom county officials, since the site islocated on Terrill Road, which is acounty thoroughfare.


SP Council

the board to examine whether theprogram can afford staff cuts as acost-saving alternative.

Parent Cathy Jakositz, who ran inlast week’s school board election,suggested the board explore alternatelocations to cut costs, such as utili-ties.

Mrs. Schaumberg responded bysaying the program has been success-ful in its current locations and “youdo what’s best for the program.”

In other business, the board ap-proved a $2,800 contract with Auto-mated Building Controls, Inc. (ABC)to service the rooftop heating, venti-lation and air conditioning (HVAC)units at Deerfield Elementary School.

“It’s a huge milestone … that we’refinally getting these air conditioningunits up and running,” said Mr. Perrin.Chief School Administrator Dr. Rich-ard O’Malley added that this project isjust one of several that have improvedthe school.

Dr. O’Malley commended twoteachers who recently won awards.First grade special education teacherMaria McGrath received a full schol-arship to Fairleigh Dickinson Uni-versity for a graduate program. Kin-


Mountainside BOEdergarten to eighth grade enrichmentteacher Elaine Fass was chosen from1,000 applicants worldwide to attendthe Honeywell Educators Space Acad-emy this summer. She was one of 200teachers selected.

Dr. O’Malley also announced thatthe borough has met all 184 statestandards for special education.

RESTORATION KIT...Rotary Frazee House Inc. Chairwoman Patricia Planteand Historic Preservation Consultant/Grant application writer Stacy Spies posewith Aunt Betty Frazee and her famous bread at the casino night fundraiser forthe Frazee House Restoration Project.


SP PB


UCUA HiresNew Director


Paul J. Peyton for The Westfield Leader and The TimesREMEMBERING MEGAN…Members of the Westfield Junior Women’s presenta $1,000 check to the Westfield Recreation Department for a playground atTamaques Park in memory of Megan Beck, a four-year member of the recreationsummer playground staff who died in 2005. Seven thousand of the $15,000necessary to construct “Megan’s Playground” has been raised to date. Pictured,left to right, are: Recreation Director Bruce Kaufman; Michelle DiFilippo, JuniorWomen’s Club; Assistant Recreation Director Dolores MacKay and Erin Zito,Beth Hoerie and Kelly Harrington, all of the Junior Women’s Club.

Smoke-Free Air Act LightsUp Controversy Over Rules

Laurie Woog OpensLaw Office In Town

WESTFIELD — Laurie Woog hasannounced the opening of her legalpractice in Westfield focusing on im-migration and nationality law.

A graduate of Harvard Universityand Northeastern University Schoolof Law, Ms. Woog completed a fed-eral judicial clerkship and was anadjunct faculty member the Univer-sity of Wisconsin Law School.

By DEBORAH MADISONSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

AREA — Just as the New JerseyDepartment of Health and SeniorServices (NJDHSS) had anticipated,there has been no discernable reduc-tion in patronage at many local barssince the indoor smoking ban tookeffect on April 15, according to sev-eral local bar owners and managers.A week after the smoking ban wentinto effect throughout New Jersey,smokers and non-smokers alike werepacked into local bars last weekend,enjoying their beer and pretzels, with-out the customary haze of smoke.

Jolly Trolley manager ChipPakenham told The Leader/Times thathe recognized many of the usual faces;customers who were smokers hadcome out to enjoy the atmospheredespite having to go outside to lightup.

There was a wide-variety of opin-ions and attitudes about the new ban.Multiple smokers interviewed by TheLeader/Times said that they actuallylike the new law.

The smoking ban, named the NewJersey Smoke-Free Air Act, prohibitssmoking in all indoor establishmentsthat have public access, including res-taurants and bars, schools and schoolgrounds, sports facilities includingbowling alleys and race tracks, bingoparlors, malls, theaters, museums, li-braries and all public-transit areas.

The ban exempts casino floors, ci-gar bars and lounges, tobacco retail-ers, private cars and homes. Cigar barsand tobacco retailers are defined asonly those establishments that gener-ate more than a certain percentage oftheir total income from the sale oftobacco products. Hotels and motelscan permit smoking in up to 20 percentof their rooms. The law also permitsbars or restaurants to construct a sepa-rate smoking room, as long as theventilation and exhaust system doesnot permit any air exchange betweenthe smoking and non-smoking sec-tions to occur and as long as there is aclosed door between the sections.

The guidelines include a proposalto ban smoking within 25 feet of anestablishment’s entrance, whichwould eliminate the possibility of anoutdoor café area for many restau-rants. Multiple bar managers and cus-tomers told The Leader/Times thatthis proposal was taking the ban toofar. Those rules, however, are stillbeing considered and may be revisedor changed, according to RegionalHealth Director Robert Shear.

Mr. Shear said that the NJDHSSpublished a 77-page document outlin-ing the proposed guidelines for imple-menting and enforcing the new law,which can be viewed at http://

www.nj.gov/health/ctcp/smokefree.The process is currently undergoing a60-day public review period, duringwhich time the public, including pro-smoking groups, may make commentsor recommendations. The NJDHSSwill then consider those commentsand may revise or change the rules,before publishing its final guidelinessometime in June, Mr. Shear said.

The primary sponsors of theSmoke-Free Air Act were SenatorsJohn Adler and Tom Kean, Jr. ReneeTrabert, legislative aide to SenatorKean, told The Leader/Times that theiroffice was very pleased with the bill’spassage and had already receivedmany emails and phone calls in theway of positive responses.

She said that the public review pe-riod could potentially result in minorrevisions to the act, but she did notexpect any major changes. She addedthat local establishments can call theirlocal health departments for clarifica-tion on the present guidelines.

Last Thursday night, there wereseveral smokers enjoying drinks atthe bar at the Stage House Inn inScotch Plains. Stage House Inn ownerTom Britt said that attendance hasbeen steady and he did not anticipateany drop-off. He said that the new lawmight actually work out better for hisestablishment because the StageHouse Inn has a very large outdoorcafé and bar area in the back.

He said that he does not agree withthe 25-foot front entrance ban anddoes not see how that can be enforcedon people just walking by.

Joe Siddons, manager of the bar,said that it was really too soon to tellhow the new smoking ban would af-fect revenues down the road but thathe was not concerned about atten-dance dropping off.

“This is an adjustment period,” Mr.Siddons said. “Smokers are still goingto come out to drink and socialize.”

And even though he smokes, Mr.Siddons said that he was pleased thatthe law will protect everyone fromsecond-hand smoke because he andthe other staff were exposed to toomuch of it.

Scotch Plains resident Lisa Schiller,a Stage House customer and a smoker,agreed. She said that she could appreci-ate the new law and doesn’t mind goingoutside to smoke. Her husband, TomSchiller, said that it might encouragesome smokers to quit or to smoke less.

Stage House Inn’s Sous-Chef DanCronin, a smoker, disagreed. He saidit will make a difference in how longhe stays at the bar drinking. He saidthat because of the law, he is morelikely now to go over a friend’s houseto drink, because his beer “will not beas enjoyable without a smoke.”

Chris Boyle, co-owner of theNorthside Trattoria, has concerns aboutthe government making regulations thatinfringe on people’s rights. Althoughthe Northside Trattoria has always hada no-smoking policy, Mr. Boyle saidthat he thinks the rules should be up toeach individual bar owner.

“I don’t like the government tellingpeople what to do,” he said. “I’m nota smoker and I don’t advocate smok-ing, but it’s hypocritical of the gov-ernment to profit from the tax oncigarettes on the one hand, and thentell you where and when you cansmoke,” he said.

Westfield resident Brian Walter, acustomer at the Northside Trattoria,said that the law may inspire him to quitsmoking because he would not be will-ing to go outside to smoke in the winter.He also mentioned that it’s going totake some establishments awhile to getthat smoky smell out of their bars.

“Some places that used to allowsmoking really have a foul odor,” hecommented.

Customers at the Jolly Trolley werealready appreciating the smell of thesoup, which they said was hardlynoticeable before the ban.

Like most non-smokers inter-viewed, Trattoria customer MaureenArena said that she and her friendsloved the new ban and will likely visitmore bars and spend more time there.

Many bar owners are waiting to seewhat the final guidelines will be be-fore they invest in outdoor seatingareas; however, some bars and restau-rants have already set up an outdoorarea for their smoking customers.

The proposed guidelines state thatlocal boards of health and local po-lice departments will be the first lineof enforcement for the new law. Lo-cal officials expect that business own-ers, managers and customers will bethe ones policing the ban.

The guidelines also outline the finesthat will be imposed – from $250 upto $1000 for subsequent offenses. If apatron does not cooperate with anowner’s requests to stop lighting up,the establishment can call the localpolice to issue a summons. Custom-ers can also call their local healthdepartment to report violations.

Mr. Shear said that until the guide-lines are finalized, local boards ofhealth and police departments willutilize this interim period as a chanceto inform and educate the public andbar owners of the law’s implementa-tion requirements. His office will dis-tribute flyers and talk with establish-ment owners on how to implement thelaw but will not impose fines until theguidelines are finalized. Bar ownersare, however, required to post no-smok-ing signs at their entrances at this time.

courtesy of Alvin MadisonSSSSSMOKIN’...A Jolly Trolley patron smokes outside of the bar & restaurantafter the state’s Smoke-Free Air Act went into effect on April 15.

RVSA DiscussesPrivatization At Meeting

By KEREN SCHULTZSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

RAHWAY…At its meeting lastThursday, the Rahway Valley Sewer-age Authority (RVSA) discussedprivatization.

In January, United Water, a subsid-iary of Suez Water, presented to theRVSA board a proposal to take overoperational control of authority. TheRVSA currently serves more than300,000 residents and 3,500 indus-trial and commercial customers inWestfield, Scotch Plains, Garwood,Mountainside, Springfield,Kenilworth, Roselle Park, Cranford,Clark, Rahway and Woodbridge.

The board said that it is in theprocess of conducting legal researchregarding issues of privatization andcontract operations of the authority’sfacilities and should have a presenta-tion prepared for the board nextmonth. In addition, the authority’sfinancial consultant, NW Financial,is preparing a report regarding thefinancial issues associated withprivatization to present next month.

“We’re really in the process of go-ing towards privatization,” said Com-missioner Attilio (“Sonny”) Venturo,Scotch Plains representative. “Wehave never said this is the thing wewant to do…We should be research-ing whether this really is somethingwe want to do rather than being ledalong this path. I see this (agendaitem) as a push and I resent that.”

He said that the time spent on legaland financial research regardingprivatization costs a large amount ofmoney each month.

“We are crippling our towns withthe financial responsibilities we’reputting on them,” he told the board.

Other commissioners agreed thatthey were not at all interested inprivatization and that it seemed asthough they were “jumping the gun.”

About 10 RVSA employees at-tended the meeting to listen to theissue of privatization. “They’re go-ing to do what they want to do,anyway,” a RVSA employee told TheWestfield Leader and The Scotch

Plains-Fanwood Times, regardingthe issue.

Westfield’s representative, Com-missioner Allen Chin, offered a mo-tion to hire Michael Brinker, Jr. as thepermanent RVSA executive director.Seven commissioners requested themotion be tabled.

The board announced that RahwayCommissioner John Ludington, 2nd,had submitted his resignation to theboard. Rahway Mayor James Kennedywas appointed as the new Rahwayrepresentative to serve until the expi-ration of the term on February 1, 2007.

In his resignation letter to the board,Mr. Ludington stated that he “en-joyed (his) three-plus years on theauthority and appreciates the experi-ence and friendships (he’d) devel-oped.” The board did not commentfurther regarding reasons for Mr.Ludington’s resignation.

Mayor Kennedy will replace Mr.Ludington on the RVSA’s engineer-ing, finance, public relations and se-curity committees.

Masonic Lodge to HoldChild ID Program

WESTFIELD – Atlas-PythagorasMasonic Lodge will offer a Children’sID Program (CHIPs) on Saturday,May 6, from noon to 3:30 p.m. at thelodge, located at 1011 Central Av-enue in Westfield.

Children will be fingerprinted, vid-eotaped and photographed on a diskin cooperation with the Union CountySheriff’s Department. Youngsters alsowill be weighed and measured, andspecial features such as birthmarks,scars or moles will be noted.

Additionally, a toothprint will betaken of each child, which will pre-serve a DNA sample of the youngparticipants. This is being done underthe guidelines of the Masonic GrandLodge of New Jersey CHIPs format.

In respect to privacy, all tapes, pic-tures and cards will be given to theparents or guardians of the children,and the lodge will retain no records.Many families return each year toupdate their children’s records.

In the event a child is ever lost orabducted, these tapes, when broughtto police and the media, are consid-ered valuable in helping to locate thechild. There is no charge for thisservice, which the lodge has beenproviding to area families since 1991.

Light refreshments will be servedand balloons will be available for allchild participants. For further infor-mation, please call (908) 233-7349.

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Bridging Young and Old:Youth Meet War VeteransBy GINA LEVINE-LEVY

Specially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

WESTFIELD — Westfield sixth-grader Brendan Dugan spoke of aVietnam veteran who tried to rescuehis two friends during the war.

His fellow student, Justin Ricardo,was fascinated by a serviceman whorode in a tank destroyer.

Were they sharing stories from his-tory class? No.

But it was part of a history lessonthey won’t soon forget.

The boys were among some 45members of Westfield’s Police Ath-letic League (PAL) football team whovisited with war veterans in LyonsVeterans Administration Hospital lastweek to hear their stories.

Equipped with pizza, cake and cu-riosity, the youths filled a recreationroom at the Veterans AdministrationNew Jersey Health Care System withhigh spirits, stories and smiles.

Team coach John Dugan organizedthe trip so the boys could hear theveterans’ stories of “courage and brav-ery.” He said he thought the opportu-nity would be invaluable. “When Icoach these guys, I try to make itmore than just a football team,” saidMr. Dugan, Brendan’s dad.

World War II veteran Michael Pe-ters, 83, told stories of his three yearsin the service.

“In high school I learned German.Little did I know that four years later(during the war) I’d be using it,” he said.

He spoke of living in dugouts andbeing shot at by massive railroad guns.

But he also shared words of wisdomwith the younger generation. “I wouldtell them to be law-abiding citizens.”

The athletes listened closely toArmy veteran Jimmy Green, who haddreams of becoming a college foot-ball player when he was drafted out

of high school in 11th grade.Mr. Green spent three years bury-

ing fellow soldiers at Arlington Na-tional Cemetery before he was able tofinish high school and play collegefootball for Morgan State Universityin Baltimore.

Despite the six decades that divideMr. Green, 78, from these 12-year-old boys, the message was clear.

“You gotta stick with it,” he said.Former marine Joseph A. Manda,

79, said the visit was a treat since heis a former teacher.

Mr. Manda carries with him theAmerican flag placed on the grave ofhis wife, Carolyn, who volunteered withAmerican Women’s Voluntary Services(AWVS) during World War II.

Former Army combat engineerJames Wallace proudly wears a hatthat reads “World War II Veteran.” Heserved in the South Pacific from 1944to 1949 and was shot in the jaw.

But what could potentially be afrightening story to a 12-year-old,turned out to be “the learning experi-ence of a lifetime.”

“Behind these scary experiences,there are great stories,” said PAL teammember Christopher Albanese.

Alex Bond learned, “You shouldn’ttake good health for granted.”

“If you can put your mind to it youcan do it,” was the lesson team memberJames O’Rourke walked away with.

Troy Skibitsky realized “how luckywe are to have so many people whowould fight in the war for us.”

Kurt Kowalski said, “Our countrywouldn’t be free if we didn’t fight inthe wars.”

But in seven simple but strong words,it was Anthony Amatucci who summedup the tie that brought the team mem-bers there to begin with. “I learned thatpeople fought for me.”

Gina Levy for The Westfield Leader and The TimesLEARNING EXPERIENCE…War Veterans James Wallace, left, and WilliamPhillips pose with Westfield PAL football team players John Dooley, RyanRittendale, Geoffrey Scognamig, Josh Posluszny and Brad Erickson during arecent PAL trip to the Lyons Veterans Administration Hospital.

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UC Freeholders to Debut$400 Mil. Budget Tonight

By PAUL J. PEYTONSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

ELIZABETH – The Union Countyfreeholders are set to introduce a $400-million budget tonight, April 27,which represents a $10.3-million in-crease in spending over last year. Thebudget is supported by a $226.6-mil-lion tax levy, which will increasecounty taxes in 18 of the 21 munici-palities in Union County. Taxes inCranford, New Providence andWinfield will decrease this year.

County officials said the increasein the tax levy was scaled back by$1.7 million from the initial $228.3-million tax levy proposed in CountyManager George Devanney’s $413-million executive budget unveiled inJanuary.

County taxes in Westfield will be$22.4 million this year, up $499,010over 2005. Scotch Plains’ residentswill pay $12.9 million, a $531,550hike over last year. Fanwood taxpay-ers will foot a levy of $3.6 million, up$195,097 over 2005. Garwood willpay $2.1 million, rising $130,650 overlast year,

Summit homeowners will pay thehighest county tax per household at$2,933, up $83 over last year. Sum-mit is followed by Westfield, with anaverage tax at $2,174 or $55 over2005. Scotch Plains residents willpay the sixth highest tax at $1,582, up$53 over last year. Fanwood residentswill pay $1,344, or $74 over 2005levels, with Garwood residents pay-ing $1,169, or $62 over last year.

Freeholders said a number of fac-tors contributed to the increased taxesthis year, such as insurance and util-ity costs and homeland security spend-ing. Officials also cited pensions, fixedsalaries for unionized employees andincreases in the welfare program.

“The heat alone is a million-dollarincrease over last year,” FreeholderChairman Alexander Mirabella toldThe Westfield Leader and The ScotchPlains-Fanwood Times after lastThursday’s meeting.

He commended the board’s budgetcommittee, chaired by FreeholderAngel Estrada, for doing a “fine job”of trimming the executive budget.“We are not looking at layoffs,” Free-holder Mirabella said, but noted that“layoffs are not off the table.”

The board chairman said the statehas approved the county’s proposalto offer an employee-incentive retire-ment program in an effort to trim thecounty’s 3,000-employee payroll.

“We are going to be looking atopportunities (with neighboring coun-ties) this summer” to share services,Freeholder Mirabella said.

He noted that the Union Countyfreeholders were among the first in

the state to support a proposed consti-tutional convention on property taxes.

“It (property-tax reform) really hasto happen at the state level,” saidFreeholder Mirabella.

In a press release issued by thepublic information department, Mr.Devanney questioned how propertytaxes are currently distributed understate statutes.

“What makes a taxpayer in Berke-ley Heights better able to pay a taxincrease of $151 as opposed to ataxpayer in New Providence who,under the same system, will only paya $4 increase this year? Similarly,what makes an Elizabeth residentbetter able to afford an $82 increasewhile neighboring Roselle Park willsee an increase of $40?” Mr. Devanneyquestioned.

A public hearing on the countybudget will be held at 7 p.m. on Thurs-day, May 18, in the freeholders meet-ing room in the county administra-tion building in Elizabeth. The build-ing is located behind the UnionCounty Courthouse off of RahwayAvenue.

In other business, the board con-sidered a resolution to enter into acontract with Access Systems ofManilus, N.Y. to provide consultingservices to the clerk of the freeholderboard during the vendor selectionprocess for an electronic documentmanagement system. The contract,which is not to succeed $10,000,would be 100-percent paid through aNew Jersey Public Archives andRecords Infrastructure Support(PARIS) grant. Union County re-ceived a $1,010,639 PARIS grant lastyear during the first year of the pro-gram. The grant request for proposals(rfps) can be viewed on the countyhomepage at unioncountynj.org. Bidproposals will be unsealed by thecounty on Friday, May 5, at 2 p.m.

The agenda contained a resolutionapproving contracts to Ron Regner ofSummit to operate the pro shop atAsh Brook Golf Course and toMcCluney’s Golf Pro Shop to oper-ate the pro shop concessions at theOak Ridge Golf Course in Clark. Mr.Regner will pay the county $409 permonth and $14,724 for 36 months,while McCluney’s will pay $402 amonth for a total of $14,472.

Mr. Devanney was not present atthe meeting, as he was receiving anaward from the buildings trades.Deputy County Manager ElizabethGenievich served in his absence.

SP-F Parade to SaluteWar On Terror Vets

SCOTCH PLAINS — The 2006Scotch Plains-Fanwood MemorialDay Parade will be held on Monday,May 29. The theme for this year’sparade is “Support Our Troops – ASalute To Those Who Serve.” Theparade will recognize the dedica-tion, commitment and sacrifices ofthe men and women of the ArmedForces of the United States who haveserved and continue to serve in thedefense of America in the War onTerror.

All Scotch Plains and Fanwoodveterans who were in military ser-vice from 1990 through to thepresent will be honored at the pa-rade. This includes those currentlyserving on active duty. The paradecommittee invites all township and

borough residents who were or whoare still members of the militaryduring this era to participate in the2006 parade. The invitation is ex-tended to all veterans of this periodregardless of duty station. This in-cludes stateside, overseas and com-bat assignments.

Those veterans who are inter-ested in joining their fellow com-rades from the War on Terror shouldregister with the parade committeeby contacting Toni Rollis at theScotch Plains Municipal Buildingat (908) 322-6700, extension 314.These veterans will march as agroup along the parade route toreceive the community’s “thankyou” in recognition of their ser-vice to America.

see it all on the web!www.goleader.com


CYPHONISM1. A state of purification or having

impurities removed2. The study of the mammary gland

and its milk-producing secretions3. A form of ancient punishment con-

sisting of smearing the victim with honeyand exposing him to insects

4. Blood letting as a form of medicalpractice

TOHUBOHU1. A gum resin which oozes from the

Indian hemp2. Mixed or jumbled3. Minced chicken or veal, mixed with

eggs and bread crumbs4. Chaos

CATABASION1. A chamber in a Greek church, under

the alter, where relics are kept2. A mountain pass3. In anatomy, the study of involuntary

muscle contractions4. A slaughterhouse for cattle

MELIC1. Producing honey2. Of song or poetry3. Well-formed; symmetrical4. Resembling a grape cluster in form

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Perhaps It’s Time to ReexamineThe Open Space Tax Concept

The concept of open space trust funds started at thestate level in New Jersey in 1998. Governor Chris-tine Todd Whitman wrote, “We have embarked on anhistoric effort to preserve and protect one millionacres of open space and farmland over the next 10years.”

Senate President Donald DiFrancesco wrote inOctober 1998, “Yes Vote on Second Question willkeep New Jersey green into 21st century and be-yond. New Jersey citizen, passing Ballot QuestionNo. 1 will allow us to protect New Jersey’s openspaces without raising taxes. In fact, it does notcontain any additional cost to the taxpayer at all. Theproposal relies on $98 million a year for the next 10years from existing sales-tax revenue to purchaseopen space, farmland and historic sites, as well as toprovide a total of $1 billion dedicated to protectingthese natural resources.”

The public overwhelmingly approved the BallotQuestion.

Mayor Geri Samuel in 1999 brought a municipalopen space tax to Scotch Plains to be funded “at arate not to exceed $.02 per $100 of total municipalreal property valuation.”

Township officials said revenue generated by thetax will go primarily toward local baseball fields andparks. It was estimated then that the new tax wouldgenerate $187,000 each year for the next 10 years.

This newspaper wrote in September of 1999: “it isimperative…to look closely at the impact this couldhave on the overall property tax picture – not just theincrease of dollars per taxpayer needed to support anopen space program.”

In 2000, Union County joined the open space taxbandwagon. Freeholder Angel Estrada explainedthat the county has just 103 square miles of land-mass, but a population of a half-million people.“One of the problems for Union County is that thereis not enough available land, at least that I have seen,to be turned over into parks,” he said.

Union County taxpayers passed an annual taxincrease of $.02 per $100 of assessed valuation. Thatrate would channel $6.5 million into a Union CountyOpen Space Trust Fund each year. The tax would

generate $65 million for the county over 10 years, tobe used for development of the county’s parks andrecreation system, for the acquisition of open spacefor the county and for towns to purchase open spaceand develop local parks.

Concerns started to creep into the open space taxprogram.

In April of 2000, while supporting the trust fund,Summit Councilwoman Cynthia Martin suggestedlanguage be included “to clearly indicate that themoney be used to acquire open space rather thanimmediately funding development.” Ms. Martinwanted to see the tax capped at one cent. “Three tofour cents is too burdensome on Summit.”

In April of 2002 our editorial read, “County shouldnot use taxpayers’ open space funds for developerprojects. While the Union County Freeholders’ re-cent decision to approve the $9-million acquisitionof 63 acres of land in Summit for open space pur-poses was a worthy one, the almost-simultaneousadmission that some of that same property couldeventually be sold to developers was troubling.”

In October 2003, Senator Nicholas Scutari, then afreeholder, said, “This (open space) includes the 23-acre tract in Scotch Plains known as the SevilleProperty, which would have otherwise been a primetarget for housing and retail development.

At the County Freeholder Candidate’s Debate ofNovember 2005 in Cranford: “I don’t think themoney is being used properly. Voters aren’t gettingwhat they voted on,” Mrs. Pat Quattrocchi responded,referring to the fact that money put aside to purchaseopen space was not used to preserve land but topurchase the Union County Arts Center in Rahway,as well as plans to build a children’s museum.”

In February of 2006, the county reversed its posi-tion and scrapped the proposed Green MeadowsFarm in Scotch Plains at the Seville property.

Regardless of what Mr. DiFrancesco said in 1998about the open space tax, we don’t think the publicactually believed him that something magic willhappen and it will not cost the taxpayer anything.

Perhaps it’s time to examine just what the public isactually getting with all these open space taxes.

Volunteering Spirit IsHeart of United WayThe spirit of volunteering is the heart of

the Westfield United Way.This is National Volunteer Week, a

week when America makes a special ef-fort to recognize the contribution of hun-dreds of thousands of volunteers.

At the Westfield United Way, we don’tneed a special week because volunteersare at the heart of the Westfield UnitedWay every day.

When the Westfield United Wayreaches out, volunteers help do the stretch-ing. The volunteers and non-profit agen-cies of the Westfield United Way workhard to make your generosity felt throughour entire community.

So, to our volunteers, we say thank youfor every person you have touched. Thankyou for your time, your talents, and yourtreasures. People often say, “Westfield isdifferent.” One of the primary ways inwhich we are different is the level ofcaring and the involvement of our fellowWestfielders.

So, a thousand times, thank you!

Linda B. MaggioExecutive Director

Westfield United Way

Voters Should Be Informed at PollsWhen Candidate Drops Out of Race

Holy Trinity School Pastors ShouldReturn Principal to Her Position

BOE President Thanks 5,000 VotersIn Westfield; Highest Total In 30 Yrs.

Editor’s Note:Falsified Credentials

The author of a letter to the editor lastweek falsified his credentials and fraudu-lently represented himself when con-tacted by our staff for verification ofauthorship.

We now find, to the best of our knowl-edge, that a person of this identity doesnot exist. He represented himself asJames Oberta of Fanwood and provideda view in his letter titled ‘Out Of Con-trol’ Fanwood Police Department Over-time.’

We regret this disservice to our read-ers. The matter is under investigation.

BOE Member-ElectThanks Voters

First, I would like to congratulate all of thepeople who worked so hard on “getting theword out” about this year’s school budget.The public was truly informed throughoutthe entire process and while the decision tovote ‘yes’ might not necessarily have been aneasy one to make, it was a critical one.

Next, I would like to say how honored Iam to be elected to the (Westfield) Boardof Education and to applaud all of thecandidates for their hard work and dedica-tion. I am appreciative of the support fromour community and am looking forward tobegin facing the many challenges that lieahead. I am prepared to listen to and learnfrom our community and to make well-thought-out and careful decisions.

I know that serving on the board cansometimes be a difficult and demandingjob, and I want to thank my family inadvance for their support. I would not beable to do it without them.

We are grateful to be a part of the entireWestfield community, and I sincerelythank my family, friends and supportersfor giving me this opportunity to helpcontribute to the cherished future of ourtown and our children.

Jane ClancyWestfield

I continue to feel lucky to live in a townlike Westfield that places such a highvalue on education. Last Tuesday, thecommunity demonstrated its commitmentto education by supporting the annualschool budget. It’s not easy in these timesof high taxation to make this commit-ment. I want to thank the 5,000 residentswho took the time to vote; this turnoutwas the highest level in 30 years (26percent of registered voters).

I also want to thank those who sup-ported me personally in my re-election tothe board. Looking forward, we face manychallenges, including the immediatehurdles of replacing the high-school prin-cipal and solving enrollment issues at theelementary and intermediate school lev-els. I’ll continue to try to base my deci-sions on what’s good for our children andtheir families.

The level of the public’s participation inthe school election should make the com-munity feel proud. Getting the budget passedthis year was truly a team effort, reflectingthe involvement of the Parent-TeacherCouncil’s (PTC) Budget Task Force andthe PTO/A Presidents, the Westfield Edu-cation Association who encouraged parentsand all teachers living in Westfield to vote,

as well as private citizens and organizedgroups such as the Westfield Boosters andCoalition for the Arts.

I especially appreciate the efforts ofmy colleagues on the Board and Dr. Foley,Bob Berman, Lorre Korecky and the otherdistrict staff who worked so hard to ex-pand our community outreach efforts anddevelop a budget that the communitycould support. Thanks also to the localpress for their coverage of our budgetprocess again this year.

Congratulations to Beth Cassie andJane Clancy; I look forward to workingtogether this year. Thanks to candidateDoug Stokes for his interest in our schoolsas well. Also, I want to express so muchthanks and appreciation to Kim Rhodes,who completed six years as an active,insightful member of the board. She’lltruly be missed.

Two-way communication between thecommunity and the board remains as vitalas ever. If there is feedback about thebudget vote or other topics that you’d liketo share, please feel free to e-mail theboard at [email protected].

Anne RiegelPresident, Westfield BOE

Mrs. Szot Embodies Everything OneCould Want As A Teacher

As you know by now, the school bud-get passed 3:2 (3,099 yes; 1,953 no). Thetwo incumbents won, as they usually do,Jane Clancy took the third spot with 2,764votes and Douglas Stokes had 2,302.

What troubles me is that Jesse Garfinkelreceived 958 votes. That’s certainly morethan enough to have possibly changed theoutcome of the board of ed election.

I know that he withdrew after the bal-lots were printed, and I wish him well incollege, but either some or all of those 958voters didn’t know or voted for him out ofprotest.

Protest can be a good thing, it can senda message, but all they did was waste theirvote.

Shouldn’t there be some mechanismfor notifying the voters when you sign inat the polls that there has been a change inthe ballot? A large, brightly colored,prominently placed sign at each pollingstation, as well as the election workersinforming you of this, would reduce thesewasted votes. The teachers sending homereminders to parents to vote with a list ofthe four remaining candidates helps only

those with kids in the public school sys-tem.

If your kids go to a private school, oryou don’t have kids in the system, younever see that note. You might have readit in this newspaper, but after the an-nouncement a couple of weeks ago, youmight have forgotten, especially if you’vereturned from vacation with the kids. Ifyou’re like us, without cable TV, youcan’t get that information that way either.You need that final reminder at the poll-ing booth and there has to be a way ofgetting that important information acrossat the moment when it is most important.

Every vote counts in every election.This was brought home in the generalelection when the fourth ward councilseat was determined by just one vote.While there is no question on the outcomeof the school budget, imagine what couldhave happened if these 958 votes wereotherwise distributed amongst the candi-dates for the board of education.

Jeffrey MessingWestfield

I was sent a copy of your article regard-ing Mrs. Dorothy Szot of Holy TrinitySchool. I must admit I have been out ofWestfield for many years but have alwayshad a soft spot for the school and Mrs.Szot. My husband and I were presidentsof the school board when our child wasattending the school.

We always felt that Mrs. Szot embod-ied everything one could want as a teacherand leader of a school. Obviously I do notknow the complaints but am quite surethat the values that most people are look-ing for when they choose a parochialschool have not changed in the mind andheart of Dorothy Szot.

In observing the world condition to-day, holding on to some of our old idealsdoesn’t sound like a bad idea to me. As faras curriculum, I would assume she and

the school must maintain the standardsset by the diocese.

I don’t of course know the people whoare behind such a thing but I am ashamedand embarrassed for them having putMrs. Szot in such a position after so verymany valuable and faithful years given tothe school.

I know she is responsible for inspiring,teaching and leading children for a greatmany years. This reminds me of the oldsaying “make new friends but keep theold, some are silver, some are gold.” Ibelieve this pertains to teachers as well,and I would think there is a long linelooking at Dorothy Szot as the gold.

Pat FenlonDallas, TX

I am very disappointed and upset withthe three pastors who co-sponsor HolyTrinity Interparochial School. By refus-ing to renew the contract of the principal,Mrs. Szot, they have blatantly denied herthe respect, dignity and gratitude she hasso justly earned and deserves.

In her 40 years of service to Catholiccommunity, and Westfield, she has en-riched the lives of thousands of students,academically and spiritually. Her com-passion, understanding, generosity andlove have encompassed them all.

Additionally, her dedication to aca-demic excellence is unsurpassed. Her phi-losophy of education and desire to helpeach and every child has made Holy Trin-ity Interparochial School a unique and

successful institution. Her strong Chris-tian values permeate the walls of thisschool and her students most often returnto thank her for her wisdom and guidance.

Personally, I have had the privilege ofknowing and working for this extraordi-nary woman for 14 years. She is myprincipal, teacher, confidant, advisor andgood friend. I have the utmost respect forher decisions and professionalism.

I implore the three pastors of HolyTrinity Interparochial School to correctthe injustice they created and restore toher the position she has served with dis-tinction.

Maureen QuinnWestfield

Congratulations to theWF-BOE Winners

I congratulate the candidates who wereelected and I am proud of the Westfieldvoters for supporting education and ourchildren’s futures by passing the budget.I will remain involved in the Westfieldcommunity by continuing to serve on theWestfield Memorial Library Board ofTrustees and by supporting the WestfieldPublic School system.

I would like to thank my family, friendsand the Westfield Community for all oftheir help and support during my cam-paign for the Board of Education. I amhonored to have received the support ofso many of you and I thank you!

Doug StokesWestfield

Superintendent Thanks the SchoolBoard and Westfield Community

The approval of the 2006-07 Westfieldschool budget on April 18 by 1,146 votesreflected a vote of confidence for theBoard of Education, but more than that, itwas an indication that education is a pri-ority in our town.

For the first time in 33 years, 26 percentof Westfield voters came to the polls.This is significantly more than the 12 – 18percent we have experienced in recentyears. A good deal of the credit for thevoter turnout goes to the Parent TeacherCouncil Budget Task Force, who gener-ated a system of reminders during theweeks prior to the election.

I also appreciate the tremendous ef-fort of our board members who con-ducted every budget meeting in publicfor over three months, responded to pub-lic recommendations by expanding vot-ing hours, and demonstrated fiscal re-straint by proposing a moderate increaseto the budget that included replacementof certain textbooks and computers, re-pair of two roofs and the intention to hirefour new elementary teachers to accom-modate the largest first grade enrollmentsince 1970.

I am grateful for the support of thecommunity on these initiatives.

I congratulate Anne Riegel and Beth

Cassie on their re-election to the boardand welcome Jane Clancy as a new mem-ber of the board. Thank you to DougStokes for his sincere interest in servingthe community, and I wish continuedsuccess to Jesse Garfinkel as he enterscollege life.

We are indeed fortunate to have suchqualified people in Westfield who arecommitted to our children.

As we prepare for 2006-07, we willcontinue to deliberate on possible solu-tions to face the challenges created byour enrollment growth. On May 2, at8:30 p.m. at Jefferson School, the Citi-zens Advisory Committee on Enroll-ment (CACE) will present to the Boardof Education its recommendations onenrollment imbalances at the elemen-tary and intermediate level. The publicis welcomed to attend or to watch thetaping of the meeting on Blue DevilsTV36.

I will hold additional meetings at otherlocations through the month of May. In-put from the public will be of paramountimportance as we continue to plan for theyears ahead.

William Foley, Ed.D.Superintendent of the Westfield

Public Schools

Letters tothe Editor

Partisan Releases AreNot Real News

On the second page of your April 20issue, you published what purported to bea news item with the headline “Kean:Menendez Misleads Students andTeacher.” Other than a single sentenceintroduction by your paper (which incor-rectly described Mr. Menendez as the“challenger” when he is the current U.S.Senator from New Jersey), the item wasnothing more than a verbatim reprint, allin quotation marks, of a press release byState Senator Tom Kean, Jr.

This was hardly a news item, although itwas given some six column inches ofspace. If it was a news item, it was notbalanced by the inclusion of objective re-porting or comments from Mr. Menendez.

Partisan political press releases like thisshould not be held out as news and do notbelong on the news pages of the paperwhere readers might misconstrue it as news.At best, they belong in a section of thepaper specifically identified as being forsuch press releases, as you usually do forthe candidates in the local school board,mayoral and town council elections.

Charles StotterWestfield

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Does Westfield Still CareAbout Overdevelopment?

It seems that it does not after the town’splanning board recently approved a de-velopment project for a building at 751Central Avenue over the protests of manyneighbors. Many residents of Myrtle andCentral Avenues, on the corner of whichthe property is located, are very con-cerned about the proposed project, whichseems to represent the definition of over-development.

The two-story property, with residen-tial Myrtle Avenue behind it and two-family homes directly across from it, waspreviously used as an office building.There was no excessive noise or activityassociated with it and a small number ofvehicles generally parked in the lot. Thecurrent proposal to develop the buildingincludes a third story and rear addition sothe property can accommodate a bankwith two drive-up lanes on the first floor,office space on the second floor and apart-ments on the third floor. It also includesexpanding the parking lot.

We, as neighbors, are quite distressedabout this project for a number of reasonsincluding serious traffic and safety issuesrelated to the proposed drive-up lanes, the

deterioration of the character of our neigh-borhood and the numerous variances re-quired by the project. These variancesinclude the degree of screening, lightingand distance to adjacent property of theparking lot, as well as lot coverage andbuilding height, among others.

If this development project does notrepresent the definition of overdevelop-ment, I do not know what does.

We have all read and heard so mucharound town about overdevelopment byway of McMansions. However,McMansions are still generally attractivehomes, albeit at times out of scale with thelot or neighboring homes. Although somepeople do not like McMansions and feelthey change the character of surroundingneighborhoods in a negative way, it isunlikely that the presence of McMansionsbrings down the value of surroundinghomes, and in many cases, it probablycauses their value to go up.

On the other hand, the development ofthe property at 751 Central Avenue willhave no benefit to neighbors and willarguably reduce the value of our proper-ties. It is understandable that the ownersof commercial properties want to maxi-mize the cash-generating potential of theirproperties, just as builders try to maxi-mize their return by building McMansions.But isn’t it time that the leaders of theTown of Westfield stepped up to controlthis overdevelopment in this often-for-gotten corner of Westfield just as theyhave done to control the spread ofMcMansions in other areas of town?

I strongly urge town leaders to take ac-tion to have this project scaled back beforeit sets a precedent for other such projects,unless this is the way the residents ofWestfield want their town developed.

Virginia CosenzaWestfield

Answers to last week’s arcane words.1. Yird – Scottish for earth2. Laurin – A fatty, acrid, crystalline

substance contained in the berries of thelaurel

3. Thesmothete – A legislator or lawgiver4. Proterandry – The maturation of the

male organs of reproduction in advanceof the female organs

Below are four arcane words, each withfour definitions – only one is correct. Theothers are made up. Are you sharp enoughto discern this deception of diction?

If you can guess one correctly – goodguess. If you get two – well-read individual.If you get three – word expert. If you get allfour – You must have a lot of free time!

All words and correct definitionscome from the board game DictionDeception.


WF United Way to HoldAnnual Meeting on May 8

KEEPING EYE ON THE PARK…The Westfield Police Department is monitor-ing Mindowaskin Park through live and video monitoring devices.

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of our Constitution. In juries, ordinarycitizens take on the responsibility fordispensing justice. There can be no de-mocracy without the right to be heard bya jury of one’s peers.

Juries keep the words of our Declara-tion of Independence as strong today asthey were 230 years ago. By stepping intothe jury box, each juror represents theprincipal of equality. You don’t needspecial skills, wealth or prestige to par-ticipate in a jury. If you are a U.S. citizen,over 18 and able to read and understandEnglish, you are just as qualified to con-sider the weightiest matters of law as theperson sitting next to you.

As communities grow and change, ju-ries also play a key role in holding the civilfabric together. On a jury, you meet peoplefrom all backgrounds, faiths and walks oflife. You take a solemn oath to uphold thelaw, and you work together as a team tofulfill that oath. All the other things thatmake us different are secondary.

Sadly, some people face no barrier toservice, but nevertheless find ways toshun the call. Instead of embracing theopportunity to perform an essential rolein our democracy, they run from it.

Perhaps they do not feel up to the job.Perhaps they do not feel capable or quali-fied. But this should not be a concern.

The fact is we are all qualified to par-ticipate in our government. That is ex-actly what the American Revolution es-tablished. And that is every juror’s proudlegacy for the next generation.

When the subject of jury duty comesup, it’s not surprising that comparisons tothe dentist’s office soon follow. But hav-ing recently completed jury service, Iwould like to say a few things about that.

It is no small feat to sit on a jury. Formany people, it is simply impossible.Many people have onerous family orwork obligations, and their absence wouldvisit great stress on their dependents.Many others have ailments or disabilitiesthat prevent them from serving.

For the rest of us, jury duty is aninterruption. Schedules have to be juggled,family care arrangements have to be made.Often it goes beyond a minor inconve-nience.

Still, the change in routine can bringopportunities. In my case, jury duty was achance to develop new friendships and toenjoy the camaraderie of good people en-gaged in a civic activity that elevated us all.

But it goes much deeper than that. Juryduty is an opportunity to stand in forthose who cannot serve. It’s an opportu-nity for each of us to stand up for democ-racy. Every juror can be profoundly proudof that.

To establish a democratic governmentin America, our predecessors fought aneight-year war. Ordinary citizens threwoff the yoke of a powerful king. Manygave up their homes, jobs and families.Many gave their lives. Today, jurors stillhold that sacrifice in trust.

Every day, in courtrooms across thecountry, juries uphold the core principals

We Should Be Proud to Serve

WESTFIELD — Members will beelected to serve on the Board of Trust-ees of the Westfield United Way at theorganization’s annual meeting andawards presentation, to be held Mon-day, May 8, at 7 p.m. in the commu-

nity room of the municipal building.The names placed in nomination to

be newly elected are Stephen Cordes,John H. Schmidt, Jr. and SusanSchwarz. Nominated for re-electionare Rich Bagger, Scott Bond, ScottCassie, David Foltz, MattForstenhausler, Claude Fusco, MaryIlles, Susan Jacobson, StevePetruccelli, John Ripperger and PaulZoidis.

Board President Carolyn Fleder willconduct the business meeting and re-port on the accomplishments of thefund last year, the election of trusteesand any other business that may comebefore the meeting.

Awards will be presented to out-standing volunteers, and an enter-tainment program will include thepresentation of the colors by theScouts. Refreshments will be servedduring the social hour following themeeting.

All contributors to the WestfieldUnited Way are members of thecorporation and are entitled to avote at the meeting. The sessionwill also mark the election of nextyear’s officers. The slate includesScott Cassie, president; David Foltz,first vice president; Paul Zoidis, sec-ond vice president; Wendy Cozzi,secretary, and Claude Fusco, trea-surer.

Fanwood Cleanup DayRescheduled to April 29

FANWOOD — The borough’s 17thAnnual Clean Communities Day wascancelled on Saturday, April 22, dueto rain and has been rescheduled forSaturday, April 29. Individual volun-teers of all ages, Girl Scouts, BoyScouts, interested organizations andfamily groups are invited to assembleat 8:30 a.m. by the millennium clockat the South Avenue parking lot of theFanwood Train Station.

Earth Day t-shirts, work gloves,pick-up devices and plastic bags willbe distributed. A deluxe lunch totewill be this year’s giveaway. The 100or so expected volunteers, who usu-ally include Fanwood officials, willbe organized into teams with a leaderand then transported by the Depart-ment of Public Works (DPW) em-ployees to one of 13 locations desig-nated for clean-up.

These include Forest, LaGrande,Carriage House Parks, Borough Hall,the Fanwood Public Library and mu-nicipal parking areas, as well as thearea around the railroad tracks. NJTransit will provide two flagmen forsecurity for those assigned to thisarea.

The Lions Club will pick-up litteralong Fanwood’s stretch of SouthAvenue as part of the Adopt-a-High-way program. For information, call(908) 322-7404.

Public Invited to PlantWildflower Seeds

FANWOOD – On Saturday, May6, the general public is invited to helpthe Fanwood Environmental Com-mission plant wildflower seed. Workwill take two hours, beginning at 2p.m. The rain date is June 7.

Participants should bring metal“T”-shaped rakes and dress appropri-ately, as the ground will be muddy.Assistance for this project was re-ceived from Union County’s Divi-sion of Golf Operations for spayingfor weeds and from the Scotch Plains-Fanwood Board of Education forspreading lime and fertilizer.

Blooming of the flowers is expectedin June. Different types of flowerswill appear through the summer andinto the fall. The public is not to pickthe flowers.

Any group that would like to helpplace wood chips on the trails is askedto call Dean Talcott at (908) 322-6577.

Brown signs with white lettering willguide participants from the intersec-tions of LaGrande and Martine Av-enues or Terrill Road and Cray Terrace.

www.goleader.com

Letters to the EditorWestfield Was Home To Great

Independent Music Stores

Plan Is Needed to EndCounty GovernmentRunning for public office has its ups

and downs, the upside being change.Many of us in Union County have beendiscontented with the escalating taxes,not only with our proper communities butalso the dollar value we pay to the countywith nothing tangible to show for it!

In my hometown of Westfield, ap-proximately 65 percent of the budgetfunds the local schools, 20 percent fundscounty taxes — yes, do the math! Sur-prise, 15 percent, that’s all that’s left toprovide the residents of this communitywith basic services. Plus there’s garbagepickup and the Ecology Center — youare on your own!

That is why I am running for countyfreeholder. I hear it over and over again,get rid of the county government, oneextra layer of bureaucracy, and we will bein the money!! Yes, Frank Arena, just notso quick. First you need to place the rightpeople in those positions to make it hap-pen via a plan, real business practices.

You can’t do away with county gov-ernment with a flick of the switch. “Mon-ster Government” took a long time toevolve and will take a long time to bringit to its knees.

Let’s bring back the time when offi-cials were proud to serve the citizens whovoted them in.

Diane BarabasCandidate for County Freeholder

In 1992 Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain ap-peared on the cover of Rolling Stonemagazine, famously wearing a T-shirtbearing the phrase “Corporate MagazinesStill Suck.” Corporate music stores do,too, and the closing of the Westfield SamGoody store is a fitting end to a store thatthe area never needed in the first place.

When the Sam Goody music store camealong more than a decade ago, Westfieldwas home to some great independentmusic stores. Each had its own distinctatmosphere, but all had these qualities incommon: The staffs were knowledge-able, the prices were reasonable and themusic selections were eclectic. There wasno need for an additional music store inthe area, and certainly not a store whichoffered higher prices and less choice thanthe others.

Of course, any store backed by a hugecorporation can lose money for yearswhile forcing smaller independent storesout of business, and I suspect this was partof the Sam Goody (failed) business plan.The arrival of Sam Goody seemed tosound a sure death-knell for the future ofindependently-owned music stores indowntown Westfield. In fact, all but one,Sound Station on South Avenue, soonsuccumbed.

Earlier this year, Musicland, the corpo-ration operating Sam Goody stores, filedfor reorganization under Chapter 11 ofthe Bankruptcy Code and announced over300 store closings, including the Westfield

location. Now that the damage of squeez-ing out most downtown independentmusic stores is done, Sam Goody shame-fully retreats from Westfield, as well asfrom malls and main streets across thecountry.

These comments are not intendedagainst the employees who worked at theSam Goody store, and I sympathize withanyone suffering a negative economicimpact related to the store closing. Butbecause Sam Goody damaged a previ-ously thriving independent music storescene in Westfield, I celebrate the demiseof the Sam Goody business. I wish SoundStation – and future independent musicstores in our area – a long and prosperousfuture.

Bob DemmelScotch Plains

Reading is Good For You

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Warren Rorden to SpeakAbout Real Estate History

WESTFIELD – The Westfield His-torical Society will learn about “RealEstate in Westfield, Yesterday and To-day, How Things Have Changed” fromrealtor Warren Rorden at its FirstWednesday Luncheon at noon on May3 at B.G. Fields Restaurant, located at560 Springfield Avenue in Westfield.

Mr. Rorden will discuss how realestate has developed over the years;mistakes people make when selling ahome; why buyers move to Westfield;whether prices are too high and how toready a house for the market.

Mr. Rorden entered the real estatebusiness in 1958, became a broker in1960 and in 1971, with his wife, Vir-ginia, started Rorden Realty inWestfield. They operated the busi-

ness for 27 years before selling it toERA Burgdorff in 1998.

A past president of the WestfieldBoard of Realtors and the WestfieldArea Chamber of Commerce, he hasbeen active with many other localorganizations over the years as well.

He and his wife are longtime mem-bers of the Westfield Historical Soci-ety. Mrs. Rorden is a member of thesociety’s Board of Trustees and itsExecutive Committee, where she isMembership Committee Chairwoman.

A society telephone committee willcontact regular luncheon attendees toverify their reservations. Space per-mitting, others also may attend. Inter-ested persons are asked to call (908)233-2930 by noon on Monday, May 1.

We reserve the right to limit quantities while quantities last. Not responsible for typographical errors. All prices do not include state sales tax.

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Full & rich and a perfect match with yourgrill. This will go with burgers, ribs orsteak. Filled with plums, cherries, choco-late and sprinkled with black pepper.


MR. AND MRS. CHRISTOPHER M. COLYER(She is the former Miss Caroline Pretre)

Miss Caroline PretreWeds Christopher M. Colyer

Miss Caroline Pretre, the daughterof Mr. and Mrs. Edward Pretre ofWestfield, was married on Saturday,October 8, to Christopher M. Colyer.He is the son of Mr. and Mrs. BarryColyer of Big Flats, N.Y.

The afternoon nuptials took placeat the First Presbyterian Church inHammondsport, N.Y. with the Rever-end Graham Hart of Sarasota, Fla.,the bridegroom’s uncle, officiating.A reception followed at the EsperanzaMansion in Bluff Point, N.Y.

Given in marriage by her father, thebride wore a strapless, A-line gownfeaturing ivory lace over champagnesatin and embroidered with pearlsand beads. A fingertip veil comple-mented her gown. The bride carried abouquet of pink calla lilies.

Mrs. Christine Gibeault ofRobbinsville and Mrs. Kristie Poyerof Lancaster, Pa., both friends of thebride, served as matrons of honor. Dr.Jessica Colyer of Washington, D.C.,the bridegroom’s sister-in-law, andMrs. Collette Pretre of Cranford, thebride’s sister-in-law, were bridal at-tendants. All wore strapless blackgeorgette gowns and carried bouquetsof pink calla lilies.

Miss Kaitlyn Colyer ofMorgantown, W. Va., the bridegroom’sniece, was the flower girl. She wore asleeveless ivory dress, made by themother of the bridegroom, with laceon the bodice matching that on thebride’s gown. She carried a single pinkcalla lily.

Garett Vail of Raleigh, N.C. andCarter Shields of Tahoe City, Calif.,both friends of the bridegroom, werethe best men. Serving as ushers wereDr. Marcus Colyer of Washington,D.C. and Dr. Corey Colyer ofMorgantown, W. Va., the bridegroom’sbrothers, and Edward Pretre, Jr. ofCranford, the bride’s brother.

P. Paul Snezek of Wheaton, Ill., thebridegroom’s uncle, did a reading.

A 1995 Westfield High Schoolgraduate, the bride received a Bach-elor of Arts degree in English fromDickinson College in Carlisle, Pa. in1999. She is employed as an editorwith Bruce Leeb & Co. in Fair Lawn.

The bridegroom graduated fromCorning East High School in 1995and earned a Bachelor of Sciencedegree in Accounting from MessiahCollege in Grantham, Pa. in 1999. Hereceived his Master of Science inTaxation from Seton Hall Universityin South Orange in 2002 and hisMaster of Business Administrationdegree from Rutgers University inNewark in 2005. Mr. Colyer is em-ployed as a tax manager with Wiss &Co. in Livingston.

A bridal shower was given by thebridal party in May at The Pointe atPort Liberté in Jersey City.

The parents of the bridegroomhosted the rehearsal dinner the eveningbefore the wedding at Sarrasin’s onthe Lake in Penn Yan, N.Y.

Following a wedding trip to Aruba,the couple resides in Livingston.

AARP Announces Meeting,Details of June Luncheon

WESTFIELD – Westfield AreaChapter No. 4137 of the AmericanAssociation of Retired Persons willhold its next meeting on Monday,May 1, in The Presbyterian Church inWestfield’s Assembly Hall, locatedat Broad Street and Mountain Av-enue. Guests and potential new mem-bers are welcome and ample parkingis available in the church lot.

The social period with refreshmentswill begin at 1 p.m., with a brief busi-ness meeting to take place at 1:30 p.m.Afterward, guest speaker Dr. KennethArida, a Westfield dentist, will discuss

“The Best Ways to Care for the Teethof Senior Citizens.” A question-and-answer period will follow.

Chapter members are asked to do-nate canned and boxed grocery itemsto benefit the homeless and needy, aswell as costume jewelry for use asbingo game prizes for patients atRunnells Specialized Hospital ofUnion County in Berkeley Heights.

The chapter’s luncheon on Tues-day, June 6, will take place at noon atThe Westwood in Garwood and willfeature an international buffet andmusical entertainment. Members maybring guests. The cost is $20 perperson for the luncheon, gratuity andentertainment. Reservations for theluncheon, which will replace thechapter’s June meeting, may be madeat Monday’s meeting or by callingLuncheon Chairwoman Marie Stockat (908) 925-2536.

A trip entitled “The Railroads ofNew England,” featuring scenic viewsof Vermont and New Hampshire, is setfor Monday through Thursday, June19 to 22. A fully escorted tour withmost meals and gratuities included, itis open to both members and non-members. Lodging will be at the MountSnow Inn in Vermont and the IndianHead Resort in New Hampshire.

The cost will be $712 for doubleaccommodations, $813 for single and$694 for triple. Reservations may bemade at the Monday meeting or bycalling Trips and Tours ChairwomanMarie Walsh at (732) 669-0399.

Miller-Cory to FeatureStraw Hat Weaving

WESTFIELD – Eileen O’Shea ofSummit will offer a straw hat weav-ing demonstration on Sunday, April30, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Miller-Cory House Museum, located at 614Mountain Avenue in Westfield.

Ms. O’Shea will demonstrate howColonial era women wove and braidedthese hats for fashion as well as sunprotection. She also will describe thelengthy process for preparing thestraw, from gathering it in the fieldsto bleaching it over live coals. A vari-ety of hats will be displayed.

Volunteers in authentic period dresswill be available to give tours of thepre-revolutionary farmhouse. In themuseum’s Frazee Building, membersof the Cooking Committee will dem-onstrate open hearth cooking meth-ods and offer taste treats to visitors.The gift shop will be open as well.

Admission to the museum is $2 foradults, 50 cents for students and freefor children under age six. Upcomingprograms include “Message in aBottle” on May 7, “18th Century FolkMusic” on May 21 and “18th CenturyHerbs” on June 4. For more informa-tion, please call the museum officeweekday mornings at (908) 232-1776.

MR. AND MRS. DAVID A. SIPES(She is the former Miss Alison Elizabeth Vanderbilt)

Miss Alison E. VanderbiltMarries David A. Sipes

Miss Alison Elizabeth Vanderbilt,the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. CorneliusVanderbilt of Westfield, was marriedon Saturday, August 20, to David A.Sipes. He is the son of Mrs. MarleneDeLaurenti and Donn Sipes of WalnutCreek, Calif.

The Reverend Christopher Taylorofficiated at the late afternoon cer-emony at The Presbyterian Church inWestfield. A reception immediatelyfollowed at the Echo Lake CountryClub in Westfield.

Given in marriage by her father, thebride wore a white Duchess satin A-line gown designed by Vera Wangwith a chapel-length train and stream-ers at the back. Her chapel-length veilcascaded from a lace headpiece en-crusted with seed pearls. She carrieda European hand-held bouquet inshades of white, ivory, blush and pinkwith cream Vandella and Porcelanaroses, pink dendrobium and whitecymbidium orchids, ranunculus,Godetia and Nerines.

Miss Amy Ferrara of Boston, Mass.,a college friend of the bride, was themaid of honor. The bridal attendantsincluded Mrs. Jennifer Steck of SanJose, Calif., the bridegroom’s sister,and Miss Sarah Buggee of Salem,Mass., Mrs. Kristen Pierson ofCenterport, N.Y. and Mrs. Cary Rubboof Waterbury, Conn., all college friendsof the bride. They wore satin facedtaffeta tea-length dresses in silver-bluewith a grey satin sash and carriedbouquets of pink and pale peach roseswith white freesia, pink and whiteGodetia.

Timothy Sipes of Seattle, Wash.

was his brother’s best man. Serving asgroomsmen were Jeffrey Alexanderof Santa Cruz, Calif., Karl Benjaminof Davis, Calif. and Richard Ellis ofOakhurst, N.J., all friends of the bride-groom, and Neil Vanderbilt ofWestfield, the brother of the bride.Jack Riley Steck of San Jose, Calif.,the bridegroom’s nephew, was the ringbearer.

Mrs. Meredith Johnson of Wayne,Pa. and Mrs. Virginia Stearns of ShortHills, cousins of the bride, gave read-ings during the ceremony.

A graduate of Westfield HighSchool, the bride was awarded a Bach-elor of Arts degree in Sociology fromthe University of Vermont inBurlington. She is employed as anEvent Manager for Premiere Racing,Inc. of Marblehead, Mass.

The bridegroom, a graduate ofClayton Valley High School in Con-cord, Calif., earned Bachelor of Sci-ence degrees in Fermentation Scienceand Managerial Economics from theUniversity of California at Davis. He isemployed as Brewing Manager for theBoston Beer Company in Boston, Mass.

Mrs. Penny Dinger of Mountainsideand Mrs. Susan Moran of Westfield,the bride’s aunts, hosted a bridalshower at Mrs. Virginia Stearns’ ShortHills home.

The rehearsal dinner, given by Mr.and Mrs. Loren DeLaurenti and Mr.and Mrs. Donn Sipes, was held at theKirby Carriage House at the PaperMill Playhouse in Millburn.

Following a wedding trip to Nan-tucket, the couple resides inMarblehead, Mass.

Caregivers MeetingSlated For Monday

WESTFIELD – A support group forthose caring for elderly or chronicallyill loved ones will meet at 8 p.m. onMonday, May 1, in the St. Helen’sRoman Catholic Church parish centeron Lamberts Mill Road in Westfield.

Meetings are held on the first non-holiday Monday of every month.These are information and sharingsessions. For more details, please callMarilyn Ryan at (908) 233-8757.

Garwood KnightsSlate Blood Drive

GARWOOD – The GarwoodKnights of Columbus will hold a blooddrive on Saturday, May 6, from 9 a.m.to 2 p.m. at its council hall, located at37 South Avenue in Garwood, oppo-site PathMark. Parking is availablebehind the hall off Willow Avenue.For additional information, please callthe Knights after 4 p.m. on weekdaysat (908) 789-9809.

Golden Agers PlanMusical Revue Trip

SCOTCH PLAINS – The ScotchPlains Golden Agers Club will travelto Hawley, Pa. on Thursday, May 18,for a Woodlock Pines luncheon andmusical revue. Tickets are $51 andinclude the revue, luncheon and busride. The bus will leave at 8:30 a.m.that day from the Scotch Plains Mu-nicipal Building parking lot at 430Park Avenue.

The menu will feature prime riband butterfly shrimp, baked filet offish, fresh fruit, garden salad and ac-companiments. There also will be adessert table. All are welcome.

The Golden Agers Club offers se-nior citizens a chance to meet withtheir peers, share ideas and gatheruseful information. The club meetsweekly on Thursdays at 10 a.m. at theScotch Hills Country Club in ScotchPlains. For trip details, please callJean DeTorre at (908) 889-4121 orMary De Jesso at (908) 654-4512.Club information is available by call-ing Olga Bruce at (908) 322-8530.

Sunday, May 7th at 6:30pm at

18 Shalom Way, Scotch Plains (908) 889-1830

Join Rabbi George Nudell of Congregation Beth Israel in ScotchPlains, and Meryl Nadell, MSW and former Director of Outreach toIntermarried Families of Jewish Family Service of MetroWest

“INTERMARRIAGE: IT TAKES A FAMILY”(Light refreshments will be served)

A workshop for interfaith couples and their extended familiesaddressing the various issues that arise among family members. Therewill be ample opportunity to ask questions and share with others.

For information about upcoming programs call 908-889-1830or email [email protected]

Sunday, June 11 at Congregation Beth El in South Orange:“Sharing Stories - Finding Your Place in the Synagogue

Community”

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Willow Grove Men to OfferBreakfast and Frazee Film

SCOTCH PLAINS – The Men’sGroup of the Willow Grove Presbyte-rian Church has invited all men andwomen ages 16 and up to join themon Saturday, May 6, from 8:30 to10:30 a.m. for breakfast and a screen-ing of the film Two Lords and a Ladyat the church.

This film tells the story of ScotchPlains baker “Aunt Betty” Frazee andher encounter with two British gener-als, one of who is played by formerFanwood Mayor Louis Jung.

Frank Thorne and John Fazio pro-

duced the film to raise awareness andfunds for the restoration of the Frazeehome on Raritan Road in ScotchPlains. The Fanwood-Scotch PlainsRotary Club is sponsoring the project.Mr. Thorne will be on hand to intro-duce the film and answer questions.

Advance reservations by Thursday,May 4, would be appreciated; how-ever, those without a reservation willbe welcome as well. A free will offer-ing will be taken to help subsidize thecost of the breakfast, and donationswill be accepted to support the FrazeeHouse Restoration project.

For more information or to makereservations, please call the churchoffice at (908) 232-5678 or e-

mail [email protected] may be available uponadvance request only. Interested per-sons are asked to inform the church ofthe number of children requiringbabysitting and their ages. The Wil-low Grove Church is located at 1961Raritan Road in Scotch Plains and ishandicap-accessible.

Thrift Shop AnnouncesMother’s Day Drawing

SCOTCH PLAINS – Area residentsare invited to enter a free Mother’sDay drawing at the Fanwood-ScotchPlains Service League’s Thrift Shop,located at 1730 East Second Street inScotch Plains.

This year, two prizes will beawarded – a silk floral arrangement ina 12-inch Lennox vase and a $25 giftcertificate to a local florist for a freshflower arrangement.

No purchase is necessary. Partici-pants just need to write their nameand telephone number on a piece ofpaper and put it in the contest bag.The drawing will take place on themorning of Thursday, May 11.

Additionally, the shop will have alarge variety of floral arrangementsfor sale in time for Mother’s Day,which is Sunday, May 14. These silkfloral pieces are created by one of theshop’s members who has professionalflower arranging experience.

The shop is stocked with summerand lightweight clothing for the wholefamily. It is open for business onTuesday, Wednesday and Thursdayfrom 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and Fridayand Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

For more information or directions,please call (908) 322-5420. Visitorsto the shop also are invited to inquireabout membership in the volunteerService League.

An Easter Life Calls For UsTo Forgive and Love Others

By REVEREND PAUL KRITSCH

On April 27, 1865, 141 years agotoday, the Mississippi paddle wheelerSultana was destroyed in an explo-sion a few miles north of Memphis,Tenn. The greatest maritime disasterin the history of our country, the de-struction of the Sultana included theloss of approximately 1,700 of its2,400 passengers.

Most of those on board were Unionsoldiers recently released from Con-federate prisons, including the infa-mous Andersonville. The Civil Warhad recently ended. These soldierswere on their way home. Five hun-dred of the survivors were taken tohospitals in Memphis. The people ofthat Southern river town opened theirhearts to the victims, even thoughthey had been enemies for the pastfour years.

Christians in our communities arecontinuing their celebration of Eas-ter. Not just a day or even a season inthe church year, Easter is a way of lifefor followers of Jesus Christ. Chris-tians believe that because Jesus wasraised from the dead, we have eternallife. As a result, each and every daybecomes even more precious. We havethe privilege of loving and caring forothers as we have been cared for by

God. Part of that caring includes for-giving others, even our enemies.

In his famous song “Imagine,” JohnLennon once mused, “Imaginethere’s…no religion.” No doubt, manyatrocities have been done in the nameof religion, including Christianity. Theshame is that people therefore easilyconfuse the church with Christ him-self. In reality, when we Christianstruly follow Jesus, we find the powerand ability to love others as we firsthave been loved by him.

This kind of love is unconditionaland transcends all boundaries of poli-tics, geography, race and creed. Thiskind of love motivates us to be will-ing to give our lives for others. Filledwith Easter life, Christians can anddo make a lasting difference for thebetter in the communities where welive.

Recent years have seen a growingtrend to try to make religion, espe-cially Christianity, invisible in publiclife. The real tragedy for our commu-nities would be if that were to come topass.

* * * * * * *

Reverend Kritsch is in his 18th yearas senior pastor of the RedeemerLutheran Church and School, locatedat 229 Cowperthwaite Place inWestfield.

FASHIONABLE WOMEN…Members of the Forever Beautiful dinner andfashion show committee get ready for the event. Hosted by the Ladies PhiloptochosSociety of the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Westfield, it will be heldon Wednesday, May 3, beginning at 6 p.m. at the Chanticler in Millburn. Pictured,from left to right, are: Avi Kiriakatis, Vice President of the society and committeechairwoman; Barbara Manos, Olga Emanuel and Maria Halkias Doutis, an artistwho is donating one of her paintings, all of Westfield; Cynthia Ladas ofMountainside and Marina LoAlbo of Kenilworth.

Ladies Philoptochos to HoldFashion Show-Dinner EventWESTFIELD – More than 300

guests are expected to attend “ForeverBeautiful,” the annual dinner and fash-ion show hosted by the LadiesPhiloptochos Society of the Holy Trin-ity Greek Orthodox Church ofWestfield, on Wednesday, May 3,.

The event will begin at 6 p.m. atthe Chanticler in Millburn. Chairedby Avi Kiriakatis of Kenilworth, itwill feature fashions by Noel Bro-gan Productions of Montclair. Geor-gia Skeadas of Pennsylvania, Na-tional President of Philoptochos,and Metropolis President BessieDrogaris of Holmdel are expectedto attend, as well as out-of-stateguests.

Funds raised will benefit the morethan 50 charities and scholarshipsthat Philoptochos supports eachyear. Last year, more than $30,000was denoted to these charities,among them the Susan G. KomenBreast Cancer Foundation, Hospiceof America, Ronald McDonaldHouse, the Crohn’s and ColitisFoundation, the Valerie Fund,Lainie’s Angels, Children’s Special-ized Hospital, Parkinson’s Re-search, St. Michael’s Home for the

Aged, St. Basil’s Academy andSloan Kettering Memorial CancerResearch. To date, over $2,000 hasbeen given to the Hurricane Katrinaappeal in an ongoing commitmentaddressing the needs of severalfamilies.

The on-premise gift raffles willinclude theme baskets and individualitems valued at over $200 each. Therealso will be valuable door prizes.Proceeds from the Grand Raffle willbe donated to two charities – theNational Multiple Sclerosis ResearchFoundation and IND – Institute ForNeurodegenerative Disorders, whichinclude Alzheimer’s Disease,Parkinson’s Disease and Huntington’sDisease.

Tickets are $55 each and may bepurchased by calling society Trea-surer Mary Coutros at (732) 494-4641. For more information, pleasecall (908) 233-8533.

‘Benefit Bash’ to SupportLocal Groups’ Programs

WESTFIELD – Several organiza-tions will take part in Lord & Taylor’s“Benefit Bash” on Tuesday, May 9,from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. at the store onNorth Avenue in Westfield. Discountshopping will be featured at the storefor those who purchase a $5 ticketfrom a participating organization.

Each ticket will include a 20 per-cent coupon that can be used on cos-metics and many designer labels thatare ordinarily excluded. Shoppers arewelcome to purchase as many ticketsas they wish.

Additionally, the event will featuretrunk shows, guest authors and com-plimentary book signings, mini-mani-cures and hand massages, contestsand children’s activities includingvisits by Big Apple Circus clownsand superhero characters.

The College Woman’s Club ofWestfield will be among the partici-pants, with all proceeds from ticketspurchased through the club to be usedto fund college scholarships for youngwomen from Westfield. To order tick-ets through the club, please send acheck for $5 per ticket made payableto College Woman’s Club to CWC,P.O. Box 2694, Westfield, N.J. 07091.For more details, please [email protected] or visitWestfieldToday.com/cwc.

Also participating will be theWestfield Area “Y,” with ticket pro-ceeds directly benefiting theorganization’s financial assistanceprogram. Admission tickets may bepurchased at the front desk of the“Y”’s main facility at 220 Clark Streetin Westfield. For more information,please call Julia Black at (908) 233-2700, extension no. 227, or e-mailher at [email protected].

Tickets also may be purchased insupport of the Jewish CommunityCenter (JCC) of Central New Jersey’s

Preschool and Fitness Departments.Admission tickets are on sale at theJCC, located at 1391 Martine Avenuein Scotch Plains.

Proceeds from tickets purchasedthrough the Preschool office will ben-efit the preschool; proceeds from tick-ets purchased through the Fitness of-fice will benefit that department. Formore information about the event,please call the Preschool office at(908) 889-8800, extension no. 204,or the Fitness office at (908) 889-8800, extension no. 224.

THE FAMILY LAW DEPARTMENT OF DUGHI & HEWIT is pleased to invite you to a

FREE 3-PART DIVORCE SEMINAR DISCUSSIONPart 1 - GENERAL CONCEPTS OF DIVORCE

including custody, parenting time, division of assets,alimony and child support.

Part 2 - THE EMERGING CONCEPT OF DIVORCE MEDIATION

Part 3 - PRE-MARITAL AGREEMENTS, POST DIVORCE

applications to the court due to changed circumstances, Palimony,Domestic Partnerships and Domestic Violence Restraining Orders

Come to One or All Sessions All Attendees to Receive a FREE 1/2 hour Session

Thursday, April 27, May 4 or May 11 - 7:00 pm

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Call - 908 - 272 - 0200No names needed but reservation required

April L. Katz, Esq.(14 years experience)

Richard A. Outhwaite, Esq. (15 years experience)

Mario C. Gurrieri, Esq.Chair, Family Law Department (33 years experience)

Westfield Adult School presents…

Amadeus! The Genius Exposed

On Monday, May 1st come hear David Wroe, Westfield Symphony Orchestra’s Musical Director, give

a fascinating lecture about Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in

preparation for the W.S.O.’s all-Mozart program on May 13th.

Price, ($60/$55 senior), includes:

Lecture at the Adult School

Monday May 1, 7:30 – 9:00pm.

Westfield High School

Bronze-level seating at the concert

Saturday, May 13, 8:00 p.m.

The Presbyterian Church in Westfield

Invitation to post-concert

celebration at James Ward Mansion

Pre-registration is recommended

(908) 232-4050 Catalogs (w/registration forms) are

available at local libraries and online at www.westfieldnj.com/adultschool.

“Great for Mother’s Day!”

Youth and Family Counseling Service presents the

Orchestra of St. Peter by the Sea

WITH INTERNATIONALLY RENOWNED PRIEST-CONDUCTOR

REV. ALPHONSE STEPHENSONWITH HIS FULL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

AND SOLOISTS

Saturday, May 6, 2006 • 8:00 PMat The Presbyterian Church

140 Mountain Avenue • Westfield, NJ

General Admission $25Seniors (65+) $20

TICKETS AVAILABLE AT THESE LOCAL OUTLETS:Country Squire Men’s Shop - Raritan Road, Clark

Michelle’s Hallmark - Union Avenue North, Cranford

Irma’s Bag - Martine Avenue South, Fanwood

New Jersey Workshop for the Arts - East Broad Street, Westfield

St. Helens - Rahway Ave., Westfield

Youth and Family Counseling Service - Westfield

FOR TICKETS BY MAIL, CALL: (908) 233-2042

Richard J. Kaplow, Esq.“25 Years Experience”

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Former Assistant Union County Prosecutor

May 2006 Events at the Westfield Memorial Library The Library will be closed on Sundays for the summer starting May 21.

The Library will be closed on May 29.

ADULT PROGRAMS

May 1 7:00 PM Great Decisions: Brazil* May 2 10:00 AM Computer Class: Puzzled by the Internet I May 3 10:00 AM Computer Class: Genealogy May 5 1:30 PM TGIF: Senior Resources on the Internet May 9 10:00 AM Computer Class: Puzzled by the Internet II May 9 1 & 7 PM International Film Festival: Broken Wings May 11 7:00 PM Film and Director’s Discussion: Street Fight May 12 1:30 PM TGIF: Grandma Moses May 16 10:00 AM Computer Class: Travel, Travel, Travel May 16 7:00 PM Concert: Heather Mulvey May 19 1:30 PM TGIF: Miss Marple May 23 10:00 AM Computer Class: Business and Investment Online May 24 7:00 PM Lecture: Buying and Selling IT Businesses May 26 1:30 PM Visions of Aging

CHILDREN’S PROGRAMS

May 2 10:00 AM Tots’ Storytime May 5 10:00 AM Baby Rhyme Time May 6 10:00 AM Mother Goose Group May 6, 13, 20, 27 10:00 AM Chess

Restrictions regarding pre-registration or age may apply to some programs.

Call the library for further information.

* Program is offered through the Westfield Adult School. Fee is required.

550 East Broad Street, Westfield, NJ 07090 908-789-4090 www.wmlnj.org

Unitarian Church SetsMay Fair CelebrationPLAINFIELD – The First Unitar-

ian Society of Plainfield, which in-cludes members from Westfield,Scotch Plains and Fanwood, will holdits annual May Fair on Sunday, May 7,from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Families are especially welcome toattend this free event, which will takeplace indoors and outdoors at thechurch, located at 724 Park Avenue inPlainfield. There will be a May Pole,live music, an inflatable slide, a mar-tial arts demonstration, face painting,a chili cook-off and chair massages.Members of the community are in-vited to join the celebration.

Admission is free, but in exchangefor a donation, attendees will get ahot dog, cookie and a drink. For moreinformation, please call the church at(908) 756-0750 or visit www.fusp.orgonline and click on Events.

See it all on the Web!www.goleader.com

For additional information on Christian Science visit:

www.tfccs.com, www.spirituality.com, www.csmonitor.com, www.powerfulprayer.com

1st and 3rd Sundays, 10:30 AM at the Christian Science Reading Room

116 Quimby Street (Across from Robert Treat Delicatessen.)

For reading room hours and other information: 908-232-3226.

WORSHIP SERVICESCHRISTIAN SCIENCE SOCIETY, WESTFIELD

SUNDAYS at 7 AM on WOR Radio (710 AM)Internet: www.nj.com/wor/audio

Christian Science Sentinel - Radio Edition

April 30: Are Other People Doing Your Thinking for You?May 7: The Perfect God: A Good Place to Start for Healing in Our Lives

May 14: Never Too Young to Hear God


– Obituaries –

Dooley Funeral Service, Inc.Caring & Courteous Service to the

Cranford / Westfield Area Since 1913

Westfield556 Westfield Avenue233-0255John L. DooleyManagerNJ License # 4100

Cranford218 North Avenue

276-0255Charles V. Dooley

ManagerNJ License # 3703

Hillside Cemetery Scotch Plains

908.756.1729

www.hillsidecemetery.com

Prayer to

The Blessed VirginPRAYER TO THE BLESSED

VIRGIN: (Never known to fail)Oh most beautiful flower of MountCarmel, fruitful vine splendor ofheaven. Blessed Mother of the Sonof God, Immaculate Virgin, assistme in my necessity. Oh, Star of theSea, help me show me herein, youare my mother. Oh Holy Mary,Mother of God, Queen of Heavenand Earth! I humbly beseech youfrom the bottom of my heart tosuccor me in this necessity. Thereare none that can withstand yourpower. Oh, show me herein you aremy mother. Oh Mary, conceivedwithout sin, pray for us who haverecourse to thee. Holy Mother, Iplace this cause in your hands (3X).Holy Spirit, you who solve all prob-lems, light all roads so that I canattain my goal. You who gave methe divine gift to forgive and forgetall evil against me and that in allinstances in my life you are withme. I want in this short prayer tothank you for the things as youconfirm once again that I neverwant to be separated from you ineternal glory. Thank you for yourmercy towards me and mine. Theperson must say this prayer threeconsecutive days. After three days,the request will be granted. Thisprayer must be published after thefavor is granted. V.T.

Melanie L. Sordill, 86, Registered Nurse;Sunday School Teacher and Scout Leader

Doris Eggleston, 78Doris Kirk Eggleston, 78, of Rich-

mond, Va. died on Saturday, April 22,at Henrico Doctors’ Hospital in Rich-mond.

Born and raised in Westfield, shegraduated from Westfield HighSchool in 1945. She lived in Rich-mond since 1979.

Mrs. Eggleston had been a book-keeper for Children’s SpecializedHospital in Mountainside.

She was a member of The Presby-terian Church in Westfield and theWestminster Presbyterian Church ofRichmond, as well as the CanterburyGarden Club in Richmond.

She was predeceased by her hus-band, John H. Eggleston, in 1996.

Surviving are a daughter, LindaVernon, with whom she lived; a son,David Eggleston, and five grand-children.

Services will be held at 9:30 a.m. onSaturday, April 29, at The PresbyterianChurch in Westfield, 140 MountainAvenue in Westfield. Burial will takeplace at Fairview Cemetery in Westfield.

Visitation will be from 2 to 4 and 7to 9 p.m. tomorrow, Friday, April 28,at the Dooley Funeral Home, 218North Avenue, West, in Cranford.

April 27, 2006

Joseph Pompilio, 84, Framer/Designer;Had Been Army Hospital Ward Master

Melanie L. Sordill, 86, ofCranford died on Monday, April 17,at Robert Wood Johnson-RahwayHospital in Rahway.

Born in Bayonne, she was raisedin Westfield, graduating from Eliza-beth General Nursing School inElizabeth in 1940. She had lived inWashington, D.C. for a short timebefore settling in Cranford, whereshe resided for over 50 years.

A registered nurse, Mrs. Sordillhad worked for her husband, Dr.Anthony Sordill, in his private prac-tice in Cranford and for over 30years at Elizabeth General MedicalCenter in Elizabeth before retiring.Her husband, to whom she was mar-ried for more than 50 years, prede-ceased her in 1997.

Mrs. Sordill was a Sunday school

teacher for the First PresbyterianChurch of Cranford; a Girl Scoutleader in Westfield and Cranford anda member of the Rotary Women’sBowling Club and the Village Im-provement Association of Cranford.

Surviving are a daughter, JoyceCampos; a sister, Frances Perry, anda granddaughter, Cheryl Puorro,with whom she lived.

A memorial service was held onFriday, April 21, at the Chapel ofEvergreen Cemetery in Hillside.

Arrangements were by the DooleyFuneral Home, 218 North Avenue,West, in Cranford.

Memorial donations may be madeto the Homeless Animal RescueTeam, 231 North Avenue, West, No.156, Westfield, N.J. 07090.

April 27, 2006

Joseph M. Pompilio, 84, ofPlainfield died on Saturday, April 22,at Muhlenberg Regional MedicalCenter in Plainfield.

Born in Newark, he was raised inPlainfield and had lived in Westfieldfor five years before returning toPlainfield.

Mr. Pompilio had been employedas a framer/designer with the MarkayBag Company in Plainfield, retiringin 1978 after more than 40 years withthe firm.

He served in the United States Armyduring World War II as a staff ser-geant and army hospital ward masterfor the care of sick and woundedsoldiers.

Surviving are his wife of 63 years,Frances Ponturo Pompilio; two

daughters, Patricia Heinze ofPiscataway and Connie Sheehan ofBranchburg; a sister, Julie Stanislao;seven grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; three step-grandchil-dren and a step-great-grandson.

A Mass of Christian Burial wasoffered yesterday, Wednesday, April26, at the Holy Trinity Roman Catho-lic Church in Westfield. Entombmenttook place at Fairview Cemetery inWestfield.

Arrangements were by the DooleyColonial Home, 556 Westfield Av-enue in Westfield.

Memorial donations may be madeto the American Cancer Society, 507Westminster Avenue, P.O. Box 815,Elizabeth, N.J. 07207-0815.

April 27, 2006

Black Achievers BanquetOn Tap May 5 at L’AffaireStudents, Faculty to Enter

Relay For Life May 19, 20SCOTCH PLAINS – Students, staff

and faculty members, cancer survi-vors, caregivers, family members,corporate sponsors, neighbors, indi-viduals and relay teams will partici-pate in the American Cancer SocietyRelay For Life of Scotch Plains onFriday, May 19, and Saturday, May20, at Scotch Plains-Fanwood HighSchool.

The event will be held from 7 p.m.on May 19 to 7 a.m. on May 20. Therewill be a survivor lap at 7 p.m. andluminaria service at 9 p.m. on May 19.

Since 1985, this community eventhas become a worldwide movementthat has spread to over 4,700 commu-nities in the United States and in 19countries around the world.

Survivors of all ages will walkaround the Scotch Plains-Fanwoodtrack in a victory lap and friends willhonor loved ones lost to the disease inan evening candlelight vigil.

Caregivers will also be honored witha special ceremony and lap in theirhonor. The overnight event joins teamsof 10 to 15 people who camp out atcommunity sites and take turns cir-cling a track or path to raise aware-ness and funds to support cancer re-search, education, advocacy and pa-tient services in the community.

Relay For Life opens as cancersurvivors walk, run, or otherwisemove around the lawn for the first lap.Highlighting the evening will be theluminaria service held at nightfall tohonor cancer survivors and to re-member loved ones lost to cancer.

In addition to the Scotch Plainsevent, the American Cancer Societywill host Relay For Life in 62 othercommunities across New Jersey and4,700 other communities acrossAmerica. For more information,please call (800) ACS-2345 or visitwww.cancer.org.

WESTFIELD – The WestfieldArea “Y” will host its eighth annualBlack Achievers Fundraising andRecognition Banquet on Friday, May5, from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. at L’AffaireFine Catering, 1099 Route 22, East,in Mountainside.

United States Senator FrankLautenberg of New Jersey will bethe keynote speaker. Dr. NoahTennant, assistant principal atWestfield High School, will be thespecial honoree. Dr. Tennant servedas a Black Achievers volunteer andmentor eight years ago.

Begun at the Harlem YMCA in1968, the Black Achievers Programfocuses on building community part-nerships in which young people areencouraged to reach their full poten-tial in spirit, mind and body. Bymatching youth with achieving Afri-

can-American and other minorityprofessionals as role models, theprogram aims to raise the academicstandards of young people, exposestudents to diverse career optionsand inspire them to reach their goals.

The Westfield Area “Y” offers theprogram at its main facility, locatedat 220 Clark Street in Westfield, onWednesday evenings from Septem-ber through June. Students in grades5 through 8 meet from 6 to 7 p.m.,while students in grades 9 through12 meet from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Participants have assisted in com-munity events and service activitiessuch as the New Jersey Food Bank,Martin Luther King Service, the“Y”’s Men’s Tree Sale, a Pre-SchoolHoliday Boutique and the “Y” Lunchwith Santa.

The cost for this event is $75 perperson, with 10 percent of the pro-ceeds benefiting the Black Achiev-ers Scholarship Fund. The BlackAchievers program is funded in largepart by this annual banquet.

For more information on this eventand how to participate in this pro-gram, please call Amy Gantz at (908)233-2700, extension no. 252, or e-mail her at [email protected].

Barbara A. Short, Research Librarian;Championed Animals and Environment

Simone J. Mokrauer, 95, Was DevotedTo Education and Pursuit of KnowledgeSimone J. Mokrauer died peace-

fully at her home in Oak Park, Ill. onFriday, April 21, 2006 of cancer. Shehad just returned from a trip to Jerusa-lem to celebrate her 95th birthday onMarch 1 when her cancer was dis-covered.

Born in Strasbourg, France, Simonealso had lived in Germany, England,Scotland and Lebanon before mov-ing to the United States in 1946. Afterseven years in Manhattan and fiveyears in Rochelle Park, N.J., she andher family moved to Westfield, N.J.,where she lived for the next 45 years.In 2003 she retired to Holley CourtTerrace in Oak Park, Ill.

Simone was educated at theSorbonne in Paris and dedicated herlife to French and German education– as a teacher and a private tutor,traveling the world to sightsee andvisit her many friends and her con-stantly expanding family. She was aninveterate reader and Scrabble playerin French, German and English, andin her constant effort to expand herhorizons was an avid participant invarious activities, most notably theGreat Books Program.

In Westfield, she was a member ofLe Petit Coin de France, the WestfieldHistorical Society and the WestfieldCommunity Players and hosted agroup of former French students fromKean University for more than 25years. In Oak Park, she attended meet-ings of the French Club.

She was predeceased in 1980 byher husband of 45 years, BernhardMokrauer, and is survived by herthree children, Margot Loewensteinof West Palm Beach, Fla., TunyMokrauer (Dan Madden) of OakPark, Ill. and Donald Mokrauer(Ellen Kirschner) of Westfield, N.J.,

as well as nine grandchildren, 15great-grandchildren and four great-great grandchildren.

A graveside service was held onMonday, April 24, at Cedar Park Cem-etery in Paramus, N.J. In lieu of flow-ers, she asked that donations be madeto the Alzheimer’s Association, 400Morris Avenue, Suite 251, Denville,N.J. 07834.

Arrangements were by MenorahChapels at Millburn in Union.

April 27, 2006

Mrs. Barbara A. Short ofWestfield, N.J. passed away onWednesday, April 19, 2006 at home.

She was born in WestchesterCounty, N.Y. on April 27, 1927 andhad lived in Westfield for many years.

Barbara was a graduate ofMiddlebury College and receivedher master’s degree fromSwarthmore College. She was em-ployed for many years as a researchlibrarian with ExxonMobil beforeher retirement in 1982 after 31 yearsof service.

Barbara was predeceased by thelove of her life, her husband, AbramT. Short, who died in 1994. Alsodeceased are her sister, ElizabethHerschel; her brother, JohnSchobinger, and a nephew, GeorgeHerschel, 2nd. She leaves behindher sister Trudi Battershall; 16nieces and nephews and a large num-ber of close and caring friends.

Mrs. Short was a great music loveras well as a supporter of animal and

environmental groups. She also wasknown for her keen wit and intensebelief in issues that were importantto her. Barbara enjoyed hiking inthe Alps and skiing in Europe, aswell as many places here in theUnited States. Mrs. Short also wasan accomplished swimmer and tookpart in many synchronized swim-ming competitions. She will bemissed and remembered by many.

A memorial service will be heldat the Gray Funeral Home, 318 EastBroad Street in Westfield, on Satur-day, April 29, 2006 at 2 p.m. In lieuof flowers, memorial donations maybe made to the environmental orga-nization of the donor’s choice.

Barbara’s family would like to pub-licly thank her caregivers at Over-look Hospital, Runnells SpecializedHospital and Atlantic Hospice, es-pecially Pat Haran and her very spe-cial home care giver from AtlanticHome Care, K.K. Go in peace.

April 27, 2006

Community/Area News

Light The Night WalkSet May 6 In WestfieldWESTFIELD – The Leukemia and

Lymphoma Society’s Northern NewJersey Chapter will hold a “Light TheNight Walk” fundraiser for the firsttime in downtown Westfield on Sat-urday, May 6. All are welcome toparticipate.

A parade of flickering red and whiteballoons will wind two to three milesthrough downtown Westfield. Can-cer survivors will carry white bal-loons, while other participants willcarry red balloons.

Check-in will begin at 5:30 p.m.that day at the Westfield trainstation’s South Avenue entrance, withthe walk getting underway at 7 p.m.The event also will include musicand refreshments. The society hopesto raise a minimum of $100 perwalker to support its goals, whichinclude fighting leukemia, lym-phoma, Hodgkin’s disease and my-eloma and improving the quality oflife for patients and their families.

Anyone wishing to organize a team,become a corporate or communitysponsor or to volunteer behind thescenes is asked to contact Kisha Achoeat the Northern New Jersey Chapterat (908) 654-9445 or [email protected].

Open House to Be HeldFor Religious SchoolSCOTCH PLAINS – Temple

Sholom in Fanwood has invited mem-bers of the community to its religiousschool open house on Sunday, May 7,from 10 a.m. to noon at Union Catho-lic High School, located at 1600Martine Avenue in Scotch Plains.

The program will include a presen-tation by Rabbi Joel Abraham andDirector of Education MichelleShapiro Abraham, as well as a tour ofthe religious school. The school fea-tures such aspects as family, congre-gational and adult education; art, mu-sic and dance specialists; a small stu-dent/teacher ratio; an integrated pro-gram for children with special needs,and hands-on interactive learning.

To respond for the open house or tospeak with Mrs. Abraham, please call(908) 889-4900.

Nature Club AnnouncesMeeting and Event Dates

MOUNTAINSIDE – The GreaterWatchung Nature Club has revealedits calendar of upcoming activities,beginning with its monthly meetingon Tuesday, May 2, at 7:30 p.m. at theCourthouse of the MountainsideMunicipal Building, located off NewProvidence Road just prior to thetraffic light on Route 22.

Holly Hoffman will present pic-tures of wildflowers taken during hertravels through the Italian, Austrianand Swiss Alpine meadows.

On Saturday, May 6, Tom Halliwellwill lead a trip through the KittatinyValley Rails-and-Trails State Park toview wildlife and learn the railroad’shistory. Participants will meet at 8 a.m.at the south side Fanwood train station.

The club’s second Walker Walkwill take place on Sunday, May 7, atLenape Park on Springfield Avenuein Cranford, in the parking lot of theformer Trap and Skeet Range. Birdingwill begin at 7 a.m., with coffee andpastries to follow at 9 a.m.

The New Jersey Audubon Society’sBig Day of Birding is scheduled forSaturday, May 13. Individuals areinvited to support the society with amonetary pledge or by joining a team

to find as many bird species as pos-sible in New Jersey in 24 hours. Formore details, please call the society at(908) 204-8998.

Additionally on May 13, the thirdWalker Walk will be held at the De-serted Village in the Watchung Reser-vation. Participants should turn leftas they exit from Surprise Lake ontoGlenside Avenue, then travel a shortdistance and turn left again into theDeserted Village parking lot.

Other club activities for later in Maywill be announced. Guests are alwayswelcome at club meetings and on trips.

Musical Drama to TellOf Moses and ExodusFANWOOD – During the Fanwood

Presbyterian Church’s regular 10 a.m.service of worship on Sunday, April30, the combined Westminster, Cel-ebration and Cherub Choirs of thechurch will present Moses and theFreedom Fanatics.

A musical drama by Hal Hopson, ittells the Old Testament story of Mosesand the Exodus from Egypt. Thishumorous play, complete with frogs,lice, flies and fleas, will be sung andspoken in modern day language andis designed to appeal to school agechildren through adults. RobertGangewere, Jr., the church’s Ministerof Music, is the organizer, directorand accompanist.

All are invited to attend. The churchis located at the corner of Martine andLaGrande Avenues in Fanwood andis wheelchair-accessible. Childcareis provided for youngsters in pre-kindergarten and younger. For moreinformation, please call the churchoffice at (908) 889-8891.

Junior Women RevealWine and Cheese Event

SCOTCH PLAINS – The ScotchPlains Junior Woman’s Club will hosta New Member Wine and Cheeseevent on Thursday, May 4, at 7 p.m. atthe Scotch Hills Country Club, lo-cated at Plainfield Avenue and Jerusa-lem Road in Scotch Plains.

Guest speaker Jaime Novak willpresent a humorous and informa-tional workshop entitled “Cut theClutter and Store the Stuff.” Attend-ees also will have an opportunity tomeet and socialize with current mem-bers and learn about club activities.The club seeks to provide womenwith opportunities to socialize, makefriends and make a difference in theircommunity.

Members can be as active as theywish. Club endeavors have includedMobile Meals, hosting the townshipEaster Egg Hunt, a spelling bee anda coat drive, among other events. Theclub also holds social events such aswomen’s nights out and family fundays. For more details on the wineand cheese event, please callJosephine Walsh at (908) 889-5109or email [email protected].

DDR to Make ReturnTo Library on May 2FANWOOD – Dance Dance Revo-

lution (DDR) will return to theFanwood Memorial Library on Tues-day, May 2, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. It willbe open that night to all in the com-munity who want to learn to dance.

A music video arcade game, DDRis typically played on a dance padwith four arrow panels. These panelsare pressed using the players’ feet inresponse to arrows that appear on thescreen in front of them. The arrowsare synchronized to the generalrhythm or beat of a song and successis dependent on the player’s ability totime his or her steps.

This DDR event will feature games,competitions, prizes and refresh-ments. The library is located at NorthAvenue and Tillotson Road. For moreinformation, please call NancyKipping at (908) 322-6400.

Rosary Altar SocietyTo Gather on May 1SCOTCH PLAINS – The St.

Bartholomew’s Rosary Altar Soci-ety will meet on Monday, May 1,following the 7:30 p.m. Mass, No-vena and May Crowning of theBlessed Mother at St. Bartholomewthe Apostle Roman CatholicChurch, 2032 Westfield Avenue inScotch Plains.

The meeting will include instal-lation of new officers and thegroup’s Annual Birthday Party. Allwomen of the parish are invited toattend and refreshments will beserved.

Nunsense to BenefitWF Library FriendsWESTFIELD – The Friends of

the Westfield Memorial Libraryhave invited area residents to a ben-efit performance of Dan Goggin’sNunsense by the Westfield Com-munity Players at 1000 North Av-enue, West, in Westfield on Friday,May 12. The pre-show party willbegin at 7 p.m., with the curtainrising at 8 p.m.

Tickets are $35. Checks may bemade payable to Friends of theLibrary and sent to Letty Hudak,409 Harrison Avenue, Westfield,N.J. 07090. Individuals should in-clude their name, address, tele-phone number, the number of tick-ets needed and the amount enclosed.For more details, please call (908)233-6233.

Mr. Evans to PresentTalk on Medicare DSCOTCH PLAINS – Volunteer

Senior Advocate Ed Evans willpresent an informational talk onthe Medicare D Drug Program at 1p.m. on Monday, May 8, in theScotch Plains Public Library Com-munity Room.

The final date to enroll withoutpenalty for this program is Mon-day, May 15, after which there is a12 percent penalty per year for life.

Mr. Evans will explain the formsof coverage available from severalapproved Medicare D companies,as well as how the actual programworks for those with existing drugcoverage. Additionally, he willclarify who should and should notenroll and share his expertise withaudience members who have ques-tions.

This free program is open to allarea residents who have MedicareA and B. The Scotch Plains PublicLibrary is located at 1927 BartleAvenue. For further informationor directions, please call the li-brary at (908) 322-5007 or visitwww.scotlib.org.



SCIENCE NON FICTION…Winners at the Park Middle School 2006 ScienceFair include: Disha Rao, Dylan Sands, Justin Glock, Gregory Kashmer, EliseRingel, Samantha Renfree, Madeline Krema, Bobby Evans and Sonali Kamath.

Taylor Swaak LaudedIn State Essay Contest

SCOTCH PLAINS –Taylor Swaak,a fifth-grade student at Park MiddleSchool in Scotch Plains, is one of 75semifinalists chosen out of 7,000 NewJersey students who participated inthe Letters about Literature essaycontest administered through NewJersey schools in November 2005.Taylor wrote to J.K. Rowling aboutthe Harry Potter series.

The awards ceremony will be heldon Monday, May 15 at the Governor’sMansion in Princeton.

The Letters about Literature con-test is run by the Center for the Bookfrom the Library of Congress. Stu-dents are asked to write a letter to anauthor explaining how that book orwork affected the student. Entries arefirst sent to the national office for aninitial round of judging. New Jersey’steachers and school librarians sent7000 entries. Only about one percentof the 7000 entries became semifinal-ists.

Westfield BOE to HearEnrollment Suggestions

WESTFIELD – The WestfieldBoard of Education will receive areport from the Citizens AdvisoryCommittee on Enrollment (CACE) atits meeting to be held Tuesday, May2, at 8:30 p.m. in Jefferson School,1200 Boulevard.

The report will consist of thecommittee’s recommendations ondealing with the enrollment imbal-ances at the elementary and interme-diate levels in the district. The publicis welcomed to attend. The businessmeeting will directly follow a 7:30p.m. celebration in honor of JeffersonSchool’s music teacher, Karen Yula,who is the 2006 Westfield RotaryPhilhower Fellowship recipient.

MUSIC TO HER EARS…Karen Yula, a Jefferson School music teacher and thisyear’s Westfield Rotary Club’s Philhower Fellowship winner, concludes aninstructional lesson prior to a surprise visit by Superintendent of Schools WilliamFoley, announcing her selection for the annual elementary teacher of the yearaward.

Karen Yula GarnersPhilhower Fellowship

WESTFIELD – Karen Yula, musicteacher at Jefferson School inWestfield, is the 2006 recipient of theWestfield Rotary Club’s PhilhowerFellowship in recognition of outstand-ing teaching at the elementary schoollevel.

Nancy Jackson, president of theRotary Club, presented Ms. Yula withthe award at the Rotary Club lun-cheon on April 25, at which Ms. Yulawas the guest of honor. She will alsobe honored at a reception at JeffersonSchool on May 2 at 7:30 p.m. prior tothe Board of Education meeting.

Ms. Yula has been with theWestfield Public Schools for her en-tire 29-year teaching career, begin-ning at the former Grant School andthen teaching at Wilson and Wash-ington Schools for several years. Inaddition, she taught at Roosevelt In-termediate School for one year. She isone of the directors of the All-CityChorus, a Westfield elementary schoolauditioned group.

Her interest in teaching and in musicextends beyond the school day. In thesummer, Ms. Yula offers a music-enrichment program for third, fourthand fifth graders through a groupcalled Artists Performing and Enter-taining. She is also a fully certifiedyoga instructor in the area and incor-porates yogic skills in the classroom.A graduate of Kean College, she holdsa degree in vocal and instrumentalmusic K-12.

In accepting the award, Ms. Yulasaid she “feels blessed to do what she

loves and continues to love after allthese 29 years.”

The Philhower Fellowship wasestablished in 1993 by the RotaryClub to honor former WestfieldEducator and Rotarian CharlesPhilhower and to recognize the im-portance of teaching in the elemen-tary grades. This is the first yearthat the award is designated for aspecial area teacher in the Westfieldpublic schools.

SAINT PETER’S PREPnew Jersey’s Jesuit High school since 1872

SPRING OPEN HOUSESUNDAY, APRIL 30, 2006

2:00 - 4:00PMTake a tour of our campus. Talk with faculty, students

and parents. Receive information regarding the admissionsprocess, transportation options, financial aid, sports andco-curricular activities.

Join us at our spring Open House and learn why wesay, “It is not simply Prep for four years. It is Prep...for life.”

144 GRAND STREET, JERSEY CITY, NJ 07302201.434.4400 WWW.SPPREP.ORG

IMPORTANT

ANNOUNCEMENT

Jamie Novak’s “Organize Your Space:

A Personalized Assessment”

Is moving to a

New TIME & PLACE

Where: Westfield Memorial

Library

When: 7:30 – 9:00 pm

Wednesday May 15th

For more information, please contact the Adult School at:

(908) 232-4050

or

[email protected]

Note: The class WILL NOT MEET at Westfield High

School May 1st

THE STUDENT VIEWTHE STUDENT VIEWTHE STUDENT VIEWTHE STUDENT VIEWTHE STUDENT VIEWThe weekly column written by local high school students

During Violent Rumors,WHS Achieves ‘Normalcy’

By NEIL FITZPATRICKSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

Rumors of threats caused a stir atthe high school this April 20 when thesignificance of the date was realizedas both the anniversary of Columbineand Hitler’s birthday. Many kidsmissed school as word of a possibleshooting spread.

As I sat in school last Thursdaytaking notes in half-empty classrooms, I found myself becoming an-gry with my teachers for punishingthose students who showed up with aseemingly endless stream of work. Ifelt I should have been rewarded sim-ply for my attendance on such anunusual and originally anxious day.

This desire manifested itself againwhen I heard that one fourth ofWestfield High School had stayedhome on April 20. Why? Was it out ofgenuine fear of a rumor with seem-ingly no basis other than the violentsignificance of the date? Whose fearwas it, the parents’ or the child’s? Or

Romano Makes Dean’sList at Wash. CollegeWESTFIELD – Washington Col-

lege in Chestertown, Md. announcedits Dean’s List for the fall 2005 se-mester.

Westfield resident ChristineRomano, a senior, earned Dean’s Listdistinction. She is the daughter of Mr.and Mrs. Nicholas Romano. Chris-tine is majoring in Human Develop-ment.

Students who made the Dean’s Listachieved a grade point average of 3.4or higher for the semester.

FW Student NamedTo Marist Dean’s ListFANWOOD – Bryan Smith of

Fanwood was named to the MaristCollege Dean’s List for the fall 2005semester. Bryan is a member of theClass of 2008 and majors in PublicRelations and Sports Communica-tion.

was the absence simply out of a de-sire for a day off? After all, whowould say no to a day off? Why did Inot take the day off? What, exactly,was the right thing to do?

All of the questions seemed to boildown to the basic issue of fear andhow we allow it to govern our lives. Itseems logical that if one were to stayhome on such a day as last Thursday,a day which with the added policeforce was most likely the safest dayof the year, then one would have to beabsent every other day of the year aswell. After all, what is to stop a con-spirator from changing the date of theaction to a less conspicuous one?

However, the notion of missingevery day because of what-if sce-narios is not only irrational but alsoimpossible. Instead, life would haveto go on as normal with the knowl-edge of such a grim possibility everpresent but not hindering daily func-tions in any way. Normalcy is, in fact,what went on April 20 at the highschool, and originally what botheredme so much until I recognized it as apositive thing.

The normalcy showed that the fac-ulty and kids would not allow fear todominate routine and, thereby, tookaway its power to divide.

Neil is a sophomore at WestfieldHigh School.

WF’s Michael AgrestaNamed Kean ScholarWESTFIELD – Kean University’s

New Jersey Center for Science, Tech-nology and Mathematics Education(NJCSTME) awarded 41 full-tuitionscholarships to first-year students,including Michael Agresta, a 2005graduate of Westfield High School.

Of the 277 scholarships awarded,143 foundation scholarships totaling$265,000 were presented, constitut-ing the largest numbers of their kindin the history of the university.

The endowed foundation scholar-ships are awarded to students basedon a variety of requirements, such asSAT score, GPA and/or financial need.Foundation scholarships are alsoawarded to students who are enrolledin a specific degree program, havegraduated from a particular highschool or are of a non-traditionalcollege age.

By Mary ThompsonPresident, Westfield Parent-Teacher Council

I am very proud to be a part of theParent Teacher Council (PTC), which isan umbrella organization that overseesthe activities of all Westfield school’sParent Teacher Organizations. Our goalsinclude: coordinating the activities ofthe individual parent-teacher groups,promoting a liaison between the parentsand the schools and promoting the wel-fare of children and youth.

We meet twice a month at the Boardof Education administration buildingto review district-wide projects, whereDr. William Foley and our BOE presi-dent and vice president provide us withan update of their activities. This forumnot only provides an excellent opportu-nity for parent representatives to be-come informed about what’s happen-ing in our school district, but also pro-vides an opportunity for dialogue be-tween our parents, the superintendentof schools, and our BOE representa-tives, who are eager to receive feedbackand hear about our parents’ and stu-dents’ real life experiences.

We strongly encourage our parentcommunity to become PTC repre-sentatives, attend these meetings orbe involved with the many commit-tees the PTC supports.

The vitality of these committeesmay be measured by their accom-plishments. The Bikers, Runners, andKids are Entitled to Safety (BRAKES)committee, headed up by SaraStrohecker and Deirdre Gelinne, con-tinues to address school safety issues,promotes “Walk to School Day” andis currently working on the idea of“Walking School Buses” in conjunc-tion with the town.

Merry Wisler and Julie Tarr took thelead of our Budget Task Force. Withtheir group diligently working this yearto “get the vote out,” the results of theelection prove their efforts paid off.Under our Educational Studies Com-mittee, the School Nutritional Aware-ness Council (SNAC), chaired by SaraMcKeown and Lisa Bleich, has infil-trated our schools not only with infor-mation about healthy eating, but atWestfield High School, SNAC has beensuccessful in identifying nutritional foodchoices with the “SNAC” label.

In recent years, educational initiativesincluded a review of our technologyneeds and the organization of our guid-ance counselor departments. Our Music

Communication BetweenPTC, School Leaders Is Vital

and Fine Arts Committee continues tosuccessfully promote Youth Art Month,and Louise Dedea, our PANDA (Pre-vention Awareness of Narcotics, Drugsand Alcohol) chair, is reaching suchheights as to discuss its role in our cur-riculum. Our Special Education Com-mittee, guided by Fee Butrick, AnnieCorley-Hand and Maryann Gingrich,has generated increased interest and at-tendance at their evening presentations,led by experienced professionals.

It’s been a privilege to work with thisdynamic group of individuals, as well aswith all of the PTO/PTSO Presidents. Asa relatively small group of individuals, itis quite rewarding to experience thesubstantive achievements, which havebenefited the Westfield students at all,grade levels. I am grateful that we havesuch a dedicated and dynamic group ofcommunity leaders to represent us.

The Parent Teachers Council also es-tablishes scholarships for graduatingseniors at Westfield High School. Lastyear, 18 students received scholarshipstotaling $33,500. The PTC supports ourstudents in many ways – through thesescholarships, our active role on commit-tees, and through communication withother parents and the school administra-tion in a community where educationcontinues to be a high priority.

UPCOMING FREE

DIVORCE SEMINARThe Family Law Department of the Cranford law

firm of Dughi & Hewit, P.C. is pleased to announce

that a free three part divorce seminar will be

conducted April 27th, May 4th and May 11, 2006. The

seminars will take place at the Short Hills Hilton.

Following the initial presentation each evening,

there will be opportunity to ask questions of the

panelists both on a group basis and individually.

In addition, all attendees shall receive a free ½ hour

office consultation at a subsequent date.

Reservations are required but no names are needed.

If you feel you have interest and can benefit from

attending one or all three of the seminars, you may

contact the law firm at (908) 272-0200.

The seminar will be presented by the Chair of the

firm’s Family Law Department, Mario C. Gurrieri,

Esq., who has 34 years of experience in the field.

He will be accompanied by his two partners,

Richard A. Outhwaite, Esq. and April L. Katz, Esq.

PAID BULLETIN BOARD

Business

Embroidery Design

Of The Week

Norman GrecoJersey Mike’s Subs

Town Embroidery102 Quimby Street

908 233 -1221www.townembroidery.com


PUBLIC NOTICETOWN OF WESTFIELD

BOARD OF EDUCATION

NOTICE TO BIDDERS

Sealed proposals will be received by theBoard of Education of the Westfield SchoolDistrict, Union County, New Jersey, at theBoard of Education, 302 Elm Street,Westfield, New Jersey, for the followingsupplies, equipment or services:

BID FOR:B07-08 CUSTODIAN SUPPLIES FOR

THE 2006-2007 SCHOOL YEAR

BIDS DUE:MAY 25, 2006 AT 2:00 PM

The bids will be received at the Admin-istration Building, 302 Elm Street,Westfield, New Jersey 07090, on the dateand at the time indicated, and then publiclyopened and read aloud.

Bids must be in strict compliance withspecifications. Specifications may be se-cured from, Purchasing Office 302 ElmStreet, Westfield, New Jersey 07090 (908)789-4407. Bids must be made on theproposal forms in the manner designated.Proposals must be endorsed on the out-side of the sealed envelope, with the nameof the bidder, the bidder’s address andthe name of the supplies, equipment, orservices for which the bid is submitted. Itis understood and agreed that proposalsmay be delivered before the time or at theplace specified for opening. The Board ofEducation assumes no responsibility forbids mailed or misdirected in delivery.

The Board of Education of the Town ofWestfield, in Union County, New Jersey,reserves the right to accept or reject anyand/or all bids for the whole or any part andwaive any informalities in the interest ofthe Board of Education. No bid may bewithdrawn for a period of sixty (60) daysafter the date set for the opening thereof.

Bidding shall be in conformance with theapplicable requirements ofN.J.S.A.18A:18A-1 et.seq., pertaining tothe “Public School Contracts Law”.

Bidders are required to comply with therequirements of Affirmative Action Regu-lations of P.L. 1975, C.127, (NJAC 17:27).

BIDDERS NOTE: Each bid shall beaccompanied by a bid bond, cashier’scheck or certified check made payable tothe Westfield Board of Education, for tenpercent (10%) of the amount of the totalbid, however, not to exceed $20,000.

By order of the Town of Westfield Boardof Education, Union County, New Jersey.

Robert A. BermanBoard Secretary

1 T - 4/27/06, The Leader Fee: $52.02

PUBLIC NOTICEBOROUGH OF FANWOODIN THE COUNTY OF UNION

BOND ORDINANCESTATEMENTS AND SUMMARY

The Ordinance, the summary terms ofwhich are included herein, has been finallyadopted by the Governing Body of theBOROUGH OF FANWOOD, in the Countyof Union, State of New Jersey, on April 26,2006 and the twenty day (20) day period oflimitation within which a suit, action ofproceeding questioning the validity of suchordinance can be commenced, as pro-vided in the Local Bond Law, has begun torun from the date of the first publication ofthis statement. Copies of the full ordi-nance are available at no cost and duringregular business hours, at the Clerk’s of-fice for members of the general public whorequest the same. The summary of theterms of such bond ordinance follows:

TITLE: AN ORDINANCE AU-THORIZING THE EXECUTIONOR ACKNOWLEDGMENTAND DELIVERY BY THE BOR-OUGH OF FANWOOD (THE“MUNICIPALITY”) OF CER-TAIN LEASE AGREEMENTSIN RELATION TO THE UNIONCOUNTY IMPROVEMENT AU-THORITY ISSUANCE OFGENERAL OBLIGATIONLEASE REVENUE BONDS,SERIES 2006 (CAPITALEQUIPMENT AND INFRA-STRUCTURE LEASE PRO-GRAM).

Purpose(s): Acquisition of capital equip-ment and infrastructure improvements asset forth in an exhibit to the ordinance.

Appropriation: $352,265.Bonds/Notes Authorized: NoneSection 20 Costs: NoneUseful Life: Not to exceed 15 years

Eleanor McGovernMunicipal Clerk

Borough of FanwoodCounty of Union, New Jersey

1 T - 4/27/06, The Times Fee: $41.82

PUBLIC NOTICETOWNSHIP OF SCOTCH PLAINS

NOTICE TO BIDDERS

NOTICE is hereby given that sealedbids will be received by the TOWNSHIPOF SCOTCH PLAINS (hereinafter calledthe “Owner”) for:

SCOTCH HILLS COUNTRY CLUBMINIATURE GOLF COURSE

Sealed bids for the above named Con-tract, which comprises the installation ofstorm drainage pipe and structures andsite lighting, construction of an asphaltparking lot, curb and retaining walls anddesign/build services to construct an 18-hole miniature golf course as shown onthe plans and specified herein. The projectincludes construction of a miniature golfcourse, parking lot, storm drainage, sitelighting, fencing and other improvementsat SCOTCH HILLS COUNTRY CLUB inthe Township of Scotch Plains, UnionCounty, New Jersey, will be received atthe TOWNSHIP OF SCOTCH PLAINSMunicipal Building, 430 Park Ave, ScotchPlains, New Jersey 07076 on May 12,2006 at 10:00 a.m. prevailing time, atwhich time they will be publicly unsealedand the contents publicly announced.

The work generally includes the furnish-ing of all labor, materials and equipmentnecessary to complete the work as shownon the Drawings and as described in theSpecifications. General site work includessite clearing, excavation and backfill, stormdrainage, plumbing and electrical work,paving, site lighting, grading, constructionof a miniature golf course and generalconstruction as described in the contractdocuments. The work consists of the in-stallation of storm drainage pipe and struc-tures and site lighting, construction of anasphalt parking lot, curb and design/buildservices to construct an 18-hole miniaturegolf course as shown on the plans andspecified herein. The work is located onBlock 6401, Lot 1 at 820 Jerusalem Road,Scotch Plains, New Jersey, within theTownship of Scotch Plains, in UnionCounty, New Jersey. The work shall becompleted within 90 calendar days of theContractor’s receipt of written Notice toProceed.

The contract consists of installation ofstorm drainage pipe and structures, sitelighting, construction of an asphalt parkinglot, curb and design/build services to con-struct an 18-hole miniature golf coursewith attendant station as shown on theplans and specified herein. The projectalso includes plumbing and electrical workrelated to the miniature golf course andother components requiring electricalpower as specified under the contract.

No bid will be received unless in writingon the forms furnished, and unless ac-companied by bid security in the form of abid bond, cashier’s check, or a certified

check made payable to the TOWNSHIPOF SCOTCH PLAINS in an amount equalto 10% of the amount of the total bid, butnot exceeding $20,000.

The bid shall be accompanied by a Cer-tificate of Surety on the form included inthe Contract Documents, from a suretycompany licensed to do business in theState of New Jersey, which shall repre-sent that the surety company will providethe Contractor with the required bonds inthe sums required in the Contract Docu-ments and in a form satisfactory to theOwner’s Attorney and in compliance withthe requirements of law.

Bidders must use the prepared bid form,which is contained in the Contract Docu-ments. Each individual proposal must beseparately enclosed in a sealed envelopeaddressed to the Township Clerk, Munici-pal Building, 430 Park Ave, Scotch Plains,New Jersey 07076 marked on the outsidewith the number of the contract and nameof the project being bid on.

No bids will be received after the timeand date specified, and no bids will bereceived by mail. The Owner shall awardthe Contract or reject all bids within 60days of bid opening, except that the bids ofany bidders who consent thereto may, atthe request of the Owner, be held forconsideration for such longer period asmay be agreed.

The Owner will evaluate bids and anyaward will be made to the lowest, respon-sive, responsible bidder. The Owner re-serves the right to reject any or all bids andto waive minor informalities or irregulari-ties in bids received.

All bid security except the security of thethree apparent lowest responsible biddersshall be returned, unless otherwise re-quested by the bidder, within ten (10) daysafter the opening of the bids, Sundays andholidays excepted, and the bids of thebidders whose bid security is returnedshall be considered withdrawn.

Each bidder must submit with his bid asigned certificate stating that he owns,leases or controls all the necessary equip-ment required to accomplish the workshown and described in the Contract Docu-ments. Should the bidder not be the actualowner or leasee of such equipment, hiscertificate shall state the source from whichthe equipment will be obtained and, inaddition, shall be accompanied by a signedcertificate from the owner or person incontrol of the equipment definitely grant-ing to the bidder the control of the equip-ment required during such time as may benecessary for the completion of that por-tion of the Contract for which it is neces-sary. The bidder shall comply with thedocumentation requirements set forth inthe Article of the Information for Bidders,entitled, “Bidder Responsibility”.

Successful bidders will be required tosubmit bonds and proof of insurance on or

before execution of their respective Con-tracts as explained in the Contract Docu-ments.

Bidders are required to comply with allrelevant Federal and State Statutes, Rulesand Regulations including but not limitedto the applicable provisions of Title VI ofthe Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended(42 USC 2000d-2000D-4A), the discrimi-nation and affirmative action provisions ofN.J.S.A. 10:2-1 through 10:2-4, the NewJersey Law against Discrimination,N.J.S.A. 10:5-1, et seq., the rules andregulations promulgated pursuant thereto,the State requirement for bidders to sup-ply statements of ownership (N.J.S.A.52:25-24.2) and the State requirement forsubmission of the names and addressesof certain subcontractors (N.J.S.A. 40A:11-16).

The Contract Documents may be exam-ined and obtained at the Office of theEngineers, Hatch Mott MacDonald, 27Bleeker Street, Millburn, New Jersey, be-tween the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.Specifications will be mailed upon receiptof the cost of the plans plus $50.00 for first-class U.S. postal service, postage andhandling. Prospective bidders will be is-sued plans and specifications upon pay-ment of a fee of $75.00 for each set of full-sized drawings with specifications. Indi-vidual full-sized sheets of drawings will beavailable at $2.50 per sheet on forty-eight(48) hours notice. Payment must be madeby business check and shall be made outto Hatch Mott MacDonald.

If the Contract is awarded, no refundswill be given. If for any reason the Contractis not awarded, refunds will be made tobidders pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40A:11-24(b)when the Contract Documents are re-turned in reasonable condition within 90days of notice that the Contract has notbeen awarded.

Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 10:5-33, biddersare required to comply with the require-ments of P.L. 1975 c. 127, NJAC 17:27.

Each Bidder must submit with his bid an“Ownership Disclosure Statement” and“Non-Collusion Affidavit” on the forms in-cluded in the Contract Documents.

Bidders and their subcontractors of anytier must comply with all applicable provi-sions of the Public Works Contractor Reg-istration Act, P.L. 1999, c. 238 (N.J.S.A.34:11-56.48) and the New Jersey Prevail-ing Wage Act (N.J.S.A. 34:11-56.25).

It is the purpose of this Notice to Biddersto summarize some of the more importantprovisions of the Contract Documents.Prospective bidders are cautioned not torely solely on this summary, but to read theContract Documents in their entirety.

By Order of the TOWNSHIP OFSCOTCH PLAINS

Barbara RiepeTownship Clerk

1 T - 4/27/06, The Times Fee: $166.77

PUBLIC NOTICE PUBLIC NOTICE

PUBLIC NOTICEBOROUGH OF FANWOOD

PLANNING BOARD

Please take notice that on June 28,2006 at 7:30 PM at the Fanwood BoroughHall, located at 75 North Martine Avenue,Fanwood, New Jersey the Planning Boardwill hold a hearing on the application of theundersigned. The property in question islocated at: 150 North Avenue, Fanwood,New Jersey, also known as Block 51 Lot22.01, as shown on the Fanwood TaxMap, owned by Anna Maria Pochtar.

The applicant requests an Additionand Alteration, which is in violation of Sec-tion 184-109E(5) of the Fanwood LandUse Code. Variance Requested: Side yard;Required: 15 feet; Present: 14.5 feet; Pro-posed: 13 feet.

The applicant requests an Additionand Alteration, which is in violation of Sec-tion 184-109E(9) of the Fanwood LandUse Code. Variance Requested: BuildingCoverage; Required: 20%; Present:16.5%; Proposed: 24.2%.

The applicant will also seek such otherrelief as may be determined necessary atthe public hearing based upon review ofthe application or amendment(s) to theapplication.

The file pertaining to this applicationis available for public inspection duringnormal business hours (9 AM - 2 PM,Tuesday through Friday) from the Secre-tary of the Planning Board at the Adminis-tration Office of the Borough of Fanwoodat 75 Martine Avenue, Fanwood, NewJersey.

Any interested party may appear atsaid hearing and participate therein inaccordance with the Rules of the FanwoodPlanning Board.

Applicant(s):Nicholaos S. Galakis and

Anna Maria Pochtar/Galakis150 North Avenue

Fanwood, New Jersey 070231 T - 4/27/06, The Times Fee: $39.27

PUBLIC NOTICE PUBLIC NOTICE PUBLIC NOTICE

2006 MUNICIPAL BUDGETTOWNSHIP OF SCOTCH PLAINS

COUNTY OF UNIONFOR THE CALENDAR YEAR ENDING

DECEMBER 31, 2006Revenue and Appropriation Summaries

SUMMARY OF REVENUES ANTICIPATED2006 2005

1. Surplus $2,175,000.00 $1,860,000.002. Total Miscellaneous Revenues $5,614,335.33 $5,687,771.103. Receipts from Delinquent Taxes $500,000.00 $480,000.004. Local Tax for Municipal Purposes $13,723,212.44 $12,968,928.30

Total General Revenues $22,012,547.77 $20,996,699.40

FINALSUMMARY OF APPROPRIATIONS 2006 BUDGET 2005 BUDGET

1. Operating Expenses: Salaries & Wages $8,639,169.00 $8,243,971.00 Other Expenses $9,741,530.77 $9,248,188.40

2. Deferred Charges & Other Appropriations $429,196.00 $485,590.003. Capital Improvements $100,000.00 $60,000.004. Debt Service $1,652,652.00 $1,530,950.005. Reserve for Uncollected Taxes $1,450,000.00 $1,428,000.00

Total General Appropriations $22,012,547.77 $20,996,699.40Total Number of Employees 178 181

BALANCE OF OUTSTANDING DEBTGENERAL

Interest $1,923,758.73Principal $8,413,000.00Outstanding Balance $10,336,758.73

Notice is hereby given that the budget and tax resolution was approved by the Township Council of theTownship of Scotch Plains, County of Union, on April 11, 2006.

A hearing on the budget and tax resolution will be held at the Municipal Building on May 9, 2006 at 8:00o’clock P.M., at which time and place objections to the Budget and Tax Resolution for the year 2006 maybe presented by the taxpayers or other interested persons.

Copies of the budget are available in the office of Barbara Riepe, Township Clerk, at the MunicipalBuilding, 430 Park Avenue, Scotch Plains, New Jersey, 07076, (908) 322-6700, during the hours of 9:00 A.M.to 4:30 P.M.1 T - 4/27/06, The Times Fee: $128.52

SEND AN SOS…The School One Service (“S.O.S”) Parent-Teacher Association(PTA) Committee recently sponsored a food drive to benefit Union County socialservices. Students were asked to contribute specific non-perishable food items bygrade. This is the latest in a series of service projects sponsored by S.O.S. InFebruary, students participated in a Valentine’s project in which they made morethan 300 Valentine’s cards for seniors in Ashbrook Nursing Home, BrooksideNursing Home and Meals-On-Wheels. Pictured with donated food items, from leftto right, are Stephen Scarcella, Maddie Bebout, Sam Bebout, Caleb Chiariello,Sarah Bowles and Bella Bernardo.

SP’S Park Middle SchoolHolds Third Science Fair

SCOTCH PLAINS –Rockets, gum-drops and fizzing soda were some ofthe attractions at the third annual Sci-ence Fair at Park Middle School inScotch Plains. Students from fifth toeighth grades used scientific prin-ciples to explore questions of phys-ics, botany and other areas.

The fair was sponsored by the ParkMiddle School Parent-Teacher Asso-ciation (PTA) and judged by volun-teers from Merck & Co.

In the seventh and eighth grades,first prize went to Bobby Evans, whostudied the effects of various nutrientson the growth of philodendron plants.Gregory Kashmer took second place.He studied the acidity of various bev-erages by soaking tarnished pennies inthem. Among sixth graders, Disha Raowas awarded first prize for a study ofcarbonation in soda.

First prize among fifth graders wentto Sonali Kamath, who studied theeffects of different fertilizers on grass

growth. Elise Ringel, SamanthaRenfree and Madeline Krema wonsecond prize by developing a methodto visualize sound waves generatedby slamming doors. Third prize wentto Dylan Sands and Justin Glock foran engineering-related study on thestrength of domes.

“There was a lot of original thinkingand creative exploration shown in theseprojects,” said Park Assistant Princi-pal Kevin Holloway. “I’m very proudof these students, and impressed bytheir initiative and natural curiosity.”

Trailside to Hold TeacherWorkshop Today, April 27

MOUNTAINSIDE – “ProjectWET,” a teacher-training workshopfor adults ages 18 and older, will beheld at Trailside Nature and Sci-ence Center, located at 452 NewProvidence Road in Mountainside,today, Thursday, April 27, from 9a.m. to 3 p.m.

This workshop will provide thenecessary tools, resources and lessonsfor teachers to utilize in the classroomto teach future leaders about theimportance of water in everyday life.

Formal and informal educators areinvited to join Hazel England, directorof outreach and education for theGreat Swamp Watershed Association,and Trailside naturalists RuthYablonsky and Joe Filo for a day ofinteractive, educational and hands-on activities focusing on water as avaluable resource.

Participants in the “Project WET”workshop will work cooperatively todiscover the properties of water in“Water Olympics,” study the effectsof heat energy on water in “Moleculesin Motion,” and learn mapping andgraphing skills in “Poison Pump.”Each participant will receive theProject WET curriculum and activityguide with more than 90interdisciplinary activities andlessons, teacher-tested and classroom-

ready for k-12 students. Lessons inthe guide are correlated to New JerseyCore Curriculum Content Standards.

Pre-registration is required for thisworkshop and space is limited. Thefee is $25 per person and includes theProject WET curriculum and activityguide. Light refreshments will beserved during morning registration.Participants are encouraged to bringa lunch.

For information on the Project WETteacher training workshop or forinformation on upcoming spring orsummer programs and special events atTrailside, call (908) 789-3670 or visitus on the web at www.ucnj.org/trailside.

PURPLE PEOPLE EATERS…Pictured wearing purple, from left to right, areStephen Crawford, Angelina DiCataldo, Gabriella Rojas, Maggie Richard, SarahFischmann, Gabriella Azanedo, Angelina Pizzutiello, Marco Rodrigues, CeliaPhansalkar and Derek Phansalkar.

Free Tech. Educ. OfferedTo High School Students

SCOTCH PLAINS – The UnionCounty Vocational-Technical HighSchool, located on Raritan Road inScotch Plains, will offer free techni-cal education to high school sopho-mores, juniors and seniors on a shared-time basis for the 2005-2006 schoolyear. Shared-time means that studentsattend their home high school for partof the day, taking required academicsand Union County Vo-Tech for theremainder of the day, majoring in atechnical program.

Each year, hundreds of UnionCounty public high school studentschoose to begin their professionalcareers while in high school by en-rolling in one of UC Vo-Tech’s pro-gram areas.

Students can choose from a varietyof technical programs, including: Al-lied Health, Auto Collision, AutoTechnology, Baking, Building TradesTechnology, Carpentry/Construction,Child Development, Commercial Art,Computer Aided Drafting and De-sign, Computer Repair, Cosmetol-ogy, Criminal Justice, Culinary Arts,Electrical Technology, Horticulture,Graphic Communications, Masonry,Office Occupations, Office SystemsTechnology, Supermarket Technol-ogy and Welding.

Along with classroom/shop train-ing, UC Vo-Tech offers programs likeschool-to-work and internships wherestudents gain real-world experience.By successfully completing specific

UC Tech courses, graduates can alsoearn tuition-free college credits. UCVo-Tech graduates are prepared todirectly enter the workforce or con-tinue their education in approved ap-prenticeship programs or at two- orfour-year colleges.

UC Tech is currently acceptingshared-time applications for the 2006-2007 school year. To receive an appli-cation or learn more about how toenroll a child in UC Tech, call (908)889-8288, extension no. 341.

WF’s Liebesman LeadsGroup to Assist New Orleans

WESTFIELD – During the weekof March 6, Yvette Joy Liebesman,the daughter of Bill and StellaLiebesman of Westfield, led a groupof 25 Georgetown University LawCenter students on a pro bono trip toNew Orleans, providing legal andphysical assistance to victims of Hur-ricane Katrina.

Ms. Liebesman arranged for thelaw students to volunteer with sev-eral projects related to the Hurri-cane Katrina relief efforts. One setof students worked with Associa-tion of Community Organizationsfor Reform Now (ACORN), guttingdamaged houses to their frames sothat the homes could be rebuilt. Asecond group, consisting of the

majority of the Georgetown Lawstudents, volunteered with the ProBono Project of New Orleans. Stu-dents were assigned clients whoneeded to clear the title to familyproperty through the succession(probate) process in order to re-ceive financial assistance availablefrom Federal Emergency Manage-ment Agency (FEMA) for rebuild-ing family homes.

This involved contacting clients andfamily members, retrieving deeds andother necessary records, and begin-ning the succession filings. A thirdGeorgetown Law group volunteeredwith Rainbow/PUSH, where they fo-cused on voters’ rights issues in theupcoming city election, and researchedhousing and education difficulties en-countered by dislocated citizens.

Ms. Liebesman is a fourth-yearevening student at Georgetown Uni-versity Law Center, and expects tograduate with honors on May 21,2006. She has accepted a clerkshipoffer from the Judge Helen Hoens ofthe New Jersey Superior Court, Ap-pellate Division.

Bennett Named to NWUniversity Dean’s List

WESTFIELD – Alison Bennett ofWestfield, a student in the School ofCommunications at NorthwesternUniversity, was named to the Dean’sList for the winter quarter of the 2005-2006 academic year.

She recently completed a market-ing internship with Break Thru Films,a documentary film production com-pany located in New York City. Alison,a 2003 graduate of Westfield HighSchool, is the daughter of John andFaith Bennett.

Students on the Dean’s List atNorthwestern University have at-tained a grade point average of atleast 3.75 out of a 4.0.

Legal AdvertisingMORE IN BACK SECTION

Obiajulu RecognizedAt Annual Honors Day

WESTFIELD – Georgia SouthernUniversity students were recently rec-ognized at the annual Honors Dayceremony. Lucy Obiajulu of Westfieldis listed among the Who’s WhoAmong Students in American Uni-versities and Colleges. Individualawards were presented to 216 stu-dents at the annual Honors Day cer-emony. Inductees into various honorsocieties were also recognized.

SP’s School OneStudents Think Purple

SCOTCH PLAINS –Studentsfrom School One in Scotch Plainsenjoyed a variety of activities dur-ing “Think Purple Week” in April.

Students were given a purplebracelet to wear throughout the weekto remind them that they have thepower to choose how they care fortheir bodies; the children also madeunique “I am special” dolls thatwere displayed throughout the hallsof school.

Students wore crazy socks toschool for “Sock it to Drugs” day,participated in a district-wide “wearpurple” day, brought healthy snacksto school and enjoyed a surprisetreat from the Parent-Teacher Asso-ciation Chemical DependencyAwareness Committee.

WF Junior Takes PartIn Academic Bowl

WESTFIELD – On April 24, theMountain Lakes High School Aca-demic Bowl Team won the Na-tional Championship in a competi-tion sponsored by Gallaudet Uni-versity in Washington D.C. Theteam consists of five players, in-cluding Erick Hoens, a junior, ofWestfield.

The competition showcased the10 regional champions and run-ners-up from more than 150 teamsacross the nation.


Area Students NamedScholarship WinnersAREA – Officials of the National

Merit Scholarship Corporation haveannounced outstanding high schoolsenior recipients for merit scholar-ship awards.

Winners include Rosalie Yan ofMountainside and Yue Zhu ofWestfield. Rosalie is a student at Ber-keley Heights’ Governor LivingstonHigh School. Yue is a student atWestfield High School. Both students’probable career field is medicine.

Scholars were selected from stu-dents who advanced to the finalistlevel in the National Merit Scholar-ship Program and met the criteria oftheir scholarship sponsors.

Most corporate-sponsored schol-arships are renewable for up to fouryears of college undergraduate studyand range from $500 to $10,000 peryear. Others provide a single pay-ment between $2,500 and $5,000.Recipients can use the awards at aregionally accredited United Statescollege or university of their choice.


PUBLIC NOTICE PUBLIC NOTICENEW JERSEY DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

DIVISION OF PROCUREMENT, BUREAU OF CONSTRUCTION SERVICES1035 PARKWAY AVENUE, PO BOX 605

TRENTON, NEW JERSEY 08625

SEALED BIDS will be received from bidders classified under N.J.S.A. 27:7-35.1 etseq.; in the NJDOT MULTIPURPOSE ROOM, New Jersey Department of Transporta-tion, 1035 Parkway Avenue, Trenton, New Jersey 08625; until 10:00 A.M. on 5/18/06 andopened and read for:

Long-Life Pavement Marking Contract, North - 2006; Routes US 1, NJ 3, NJ 4,NJ 5, NJ 7, US 9W, NJ 17, NJ 21, NJ 24, NJ 31, NJ 57, NJ 81, NJ 93, NJ 94, NJ124, NJ 159, NJ 161, NJ 169, US 202, US 206 & NJ 439, Counties of Sussex,

Morris, Passaic, Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Union and Part of WarrenFederal Project No: STP-B00S (480)

DP NO: 05461

Bidders are required to comply with the requirements of P.L. 1975, C.127 N.J.A.C.17:27.

Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 52:32-44, For Federal aided projects; bidders must register withthe New Jersey Department of Treasury, Division of Revenue, prior to the time of contractexecution. Appropriate proof of registration should be provided to NJDOT as soon aspossible after receipt of the Notice of Award.

Pursuant to the “Public Works Contractor Registration Act”, N.J.S.A. 34:11-56.48 etseq. (P.L. 2003, c. 91), bidders must register with the New Jersey Department of Labor,Division of Wage and Hour Compliance.

The Department, in accordance with Title VI Civil Rights Act of 1964, 78 Stat. 252U.S.C., 49 C.F.R., Parts 21 and 23 issued pursuant to such Act, and Section 504 of theRehabilitation Act of 1973 will afford minority business enterprises full opportunity tosubmit bids in response to this invitation and will not discriminate against any bidder onthe grounds of race, color, sex, national origin, or handicap in the contract award.

Drawings and specifications for the proposed work are available at Bid Expresswebsite www.bidx.com. You must subscribe to use this service. To subscribe follow theinstructions on the website. The fee is $35.00 per month for unlimited access to view anddownload the documents and additional $95.00 per month for unlimited access todownload the plans, directly payable to Bid Express.

Drawings, special provisions, and bid documents may be inspected (BUT NOTOBTAINED) by contracting organizations at our various Design Field Offices at thefollowing locations:

200 Stierli Court Route 79 and Daniels Way 1 Executive Campus Rt 70Mt. Arlington, NJ Freehold, NJ Cherry Hill, NJ973-770-5141 732-308-4025 856-486-6624

3 T - 4/27/06, 5/4/06 and 5/11/06, The Leader Fee: $208.08





Route I-78 Local and express Roadway Improvement, Contract No. 050003731;Contract “A” From M.P. 50.59 - M.P. 52.80, Union Township, County of Union

Federal Project No: IM-078-05 (087)DP NO: 06113


Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 52:32-44, For Federal aided projects; bidders must register withthe New Jersey Department of Treasury, Division of Revenue, prior to the time of contractexecution. Appropriate proof of registration should be provided to NJDOT as soon aspossible after receipt of the Notice of Award.











Maintenance Beam Guide Rail Repair Contract, North - 2006; Various locationsincluding and North of Route 57, Counties of Sussex, Morris, Passaic, Bergen,

Essex, Hudson, Union and Part of Warren100% State

DP NO: 06413


Effective October 15, 2004, Pursuant to Executive Order 134, apparent low biddermust provide a completed, signed Executive Order No. 134 Certification and Disclo-sure Form within seven (7) state busines days from the project bid date.

Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 52:32-44, Business Registration, proof of valid business registra-tion shall be submitted by a bidder with its bid proposal at the time of bid for 100% Statefunded projects.







PUBLIC NOTICE PUBLIC NOTICENOTICE OF SALE

TOWNSHIP OF SCOTCH PLAINS,IN THE COUNTY OF UNION, NEW JERSEY

$5,560,000 GENERAL IMPROVEMENT BONDS

(Book-Entry Only) (Bank-Qualified)(Non-Callable)

(Parity Bid) (Sure-Bid Surety Bond)

datedMay 15, 2006

The Township of Scotch Plains, in the County of Union, a municipal corporation of theState of New Jersey (the “Township”), hereby invites ELECTRONIC BIDS VIA PARITYAND SEALED PROPOSALS for the purchase of its $5,560,000 General ImprovementBonds, dated May 15, 2006 (the “Bonds”).

ELECTRONIC BIDS VIA PARITY AND SEALED PROPOSALS will be received andpublicly opened and announced by the Chief Financial Officer in the Council Chambersin the Township Hall, 430 Park Avenue, Scotch Plains, New Jersey 07076 on May 16,2006 at 11:00 o’clock A.M. (local time).

The Bonds comprise an issue of bonds payable on February 1 in each year (withoutthe right of prior redemption) as follows:

$330,000 in the year 2007,$350,000 in the year 2008,$375,000 in each of the years 2009 to 2011, inclusive,$625,000 in each of the years 2012 to 2016, inclusive, and$630,000 in the year 2017.

To the extent any instructions or directions set forth in PARITY conflict with this Noticeof Sale, the terms of this Notice of Sale shall control. For further information aboutPARITY, potential bidders may contact i-Deal LLC at 1359 Broadway, 2nd Floor, NewYork, New York 10018, telephone (212) 849-5021.

The Bonds shall be issued in registered form by means of a book-entry system with nophysical distribution of bond certificates made to the public. One bond certificate for eachmaturity will be issued to The Depository Trust Company, New York, New York (“DTC”)and immobilized in its custody. The book-entry system will evidence ownership of theBonds in the principal amount of $5,000 or any integral multiple thereof, with transfers ofownership effected on the records of DTC and its participants pursuant to rules andprocedures established by DTC and its participants. The successful bidder, as acondition to delivery of the Bonds, shall be required to deposit the bond certificates withDTC, registered in the name of Cede & Co., its nominee. Interest on the Bonds will bepayable on each February 1 and August 1, commencing February 1, 2007 (each, an“Interest Payment Date”), in each year until maturity, and principal of the Bonds will bepayable, at maturity, by payment of immediately available funds by the Bond Registrar/Paying Agent to DTC or its nominee as registered owner of the Bonds. Transfer ofprincipal and interest to participants of DTC will be the responsibility of DTC. Transferof principal and interest to beneficial owners will be the responsibility of the DTCparticipants and other nominees of the beneficial owners. The Township will not beresponsible or liable for such transfers of payments or for maintaining, super-vising orreviewing the records maintained by DTC, its participants or persons acting through suchparticipants.

In the event (a) DTC determines not to continue to act as securities depository for theBonds or (b) the Township determines that continuation of the book-entry system ofevidence and transfer of ownership of the Bonds would adversely affect the interests ofthe beneficial owners of the Bonds, the Township will discontinue the book-entry systemwith DTC. If the Township fails to identify another qualified securities depository toreplace DTC, the Township will deliver replacement bonds in the form of fully registeredcertificates.

The Bonds are general obligations of the Township and are secured by a pledge of thefull faith and credit of the Township for the payment of the principal thereof and the interestthereon. The Bonds are payable, if not paid from other sources, from ad valorem taxesto be levied upon all the real property taxable within the Township without limitation asto rate or amount.

Each proposal submitted must name the rate or rates of interest per annum to be borneby the Bonds bid for, and the rate or rates named must be a multiple of 1/8th or 1/20thof one percentum (1%). The interest payable with respect to each Bond on any one datewill be evidenced by a single rate of interest. Not more than one rate may be named forBonds of the same maturity. There is no limitation on the number of rates that may benamed. If more than one rate of interest is named, no interest rate named for any maturitymay be less than the interest rate named for any prior maturity. Each proposal submittedmust be for all of the Bonds offered and the purchase price specified must not be less than$5,560,000 nor more than $5,561,000. The Bonds will be awarded to the bidder onwhose bid the total loan may be made at the lowest net interest cost, such net interestcost shall be computed, as to each bid, by adding to the total principal amount of Bondsbid for (which shall be all of the Bonds offered) the total interest cost to maturity inaccordance with such bid and by deducting therefrom the amount of premium, if any, bid,which premium shall not exceed $1,000. No proposal shall be considered which offersto pay an amount less than the principal amount of Bonds offered for sale or under whichthe total loan is made at an interest cost higher than the lowest net interest cost to theTownship under any legally acceptable proposal. The Township reserves its right toreject all bids, and any bid not complying with the material terms of this notice will berejected. The Township reserves the right to waive defects it deems non-material, in itssole discretion.

The successful bidder must pay accrued interest from the date of the Bonds to the dateof delivery. No interest will be paid upon the deposit made by the successful bidder. TheBonds will be authenticated by the Chief Financial Officer, acting as Bond Registrar/Paying Agent for the Bonds.

Sealed proposals should be addressed to the undersigned Chief Financial Officer, andenclosed in a sealed envelope marked on the outside “Proposal for Bonds”. A good faithdeposit (the “Deposit”) in the form of a certified, treasurer’s or cashier’s check drawn upona bank or trust company or a Financial Surety Bond in the amount of $111,200, payableto the order of the TOWNSHIP OF SCOTCH PLAINS, is required for each bid to beconsidered. If a check is used, it must accompany the bid or be received by theundersigned Chief Financial Officer prior to the opening of bids. If a Financial SuretyBond is used, it must be issued by Financial Security Assurance Inc., 31 West 52ndStreet, New York, New York 10019 and such bond must be submitted to the Townshipprior to the opening of bids. The Financial Surety Bond must identify each bidder whoseDeposit is guaranteed by the Financial Surety Bond. If the Bonds are awarded to a bidderutilizing a Financial Surety Bond, then that bidder (the “Purchaser”) is required to submitits Deposit to the Township in the form of a cashier’s check (or wire transfer of suchamount as instructed by the Township) not later than 3:30 p.m. (local time) on the next

business day following the award. If the Deposit is not received by that time, the Townshipmay draw upon the Financial Surety Bond to satisfy the Deposit requirement. No intereston the Deposit will accrue to the Purchaser. The Deposit will be applied in part paymentfor the Bonds or to partially secure the Township from any loss resulting from the failureof the Purchaser to comply with the terms of its bid.

Award of the Bonds to the successful bidder or rejection of all bids is expected to bemade within two hours after opening of the bids, but such successful bidder may notwithdraw its proposal until after 3:00 p.m. (local time) of the day of such bid-opening andthen only if such award has not been made prior to the withdrawal.

It is anticipated that CUSIP identification numbers will be printed on the Bonds, butneither the failure to print such number on any Bond nor any error with respect theretoshall constitute cause for a failure or refusal by the successful bidder thereof to acceptdelivery of and pay for the Bonds in accordance with its contractual obligations arisingfrom the acceptance of its proposal for the purchase of the Bonds. All expenses in relationto the printing of CUSIP numbers on the Bonds shall be paid for by the Township;provided, however, that the CUSIP Service Bureau charge for the assignment of saidnumbers shall be the responsibility of and shall be paid for by the successful bidder.

The Bonds shall be delivered on or about May 25, 2006 at the office of Rogut McCarthyTroy LLC, Cranford, New Jersey (“Bond Counsel”), or at such other place as may bedetermined by the successful bidder and the Township. PAYMENT FOR THE BONDSAT THE TIME OF ORIGINAL ISSUANCE AND DELIVERY SHALL BE IN IMMEDI-ATELY AVAILABLE FUNDS.

A preliminary Official Statement has been prepared and is available at www.i-DealProspectus.com or may be obtained from the undersigned, Chief Financial Officer,Township Hall, 430 Park Avenue, Scotch Plains, New Jersey 07076, Telephone No.(908) 322-6700 ext. 1-200. The preliminary Official Statement is deemed to be a “finalofficial statement”, as of its date, within the meaning of Rule 15c2-12 of the Securities andExchange Commission (“Rule 15c2-12”), but is subject to (a) completion with certainpricing and other information to be made available by the successful bidder for the Bondsand (b) amendment. The preliminary Official Statement, as so revised, will constitute the“final official statement”. By the submission of a bid for the Bonds, the successful biddercontracts for the receipt of a reasonable number of copies of the final Official Statementwithin seven business days of the award of the Bonds. In order to complete the finalOfficial Statement, the successful bidder must furnish on behalf of the underwriters of theBonds the following information to Bond Counsel and the Township by facsimile trans-mission or overnight delivery received by Bond Counsel and the Township within 24hours after the award of the Bonds: (a) initial offering prices or yields (expressed aspercentages), (b) selling compensation (aggregate total anticipated compensation to theunder-writers expressed in dollars), (c) the identity of the under-writers if the successfulbidder is part of a group or syndicate and (d) any other material information necessaryfor the final Official Statement, but not known to the Township (such as the bidder’spurchase of credit enhancement). It shall also be the obligation of the successful bidderto furnish to DTC an under-writer’s questionnaire and the denominations of the Bonds notless than seventy-two (72) hours prior to the delivery of the Bonds.

Concurrently with the delivery of the Bonds, the officials of the Township who will haveexecuted the final Official Statement will deliver to the purchaser of the Bonds a certificatestating that, to the best of their knowledge, the preliminary Official Statement did not asof its date and as of the sale date, and the final Official Statement did not as of its dateand does not as of the date of delivery of the Bonds, contain an untrue statement of amaterial fact or omit to state a material fact required to be included therein for the purposefor which the preliminary Official Statement or the final Official Statement is to be usedor neces-sary to make the statements therein, in light of the circum-stances under whichthey were made, not misleading, provided such certificate shall not include considerationof information supplied by, or which should have been supplied by, the successful bidderfor the Bonds.

The Township has agreed in its bond resolution adopted on April 11, 2006 to provideor cause to be provided, in accordance with the requirements of Rule 15c2-12, (i) not laterthan seven months after the end of the Township’s fiscal year (presently December 31)certain annual financial information and operating data, including audited financialstatements for the preceding fiscal year (commencing with the fiscal year endingDecember 31, 2005), (ii) timely notice of the occurrence of certain material events withrespect to the Bonds and (iii) timely notice of a failure by the Township to provide therequired annual financial information on or before the date specified in (i) above.

The successful bidder’s obligation to purchase the Bonds shall be conditioned upon itsreceiving, at or prior to the delivery of the Bonds, in form and substance reasonablysatisfactory to the successful bidder, evidence that the Township has made thecontinuing disclosure undertaking set forth above in a written agreement or contract forthe benefit of the Bondholders and the beneficial owners of the Bonds.

The approving legal opinion of Bond Counsel will be furnished without cost to thepurchaser. The preliminary Official Statement contains a discussion of the provisions ofthe Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), with respect to theexclusion from gross income for Federal income tax purposes of the interest on the Bondsand a description of the opinion of Bond Counsel with respect thereto. The Township hascovenanted, to the extent permitted by the Constitution and laws of the State of NewJersey, to comply with the provisions of the Code required to preserve the exclusion fromgross income of interest on the Bonds for Federal income tax purposes. There will alsobe furnished the usual closing papers.

The Township has designated the Bonds “qualified tax-exempt obligations” within themeaning of Section 265(b)(3) of the Code and will represent that it reasonably expectsthat neither it nor its subordinate entities will issue more than $10,000,000 of tax-exemptobligations in the current calendar year.

If the Bonds qualify for issuance of any policy of municipal bond insurance orcommitment therefor at the option of a bidder, any purchase of such insurance orcommitment therefor shall be at the sole option and expense of the bidder and anyincreased costs of issuance of the Bonds resulting by reason of such insurance, unlessotherwise paid, shall also be paid by such bidder. Any failure of the Bonds to be so insuredor of any such policy of insurance to be issued, shall not in any way relieve the purchaserof its contractual obligations arising from the acceptance of its proposal for the purchaseof the Bonds.

The successful bidder will be required to furnish, prior to the delivery of the Bonds, acertificate acceptable to Bond Counsel setting forth information with respect to the Bondsincluding the “issue price” of the Bonds within the meaning of Section 1273 of the Code.

By order of the Township Council of the Township of Scotch Plains, in the County ofUnion, New Jersey.

Dated: April 11, 2006Lori Majeski

Chief Financial OfficerTownship of Scotch Plains

County of Union, New Jersey1 T - 4/27/06, The Times Fee: $322.32

PUBLIC NOTICE PUBLIC NOTICE

Orchestra FriendsAnnounce Home Tour

HOME RULE...The Westfield Symphony Orchestra Friends will present the 22ndannual Tour of Notable Homes. One residence on the tour features a kitchenresembling an old chateau, which was recently featured in Design NJ magazine

WESTFIELD – The WestfieldSymphony Orchestra Friends willpresent the 22nd annual Tour of No-table Homes. This event brings to-gether five residences, open to thepublic, on Saturday, May 6, from 10a.m. to 3 p.m.

The Friends’ tour will wind itsway through storied neighborhoodsof historic Westfield, Plainfield andScotch Plains. The homes featuredrepresent both timeless tradition andmodern state-of-the-art architec-ture.

There will be a host of activitiesalong the tour, including a gift basketraffle with items from top-tier localmerchants, cultural venues and res-taurants, as well as a spring blooming

plant sale, live music and free re-freshments.

All proceeds collected from tourticket sales and activities will benefitthe Westfield Symphony Orchestra.

Tickets for the 2006 tour are $25in advance and $30 the day of thetour. The tour is self-guided withaddresses for the featured homesprinted on the tickets, and a Tour ofNotable Homes map is also pro-vided. Tickets will be available forsale at a variety of Westfield-areabusinesses.

For more information on the Tour ofNotable Homes or a schedule of sym-phony events, call the Westfield Sym-phony Orchestra at (908) 232-9400 orvisit www.westfieldsymphony.org.

LEARNING FROM BIG KIDS…Teenager Frank Minniti educates lower schoolchildren in Kathy Meier’s science classes at The Wardlaw-Hartridge School. Aspart of the Scotch Plains resident’s senior project, he presents lessons to thechildren concerning saving the environment and what they can do to help.

Schools to Celebrate ‘WalkOur Children to School’ Day

SP Teen Makes SplashIn Wardlaw Classroom

SCOTCH PLAINS – As part ofScotch Plains resident Frank Minniti’ssenior project internship, he teaches ascience lesson to Wardlaw Hartridgelower school classes concerning theenvironment.

Frank, a senior at the independentschool, is completing an internshipwith Lower School Science Coordi-nator Kathy Meier from the indepen-dent, college preparatory coeduca-tion school in Edison.

Frank, who will attend SusquehannaUniversity in the fall, plans to major inenvironmental science. He says heselected the career choice, in part,because of Scotch Plains resident andscience teacher Roland Marionni. “Hisclass exposed me to the interestingaspects of pollution and what we aredoing to our world.”

WESTFIELD – On Wednesdays, May4 and 31, hundreds of students and par-ents at Franklin, McKinley, Tamaquesand Wilson elementary schools will cel-ebrate National Walk Our Children toSchool Day. This nationwide event iscelebrated as an opportunity to redis-cover walking to school as a fun andhealthy way for parents to spend qualitytime with their children. For upper-el-ementary-aged children, it can be thebeginning of a fit lifestyle.

A few days before the event, a specialraffle with be held at primary schools.Lucky raffle winners will find their schoolprincipal or one of Westfield’s bravest(firefighters) waiting at their door in themorning to walk with them – and maybeeven carry their backpacks.

All walkers, with or without adults,are being asked to wear somethingred on the way to school that morningso that they’ll be particularly visibleto passing cars.

“We hope that Walk Our Children toSchool Day will give busy parents achance to discover the special pleasureof walking to school,” said SaraClarkson of Westfield’s Bikers, Run-ners And Kids are Entitled to Safety(BRAKES) group. “It’s a wonderfulway to spend precious time with yourchildren, to slow down and walk at theirpace, instead of rushing franticallythrough the morning as so many of us

do. With the ongoing attention beingpaid to our sedentary lifestyles, send-ing our children to school on foot elimi-nates one aspect of our car culture.”

The BRAKES group, a pedestrian-safety organization in Westfield, co-ordinates the event.

For more information, contact Ms.Clarkson at (908) 233-5622, exten-sion 1.

Adults Can Explore theWatchung Reservation

Goggin’s NunsenseOpens at WCP

WESTFIELD –Director JoannLopresti Scanlon of Westfield Com-munity Players (WCP) has her cast infinal rehearsals for the 8 p.m. Satur-day, April 29, opening of DanGoggin’s musical, Nunsense at WCP,1000 North Avenue, West in Westfield.

Other show dates are Friday andSaturday evenings, May 5, 6, 12, 13,19 and 20, with all reserved seats at$20 available from the box office at(908) 232-1221.

WCP membership cards will notbe honored for the benefit perfor-mances on Fridays, May 5 and 12.

Assisted by Musical Director SethSaltzman and Choreographer MeganFerentinos, the show includes thefollowing players: Rev. Mother isBarbi McGuire, Sr. Hubert is AndreaBarra, Sr. Robert Anne is JenHanselman, Sr. Leo is Cassie Carelliand Sr. Amnesia is Kristen Urmansky.

WCP has reserved seating, so makea preference known when calling thebox office for seats at (908) 232-1221. All non-member tickets mustbe prepaid. Opening night patronsare invited to stay for light refresh-ments with the cast and crew after thecurtain rings down.

MOUNTAINSIDE – The TrailsideNature and Science Center will offera nature trail ride for adults ages 18and older on Tuesday, May 2, from5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Watchung Stablesin Mountainside.

Riders will meander through thewoods and fields and visit LakeSurprise on horseback. A parknaturalist from Trailside will interpretsights and sounds of nature andidentify trees, plants and wildlifealong the way.

Space is limited and pre-registrationis required as this program fillsquickly. The fee is $35 per person forUnion County residents and $45 forout-of-county riders. Each participantwill receive a booklet with naturalhistory information and tips onhorseback riding. No ridingexperience is necessary. Participantsare requested to wear sturdy shoeswith a heel.

In the event of inclement weather,the trail ride will be rescheduled forThursday, May 4. Call Trailside orthe Watchung Stables on the programdate to find out if the program hasbeen postponed.

For additional information on thenature trail ride or for information onupcoming spring programs and spe-cial events at Trailside, call (908)789-3670 or visit www.ucnj.org/trailside.

Poets Will CelebrateA New Issue of TiferetFANWOOD – The Fanwood Arts

Council and the Carriage House Po-etry Series invited the public to a freepoetry reading in celebration of thenew issue of Tiferet: a Journal ofSpiritual Literature. The event willtake place Tuesday, May 2, from 7 to9:30 p.m. in the Kuran Arts Center,located on Watson Road off MartineAvenue adjacent to Fanwood Bor-ough Hall.

The featured poets, whose poemsappear in the new issue, will be J.T.Barbarese, R.G. Evans, Kathy Graber,Penny Harter of Summit and AdeleKenny of Fanwood. Managing editorCynthia Brown will be present tomeet and chat with the public.

Copies of the journal will be avail-able for sale. Readers interested inlearning more about Tiferet may visithttp://www.tiferetjournal.com/liter-ary-magazine.php.

For more information about theMay 2 poetry reading, call (908) 889-7223.

SP-F Arts AssociationTo View Wyeth Exhibit

SCOTCH PLAINS –The June tripof the Scotch Plains and FanwoodArts Association will occur onWednesday, June 7, to the Philadel-phia Museum of Art to see the An-drew Wyeth Memory and Magic ex-hibit. Mr. Wyeth, one of America’smost recognized artists, is the sub-ject of a retrospective that takes alook at seven decades of accom-plishment.

The exhibition includes 100 tem-pera paintings, watercolor, and draw-ings— many from the personal col-lection of Andrew and Betsy Wyeth.

The bus will depart from theScotch Plains Municipal Buildingparking lot at 8:30 a.m. and returnby 5 p.m. The cost of the trip is $48,which includes the bus, museumadmission, ticket to the exhibit andaudio tour cassette. To reserve spaceor obtain more information, call(908) 232-2631 before Friday, May5.


THE WEEK IN SPORTSSee it all in color at!www.goleader.com

Sports Section Pages 13-18

FANWOODRECREATION

SPONSORS THE FOLLOWINGSUMMER SPORTS CAMPS

Weeks June 26-June 30 July 10-14 August 7- August 11For more information please [email protected] or

go to the website at www.fanwoodsoccercamp.com

July 3- July 7 July 24-July 28For more information please email [email protected]

The Weeks are June 26 to June 30 and July 17 to July 21For more information please contact [email protected]

All Camps are run by Scotch Plains FanwoodHigh School Coaches and Coaches from

Surrounding Communities

Raider Basketball Camp

Fanwood Baseball Camp

Fanwood Soccer Camp

“The only local campnot held in a park”

JULY 10-14JULY 24-28

2006 Raider Soccer Camp at

Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School

CAMP FEATURES:Goal Keeper TrainingNovice to Advanced

Ability Grouping

Indoor Facilities AvailableLunches & Drinks Available to Purchase

Safe & Secure Environment

HOURS: Grades 1-4: 9:00am-12:00amGrades 5-11: 9:00am-3:00pm

DIRECTORS:Tom Breznitsky: Head Boys’ Soccer Coach

Scotch Plains-Fanwood High SchoolPascal Clerigo: Brazilian Soccer AcademyRoger Bongaerts, Director: Dutch Soccer

TO CONTACT CAMP:Please call: (908) 322-6102

Email: [email protected]

www.spfraidersoccer.com

In Association with Brazilian Soccer Academy

and Dutch Soccer Academy

REGISTER EARLY!

ENROLLMENT IS LIMITED

Camp Director: Maggie McFadden • email: [email protected]

Westfield High School

9:00am to 12:00pm

732-873-5399

JUNE 26th to JUNE 29th, 2006

Blue Devil

Fast Pitch Softball CampFor Girls Grades 2–9

Michael Kierner

PGA Professional

For More Information, Please call Michael Kierner, Head TeachingProfessional at Shackamaxon Golf & Country Club

908-233-3989

Six Lessons

IMPROVE YOUR GOLF GAME

WITH THESE SPRING SPECIALS!

(30min, 45min or 1hr)

For The Price of FiveIncludes Computer &

Video Analysis

Six 30 min Lessons(For the Golf Swing,

Chipping, Putting, Driving,Pitching & Sand Game)

Plus Two HolePlaying Lesson

$275.00

GOLF INSTRUCTION AVAILABLE• Private Lessons• Group Lessons• Gift Certificates• Video Swing Analysis

Call Derek McDonald PGA Teaching Professional.Tel: 908 232 4288• 2004 New Jersey PGA Assistant of the Year • Top 10 in New Jersey Player of the Year Award 2005

Echo Lake Country Club

[email protected]

WESTFIELD OFFICE600 North Ave. West • Westfield, NJ 07090908-233-0065

Owned and Operated By NRT Incorporated.

Elizabeth BatailleSales Associate

908-518-5294elizabeth [email protected]

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mature trees and a tranquil pond. Presented for 699,900.

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908-233-3204, Direct Dial

908-227-0605, Cellular

NETRAVALI TAKES IT TO THE LIMIT AT 1ST SINGLES

No. 1 Millburn Millers StopNo. 6 Blue Devil Netmen, 5-0

By DAVID B. CORBINSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

Number 1 remained Number 1, butnot without a bit of a battle, when theMillburn High School boys tennisteam defeated No. 6 Westfield by asomewhat deceptive team score of 5-0 at Tamaques Park in Westfield onApril 20. Three of the matches werevery close and two had tiebreakers,one that took a marathon three sets tobe decided.

The marathon match came at sec-ond singles between Blue Devil

sophomore Ravi Netravali and Millerfreshman Jason Magnes, who won,6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2. By the time thatthe other four matches were decided,Netravali held a 4-3 lead over Magnesin the second set. Netravali won thenext game but dropped the next threeto trail, 6-5. After winning the nextgame, he endured to win the tiebreakerand force a third set.

Never known for marathonmatches, Blue Devil sophomoreKevin Shallcross experienced his firstdefeat of the season at the racket of

senior Justin Roth, 6-2, 6-2, at firstsingles.

“I knew he was a lefty and I knewI was in with a very hard opponent. Ithought I played a good match but heplayed a lot better,” said Shallcross.“He obviously has a great lefty servethat is really hard to go up against butI just tried to hang in there and playmy best. If the ball is jamming you,you have to remember to take theopposite stroke, which against a leftywould be your backhand.”

SEVEN BLUE DEVILS GET INTO SCORING COLUMN

Randolph Edges Blue DevilsIn Wild Boys Lax Game, 9-8


Two plaques dedicated to legend-ary Westfield High School (WHS)football/wrestling/golf coach andformer athletic director Gary Kehlerby the WHS Boosters marked thebeginning of a memorable April 22morning at Gary Kehler Stadium inWestfield that ended in a wild, 9-8,victory by the No. 17 Randolph HighSchool boys lacrosse team. The No.18-ranked Blue Devils made a valiantfourth-quarter effort to make up afive-point deficit and were threaten-ing to tie the game, but a Ram de-fender scooped a loose ball with 30seconds remaining to preserve thevictory.

The battle of the midfield was vir-tually even, with each team gaining30 ground balls, but the Blue Devilsheld a 12-8 edge in face-offs – 6-2edge in the first half. Unfortunately,in the first half, the Blue Devils hadtrouble maintaining possession just

shortly after winning the face-offs.“You must treat every ground ball

like it will make a difference in thegame,” commented Blue Devil HeadCoach Gerry Benaquista after thegame. “(Chris) Mattes did a great jobon face-offs three games in a row. Inthe middle of the field is where it iskey. Ground balls means possession.Ground balls are going to win thegame. We played the whole first halfon defense. We’ve got to learn that wehave to play an even game, at least, intime of possession and we didn’t dothat.”

Seven Blue Devils got into the scor-ing column. Ryan Sharkey scoredtwo goals and had an assist. RyanYarusi and Joe Simone each had agoal and two assists. Harry Bernsteinnetted a goal and an assist. MikeBialick, Kevin Maus and Bryan Nolaneach scored a goal. Blue Devil goal-ies Alex Lewis and Ben Thomas com-bined for 12 saves and Randolphgoalie Mike Horowitz had nine saves.

Westfield had 21 shots on goal andRandolph had 19.

Ram Mike Grover (3 goals, 1 as-sist), on an assist from Corey Zindel(3 assists) scored the game’s firstgoal. Assisted by Yarusi, Bernsteinone-hopped the Blue Devils’ first goal

MAINS, KASKIW STAR ON ‘D’; ‘BENO’ RAPS FOUR RBI

Raiders Survive Late Threat,Hold Off Softball Lions, 8-7


What appeared to be a cakewalkturned into near disaster when thehosting 2-5 Roselle Catholic softballteam tagged Raider pitcher ElainePiniat for three triples in the sixthinning and added six more hits in thebottom of the seventh but a superbfielding play by centerfielder KelliKaskiw, which resulted in a game-ending double play, preserved an 8-7victory for the 9-0 Scotch Plains-Fanwood girls on April 21.

With Lionesses on first and secondwith one out, Lindsey Gilcrest lobbeda little looper over second base thatseemed destined to drop in for an RBIsingle to tie the game but Kaskiwcharged forward, made the snag andalertly fired to second base to catchthe shocked runner off-base and toend the game.

“Every time the ball goes tocenterfield, I know it’s going to be anout. She’s automatically catching theball. She always comes through in theclutch. It was a great play,” said Raidercatcher Lauren Mains.

However, Kaskiw’s catch was justone of several key defensive playsthat figured in the outcome. Mains,who never let a ball get by her, madetwo outstanding catches of pop-ups

and, on one, she had the wherewithalto gun down the runner dashing to-ward second.

“First of all I was worried aboutcatching it but then I turned aroundand saw the girl sprinting toward sec-ond. All our girls were yelling throwto second,” Mains explained.

Mains also smothered a bunt abouteight feet in front of the plate and,from her knees, threw the runner outheading to first and, on several occa-sions, she fired back picks to first tokeep the runners honest. Firstbaseman Jillian Lusk displayed soundfundamental skills, charging a buntand firing in time to second basemanSteph Goines, who covered first.

“We practice it a lot in practice andthey (Lusk and Goines) know what todo. It’s pretty much automatic. As soonas the bunt goes, Jill and Nicole (Colineri– third baseman) charge in and we

usually get that out,” Mains said.Lusk also made a fine scoop at first.Key hitting came into play and

senior Lauren Benovengo (4 RBI)had two of them, with a bases-loadedtriple in the fifth inning and an RBIsingle in the seventh that turned out tobe the game winner. Kaskiw had asingle, an RBI double and an RBIsacrifice fly. Melissa Sette (runscored) smacked an RBI triple and asingle. Mains singled, scored and hadan RBI and Lusk singled and scoreda run. Piniat and Goines each scoredtwice and Colineri scored the first runof the game.

Piniat yielded nine hits, walkedone and fanned six Lionesses.Roselle Catholic starting pitcherEmily Vieni allowed six hits, fannedtwo, walked three and hit a batter infive innings. Reliever Grace LaSpata




David B. Corbin for The Westfield Leader and The TimesMAKING EVERY RUN COUNT…Raider Nicole Colineri scored the first run of the game in the top of the first inningagainst Roselle Catholic. Centerfielder Kelli Kaskiw snagged a sinking fly ball and fired to second for a double play topreserve an 8-7 victory.

David B. Corbin for The Westfield Leader and The TimesPLAYING AGAINST THE TOP TEAM…Blue Devil Jack Trimble returns a serve in his first doubles match against thetop-ranked Millburn Millers.


Devil’s Den

By BRUCE JOHNSONSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

MARSAL FIRES 2-HITTER; CORTIZO & ESPERON RBI

R. C. Lion Baseballers DownUnion Catholic Vikings, 6-2

By FRED LECOMTESpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

Ace Nick Nolan turned in a strongpitching performance for the RoselleCatholic High School baseball teamand the offense clicked enough toearn a 6-2 victory over Union Catho-lic at Union County College’s ShaneWalsh Field in Cranford. Nolan (3-0)struck out eight, walked one and hitsix batters. The Vikings collectedseven hits but left 14 men on base.

“Our pitchers got off to a bad startwith a lot of walks and a lot of run-ners. The outcome showed that wehad more hits than they did but wegave them too many opportunities bywalking runners in early,” said Vi-king Head Coach Jim Reagan Jr. “Ithought we were very disciplined atthe plate and hit the ball pretty well.We got guys on base, had a couple of

walks and a bunch of guys that got hitbut we just could not drive in the runswhen we needed them.”

The 6-3 Vikings threatened in thetop of the first inning when leadoffbatter Kristian Cortizo triggered asingle to opposite field. Matt Olivetoand Chris Whittemore each got hitwith a pitch to load the bases. Nolan,however, settled down and retired theside in order.

The 6-2 Lions roared with threeruns in the bottom of the inning. Vi-king starter Steven D’Angelo gave upa single to Mike Canales then lost thestrike zone with two walks to load thebases. Three runs scored onAbbondante’s RBI single and a basesloaded walk. Coach Reagan decidedthat was enough and brought inWhittemore. (1-2/3 innings, three runs,two hits, one walk, one hit batter).

In the second inning, the Lionsadded three runs on two hits, includ-ing a two-run blast by Mike Canales(2-for-4). The Vikings turned to reliefpitcher Anthony Marsal (46 pitches,two hits, no walks), who tamed theLions with his off-speed stuff, curveballs and very good placementthrough four innings.

“There was no pressure really,” saidMarsal. “We’re the underdogs. Ev-eryone thought we were going to beshut out today so it was a good thingthat we scored two runs.”

The Vikings put a run on thescoreboard in the fourth inning whenPhil D’Apolito swung at the first pitchand pulled a single to center and scoredon Cortizon’s single to right field.The Vikings’ second run came in thefifth after two infield miscues thenJimmy Thornton, who was hit twicein the game, drove in Chris Esperonwith a single.

The Vikings looked for more in thesixth when Esperon blasted a shotthat knocked the centerfielder againstthe fence. The ball, however, caughtenough leather, snuffing out the po-tential two-run homer. The Vikingsthreatened again in the seventh whendesignated hitter Tony LaRocca washit for the second time, MikeHoneymar scorched a single andThornton got nailed for the secondtime to load the pods. Marsal, how-ever, poked a bouncer to the firstbaseman who in turn fired home for a3-2 fielder’s choice. With the basesstill loaded the game ended with agrounder to second.

“The effort was there. There was noquit in them and we battled right backagainst one the best pitcher in the state.Now we just need to focus on knock-ing runners in,” concluded Reagan.Union Catholic 000 110 0 2Roselle Catholic 330 000 x 6

WHS Swimmers Have Done OKDespite 1958 Snub By Voters

We are coming up on the 48th anni-versary of a day that is a huge blackmark on the town of Westfield. On April29, 1958, the town got to vote on thebuilding of a community swimming poolto substitute for one of the gymnasiumsthat was going to be built in a newaddition after the referendum.

The school was just starting to flex itscollective swimming muscles, havingjust won the first state championship inschool history, and the first two countychampionships in what would become anational record 42-year streak. The onlyyear-round pool in town was the four-lane, 20-yard Rooke Pool at the WestfieldYMCA.

Support for a new pool came frommany directions. On April 17, the “Fromthe Sidelines” column on The WestfieldLeader’s sports page said it “would be apity” if the pool was not supported. In apage one story that day, the WHS BoosterClub announced it was “overwhelm-ingly in agreement” with and “vigor-ously supported” the proposal for a newpool. The Boosters urged that “all citi-zens interested in the welfare of all ourchildren will vote for the proposed poolon April 29.”

And a lead editorial in The Leader onApril 24 concluded that “we favor theinclusion of a swimming pool rather thanan extra gymnasium in the senior build-ing because we feel this will provide anexcellent athletic facility and do so at lesscost than may ever be possible again.” Onpage 27 of that issue was a full pageadvertisement headlined “Why a Swim-ming Pool for Westfield, And What WillIt Cost You.” It listed 11 reasons to votefor the pool, and concluded that the costof the pool would not exceed $125,000 or$2.23 per $1,000 of assessed value of ahome, a total one-time only cost of ap-proximately $15 per family (that’s$107.30 in today’s economy accordingto Bureau of Labor statistics).

That ad was signed by such Westfieldmovers and shakers as Mr. and Mrs.Frank Ketcham, Al Danker, GeorgePlenty, Charles Eddy, Norm Morash, StanBritten, Archer Sargent, CuddieDavidson, Dick Maxwell, Jerry Bentley,Joe Wiendl, Charles Frankenbach, GeorgeBrownell, Dr. Gerald Demarest, EdHolschuh, Dick Richter, HarryHinebauch, J.C. Pfeiffer, Dr. J. PenningtonWarter, John Ackerman and Mrs. GordonBooth, among dozens of others.

But on April 29, the voters spoke andby a margin of 844 (3,070-2,226), theswimming pool was turned down, al-though the voters did give the go-aheadfor the addition at the high school and tocomplete the building of the new EdisonJunior High School.

The following week’s Leader includedanother full-page “obituary” titled “Eu-logy to the Westfield High School Swim-ming Pool,” written by Jerry and JanetBentley, whose son Terry was captain ofthe 1958 WHS swim team and would begraduating in another month. It con-cluded, “we sincerely urge that the next

time this subject comes up for consider-ation that we all think very carefullyabout the opportunity and challengewhich can so easily offer, or so easilywithhold. Our children are always readyfor new opportunities … let’s not holdthem back, deliberately.”

That “next time” never came up. Andso, exactly what has the WHS swimteams done for the town since that snubby the voters 48 years?

The boys are the winningest team instate history with 714 victories. They’vewon 20 state championships, the mostof any public school. They’ve capturedthe Union County championship 52times in the meet’s 55 years, including42 years in a row from 1957-98. They’vehad 83 individual state champions (25more than the next closest team), and 29relay state champions, a state best; andalso two of the school’s three Olympi-ans — gold medal diver Bob Clotworthyand swimmer Dave Perkowski.

And the WHS girls have pitched inbig-time with nine state titles and 24county crowns in the girls meet’s 29years, including the last 14 in a row.

Plainfield High School has a pool andso does Elizabeth, the only high schoolsin Union County with such facilities.Trenton has one, and Atlantic City has abrand new facility. Almost every schoolin Mercer County has a pool, and most ofthem were built in the last 20 years asadd-ons to the school. Morristown built ahuge pool onto its existing high schoolabout 20 years ago, and Montgomery justreplaced its old high school with a newone that has a gorgeous swimming pool.

Yet Westfield, the town in New Jerseythat is most synonymous with highschool swimming, has made its swim-mers into vagabonds, practicing at the Y(including over two decades of 5:30-7:30 a.m. workouts before school), theGarden State Swim Club (now BerkeleyAquatic Club) and even evenings at theWatchung Fork home of Grover and PatConnell.

All thanks to the head-in-the-sandvoters on April 29, 1958.

DEN’S HIGH FIVESFor the remainder of the 2005-06 school

year, The Den will post weekly Top Fivelists, of various things — sports and non-sports — involving WHS and Westfield,maybe even surrounding towns.

This week we’ll start with the top fiveall-time pitching staffs at WHS (not basedstrictly on won-loss record; and remem-ber, this is just one person’s opinion):

1. 1963. With sophomore Greg Chlanas the No. 5 pitcher, this staff has to betops. Chlan is arguably the best right-hander to ever pitch at WHS, and reachedTriple A level in the early 1970s. Three-year ace Marty Howarth and captain JimSmith were the mainstays, but juniorsBill Richold and crafty left-hander Den-nis Burke were pretty tough too. Thisgroup was the main reason rookie coachNorm Koury led WHS to its first UnionCounty Tournament title and an 18-7record.

2. 1995. Though not as deep as the ’63group, the big three of Kris Williams,Steve Cheek and Brian Ciemniecki wasrather imposing. Williams was 10-1 andlater drafted by the Cubs, Cheek was 9-0 and a future NFL punter, whileCiemniecki anchored the staff and didjust about everything for a team thatwent 27-3, most wins in school history.

3. 1987. This is the only staff thatcould match 1963’s for depth and qual-ity. Clint Factor, Pete Lima, ChuckMueller, Kevin Stock, Dave Lavenderand Kevin Lombardi gave Bob Brewsterplenty of arms for the April rainouts.The team went 21-9-1 and won the UCTcrown.

4. 1949. Jack Corbett, Sam Mitchelland Dick Smith split the innings almostcompletely. Corbett (3-1) went on to starat Michigan, Mitchell (5-0) was a standoutat Washington and a future Phillie draftee,while Smith, just a sophomore, went 4-0as Noel Taylor’s club went 14-2 and wonthe first sectional title in school history.(The team also included future profes-sionals Rudy Stanzel at shortstop andcatcher Dave Townley.)

5. (tie) 1966. You start with Donnie(Big D) Anderson, whose 12-1 recordand 0.81 ERA with 134 strikeouts in103.2 innings was the best single-sea-son ever at WHS, and add sophomoreFrank Tokash (who went 40 straightscoreless innings in 1968) and juniorJim Howarth. It’s no wonder this teamwent 22-4 and won the UCT.

5. (tie) 1972. This staff was so deepthat arm problems for aces John Havas(3-0) and Steve Tebbetts (1-0) didn’t keepthe team from going 18-7. Tom Andersonhad four shutouts among his five wins,Art Goldblatt went 5-3, including twowins on one memorable Saturday, whilepro draftee Bobby Jester and LinwoodHudson (3-1) completed the group.

EYE-OPENERHow good is the Millburn tennis team?

To come to Tamaques Park last Thurs-day and put a 5-0 goose egg on a verygood (but still very young) WHS teamwas amazing. And the top-ranked Mill-ers followed that up Saturday with an-other 5-0 win over WHS at the BryanBennett Memorial Tournament. WHSknocked off a strong Holmdel squad inthe quarterfinals before falling in thesemis to eventual champion Millburn.

DID YOU KNOW?One of the greatest swimmers on one

of the greatest athletic teams in NewJersey history was John Ketcham, se-nior captain of the 1966 Blue Devils.Ketcham was a three-time state cham-pion in the 100 backstroke for WHS. Incollege at Wesleyan (Conn.), he wonthree events at the 1969 NCAA Division2 championships: the 100 (55.62) and200-yard backstroke (2:01.91), and the200-individual medley (2:02.28).

The Devil’s Den appears Thursday inThe Westfield Leader during the scholas-tic sports season. Contact us with com-ments, suggestions, story ideas or triviaquestions at [email protected]. Go Devils!

Baseball Vikings WhipMorris Catholic, 15-2The Union Catholic High School

baseball team improved to 7-3 with a15-2 whipping of Morris Catholic inScotch Plains on April 21. KristianCortizo had a three-run triple and MattOliveto cracked a two-run home run.

Softball Vikings StopSouth Amboy, 9-6

The Union Catholic High Schoolsoftball team scored six runs in thesecond inning and rolled to a 9-6victory over host South Amboy onApril 21. Nicole Palumbo tripled,singled and had two RBI for the 6-3Vikings, and Nicole Caravano fannedeight and walked two in the win.

Fred Lecomte for The Westfield Leader and The TimesLION TAMER…Viking relief pitcher Anthony Marsal tamed the Lions with hisoff-speed stuff, curve balls and very good placement through four innings.

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PEREZ BLASTS 2-RUN HR, BELL BELTS RBI TRIPLE

Kearny Kardinals Strike OutSP-F Raider Baseballers, 8-4

Brearley Bears Shut DownBlue Devil Softballers, 2-0By FRED LECOMTE


Two-hit pitching from junior right-hander Jenna Vitale and timely hit-ting determined the outcome of thegame as the undefeated, 8-0, DavidBrearley High School softball teamedged 4-5 Westfield, 2-0, on April 21in Westfield. Vitale struck out eightbatters and walked one. AmandaAguire and Hannah LoBello eachslapped RBI singles in the fourth.

Blue Devil junior Lindsay Browntossed a six-hitter, sat down nine Bearsand walked two. Mary Kate Flanneryand Jen Urcivoli delivered the lonehits for the 4-5 Blue Devils.

“Lindsay threw a great game. Ithink she’s very tough. She fell be-hind the batters a little more than Iwould want her to but she showed alot of mental toughness and gave uponly a couple of hits. Behind theplate, Jillian Olsen is taking chargeand working very well with Lindsay.She had a lot of balls in the dirt butknocked them down, picked them upand threw the runner out,” said BlueDevil Head Coach Tara Pignoli.

First baseman Jenny LaSpata madea number of excellent plays in criticalsituations. “She is showing a lot ofleadership on the field, she’s veryvocal and fields her position with alot of confidence,” said Pignoli.

In the bottom of the first, leadoffhitter Flannery bashed a sizzler past

third and darted to second on theoverthrow. Vitale, however, respondedwith two K’s and a ground ball. Brownheld the Bears hitless through threeinnings and allowed only one walk inthe first but in the fourth inning, LisaReilly tapped a single and Vitalewalked. Aguire and LoBello eachyanked RBI singles. Urcivoli dis-played outstanding hustle in right fieldresulting in back-to-back run-savingsnags to end the inning.

Sophomore third baseman ErinScialabba stepped up big when arocket came down on her in the Bearfifth. Unshaken, she scooped up dirtand ball, held the runner and fired intime to first.

“Every single day she looks a littlebetter and she’s getting smarter,”noted Pignoli.

Urcivoli rapped a one-out single toright in the bottom of the seventh, butVitale remained focused and retiredthe side.

“Jen (Urcivoli) has been gettingvery hot. She had two game winninghits this week and is doing a reallynice job out there,” said Pignoli, whoadded, “Defensively, I’m verypleased. This team is getting betterevery day. We keep getting ourselvesinto tight spots, runners in scoringposition with less than two outs, andwe’re finding ways out every time.When we do make a mistake, wedon’t compound it by making an-

other right after. Offensively, we needto get more solid contact on the ball.We need to get the bunts down whenwe are in that situation and put morepressure on the other team’s defense.”Brearley 000 200 0 2Westfield 000 000 0 0


Eric Valdez recorded 13 strikeoutsand yielded six hits, while walkingonly one, to improve his record to 4-0 in Kearny’s 8-4 victory over theScotch Plains-Fanwood High Schoolbaseball team at Park Middle SchoolField in Scotch Plains on April 19.

Adam Perez whacked a two-runhome run and Jeff Bell thumped anRBI triple for the 4-5 Raiders. JohnCox drilled a double and scored, JoeCepparulo had an RBI single, MikeRusin had a bunt single and scored,and Dave Belford tapped a single.

The 7-3 Kardinals tagged Raiderpitching for 12 hits, including a pairof triples from Evan McCourt (3-for-4, 3 RBI, 2 runs scored, 1 stolenbase), and a triple from AlfredoEchevestre (2-for-3, 2 runs scored).Catcher Anthony Pelicaro had a pairof RBI singles.

Raider starting pitcher Greg Bayardfanned five Kardinals, walked fourand allowed eight hits in his five in-nings on the mound and reliever JoshDecker gave up four hits and threeruns in his two innings. However, com-mon with a team that fields only onereturning varsity starter, mistakes weremade – a balk, passed ball, a hitcatcher’s glove that resulted in a freepass and some miscommunication onpickoff plays – that cost runs.

“Young mistakes! Josh comes inthe sixth inning, throws a littlechangeup. The kid pops it up tocenterfield. We don’t catch it. Thenext batter there’s catcher’s interfer-ence. Next batter we throw the pickoffplay away. We had a passed ball. Wedid some silly things today. Against agood team, you can’t do that,” saidRaider Head Coach Tom Baylock.

Valdez was so effective keepingthe Raider batters off-balance thatfive of his strikeouts came via call ofstrike three. The Raiders did, how-ever, tag him somewhat in the secondinning but were far more successfulin the fifth.

The Kardinals put together threesingles to score a run in the top of thefirst, then added another run in thesecond when Echevestre tripled andscored on a passed ball. In the Raidersecond, Cox drilled his double down

the right-field line and scored onCepparulo’s poke to right.

In the fifth, the Kardinals took ad-vantage of a balk, a walk, a muffedpickoff attempt and an error to gowith their two hits to add three runs.But the Raiders answered when Rusinlaid down his bunt single, Bell crackedhis RBI triple to right and, with no-body out, Perez followed with histwo-run shot over the leftfielder’s headto cut the Kardinals’ lead to 5-4. Valdezfanned the next three batters.

McCourt smacked a two-run tripleand Policaro dropped and RBI singleto put the Kardinals ahead 8-4 in thesixth. Valdez struck out the side in thesixth and fanned two of the threebatters he faced in the seventh.

“He pitched against us last year. Heis probably one of the best pitchers inour area,” said Baylock. “Our reputa-tion precedes us. We get a lot of thenumber one’s (pitchers). He’s gottena lot better from last year. He was ableto pitch a lot of strikes. He was throw-ing his fastball. He was throwing hiscurveballs, sliders, changeups. Hethrew anything he wanted to forstrikes. He kept us off-balance but wedid a decent job on a couple of bats,keeping our swings small and mak-ing contact but it wasn’t good enough.”Kearny 110 303 0 8Sc. Pl.-Fanwood 010 030 0 4

Blue Devil Nine RoutPiscataway, 11-5

The Westfield High School baseballteam won its seventh straight game byrouting Piscataway, 11-5, in Westfieldon April 21. Mike Murray went 2-for-3 and smacked a two-run home run inthe first inning. Mike Diaz whacked asolo homer in the sixth.

Softball Raiders ClipLady Kardinals, 6-1

The Scotch Plains-Fanwood HighSchool softball team upped its recordto 8-0 by clipping Kearny, 6-1, inKearny on April 19. Elaine Piniatfanned 14 Kardinals walked one andallowed just two hits. Lauren Mainswent 2-for-3 with two RBI and tworuns scored.

Blue Devil Nine LevelNwk East Side, 15-1The Westfield High School base-

ball team won its sixth straight indramatic fashion with a 15-1, five-inning victory over 7-3 Newark EastSide in Newark on April 19. BrandonCuba (2-1) tossed a four-hitter whilestriking out three and walking none.

Alex Zierler had a three-rundouble and a single and Justin Olsenwent 3-for-3, with a solo homer,three runs scored and two RBI.Manny Melendez had two hits andan RBI for East Side.

David B. Corbin for The Westfield Leader and The TimesCOMPLETING A TWO-RUN HOMER…Raider Adam Perez slides safely over the plate to complete a two-run home runin the fifth inning against the Kearny Kardinals.

Fred Lecomte for The Westfield Leader and The TimesLEADERSHIP ON THE FIELD…Blue Devil first baseman Jenny LaSpata made a number of excellent plays in criticalsituations against the Bears.

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gave up two hits and two walks whilestriking out two.

The Raiders scored a run in the firstwhen Colineri was hit by a pitch,advanced to second on a wild pitch,moved to third on Kaskiw’s singleand scored on Mains’ grounder tothird.

The score remained 1-0 until thetop of the fifth, when the Raiderswent on a five-run rampage. Goineswalked, Sette tripled to center andKaskiw lofted an RBI sac fly to left.Mains singled, Piniat walked, Luskreached on an error and Benovengo,who also laid down a bunt to advancethe runner in the second inning, un-loaded her bases-clearing triple downthe right-field line. She consideredscoring but held up.

“I think I could have scored. Theball was pretty far out there but Iwanted to play it safe. I’d rather domy job, get those people in and nottake the chance of getting out. I neededa boost in the batting average,” saidBenovengo.

Considering her bunt, Benovengosaid, “Small ball sometimes is animportant part of a game.”

Kaskiw drilled an RBI single in thesixth and it seemed the Raiders hadclear sailing with a 7-0 lead but, in thebottom of the inning, clouds began toform. Jackie Murtha (2-for-3) tripledto left and Kelly Williams (2-for-2, 3RBI) brought her home with a triple.Jillian Iazzetta (2-for-4) followed withan RBI triple to make the score 7-2.

Benovengo chopped her RBI singlein the seventh, but the Lionessescharged with six singles and a walk toclose the score to 8-7 with only oneout and runners on first and second.

Kaskiw came to the rescue.Looking ahead to the second half

of the season, Benovengo said, “Wehaven’t come across many teams thatwe would like to face and challengeto see what our true skills are when itcomes down to it. We don’t want toget too confident!”Sc. Pl.-Fanwood 100 051 1 8Roselle Catholic 000 002 5 7

SHELMAN FLICKS IN TWO GOALS, ZAFFUTO SAVES 20

Kent Place Dragons Burn UpBlue Devil Lady Laxers, 15-5

By FRED LECOMTESpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

Possession, smart passes and lotsof firepower broke the game wideopen in the first half as the Kent Placegirls’ lacrosse team overwhelmed theWestfield High School girls, 15-5, inSummit on April 19. Seven differentDragons spewed out a combined 15goals.

Christin Hanley sank four goalsand Cassie Speno registered threegoals to lead the 5-2 Dragons. GoalieMattie Wasser was getting some goodlooks and came up with the 15 crucialstops when needed. The 5-3 BlueDevils successfully penetratedDragon terrain and got two goals fromJulie Shelman. Ali McDonald, Rachel

Tucker and Emma Laird each flickedin one goal.

“We were really excited and hadhigh hopes coming into this game.We started off strong, however, wesuffered a huge mental shift in thegame that caused us to force passesand create turnovers against us,” saidBlue Devil Head Coach Liz Coulson.

Blue Devil goalie Michelle Zaffutowithstood a pelting of 36 shots, made20 saves – several of them spectacular.

“It’s really all mental. You have tokeep your head up. It’s all team work,even if your team is down a little,”said Zaffuto. “You need to take everyshot. If a goal goes in, you need toshake it off and keep going.”

The hustling Dragons en masse,

flowed down low into Devil turf,swarmed around the ball constantly,nearly unchallenged and punishedZaffuto with 19 shots in the first half,eight of them striking its target. CarolynBradley, Georgia Bird (2) Cassie Spano,Elaine Welch, Hanley (2) and RebeccaKrom scored. Blue Devil Mary KateLuker countered with a goal off anassist by Kristen Fortino at 8:58, andShelman scorched the net off a feed byMcDonald at the 5:47 mark.

In the second half, the Dragonattackers continued their punishingways over Blue Devil defenders withseven more goals. Welch, Hanley(2), Kate Sheridan, Speno (2) andLizzie Kennedy found the net.Shelman ran with lots of intensitytaking the ball from midfield andrippled the net at 22:06.

“Julie definitely is one of our stron-gest players on the field. She was ableto get around a lot of the defenderseven while being double teamed butshe’s not going to be able to do thatevery time. She knows that and therest of the team knows that,” saidCoulson.

Laird contributed with a goal at10:53 and Tucker scorched the twinewith a goal with 1:20 remaining.

“It comes down to an individuallevel, but they did not pick it up asmuch as I thought they would. Themental shift started halfway throughthe first half and they could not pickit up from there and it definitely costus the game,” said Coulson.

“We were not mentally preparedenough. We have the skills to beat ateam like this, we just didn’t showup ready to perform,” said co-cap-tain Lauren Sinnenberg. “We talkedabout it after the game and what wecan do better but it’s really just alearning experience. We need tolearn how to perform and learn toturn our nerves into intensity. Thisis something we need to know hap-pened and not let it repeat.”

Raider Golfers StopSt. Peter’s Prep

The Scotch Plains-Fanwood HighSchool gold team upped its record to7-0 by defeating St. Peter’s Prep, 150-157, at the par-33 Scotch Hills courseon April 20. Raider Brian Pak turnedin the best score of 35 and topped itoff by getting a hole-in-one on thepar-3, 170-yard sixth hole.

Raiders Clayton Balch shot a 37,Jack Davis had a 39, as did ChrisCooper. Mickey Garrigan shot a 36and Steve Gardner had a 38 for 8-2 St.Peter’s Prep.

Raiders Get 2nd SeedFor County SoftballThe 9-0 Scotch Plains-Fanwood

High School softball team receivedthe second seed for the upcomingUnion County Tournament, whichwill begin tomorrow, April 28. De-fending champions Brearley, withan 8-0 record, received the top seed,Governor Livingston received thethird seed and Cranford receivedthe fourth seed.

UNION COUNTY SEEDS:1. Brearley, 2. Scotch Plains-

Fanwood, 3. Governor Livingston, 4.Cranford, 5. Union, 6. Union Catholic,7. Roselle Park, 8. Linden, 9. Westfield,10. New Providence, 11. Mother Se-ton, 12. Roselle Catholic, 13. Dayton,14. Plainfield, 15. Elizabeth, 16.Johnson, 17. Hillside, 18. Roselle, 19.Summit, 20. Rahway

Mike Murray to PlayIn HS National GameHACKETTSTOWN – Westfield

High School (WHS) senior MikeMurray was selected to the only all-star baseball game for senior ath-letes – The 2006 All-American Base-ball Game presented by PlayStation– on April 24. Murray joins an elitelist of athletes playing in the FourthAnnual East vs. West All-Star Clas-sic on Wednesday, June 7, at Iso-topes Park in Albuquerque, NewMexico.

The 2006 All-American Gamewill be cablecast live on Fox SportsNet at 7 p.m. (MST) and will featurethe nation’s top 36 high-school base-ball student-athletes.

WHS, along with the game’s pro-ducer, SportsLink, held a pep rallyin Murray’s honor on April 25.

Hye-Young Choi

RESIDENTIAL BROKERAGEemail: [email protected] OFFICE • 209 CENTRAL AVENUE • 908-233-5555, EXT. 169

© 2005 Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation. Coldwell Banker® is a registered trademark licensed to Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation.An Equal Opportunity Company. Equal Housing Opportunity. Owned and Operated by NRT Incorporated.

Direct Line: 908-301-2015

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Westfield . . . Gracious center hall Colonial in the heart ofWychwood. This 4 bedroom, 3 ½ bath home offers an el-egant style of living with traditional appointments and unsur-passed improvements. The beautiful décor is enhanced bynewer baths, lrg. Kitchen w/ spacious FR addition. Ameni-ties incl: new rec rm, 3 zn heat & CAC, 6 zn sprinkler sys,paver-block drive & walkway, large patio & circulating koipond. Walk to sch. $1,250,000 WSF0925

Elegant 4 BR, 3 ½ BTH CH Colonial. Beau foyeropens to lrg LR w/frplc & bow wndw, FDR, FR w/double sided frplc, MBR w/bath & wi closet, EIK,Breakfast Room w/French doors to patio and wisteriacovered arbor. Moldings, hwfls, 2 strcases, RR, CAC,2CGR. Near golf course. $1,390,000 WSF0307

Magnificent custom 5 BR, 4 full, 3 half BTH Tudor built byStone Creek Realty LLC on prestigious Highland Ave.. Thefinest architectural detail and craftsmanship. 3 stop elevator,motorized chand. Lift/foyer, coffered ceilings, oak HWFLSthroughout, archways, 5 FRPLCS, old world oak paneling,fabulous finished walkout bsmnt with exercise rm, great rm,English pub, epicurean EIK w/Viking appl., temperaturecontrolled wine celler 4 zn HT/AC. $3,200,000 WSF0136

Scotch Plains…Spectacular 180 degree panoramic view of NYCand surrounds!.4500 sq ft., 4 BR, 31/2 BTh 1987 contemporaryhome in private setting .78 acre. Breathe taking views from everyroom! Dramatic 2 story entry w/ vaulted ceiling opens to a sunkenLR, FDR, sunny kitchen with separate eating area, billiard roomand 1st fl laundry. Walk-out lower level RR w/frplc guest suite &ideal home office with private entrance. Large MBR suite. Must seeto appreciate. Adjacent Watchung Reservation. $995,000 WSF0182

Fred Lecomte for The Westfield Leader and The TimesHAVING A VERY BUSY DAY…Blue Devil goalie Michelle Zaffuto withstood apelting of 36 shots and made 20 saves, several of them spectacular against Kent Place.See another picture on page 17.

David B. Corbin for The Westfield Leader and The TimesDOING HER JOB…Raider Lauren Benovengo heads toward first after layingdown a bunt to move the runner.

David B. Corbin for The Westfield Leader and The TimesHIGH SCHOOL ALL-AMERICAN…Westfield High School senior MikeMurray puts on his All-American No. 11 uniform presented to him by SportsLink,Inc. Sales Manager Jay Orillaza, right, as Blue Devil varsity baseball HeadCoach Bob Brewster looks on. Murray is one of only 36 high school seniors whohave been selected to compete in the Fourth Annual East vs. West All-StarClassic presented by PlayStation on Wednesday, June 7, at Isotopes Park inAlbuquerque, New Mexico.

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© 2005 Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation. Coldwell Banker® is a registered trademark licensed to Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation. An Equal Opportunity Company. Equal Housing Opportunity. Owned and Operated by NRT Incorporated.

Randolph Edges Blue DevilsIn Wild Boys Lax Game, 9-8


No. 1 Millburn Millers StopNo. 6 Blue Devil Netmen, 5-0


“Justin is a great athlete and a greatplayer and a lefty, which helps. Ithought Kevin played wonderfully,made a good showing and I’m veryproud of him,” said Kapner.

After dropping the first set, 6-4, BlueDevils Evan Eisenberg and Matt Grallagave Millers Brian Kyle and Kyle Rothall they could handle to force a tiebreakerat second doubles, but the Millburn pairprevailed 7-6 (9-7). At first doubles,Millers Mike Flamm and Josh Israeloutlasted Jack Trimble and Dean Th-ompson, 6-3, 6-4.

“I was very happy with the teameffort. Ravi and our doubles wereright in there, and for Kevin to play sowell. His opponent was ranked 12thin the Eastern Regions for 18-year-olds,” Kapner noted.

At third singles, Miller Will Kendalltopped James Chu, 6-1, 6-2.

“The purpose of playing a team like

Millburn at this point in the season isto gauge where we are and where wehave to go. At every level from firstsingles through second doubles, that’swhat we are trying to do here and weare certainly within striking distance,”said Kapner. “Our job is not to be thebest team now, but to be the best teamat the end of the year, if not this year,the best team next year, since we are soyoung. In the process of losing, some-times you learn more than in the pro-cess of winning.”First singles: Justin Roth (M) d. KevinShallcross, 6-2, 6-2Second singles: Jason Magnes (M) d.Ravi Netravali, 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2Third singles: Will Kendall (M) d. JamesChu, 6-1, 6-2First doubles: Mike Flamm and JoshIsrael (M) d. Jack Trimble and DeanThompson, 6-3, 6-4Second doubles: Brian Kyle and KyleRoth (M) d. Evan Eisenberg and MattGralla, 6-4, 7-6 (9-7)

then Ed Blinkas scored to give theRams a 2-1 lead at the end of the firstquarter.

The 2-5 Blue Devils could not findthe net in the second quarter while the6-3 Rams struck for three to open a 5-1 lead. Kyle McGrath (2 goals, 1assist), Grover and James Rubio (2goals) found the net.

Situations got worse before theygot better when Ram Greg Sopkoscored the first goal of the third quar-ter. The Blue Devils responded withthree goals. Simone, assisted bySharkey, scored first. Bialick, assistedby Bernstein, scored second andSharkey made the score 6-4 on anunassisted goal. Grover, McGrath and

Rubio answered to give the Rams a 9-4 lead entering the fourth quarter.

Yarusi assisted by Simone scoredthe first of four unanswered goals inthe quarter. Yarusi assisted Nolan onthe second goal and Maus stole a ballin Blue Devil territory, charged downfield and stuffed in the third goal.With 3:04 remaining, Sharkey, as-sisted by Simone, made the score 9-8.

“Eventually things are going to startclicking. If we played in the first halflike we did in the second half, we aregoing to dominate teams. We cameback as a team today,” saidBenaquista.Randolph 2 3 4 0 9Westfield 1 0 3 4 8

Raider Boys Win 3, Devils 1At Raider Track Relays

The Scotch Plains-Fanwood HighSchool boys won three events andestablished meet records in two ofthem at the Raider Relays inHillsborough on April 22. TheWestfield High School boys won oneevent, grabbed one second, one thirdand four fifth places.

Raiders Kyle Rowbotham, with ameet-best 41’8.5”, and NehemiahBurney-Porter broke the old meetrecord of 78’8.75” set by Union in2004 in the triple jump with a com-bined distance of 82’4”. The BlueDevils placed fifth in the event at74’5.5”. Robotham, James Alfano andTom Pennella finished first in the 400intermediate hurdles with a time of2:58.3. Robotham ran his leg in 55.4.He also split 52.1 on the third-place1600-meter relay and ran a 15.1 onthe sixth-place shuttle hurdles.

Mike Alleman had the best toss inthe shot put at 52’9.5” and John Badalahad a toss of 48’3” as the Raidertwosome broke the meet record of100’0.5” set by Manalapan in 2004with a distance of 101’0.5”. UnionCatholic took sixth in the event at84.8.75”. Alleman also had the besttoss in the discus at 130’2” to lead histwosome to third in the event with adistance of 229’6”. The Vikings took

sixth at 227’9”.Blue Devils Evan Friedman

(4:38.9), Jeff Perrella (4:25.8), KrisKagan (4:49.4) and Jay Hoban(4:43.8) won the 6400-meter relaywith a time of 18:38. The Blue Dev-ils also placed second in the 3200-relay at 8:27.2. Union Catholic wasfifth at 8:32. Westfield took third inthe pole vault at 19 feet, tied for fifthin the high jump at 11’1” and fifth inthe sprint medley at 55 seconds. TheRaiders placed fourth in the distancemedley at 11:18 followed by theVikings at 11:23. The Vikings fin-ished second in the 800-meter relaywith a time of 1:34.9 and the Raiderswere fifth at 1:37.1. The Raiderstook fourth in the javelin with adistance of 254’2” and sixth in thelong jump at 36’7.75 behind the BlueDevils at 36.8.5”.

Blue Devils Meg and Rose Driscoll,Ayn Wisler and Stephanie Cortinhalplaced second in the girls 4x800 witha time of 9:54.9. The Raider girlsplaced third in the 4x400 at 4:20.8followed by the Vikings at 4:26.8.The Raiders also took third in the shotput at 62’10.5” and sixth in the discusat 167’1”. The Vikings placed third inthe high jump at 9’8” and fourth in the4x100 at 51.7 and the 4x200 at 1:50.7.

David B. Corbin for The Westfield Leader and The TimesSERVING IN A TIEBREAKER…Blue Devil Evan Eisenberg serves to hisMillburn opponent during a tiebreaker at second doubles.

David B. Corbin (2006 Blue Devil Classic files) for The Westfield Leader and The TimesPUTTING IT IN HIGH GEAR…Raider Kyle Rowbotham had a successful dayat the Raider Relays in Hillsborough. Rowbotham had a meet-best 41’8.5” in thetriple jump, ran a 55.4 leg in the winning intermediate hurdles and split 52.1 in the4x400-meter relay.

David B. Corbin for The Westfield Leader and The TimesKEEPING OUT THE INVADERS…Blue Devils Andrew Rosenberg, No. 2, WillHarbaugh, No. 22, and goalie Alex Lewis, No. 1, attempt to prevent a Ram from scoring.

David B. Corbin for The Westfield Leader and The TimesKEEPING THINGS IN CHECK…Blue Devil defender Will Harbaugh, No. 22,attempts to prevent a Randolph attacker from penetrating the middle.

Fred Lecomte for The Westfield Leader and The TimesATTACKING THE GOAL…Blue Devil Julie Shelman takes a wicked shot at theKent Place goal. Shelman netted two goals in the game.

NJAR Circle of Excellence AwardGold Level: 1997-2004, Platinum: 2005Direct Line: (908) 301-2052Email: [email protected]

209 CENTRAL AVENUE

WESTFIELD, NJ 07090(908) 233-5555 EXT. 189

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This immaculate 3 Bedroom 1½ Bath charmer sits on a quiet street in the Franklin Schooldistrict. Highlights include an updated Kitchen boasting granite counters and stainlesssteel appliances, a large Family Room with ceramic tile floor and surround sound, afinished basement, gleaming hardwood floors, newer furnace & central air and muchmore. Stone landscaping, paver walkways and a private backyard with a deck completesthis special home. Offered for $489,900.

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A PIECE OF HISTORY IS FOR SALE

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This special Colonial Farmhouse built in 1771 has been lovingly enlargedwith a meticulous addition in 1999 and was honored by the WestfieldHistoric Preservation Committee. This four bedroom, 3 full bath Colonialis in impeccable condition with yesterday’s charm and today’sconveniences. The home evokes an English spirit with hand-hewn beams,two fireplaces, original moldings and wide plank pumpkin floors. Builton a lot size of 92 x 100, the tranquil surroundings are embroidered byflowering beds, impressive towering trees, brick patio, and fenced yard.This is truly a unique Historic Treasure. $869,900

Vivian Cortese-Strano• Top Revenue Units Month of March• Union County area Specialist• Residential . . . Including Condos and Townhouses• Buying, Selling or Rental

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Shackamaxon Pro ExplainsHow to Hit a Bunker Shot

By MICHAEL KIERNERSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

How many times have you swungand the golf ball stayed in the bunkeror you hit the ball and it flew over thegreen? This is probably because youdon’t know the correct concept to hita bunker shot properly.

The club will never hit the ball, itonly hits the sand. The club shouldenter the sand behind the ball andthen slide through the sand until wellpast the ball. This type of idea willhelp you create a shallow entry angleof the club into the sand.

Now let’s enter the bunker for somepractice. The first thing you willneed to do is to dig your feet into thesand as deep as possible so you havegood footing. Next, start to take somepractice swings and make sure youare hitting the sand. Make big enoughpractice swings so you hit the sandout of the bunker. Now your swing

should feel quite long but try to keepthese swings smooth. Try to performthis same motion with a golf ball.Try to hit sand behind the ball andcontinue to a full finish. The ballshould now gently fly out of thebunker and land softly on the green.

There is a great drill to help youwith this shot; it is called the Rake-Line Drill. Make two lines in thesand about six inches apart. Take aswing and make a divot in the sandfrom the back line to the front line.This drill will help create a shal-lower swing and hit the sand out ofthe bunker onto the green. Remem-ber, if the sand is hit onto the green,the ball will be hit out of the bunkeronto the green.

Michael Kierner is the Director ofInstruction at Shackamaxon Golf andCountry Club. For more informationabout lessons, please call (908) 233-3989.

WF U14 AAU Wizards BeatNJ Elite, NJ Storm Cagers

After loosing to the host Crusad-ers, last year’s U13 NJ State Cham-pions, the Westfield Wizards girlsbasketball team defeated the NJ Elite,39-27, and the NJ Storm, 41-35, atthe Crusader Classic Tournament onApril 23 at West Orange High School.

Point guard Tara Handza was aidedby off-guard Noelle Hynes and smallforward Cyndel Matthew in turningback the Elite pressure defense. Thetrio collected six, four and two as-sists, respectively. Lauren Harrypulled 12 rebounds, Gab Jakub hadeight, Cassie Simcox had six andGerianna Pinto had three. Handza

led all scorers with 15 points. Harryand Hynes netted 10 points each.Jakub sank four points and Simcoxhad two.

Against the Storm, Handza hitthree 3-pointers and led all scorerswith 17 points. Forwards Harry andSimcox collected a combined totalof 23 rebounds, while Matthew andPinto combined for 11 rebounds.Cyndel Matthew picked up threeassists on fast break passes andHandza, Jakub and Simcox com-bined for eight assists off skillfulentry passes into the high and lowpost. Harry fired in 10 points, Jakubhad eight and Pinto, Simcox andMatthew netted two each.

The Wizards travel to EastStroudsburg University in Pennsyl-vania on May 4-5 to play in the BigBounce Tournament, where they willencounter some Regional competi-tion.

Westfield’s Ted Brown EarnsAll-America in Gymnastics

University of Illinois senior TedBrown finished runner up for Pom-mel Horse Champion in the 2006NCAA Men’s Gymnastics Champi-onship Event Finals hosted by theUniversity of Oklahoma at LloydNoble Center in Norman on April 8.

Brown scored 9.312, second onlyto California’s Timothy McNeill(9.350). Ted also competed on April7, contributing to the Fighting Illiniteam’s finish in second place to Okla-homa, defending national champion.

Brown received his gymnasticstraining and competed on the team atSurgents Elite in Roselle Park. Hestruggled with major medical prob-lems in high school, which interruptedhis career as an all-around gymnast.

As a walk-on, Brown competed forthe team at Springfield College inMassachusetts as a freshman. He wasthe New England Pommel HorseChampion and was awardedSpringfield’s Courageous Athlete ofthe Year (2003). Also in 2003, Brownwas awarded Eastern Collegiate Ath-letic Conference Rookie of the Yearas well as USAG Collegiate AllAmerican.

As a sophomore, Brown transferredto University of Illinois, where he is asports management major. In 2005,he was Big Ten Conference PommelHorse Champion. He qualified for2005 USA National Championshipsand Winter Cup Championships inLas Vegas 2005 and 2006.

St. Bart’s Men’s League HoldsAnnual Softball Player DraftOn April 18, the St. Bart’s Men’s

Softball League held their 28th an-nual player selection draft. The draftallotted 15 players to each of the 10teams. Approximately half of theleague’s players attended the event.The teams, captains and sponsors arelisted by division:

ANGELS DIVISION:St. Anne, Joe McEvoy, Sideline SportsSt. Nicholas, Nick Dinizo, Kingpin Thor-oughbredSt. Anthony, Tony Perconte, FanwoodClipperSt. Blaise, Tom Sherwin, GreenkeepersSt. Stephen, Howard Bialos, A WirelessHome

SAINTS DIVISION-St. Mark, Mark Romaine, MarkDiFrancesco PavingSt. Aloysius, Joe Romash, Family In-vestorsSt. Luke, Luke Fugett, Brian’s DiscountLiquorsSt. Joseph, Dean Talcott, Rossi FuneralHomeSt. Jude, Tony Perfilio, Standard PestControl

Based on the outcome of the draft,league pundits have prognosticatedthat St. Blaise and St. Stephen in theAngels Division and St. Mark and St.Luke in the Saints Division are headedfor successful seasons.

On Friday, May 5, at 6:30 p.m., thefirst game of the season will be playedat Scotch Plain’s Brookside Park andwill pit St. Anthony against St. Jo-seph. Admission is free for the first500 fans. Come early and stay late.Another wild and crazy St. Bart’sseason is about to get started.

For more information about theleague, visit the league’s website atwww.stbartssoftball.com which wascreated by Howard Bialos.

David B. Corbin for The Westfield Leader and The TimesShackamaxon Golf Pro Michael Kierner


Jayne BernsteinSales Associate

NJAR Circle of Excellence Sales Award: 1997-2005Direct Line: (908) 301-2006Cell Phone: (908) 403-9330

E-mail: [email protected]

WESTFIELD OFFICE • 209 CENTRAL AVENUE • (908) 233-5555

COLDWELL BANKEREX PE R I E N C E, TRU S T, RE L I A B I L I T Y SE RV I C E&

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Shingle Style Victorian boasts 14 rooms, 5 large Bedrooms and 3.5 renovated Baths. Impressive chestnutwoodwork seen in moldings, wainscoting, beamed ceilings, built-in shelving and window seats. GourmetKitchen with center island overlooking large Family Room. Upstairs includes functional living space inReading Room or central home office. Finished third floor hosts a soaring Master Bedroom Suite withSitting Room and walk-in closet. Just a stone’s throw from downtown Westfield and NYC transit. WSF0713

OPEN HOUSE: Sunday April 30 • 1-4 PM237 Kimball Avenue

WF ‘Y’ to OfferKindergarten HoopsThe Westfield Area Y is planning a

kindergarten basketball league forboys and girls. Sessions will be heldat the Robert & Virginia Bauer Fam-ily Branch, 422 East Broad Street,and will be rotating times betweennoon and 5 p.m. The program runsfrom May 7 to June 25.

Everyone gets to play. As in allYMCA programs, the developmentof caring, honesty, respect and re-sponsibility will be stressed. This pro-gram is open to both members andnon-members. Children must be reg-istered by this Friday, April 28.

For more information, call or e-mail Jennifer Hessberger, sports di-rector, (908) 233-2700, extension no.258 or [email protected]. Also,volunteer coaches are needed. Any-one interested in coaching should callJennifer at the above number.

All-American Gymnast Ted Brown on the Pommel Horse

PUBLIC NOTICENOTICE OF NONDISCRIMINATORY

POLICY AS TO STUDENTSThe Westfield Young Artists’ Cooperative

Theatre, Inc. admits young people of anyrace, color, national and ethnic origin to allthe rights, privileges, programs, andactivities generally accorded or madeavailable to young people in the company.It does not discriminate on the basis ofrace, color, ethnic and national origin inadministration of its educational policies,admissions policies, scholarship and loanprograms, and athletic and other company-administered programs.1 T - 4/27/06, The Leader Fee: $13.77

WTA Men’s SinglesTennis Ladder Told:

The 2006 WTA Men’s Tennis Lad-der will kick off Monday, May 1. TheWTA is looking forward to an active2006 on the newly renovated court atTamaques Park. Lat year’s playoffwinners were Gary Wasserman in theA Division and Mike Gonella in the Bdivision.

Sign-ups are still taking place. Plesaevisit the WTA website atwww.westfieldnj.com/wta for yourapplication. Applications, along withmembership dues, can then be sent tothe WTA at P.O. Box 125, WestfieldNJ 07091. Questions regarding theladder or the WTA can be directed toRichard Pardo at [email protected].

FINAL 2005 STANDINGS: 1. Gary Wasserman 20. Ross Errazo 2. Robert Errazo 21. Brian Anderson 3. Chris Conley 22. Tom Bigosinki 4. Melvin Diep 23. Joe Donnolo 5. Tuyen Diep 24. Adam Krell 6. Vince Camuto 25. Ethan Krell 7. Weldon Chin 26. Jeremy Krell 8. Mike Gonella 27. Todd Krell 9. Richard Pardo 28. Dewey Rainville10. Steve Parker 29. Mike Valente11. Chris Wendel *Chris Blaise12. Dan Siegel *Ilia Bouchouev13. Andrew Cohen *Ryan Brown14. Paul Moum *Chris Farella15. Steve Satkin *Mike Manders16. Jon Eisenberg *Chris Miller17. Alex Winnicker *Paul Newsome18. Vollbrechthausen*Steven Shane19. David Ferio *Joshua Suri*Denotes new members for 2006

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This fabulous home has been completely renovated from the ground floor to the addition of a second story. Thereare 12 rooms, 5 bedrooms, 4 and ½ baths, Formal Living room with a fireplace, Formal Dining Room, Gourmetkitchen with center island and granite countertops with professional stainless steel appliance package, Familyroom with a fireplace, Master suite with luxury bath and separate sitting room/exercise room and walk-in closets.The grade level has an au pair suite, recreation room as well as a game room with a walkout exit/entry. Thishome is located on one of Mountainside’s wonderful cul-de-sacs with winter views. $1,295,000. Call GraceRappa 908-301-2019 for a personal tour.

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Mountainside Grand OpeningOPEN HOUSE: Sunday, 4/30 1-4pm • 1090 Prospect Avenue

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WTA Men’s MastersTennis Ladder Told:

The Westfield Tennis Associationwill be starting its 2006 ladders onMay 1. This includes the Men’sMasters singles ladder for men over50. Other ladders sponsored by theWTA include men’s singles anddoubles, women’s singles anddoubles, and mixed doubles. Therewas an active season last year forMen’s Masters singles.

Check the websitewww.westfieldnj.com/wta or findapplications around town at loca-tions, including the library, and sendyour $20 signup sheet indicatingyour phone, email, and ladders youwant to sign up in. Also, check forupcoming men’s singles anddoubles tournaments on May 6-7and June 24, respectively, andwomen’s singles and doubles tour-naments on May 27-28. For ques-tions about Men’s Masters singles,you can also contact Mike McGlynn,ladder coordinator, [email protected], or callMike at (908) 654-1651.

2005 Final Standings:1. Mike McGlynn2. Henry Williams3. Don Dohm4. Hank Koehler5. Chris Wendel6. Jeff Connolly7. Joe Donnolo8. Dewey Rainville9. George Sincox

WTA Men’s DoublesTennis Ladder Begins

The 2006 WTA Men’s TennisLadder season is set to kick offMonday May 1. After a few leanyears in the Men’s Doubles lad-der, we are expecting a resurgenceof interest culminating in spiritedplay and honest line calls. Sign-ups are still taking place, so pleasevisit the WTA website atwww.westfieldnj.com/wta foryour application.

If you do not have a partner, pleasee-mail Jim Oslislo [email protected]. to match up in-dividuals in search of partners. Ap-plications, along with membershipdues, can then be sent to the WTA atP.O. Box 125, Westfield NJ 07091.


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W W W . P R C N E W H O M E S . C O M

BROKERS WELCOME

Sports Squirts (ages 3 to 5). Thisprogram, taught by the U.S. SportsInstitute, introduces different sportseach week. The program will be heldat Kramer Manor Park on Mondaythrough Friday, July 31 through Au-gust 4, from 4 to 5:30 p.m. The costis $85 per person.

Fun Dances (ages 2 ½ through 8).Scotch Plains resident Assia Moranwill teach this new program. The pro-gram incorporates dance movementswith instruction to music. Learn linedances and circle dances. Classes willbe held at the Towne House in GreenForest Park for ages 2 ½ through 5from 4 to 4:45 p.m. and for ages 6 to8 from 5 through 5:45 p.m. The pro-gram will be held on Saturdays fromMay 6 through June 10. The fee is $35per person.

Multi-Sports Camp. Experiencemore than 15 sports in one week. Runby the U.S. Sports Institute, the half-day program introduces 10 sportseach week. The camp will be held atKramer Manor Park, Monday throughThursday, July 31 through August 4,from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. for childrenaged 5 to 7 at $155 per child, and from9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at $175 per child forages 7 to 14. Parents should registerchildren at the recreation office, room113 of the municipal building.

Summer Park Program (ages 6 to12). This program runs from Wednes-day, July 5 through Friday, August11, from 9 a.m. through 3 p.m., Mon-day through Friday. Parents canchoose from Brookside or Green For-est Parks. Registration is $40 beforeJune 10 and $50 after this date.

Tennis Clinic. This program issuited for players who are of begin-ner to intermediate level. The U.S.Sports Institute camp teaches chil-dren the basic fundamentals in strokeproduction, court movement and ba-sic footwork skill. Children mustbring their own racket. The clinic willbe held Monday through Friday, Au-gust 7 to 11, at Kramer Manor Parkfrom 4:30 to 6 p.m. for ages 7 to 9 andfrom 6 to 7:30 p.m. for ages 10 to 14.The cost is $105 per child.

Willie Wilson Baseball Camp (ages10-16). This camp will be held Mondaythrough Friday, July 10 to 13, at FarleyPark. The camp is run by former Major

by: Allison [email protected](908) 322-6700 ext. 221

Scotch Plains RecreationDepartment Events Calendar

League baseball player Willie Wilsonand other former players. Only 40 par-ticipants will be accepted. The fee is$225 for township residents and $250for non-residents. Checks should be madepayable to Willie Wilson Baseball.

Maracas Summer Camps. Parentscan choose one or all camps as fol-lows: El Verano (the summer): June26 to 30, from 9 to 11 a.m.; July 10 to14, from 9 to 11 a.m., or noon to 2p.m., or Los Paises (the countries)from July 17 to 21, 9 to 11 a.m. or noon

to 2 p.m. The fee is $145 per person.A four-week program will be offeredon Tuesdays beginning the week ofJune 25 for ages 3 to 6, from 3 to 3:45p.m. or from 4 to 4:45 p.m. for ages 5to 8 at a fee of $80 per person.

Youth Tennis Team (Ages 10 to 17).This program will begin Monday, June26, at 1 p.m. at Kramer Manor Parkand run Monday through Friday, un-til August 11. Some will compete inmatches with other communities. Thefee is $15 per person and registration

will begin Tuesday, June 6. Jazzercise. This eight-week class

costs $90. Classes are available inseveral time slots: Mondays from 9:30to 10:30 a.m., 5:45 p.m. and 7 to 8p.m.; Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m.; Wednes-days at 9:30 a.m. and 7 p.m.; Thurs-days at 5:45 and 7 p.m., and Satur-days at 8 and 9 a.m. Register withBernadette at Scotch Hills CountryClub. There is a one-time $25 joiners’fee for new members.

“Make You Want to Dance.” Learnnew steps and meet new people at thisclass held at the Town House in GreenForest Park. Entertainment is pro-vided by John Russitano from “Makeyou Want to Dance.” Call Allison at(908) 322-6700, extension 222. Thereis no fee to attend. Classes will beoffered Wednesdays, May 3 and June7, from 7:30 to 9 p.m. at the TownHouse in Green Forest Park.


PLANNING BOARD

Please take notice that on May 24,2006 at 7:30 PM at the Fanwood BoroughHall, located at 75 North Martine Avenue,Fanwood, New Jersey, the Planning Boardwill hold a hearing on the application of theundersigned. The property in question islocated at: 163 Burns Way, Fanwood,New Jersey, also known as Block 85 Lot20, as shown on the Fanwood Tax Map,owned by Thomas & Lydia Armstrong.

The applicant requests a home ex-pansion, which is in violation of Section184-110-E9 of the Fanwood Land UseCode. Variance Requested: Building Cov-erage; Required: 25%, Present: 25.4%;Proposed: 27.8%;

The applicant requests a home ex-pansion, which is in violation of Section184-110-E10 of the Fanwood Land UseCode. Variance Requested: ImperviousCoverage; Required: 35%; Present:42.4%; Proposed: 44.8%


The file pertaining to this applicationis available for public inspection duringnormal business hours (9 AM - 2 PM) fromthe Secretary of the Planning Board at theAdministration Office of the Borough ofFanwood at 75 North Martine Avenue,Fanwood, New Jersey.

Any interested party may appear atsaid hearing and participate therein inaccordance with the rules of the FanwoodPlanning Board.

Applicant:Thomas R. & Lydia Armstrong

163 Burns WayFanwood, New Jersey 07023

1 T - 4/27/06, The Times Fee: $37.74


PLANNING BOARD

Please take notice that on May 24,2006 at 7:30 P.M. at the Fanwood Bor-ough Hall, located at 75 North MartineAvenue, Fanwood, New Jersey, the Plan-ning Board will hold a hearing on theapplication of the undersigned. The prop-erty in question is located at: 68 LaGrandeAvenue, Fanwood, New Jersey, alsoknown as Block 81 Lot 47, as shown on theFanwood Tax Map, owned by Marie &Rocco Paternostro.

The applicant requests Lot Width andSide Yard Variances, which are in viola-tion of Section 184-110E2 & 184-110E5 ofthe Fanwood Land Use Code.

Variance Requested: Lot Width; Re-quired: 75 feet; Present: 53 feet; Pro-posed: 53 feet.

Variance Requested: Side Yard; Re-quired: 15 feet; Proposed: 6 feet.

Variance Requested: Side Yard; Re-quired: 10 feet; Proposed: 6 feet.


The file pertaining to this applicationis available for public inspection duringnormal business hours (9 AM - 2 PM) fromthe Secretary of the Planning Board at theAdministration Office of the Borough ofFanwood at 75 North Martine Avenue,Fanwood, New Jersey.

Any interested party may appear atsaid hearing and participate therein inaccordance with the rules of the FanwoodPlanning Board.

Applicant:Marie & Rocco Paternostro

8 Louis CourtEdison, New Jersey 08820

1 T - 4/27/06, The Times Fee: $37.73

PUBLIC NOTICENOTICE OF AWARD OF CONTRACTFOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES BYTHE TOWNSHIP OF SCOTCH PLAINS

CONTRACTOR: Peter Korn, Esq.;McDonough, Korn & Eichorn, P.C.; 959South Springfield Avenue, PO Box 712,Springfield, New Jersey 07081

NATURE OF SERVICE: Authorizingrelease of additional funds for special le-gal counsel, Peter Korn, Esq. in his repre-sentation of former Captain and PoliceChief Marshall Nelson in the matter of(Lonergan, et al. v. Township of ScotchPlains, et. al.)

DURATION: Completion of above.AMOUNT: Not to exceed $3,500. and

billed at the previously agreed upon hourlyrate and to be applied toward fees andcosts for those services, which shall besubject to the approval of the TownshipAttorney and which are not covered byinsurance.

THE RESOLUTION AND CONTRACTFOR SAME ARE ON FILE IN THE OF-FICE OF THE TOWNSHIP CLERK.

Barbara RiepeTownship Clerk

1 T - 4/27/06, The Times Fee: $24.48


PLANNING BOARD

Notice is hereby given that the PLAN-NING BOARD OF THE BOROUGH OFFANWOOD after public hearing on March29, 2006 granted approval for variancesfor side yard setback, structural coverageand front yard setbacks to Mr. & Mrs. TomRyan for property at 184 Marian Avenue,Fanwood, New Jersey 07023, being Block84 and lot 13.

Documents pertaining to this applica-tion are available for public inspection atBorough Hall during Normal Businesshours.

Mr. & Mrs. Tom Ryan184 Marian Avenue

Fanwood, New Jersey 070231 T - 4/27/06, The Times Fee: $17.34

©2005 Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation. Coldwell Banker® is a registered trademark licensed Coldwell Banker Corporation.An Equal Opportunity Company. Equal Housing Opportunity. Owned and Operated by NRT, Incorporated.

2003-2005 NJAR Circle of ExcellenceColdwell Banker International President’s Circle

Sales Associate

Cell: 908-419-6982

Irene Katz

email: [email protected]

WESTFIELD OFFICE • 209 CENTRAL AVENUE • 908-233-5555

Open House Sunday: 1-4

Charming Colonial on quiet tree lined street. Pristine condition, sunny & spacious rooms featur-ing chestnut moldings, brick fireplace, inlaid wood floors and full finished basement. Located ona quiet tree lined street convenient to schools, shopping and transportation. Offered at $ 629,000.Call Irene for more information.

Open House Sunday: 1-4

Wonderful expanded Split Level home in great neighborhood. Features 5 BRs, 3½ beau-tiful baths, tastefully updated kitchen, sunny breakfast room overlooking expansive deck,spacious family room with custom stone fireplace and professionally landscaped property.Offered at $ 774,000. Call Irene for more information.

Classic Wychwood Colonial located in a serene and private setting combines old world charmand detail with many updated amenities. Features sunny and spacious rooms with beautifulwood floors, large windows, and skylights. Convenient to schools, downtown and transporta-tion. Offered at $ 1,179,000. Please call Irene for more information.

Exciting New Listings

Elegant Ranch Style home on a quiet cul-de-sac in prestigious neighborhood. The spa-cious rooms and upscale features of the interior, the professionally landscaped 1 acreproperty combined with the dramatic in ground pool and pool house make this home trulyextraordinary. Offered at $ 949,000. Please call Irene for information.

FSO Program to AddressBehavior Modification

WESTFIELD – The Family Sup-port Organization (FSO) of UnionCounty will offer a free program on“Why Is My Child Behaving ThisWay? Use of Behavior Modifica-tion Techniques at Home.” It will beheld Wednesday, May 3, from 7 to 9p.m. at the FSO office at 137 ElmerStreet in Westfield.

Dr. Jennifer Cohen, a clinical psy-chologist with extensive training inthe field of child psychology andbehavior modification, will be thefeatured speaker. She has workedwith children of all ages at agenciessuch as Head Start and MentalHealth Resources and educated par-ents about the special needs of chil-dren and the use of behavior modi-fication techniques at home.

The program will spotlight be-havioral disorders of childhood andfocus on identifying early warningsigns, describing the symptom pre-sentation and what a parent can doto respond to these behaviors. Thegoal of the presentation will be toprovide parents with an opportu-nity to seek answers to their child’sbehavior.

The FSO is contracted by the NewJersey Department of Human Ser-vices to offer support, education

and advocacy for parents andcaregivers of children with specialmental health needs.

To reserve a space, be placed on amailing list for future events or formore information, please call Kathy,Gail or Mary at (908) 789-7625during business hours.


CLASSIFIEDSSUMMER PARK SUPERVISOR

The Scotch Plains RecreationDepartment is looking for aSummer Park Supervisor for a6-week day program in the parks,which runs July 5-Aug. 11,Monday -Friday from 9:00-3:00pm. Will oversee 10-15counselors, implement andsupervise daily activities, attendbus trips. If interested, pleasecontact Allison in the Rec. Officeat (908) 322-6700 ext. 222

HOMES FOR SALE

WARRENBeautiful custom decoratedColonial home located on aCul-de-sac in most sought afterneighborhood. Gourmet kit.private master suite, fin basmentw/full bath.WRN 0968 $1,348,900Magnificent designer home withamazing architectural detail. Livingroom’s soaring vaulted ceilings,fireplace opens to stone patio &lovely wooded view. Enjoygourmet kitchen’s customcabinets & open plan. More viewsfrom the breakfast nook & familyroom’s french doors & multiplewindows.WRN 0859 $1,524,900

COLDWELL BANKERRESIDENTIAL BROKERAGE

(908) 754-7511ColdwellBankerMoves.com

FOR SALE BY OWNER

Spring Lake Victorian 3 1/2 bed 21/2 baths, 5 Blocks to Beach, 11yrsNew, Great fenced Backyard,Covered Side Porch, Fin. Basmn,A/C. MUST SEE!! CALL MATT(732) 449-7535 (10-5) $895,500.

WANTED GROUP BENEFITS

Looking to acquire Group Benefitsbusiness. Will consider all sizebooks. Very flexible with regardsto terms and structure. All inquireskept confidential. To discuss [email protected]

NANNY POSITION WANTED

Available for full-time summernanny position. Have owntransportation and references.Available after June 28th.

Call (908) 456-1614

LUXURY WATERFRONT LIVING

North Wildwood, NJ. The Tides atSeaboard Point. 360 degree waterviews; 4br/3ba PENTHOUSEcondo, many upgrades, pool,clubhouse, gym, tennis. 1.1MOPEN HOUSE 4/29, 4/30 12:00to 4:00. Private showings available

(610) 279-0272.

MEDICAL RECEPTIONIST

Receptionist wanted for renownedplastic surgeon’s office in ShortHills, NJ. Strong computer, phone,front office, interpersonal &communication skills a must.Hours: Mon. 8:00 - 1:00 & Thurs.2:00 - 6:00. Hours may vary. Faxresume w/cover ltr to

(973) 912-4397.

SUNRAY PLAYSET ASSEMBLY

Your Sunray swing set fromCostco assembled and installedin ONE DAY by a professionalReliable Installer! Call Danny at

(201) 951-9649

SPRING LAKE SUMMER RENTAL

4 BR, 2 FB house avail. for wklyrentals in Jul & Aug. Central A/C.2 blocks from beach & pool. Walkto town & lake. Sorry, no pets.

Call: (908) 654-0102

MATTRESS SETS

Great price! New Pillow top,Name brand w/warranty in

plastic. Queen $135.Can deliver (732) 259-6681

BED

Famous Brand name, luxuryplush Queen mattress set, newin sealed plastic w/warranty.Value $1100 sell $470

Call (732) 259-6690

MATTRESS SET

New ortho plush King size,still in plastic w/warranty,

Must sell $225.Call (732) 259-6681

BEDROOM SET

Sleigh bed cherry wood,dresser/mirror & 2 nite stands.New still in box.List $3000. sell $1175

Call (732) 259-6690

HOT TUB / SPA

Never used, still in wrapper,factory warranty, 6 person

w/lounger, loaded,delivery available

Cost $8000 Sell $3895Call (973) 902-8306

POOL TABLE

New, 8 feet, 1 inch slate,accessories, solid wood, leatherpockets, delivery & set-up avail.

Cost $4,200 sell for $1,695Call (973) 902-8306

OFFICE BUILDING FOR RENT

Insurance Agents, LawyersAccountants.

2400 sqft Office BuildingFurnished, Utlities, Internet,

Kitchen, Conf. Room, ParkingMountainside (908) 337-7200

FREELANCERS WANTEDStrong, detail-oriented writerswith professional demeanorneeded to cover localgovernment meetings. Mustbe able to meet deadlines,know how to write a lead, andtake an active interest in theirbeats in order to develop newsstories. Please emailresume and clips to:

[email protected]

WOODWORKING

ACCENTS WOODWORKINGCustom Cabinetry and finishcarpentry. Mantles, built-ins,

bookcases & vanities. Customkitchens & cabinet re-facing.

Portfolio & references.Bruce Theil (908) 358-2325

SHORE DUPLEX

Atlantic City area. Brigantine beachblock duplex. Each unit has 2BR,1Bath,1st floor has new kitchen,fullsize laundry & patio. 2nd floorhas deck. New windows thruout.Close to AC casinos. $559,900

Kathleen O’ConnorRe/Max Atlantic Realtors

(609) 641-8600 ext38

WESTFIELD -- FOR SALE

OFFICE/RETAILPRICE REDUCED

Prime control business districtzoning, plenty of parking at frontdoor, formerly a one-familyhouse, ready to renovate.Asking $550,000.

Call Tom Skobo ext. 215BROUNELL & KRAMER

908-686-18001435 Morris Ave., Union

Realtors

HOUSE CLEANING

Polish woman is looking forhouses, apartments and officesto clean. Very good experienceand references. Phone number

(732) 952-3451

HELP WANTED

Prudential NJ Properties’Westfield Office is hiring full-timeagents, both new and exp-erienced. Corporate trainingprogram/in-house training. CallMargie for confidential interviewat (908) 232-5664, ext. 103.

LOST PET BIRD

YELLOW Cockatiel - lost 4/11North side of Garwood.

Call Ginger, she may land onyou. Please call (908) 789-2415

if you see her. REWARD!!!

COMPANION CAREGIVERS

COMFORT KEEPERS is seekingcaring and responsible individualsto attend to elder clients in theirhomes. If you enjoy cooking,shopping, light housekeeping orjust talking: F/T & P/T positions w/flexible hours are available now.Our services are non-medical andrequire only a passion to helpothers. $10 / Hour. To become aComfort Keeper today phone

(732) 369-3625Over 500 Independently

Owned & Operated Offices

DINING ROOM SET

Immaculate solid cherryQueen Anne dbl ped. table,

6 re-upholstered chairs,expandable server. $1500.

(908) 654-7343

HOME FURNISHINGS FOR SALE

Kitchen Set with leaf $150, 3 piecewall unit $500, GE full size portablewasher $275, Oriental rugs $350,Mirror $45, Marble top table pair$75, Curio $75, Refrigerator $75,Queen size bedroom set $475,Portable wheel chair $65, NewCoach ladies watch $250.

Call (973) 418-0238

TUTORING SERVICE

Experienced NJ K-12 statecertified English/Reading teacheravailable for tutoring in SATwriting, Language Arts andReading Comprehension. Call(908) 276-1490 or (908) 247-2240

PUBLIC NOTICETOWN OF WESTFIELD

BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT

The Board of Adjustment of the Town ofWestfield, New Jersey will meet on Mon-day May 8, 2006 in the Council Chambersat the Municipal Building, 425 East BroadStreet, Westfield, New Jersey at 7:30 p.m.to hear and consider the following appealfor variance(s) from the requirements ofthe Westfield Land Use Ordinance.

Desiree’ DeNourie, 1315 Central Av-enue, Seeking permission to maintain aside yard patio contrary to the require-ments of Section 11.09E6 & 13.02.C1 ofthe Land Use Ordinance. Ordinance re-quires a minimum side yard setback of 10feet. Proposed is + 7.5 feet. Ordinancerequires the deck location to be in the rearyard. Proposed is in the side yard.

A. DeCamp, 518 Hort Street, Seekingpermission to construct an addition con-trary to the requirements of Section11.12E6 of the Land Use Ordinance. Ordi-nance requires a minimum side yard set-back of 10 feet. Proposed is 9.2 feet.

Peter & Stephenie Barba, 771 Sum-mit Avenue, Seeking permission to re-move an existing non-conforming 2-storyportion of the home and rebuild a structurein the same location contrary to the re-quirements of Section 11.08E6 of the LandUse Ordinance. Ordinance requires a mini-mum side yard setback of 10 feet. Presentand proposed is 3.72 feet.

Stone Creek Developer, 808 LawrenceAvenue, Seeking permission to constructa four car garage contrary to the require-ments of Section 17.02A7 of the Land UseOrdinance. Ordinance requires a maxi-mum allowable number of vehicles al-lowed to be garaged on a one or two familyproperty is three. Applicant proposes agarage space to store 4 vehicles.

Christine Sangiacomo, 616Kensington Drive, Seeking permissionto construct an addition contrary to therequirements of Section 11.08E6 &11.08E7 of the Land Use Ordinance. Ordi-nance requires a minimum side yard set-back of 10 feet. Present and proposed is9.93 feet. Ordinance requires a minimumrear yard setback of 35 feet. Present andproposed is 31.35 feet.

Christina Martini, 618 Arlington Av-enue, Seeking permission to replace a 2-car garage with a 1-car garage and toconstruct an addition contrary to the re-quirements of Section 12.04F & 12.04E ofthe Land Use Ordinance. Ordinance re-quires a maximum building coverage of20%. Proposed is 21%. Ordinance re-quires a maximum floor area ratio of 32%

/ 3,600 square feet. Proposed is 36.4% /3,699 square feet.

Michael & Jessica Bruder, 3 MohawkTrail, Seeking permission to construct anaddition contrary to the requirements ofSection 12.04F1 & 11.08E7 of the LandUse Ordinance. Ordinance requires amaximum allowable building coverage of20%. Proposed is 20.7%. Ordinance re-quires a minimum rear yard setback of 35feet. Proposed is 32 feet.

C. P. Burfield, 404 Harrison Avenue,Seeking permission to construct 2nd and3rd floor additions over existing 1st floorsunroom contrary to the requirements ofSection 11.09E6, 12.04F1, 12.04E1, &12.03B1 of the Land Use Ordinance. Ordi-nance requires a minimum side yard set-back of 10 feet. Proposed is + 3 feet.Ordinance requires a maximum allowablecoverage of 20%. Proposed is 23.3%.Ordinance required maximum allowablehabitable floor area of 35%. Proposed is36.6%. Ordinance requires a setback foreaves of 7 feet. Proposed is + 1 foot.

S.T. Ellis, LLC, 153 Mountain Avenue,Block 2405, Lot 13 Applicant is seekingsite plan approval to extend the residentialportion of an existing non-conformingmixed use (residential & retail) building.Applicant proposes to remove an existingdetached garage and both remove andadd pavement to reconfigure the parkingarea. Applicant proposes to construct atwo-story addition to the single residentialuse portion of the building. Applicant seeksvariances from the following sections ofthe Land Use Ordinance:

LIST OF NEW C.40: 55D-70c and dVARIANCES REQUIRED:

Section 11.11A of the Land Use Ordi-nance. Ordinance requires that one & twofamily dwelling are allowed, retail/mixeduse is prohibited. Retail and residential ispresent and proposed.

Section 11.11E5 of the Land Use Ordi-nance. Ordinance requires a front yardsetback of 40 feet. 21 feet is proposed.

Section 12.04F1 of the Land Use Ordi-nance. Ordinance requires a maximumallowable coverage for buildings of 20%.20.3% is proposed.

Variances, waivers or exceptions fromcertain site plan details or relief from re-quirements may be sought as appropri-ate.

Plans and application are on file in theoffice of the Town Engineer, 959 NorthAvenue West, Westfield, New Jersey andmay be seen Monday through Friday from8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Lori A. Boyd, SecretaryBoard of Adjustment

1 T - 4/27//06, The Leader Fee: $106.59

PUBLIC NOTICE


BOND ORDINANCE STATEMENTSAND SUMMARIES

The bond ordinance, the summary termsof which are included herein, has beenfinally adopted by the Borough of Fanwood,in the County of Union, State of NewJersey on April 26, 2006 and the 20 dayperiod of limitation within which a suit,action or proceeding questioning the va-lidity of such ordinance can be com-menced, as provided in the Local BondLaw, has begun to run from the date of thefirst publication of this statement. Copiesof the full ordinance are available at nocost and during regular business hours, atthe Clerk’s office for members of the gen-eral public who request the same. Thesummary of the terms of such bond ordi-nance follows:

TITLE: BOND ORDINANCEPROVIDING AN APPROPRIA-TION OF $1,888,400 FORVARIOUS CAPITAL IM-PROVEMENTS FOR AND BYTHE BOROUGH OFFANWOOD IN THE COUNTYOF UNION, NEW JERSEYAND, AUTHORIZING THE IS-SUANCE OF $1,377,500BONDS OR NOTES OF THEBOROUGH FOR FINANCINGPART OF THE APPROPRIA-TION

Purpose(s): Various Road Improve-ments including Pleasant Avenue, RussellRoad and Watson Avenue, Marian Av-enue and McDermott Place; Martine Av-enue Sidewalks; Miscellaneous SidewalkReplacement; Curb Replacement Programand Road Maintenance, Sanitary andStorm Sewer Improvements-Byron Lane,Various Recreation Improvements includ-ing LaGrande Softball Field, DowntownRedevelopment including Renovations toCommunity House and Parking Lot, Im-proved Lighting, Installation of CabooseExhibition, Various Improvements to Mu-nicipal Property, including Installation ofMunicipal Parking Lights, Public WorksGarage Renovation, Miscellaneous Archi-tectural, Plumbing and Electrical Work,Carriage House Renovation.

Appropriation: $1,888,400Bonds/Notes Authorized: $1,377,500Grants (if any) Appropriated: $360,000

expected to be received from the NewJersey Department of Transportation,$8,468 expected to be received from theNew Jersey Department of EnvironmentalProtection, $44,000 expected to be re-ceived from the Environmental ProtectionAgency, and $50,000 expected to be re-ceived from the New Jersey Departmentof Treasury.

Section 20 Costs: $24,068Useful Life: 21.64 Years

Eleanor McGovernBorough Clerk

1 T - 4/27/06, The Times Fee: $58.65


NOTICE IS hereby given that at a regu-lar meeting of the Township Council of theTownship of Scotch Plains, held on Tues-day, April 25, 2006 the following ordi-nances entitled:

AN ORDINANCE PERMIT-TING GAMES OF CHANCE ONSUNDAY SEPTEMBER 3,2006 IN THE TOWNSHIP OFSCOTCH PLAINS

CALENDAR YEAR 2006 OR-DINANCE TO ESTABLISH ACAP BANK (N.J.S.A. 40A:4-45.14)

were adopted on second and final read-ing as amended.

TOWNSHIP OF SCOTCH PLAINSBarbara Riepe

Township Clerk1 T - 4/27/06, The Times Fee: $20.40


PLANNING BOARD

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN, that thePlanning Board of the Township of ScotchPlains will hold a Public Hearing on MON-DAY, MAY 8, 2006, at 7:45 pm in CouncilChambers, 430 Park Avenue to hear theapplication of Messercola Brothers Build-ing Co., Inc. for 1461 Martine Avenue,Block 10801, Lot 3, R-1 Zone which pro-poses to subdivide into three lots, retainthe existing home and construct two newhomes. The following existing variancesare requested:

Lot 3.01Section 23-3.4A, Para. A, Col 7; Front

setback; Average: 52.13 feet; Existing:31.17 feet.

Lots 3.02 and 3.03Section 23-2.3b; Lots not fronting on an

improved street.All interested persons may be present

and be heard. The file pertaining to thisapplication is in the Office of the PlanningBoard and is available for public inspec-tion during regular office hours.

Barbara HorevSecretary to the Planning Board

1 T - 4/27/06, The Times Fee: $24.99

Westfield Living

Susan Massa CRS 908-233-6679

Classic and Timeless Come sit and stay forever. This architecturally pleasing Colonial Home offers the best of both worlds. Yesterdays classic design function & form with high ceilings, wood floors, doors & moldings, new and updated amenities. Sip your favorite coffee or read the Sunday Paper on the open front porch. The inviting Living room is warmed w/ a brick hearth FP. Formal Dining room for entertaining family and friend is enhanced by a double French door to a screened porch for a comfortable respite and gentle breeze when the CAC isn’t needed. The den with sliding doors to a rear deck overlooking the rear yard with perennial flowers for an outdoor barbecue. A staircase from the LR or kitchen leads to the 2nd floor w/ 3 gen-erous BRs & great bath. The 3rd floor Bedroom w/ arched window and window seat. Base-ment rec room, bath and office..

Call Susan 233-6679 $749,900 www.NJHomeShowcase.com

600 North Ave Westfield ,NJ 07090 908-233-0065 x 6679

HOUSE CLEANING

Will clean your house, apartmentor condo. I’m trustworthy &responsible. I do laundry. Goodreferences, 5 years exp. Call me!

(973) 583-5570 Neide PUBLIC NOTICESCOTCH PLAINS-FANWOOD

SOCCER ASSOCIATION

ANNUAL MEETING

The Annual General Meeting of theScotch Plains Fanwood Soccer Associa-tion will be held Wednesday, May 10, 8:00PM at Scotch Hills Country Club.1 T - 4/27/06, The Times Fee: $8.67


BEAUTIFYING MINDOWASKIN…The Friends of Mindowaskin has investedin cleaning 66 benches located throughout the park. Bob Christiano and CharlieTyminski of TSS Handyman Services, pictured above, oversee the work beingdone. The Friends are also sponsoring a clean-up day this Saturday, April 29,from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Volunteers should come with gloves and rakes.

Union County Taxpayers AreBeing Taken for a Ride

Evalyn Dunn’s GalleryPresents Picture It First

WESTFIELD – Evalyn Dunn’sGallery in Westfield announced thearrival of Picture it First, a framingvisualization system that allows a userto see a finished picture before anywork is even started. Once a designhas been laid out, a digital photo istaken of the art, mat and framingdesign.

Picture it First can even fill in thebackground with the appropriate colorto know how it will look in an antici-pated room before hanging. To trythe new method, come to the galleryon South Avenue in Westfield.

By Patricia QuattrocchiCandidate for Union County Freeholder, GOP

A statement released by UnionCounty Sheriff Ralph Froelich ap-pearing in the March 16 edition ofThe Westfield Leader and other UnionCounty newspapers obviously wasintended to justify Union CountyUndersheriff/Assemblyman JoeCryan’s unlimited access of a county-owned vehicle. The vehicle in ques-tion was vandalized, by an allegedstalker, while parked in Trenton whenthe assemblyman was there for non-county business.

Sheriff Froelich indicated that thereare three undersheriffs who, alongwith himself, have authorized andunlimited use of county vehicles toassist in fulfilling the respective re-quirements of their office to includequick responses to county emergen-cies. Mr. Cryan’s county responsi-bilities are administrative in natureand include overseeing three clerkslooking after contracts, payroll, bud-gets, purchasing and statistics collec-tion, as well as the Training, InternalAffairs and Legal Process units thathave their own individual command-ing officers. I wonder just what partof his position necessitates unlimiteduse of a county-owned vehicle 24/7in the first place; could it be when thepurchase order numbers get out ofsync? Lacking professional law en-forcement experience, it seems un-likely that he would be of any realusefulness in the event of a securitycrisis or attack on Elizabeth Port.

Recently, on Good Friday, April

14, at approximately 4:45 p.m., acounty-owned vehicle was spotted inthe parking lot of a local health clubon North Avenue in Garwood. A re-view of the county “portal to portal”vehicle list showed that the vehicle inquestion, a 2003 Crown Victoria, iscurrently assigned to the head of thecounty finance department.

Chapter 139 of the county admin-istrative code entitled “Vehicles,County Owned” states: “It shall bethe policy of the County of Union thatthe use of a County-assigned vehicleby an employee shall be limited toofficial County business, and saidvehicle shall not be used for personalpurposes with the exception of autho-rized commuting use to and from theemployee’s workstation.” It could beargued that this employee, who re-sides in the area, was on his wayhome from a hard days work andmerely stopped off to relax in thesauna. The problem with that argu-ment is that Union County govern-ment was closed for business that dayand “portal to portal” doesn’t meanhome to work, to gym, to Shop Rite,with a stop at Star Bucks for a latte,then home again.

The inappropriate use of county-owned vehicles is intolerable; obvi-ously the taxpayers are being takenadvantage of in both of these situa-tions. The travel requirements of bothof these individuals could certainlybe handled satisfactorily with a reim-bursement for mileage on their per-sonal vehicles, like the rest of the realworld. Further, according to thecounty Administrative Codes: “Wheredetermined by the Bureau of MotorVehicles to be appropriate, economycars will be utilized by the County ofUnion.” Now I may be wrong, butsomehow it is highly doubtful that aCrown Victoria could be consideredan economy car.

The GOP team of Quattrocchi,Mortimer and Barabas for UnionCounty Freeholder want to ensurethat the hardworking residents ofUnion County are not “taken for aride” any longer, and ask for yourvote of confidence on Election Day.For additional information about usplease contact the UC RepublicanCommittee at 908-789-0200 or [email protected]

Law Signed to ProtectDevelopmentally Disabled

TRENTON – State officials mustnow obtain a court order before send-ing a developmentally disabled per-son to the criminal unit of the NewLisbon Developmental Center. Sena-tor Tom Kean, Jr. and AssemblymanEric Munoz (R-21) sponsored thislegislation, which was unanimouslypassed by the legislature and signedinto law by Governor Jon Corzine.

“Affording protection to individu-als who cannot protect themselves is

a key function of all governing bod-ies,” said Sen. Kean. “This legislationwill safeguard our most vulnerablecitizens from unethical and unwar-ranted incarceration.”

The impetus for this bill came afterFrancis Macias, 38-year-old develop-mentally disabled individual, “signedhimself in” to the 36-bed moderatesecurity unit of the New Lisbon De-velopmental Center. Senior staff atNew Lisbon ordered the placementeven after a judge ruled that Mr. Maciaswas not competent to stand trial. Heremained in the unit for more then ayear after criminal charges pendingagainst him had been dropped.

“This truly was a travesty of justiceof our most vulnerable individuals,the developmentally disabled. Thisexample exemplifies the need for leg-islative oversight, stated Asm. Munoz.“The significance of this bill wasevident by the unanimous vote inboth houses of the legislature.”

“It is very unfortunate that thissituation took place to begin with,”concluded Kean. “However, it is re-assuring to know that adequate andenforceable laws have been enactedto prevent it from happening again.”

The law took effect immediatelyafter Governor Corzine signed it.

Lawyer Speak on Elder Law,Estate Tax and Medicare

WESTFIELD — The WestfieldArea Y will offer a special seminar onMay 17 at the main Y Facility, 220Clark Street, from noon to 1 p.m.

Nicholas Giuditta 3rd, a Cranfordattorney and member of the NationalAcademy of Elder Law, will speak on“Elder Law and You.”

Mr. Giuditta will address the sig-nificance of preparing or updatingwills, powers of attorney and livingwills. In addition, methods to elimi-nate or reduce the impact of the “new”New Jersey estate tax will be dis-cussed. Information will also be pro-vided regarding the new Medicareprescription drug program (part D)

and the Veterans pension benefit.Mr. Giuditta has been an attorney

for 18 years. He represents individu-als seeking guidance with estate plan-ning, probate and disability protec-tion matters. He is a member of theNational Academy of Elder Law At-torneys and of the New Jersey StateBar Association. The National Acad-emy of Elder Law Attorneys(NAELA) was established in 1987.NAELA is a national organization ofelder law attorneys devoted to thecontinuing education and training ofattorneys who deal with legal issuesfacing older adults, people with dis-abilities and their families.

The seminar is free and open to thepublic. Lunch will be provided for allparticipants; reservations are required.

This presentation is a part of thenew “Food for Thought” series ofworkshops and lectures for adultsbeing offered at the Westfield Area Y.For more information and to reservea seat, call Linda Christopher at (908)233-2700, extension no. 414 or e-mail [email protected] later than Monday, May 15.

Animal CommunicatorTo Speak at MeetingWESTFIELD – Animal communi-

cator Pam Saylor will speak and an-swer questions at the regular meetingof the Shetland Sheepdog Club ofNorthern New Jersey on Friday, May5, from 8 to 10 p.m. at the WestfieldCommunity Center, 558 West BroadStreet in Westfield.

Ms. Saylor is known for communi-cating with pets like cats, dogs andbirds, as well as larger animals likehorses, in an effort to help ownersunderstand difficulties their pets maybe experiencing. Admission will be$3 and refreshments will be served.For more information, please call(908) 226-1872.

Singers Present“O Ladye Fayre”

WESTFIELD – The Madrigal Sing-ers, directed by Elaine Fiorino, willpresent “O Ladye Fayre” on Sunday,May 7, at 4 p.m. at the First UnitedMethodist Church at One East BroadStreet, Westfield.

Judy Sullivan will introduce sa-cred and secular a cappella musicalselections celebrating women andlove with readings from Shakespeare,Kahlil Gibran, the English Roman-tics and contemporary poets.

Founded in 1948, The MadrigalSingers are dedicated to exploringthe a cappella traditions that grew outof the musical flowering of the Euro-pean Renaissance.

Local residents singing in this con-cert include Pamela Newell,Westfield, Kirk Robbins, Fanwood,John and Lynn Sichel, Mountainsideand Margaret Thompson,Mountainside. Reader Judy Sullivanresides in Scotch Plains.

Admission is by donation at thedoor. For further information, call(908) 233-1570.

Grant-Writing Wkshp.Offered For Arts Orgs.

WESTFIELD – Community artsorganizations, schools, libraries,health and social service agenciesand other non-profit organizations areinvited to attend a grant-writing work-shop on Wednesday, May 3, spon-sored by the County of Union. Theprogram will begin at 7 p.m. in theUnion County Annex Building, lo-cated at 300 North Avenue East, inWestfield.

The workshop will provide spe-cific information and guidelines forcompleting applications for the UnionCounty Arts Grant Program. Fundsfor this program are made availablethrough the New Jersey State Coun-cil on the Arts, Department of State, apartner agency of the National En-dowment for the Arts.

All non-profit groups and arts or-ganizations that wish to offer an artsproject to the public are eligible toapply for grant funds. Arts activitiestaking place between January 1, 2007and December 31, 2007 are eligiblefor consideration.

To register for the free May 3workshop, or for information aboutother programs and services, con-tact the Union County Division ofCultural and Heritage Affairs, lo-cated at 633 Pearl Street, Elizabeth.Call (908) 558-2550 or [email protected]. Relay usersdial 711.

Town Book Store HostsMeet and Greets

WESTFIELD – In a celebration oflocal talent, The Town Book Store ofWestfield will host two meet-and-greet book signings this weekend.

On Saturday, April 29, from 11a.m. to 1 p.m., Westfield authorRoberta Temes will be in the store topromote his newest book, “The Tap-ping Cure: A Revolutionary Systemfor Rapid Relief from Phobias, Anxi-ety, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorderand More.”

Readers will discover the methodthat instantly allows one to alleviateemotional distress by gently tappingon the particular body parts that cor-respond to acupuncture meridians.Ms. Temes is also the author of “TheComplete Idiot’s Guide to Hypno-sis.”

Then, from 2 to 4 p.m., formerWestfield resident Leslie MorganSteiner will be in the store to promoteher non-fiction hardcover, “MommyWars: Stay-at-Home and CareerMoms Face Off on Their Choices,Their Lives, Their Families.”

With motherhood comes one of thetoughest decisions of a woman’s life:Stay at home or pursue a career? Theformer Westfielder commissioned 26outspoken mothers to write about theirlives, their families and the choicesthat have worked for them.

If unable to attend these events,call and reserve an autographed copyat (908) 233-3535.


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WESTFIELD . . . Come home to this sprawling Split Level home onone of Westfield’s quiet tree-lined streets. This 9 room home features4 bedrooms, a new kitchen with center-island, separate eating areaand pantry. The master bedroom features a tranquil sitting area.Other highlights include a formal dining room, living room w/wood-burning fireplace, family room & a Florida room that invites in thewarmth of the sun. The professionally landscaped property hasunderground sprinklers & a fabulous 2-tier patio accessed from thekitchen’s sliding glass door. $873,900 (052001025)

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WESTFIELD . . . Newman Custom home renovated by Vincentsen boasts 12rooms, 6 bedrooms – 4 with “en suite” baths for a total of 5 full baths and 2powder rooms. 5600+ SF of gracious living. This is a “must see” with 2Travertine marble surround fireplaces, 3 car garage, a mega-kitchen featuringBlue Pearl granite & hardwood, deck, a great room with built-in cherry cabinetry,gracious formal living and dining rooms, office, recreation room, laundry room,Bluestone patio and a private 1100 SF master bedroom suite w/a “leisure”room. Keyless entry, parking for up to 8 cars, a workshop area w/220 electric– on nearly ½ acre of fenced property – a dream home in every respect! DIR:Lawrence to Minisink Way #1141 $1,650,000 (052001014)

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WF GWF GWF GWF GWF Glee Club Announceslee Club Announceslee Club Announceslee Club Announceslee Club Announces81st S81st S81st S81st S81st Spring Concerpring Concerpring Concerpring Concerpring Concerttttt

WESTFIELD WESTFIELD WESTFIELD WESTFIELD WESTFIELD – The Westfield GleeClub announced the schedules andprogram for the 81st-year spring con-certs under the directing of ThomasBooth and piano accompaniment byGeorge Lachenauer.

On Saturday, April 29, at 4 p.m., theconcert will be performed at the FirstBaptist Church of Westfield, 170 ElmStreet. On the following Saturday, May6, at 8 p.m., the concert will be per-formed at the First Congregationalchurch of Westfield, 125 Elmer Street.

The first section of the program willbe folk songs and ballads, including:L’il Liza Jane arranged by Hunter andShaw, Believe Me If All Those Endear-ing Young charms, arranged by Mooreand Brewer, My Wild Irish Rose andDanny Boy arranged by Gilpin, andSeeing Nellie Home, arranged by Parkerand Shaw.

Another section will be religioussongs, including: Dry Bones arrangedby Hayes, You Raise Me Up by Gra-ham and Lowland, No Need To Knockby Albrecht and If We Ever Needed theLord Before by Dorsey and Sterling.

A section of Broadway and pop in-cludes: Luck Be A Lady by Loesser and

Lojeski, Bridge Over Troubled Waterby Simon and Shaw, Put Your HeadOn My Shoulder by Anka and Huffand Workin’ by Snyder.

The fourth section of operetta songsincludes: Drinking Song by Rombergand Rapport, Serenade by Rombergand Lawrence, A Tribute To SigmundRomberg by MacLean.

The special artists vocal and pianoselections will be performed by CarolBayard and Thomas Booth. Ms. Bayardhas performed throughout the UnitedStates, primarily in leading SopranoOpera roles. Mr. Booth also has per-formed and directed opera, and singssolo selections, composes, arranges andteaches. They will sing duets and solosfrom The Great American Song Bookand other selections.

All are invited to attend the concerts,and interested singers may talk withGlee Club members during the inter-mission. Adult male and female singersare invited, as well as student singers.Tickets are available from glee mem-bers and at the door for a donation of$15 for adults and $12 for students andseniors. For information, please callDale Juntilla at (908) 232 0673.

Theater Project TravelsThe Road To Mecca

CRANFORDCRANFORDCRANFORDCRANFORDCRANFORD – The Road ToMecca, a drama by Athol Fugard,opened at The Theater Project, UnionCounty College’s Professional TheaterCompany, on Thursday, April 20.

Directed by Rick Delaney, the castincludes Noreen Farley, JC Hoyt andCarol Todd. The production team com-prises Brian Collins (set and light de-sign), Cherie Cunningham (costumedesign) and Joel Stigliano (sound de-sign).

The Road to Mecca is inspired bythe life of the late South African artistHelen Martins, whose home today is amuseum for her highly unusual sculp-tures.

In the play, Miss Helen has alienatedher rigid religious community by leav-ing the church and creating a sculpturegarden of bizarre figures all facing“Mecca.” Now in her late sixties, Helenis being pressured to leave her homeand enter a residence for elderly women.

With eyesight failing and hands notas sure as they had been, Helen is tornbetween Marius, the town’s ministerwho sees an opportunity to reclaim alost soul by moving Helen into thehome, and Elsa, a young friend andconfidante who challenges Helen tomaintain her independence. The playdeals forcefully and poetically withcross-generational friendships and theissues of aging and the place of artists insociety.

The Road to Mecca plays throughMay 7, Thursdays, Fridays, and Satur-

days at 8 p.m., Sundays at 3 p.m.General admission is $20. On Thurs-days, tickets are $12. Student ticketsare always $10. Reservations, whichare recommended, can be made at (908)659-5189.

VVVVVAAAAACNJ OCNJ OCNJ OCNJ OCNJ Offers Dffers Dffers Dffers Dffers DigitaligitaligitaligitaligitalPPPPPhotography Classeshotography Classeshotography Classeshotography Classeshotography Classes

SUMMIT SUMMIT SUMMIT SUMMIT SUMMIT – This spring and sum-mer, the Visual Arts Center of NewJersey, located at 68 Elm Street inSummit, is offering several digital pho-tography classes for both teens andadults in their new digital photo lab.Registration is currently being ac-cepted for both the spring and sum-mer term classes and workshops.

Introduction to Digital Photogra-phy will be offered on Monday eve-nings from 7 to 9:30 p.m. beginningMonday, April 17. The six-week classis designed for students 18 and olderwho are new to digital photography.Through hands-on work and demon-strations, participants will learn thefundamentals of hardware, softwareand the workflows necessary to pro-duce digital photographs.

Students will use Adobe Photoshopand work on the new Macintosh com-puters. The same course will be taughtin the summer session, which runs forsix weeks beginning Monday, June 5.Instructor Joan Pamboukes will re-peat the class at the same times onMonday evenings during the summersession.

Introduction to Photoshop for Teens(ages 14 to 17) is also offered onMondays, from April 17 to May 22.Ms. Pamboukes will teach studentshow to collage and manipulate theirimages using Adobe Photoshop tech-niques, with the emphasis placed onthe more inventive aspects of digitalart.

Students do not need to own acamera for this class, which is offeredfrom 4 to 6 p.m. Again, as above, thesame course will be repeated for teensin the summer term, which runs fromJune 5 to July 17.

Self Promotion for the Aspiring Art-ist will be offered in the spring termon Wednesday afternoons from 12:30to 3 p.m. Under the guidance of in-structor Raul Villarreal, artists whowish to master the complexities ofprofessionally promoting and present-ing their work to museums, galleries,and collectors will learn to make apositive long-lasting impression.Through hands-on demonstrationsand exercises, students will design andassemble business cards, letterheads,envelopes, CD covers, presentationpackets, and more. InstructorVillarreal will present the same coursein the summer term on Wednesdaysfrom 12:30 – 3 p.m., beginning June7. This step-by-step course is ideal forall levels and types of aspiring artists.

Two special photography workshopswill be offered in the summer term.Outdoor Shooting/Indoor Printing:

Traditional or Digital is a two-dayworkshop that will be offered on theweekend of June 10 and 11 from 10a.m. to 4 p.m. Photographer JoanPamboukes will teach the fundamen-tals of digital or traditional camerasystems, including simple composi-tion, presentation, lighting strategiesand how to use Adobe Photoshop tomake adjustments to enhance photos.

Large Format Archival Printing is atwo-day workshop for all visual andphotographic artists interested in learn-ing how to make large-scale prints. Itwill be held on the weekend of June 24and 25. Instructor Jay Seldin will teachparticipants how to select, prepare andfine-tune images for printing on thearts center’s state-of-the-art 7800 and9800 Epson large-scale printers. A pre-requisite for this workshop is Interme-diate to Advanced Photoshop.

All of the above-mentioned six-weekdigital media classes include five hoursof free open digital media lab time sostudents can practice what they learn.

For additional information, contactthe education department at the VisualArts Center of New Jersey at (908)273-9121 or visit online atwww.artcenternj.org.

FREE PERFORMANCE…Chinese-American music and dance groups willpresent a free 90-minute performance at the Kuran Arts Center on Watson Roadin Fanwood on Sunday, April 30, beginning at 2 p.m. For more information, call(908) 889-7223.

TOP HONORS...Alice Ren of Scotch Plains, left, Cameron Rogers of Plainfieldand Mi-Reu Park of Edison are overwhelmed at the announcement of their entry“Super Cooled Cloud Chamber” that took the Math and Science Society’s firstplace award at The Wardlaw-Hartridge School in Edison. Freshmen and sopho-mores participated in the Second Annual Science Fair under the direction ofScotch Plains resident, adviser Roland Marionni, committee chair, sophomoreAzim Sonawalla of Edison and president, junior Ricky Diaz of Union.

Learn ALearn ALearn ALearn ALearn About NJ’bout NJ’bout NJ’bout NJ’bout NJ’sssssEEEEEndangerndangerndangerndangerndangered Sed Sed Sed Sed Speciespeciespeciespeciespecies

MOUNTMOUNTMOUNTMOUNTMOUNTAINSIDE AINSIDE AINSIDE AINSIDE AINSIDE – A presenta-tion about New Jersey’s endangeredspecies will be Thursday, April 20, atTrailside Nature and Science Centerfrom 7:30 to 9 p.m. for adults, ages 18and older.

Blaine Rothauser, a professionalnaturalist, biologist and photographer,will offer a slide presentation featuringhis own photographs. Learn about aturtle species that stopped a housingdevelopment and a salamander speciesseen only one month out of the year.

This presentation will alertparticipants to the risks animals faceliving in the densely populated state,and New Jersey’s efforts to protect them.Mr. Rothauser’s work has appeared inmagazines, calendars and exhibit halls.

Pre-registration is required, as spaceis limited. The fee for this presentationis $8 per person for Union Countyresidents and $10 per person for out-of-county residents. Light refreshmentswill be provided.

For additional information aboutthis lecture or for information on up-coming programs and special events atTrailside, please call (908) 789-3670or visit www.ucnj.org/trailside. Trailsideis located at 452 New Providence Roadin Mountainside.

TEATEATEATEATEATRTRTRTRTRO Sí PO Sí PO Sí PO Sí PO Sí PrrrrresentsesentsesentsesentsesentsBBBBBest of Colombiaest of Colombiaest of Colombiaest of Colombiaest of Colombia

UNIONUNIONUNIONUNIONUNION – The greatest hits fromthe Mestizo Folkloric Ballet of NewYork’s’ will come to the Wilkins The-atre at Kean University when Teatro Sí,in association with Kean University,presents Ballet Mestizo - The Best ofColombia - on Saturday, April 29, at7:30 p.m.

Winner of two A.C.E. awards forbest choreography and best costum-ing, the Mestizo Folkloric Ballet ofNew York continues to celebrate andreveal the traditional rhythms of Co-lombia.

Choreographed and directed byHarold Puente and Armando Moreno,this production contains musical di-rection by Harold Gutierrez. The corpsconsists of 18 dancers and singers andis accompanied by six musicians dedi-cated to the authenticity of this tradi-tional genre.

Tickets for reserved seating are pricedat $25 for adults and $18 for childrenand students. Purchase tickets by call-ing the Wilkins Theatre box office,1000 Morris Avenue, Union, at (908)737-SHOW (7469) or reserve onlineat www.WilkinsTheatre.com. For ad-ditional information call TEATRO Síat (908) 301-9496 or online atwww.TeatroSi.com.


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SSSSSymphonyymphonyymphonyymphonyymphonystrings was one of the segment’s highpoints, and her percussive playing dur-ing a moment of orchestral frenzy stirredintense instrumental drama.

In her performance of the first move-ment of Saen Sans’ Piano ConcertoNo. 2, 15-year-old Ji-nee Lo showed atechnique that was expansive and re-flective all at once, and her nuanceddelivery gave the concerto’s furious lowpassages even more gravity. The WSOfleshed out the exquisite piece marvel-ously; rather than saving its energy forits own showpieces in the second halfof the program, the orchestra threweverything into supporting the solo-ists.

Eleven-year-old Katelyn Tran wasabsolutely mesmerizing. She performedthe first movement of Beethoven’s Pi-ano Concerto No. 1 with a musician-ship far beyond her young years. Fromfluid arpeggios to intense chordal out-bursts, she captured the spirit of theprolific composer – at turns tortured,at turns tender – with passion andgrace. During her stunning cadenza,Mr. Wroe and the WSO memberswatched reverently, looking as capti-vated as the audience.

After such an ambitious first act, theRoyal Fireworks Music gave the or-chestra and the audience a chance totake a breather. The stately, regal workis of a much more straightforward clas-sical style than the other works on theevening’s program, and the WSO (alongwith the WHS Chamber Orchestra)poured fantastic exuberance into thepiece to generate enough energy to fillthe auditorium.

Kodaly’s “Dances of Galanta” closedthe program with great flair. Dramaticand expansive, the WSO took the musicfrom the wild to the mournful in sec-onds. Little orchestral flurries hark-ened back to some of the swirling pi-ano arpeggios in the concerto segmentof the concert, and Mr. Wroe seemedto dance on stage as he led his orchestrathrough passages both melancholy andanimated all the way to the triumphantfinal explosion at the end of the piece.

The WSO did something really spe-cial on Saturday night. The orchestrashared its stage with young talents fromwhom this community can expectmuch. Absent were any holes one mighthave anticipated from the prominentincorporation of student musicians.Instead, the performers gave a coher-ent, compelling concert in a wonderfultriumph for both the WSO and theWestfield public-school music pro-grams.

Wow, I can’t wait to do that again.

Mr. Winder told the newspaper: “Iused to see Chip Mergott play atO’Connors – at some point I was writ-ing some songs – so I called him up andhe gave me encouragement.”

Mr. Mergott ended up producingsome of Mr. Winder’s CDs and hasremained a close friend, and the twooften perform together. Mr. Winderalso said, “It was Chip who recom-mended we team up for the evening forthe benefit concert.”

Mr. Winder’s 16-year-old daughterKimberly, a junior at Bridgewater RaritanHigh School, intermittently joined theduo on stage with her trumpet.

Between songs, Mr. Mergott remi-nisced about his childhood friend, JudySinger, and how later, after Judy mar-ried Paul, his friendship grew withboth of them. Mr. Murphy led churchgroups in Colonia, and Mr. Mergottenjoyed helping him with some of themusical activities Mr. Murphy orga-nized for teenagers.

Mr. Mergott also shared intimatedetails of personal struggles and tri-

umph over the joyous birth of his new-born son. Reaching into his pocket toshare a photograph, Mr. Mergott teasedthe audience that he must have left itsomewhere else. Briefly excusing him-self backstage to retrieve the snapshot,Mr. Mergott returned with a poster-size picture of his son, Elijah Paul,posed in an infant seat.

For the rest of the evening, little EliPaul sat perfectly quiet alongside hisfather playing music and paying trib-ute to his namesake. Mr. Mergottremarked how wonderful it will bewhen some day he would be sitting upon stage with Eli Paul and his wifeAnnie, playing as a trio, his favoritesong, “Jesus Loves Me.” No doubt,Mr. Murphy will be watching, enjoy-ing the show from a much higherbalcony.

Members of the community wish-ing to make a donation can send acheck to “Foundation 432,” 25 SouthAlward Avenue, Basking Ridge, NJ07920. In the memo section, pleasewrite: Murphy Family Fund.


MMMMMurphy urphy urphy urphy urphy TTTTTribute Concerribute Concerribute Concerribute Concerribute Concerttttt

By CAROL F. DAVISBy CAROL F. DAVISBy CAROL F. DAVISBy CAROL F. DAVISBy CAROL F. DAVISSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

On Saturday, April 28 at 8 p.m.,the PPPPPlainfield Slainfield Slainfield Slainfield Slainfield Symphony ymphony ymphony ymphony ymphony (NewJersey’s oldest) will present Broadwayand Movie Favorites at the CrescentAvenue Presbyterian Church inPlainfield. Single tickets will be avail-able at the door for $25 - $45, withsenior and student discounts. Formore information, call (908) 561-5140 or visit:www.plainfieldsymphony.org. Thechurch is at the corner of Seventh andWatchung Avenue.

* * * * * * *On Sunday, May 7, at 2 p.m., the

BBBBBeacon Heacon Heacon Heacon Heacon Hill Sill Sill Sill Sill Swing Bwing Bwing Bwing Bwing Bandandandandand will returnto the Watchung Arts Center for aconcert featuring tunes from the GreatAmerican Song Book. You will hearpieces by some of the nation’s bestarrangers, including: Andre Previn,John Williams, Marty Paitch, BillHolman, Harry Betts, Bob Florenceand Shorty Rogers. Admission is $12- $15. For directions or information,call (908) 753-0190, or visit them onthe web at: www.watchungarts.org.

* * * * * * *The final play of the season at the

Westfield Community Players,NNNNNunsenseunsenseunsenseunsenseunsense,,,,, will begin on Saturday,April 29, with several performancesto follow in May. The theatre is lo-cated at 1000 North Avenue West inWestfield. Tickets for this award-win-ning musical are $20 each. Call thebox office at (908) 232.1221 for in-formation.

* * * * * * *On Saturday, May 6, the Antioch

Chamber Ensemble will perform atthe Calvary Episcopal Church 31Woodland Avenue in Summit. Thisvocal group was formerly headquar-tered at Trinity Church on Wall Street,and moved to Summit following thetragedy of September 11. The concertbegins at 7 p.m., and admission is$20. Tickets are available at the door.For information visit: http://www.antiochonline.com/.

* * * * * * *OOOOOff the Rack: Arff the Rack: Arff the Rack: Arff the Rack: Arff the Rack: Art Mt Mt Mt Mt Made Fade Fade Fade Fade Frrrrrom,om,om,om,om,

OOOOOn or An or An or An or An or About Clothingbout Clothingbout Clothingbout Clothingbout Clothing, is the fea-tured exhibit at the Arts Guild ofRahway through May. Four featuredartists take articles of clothing andtransform them into works of artusing a variety of techniques includ-ing painting, printmaking, and sculp-ture. Admission is free, and the gal-lery hours are Wednesday, Friday,Saturday: 1-4 p.m., Thursday: 1-3and 5-7 p.m. or by appointment. Call(732) 381-7511 or log onto: http://www.rahwayartsguild.org.

might prove challenging due to thewatering required, he believes it reallyadds a nice splash of color for parties.

Ms. Flowers suggested hangingflower swags over doorways as anotherspring touch for special events.

“We’re also making ‘kissing balls’ offresh flowers similar to mistletoe ballsyou see during the holidays,” Ms. Flow-ers said. “Mixing daisies works wellbecause they are a hearty flower inmany different colors.”

You can also treat guests to flowers inunexpected places.

“Try a brandy snifter or tiny budvase of flowers in the powder room,”Mr. Christoffers suggested.

And if you’d like to opt for some-thing that lasts longer than fresh cutflower displays, you may want to choosea potted variety.

“Azaleas can be displayed inside un-til they are done blooming,” Ms. Mohnsaid.

An added bonus is that if you usebulb varieties such as tulips, daffo-dils or hyacinths, you can later re-plant the bulbs outside to bloomnext year.

“Hydrangeas have a big flower topwith showy leaves,” Mr. Burke said.

“But try exposing it to the new sunlightgradually for about a week before youmove it outdoors.”

No matter what kind of spring flow-ers or plants you choose to bring insideyour home, keep in mind that there isa little bit of maintenance involved.

“Care and handling is the most im-portant thing and makes the biggestdifference,” said Ms. Flowers. “Don’tplace flowers near the TV or air condi-tioner or anywhere too hot or too cold.”

Ms. Flowers also recommends cut-ting fresh flower stems every two tothree days for optimum longevity,which is typically about 14 days de-pending on the type of flower.

“Every time you re-cut a stem, youare opening it back up so that it canbetter drink up and hold water,” Ms.Flowers added. “It’s a little bit of work,but it will make flowers last longer.”

Do you have a home or garden ques-tion you’d like to see answered in thiscolumn? Send your inquiries [email protected].


HHHHHome and Gome and Gome and Gome and Gome and Gararararardendendendenden

One Popcorn, Poor • Two Popcorns, Fair • Three Popcorns, Good • Four Popcorns, Excellent

POPCORN™

ScarScarScarScarScary My My My My Mooooovie 4:vie 4:vie 4:vie 4:vie 4:SSSSSo Bo Bo Bo Bo Bad Iad Iad Iad Iad Ittttt’’’’’s Fs Fs Fs Fs Frighteningrighteningrighteningrighteningrightening

DDDDDononononon’’’’’t Ft Ft Ft Ft Frrrrret: Aet: Aet: Aet: Aet: April is Npril is Npril is Npril is Npril is Natl.atl.atl.atl.atl.SSSSStrtrtrtrtress-Aess-Aess-Aess-Aess-Awarwarwarwarwareness Meness Meness Meness Meness MonthonthonthonthonthBy CAROL F. DAVIS


AREA — AREA — AREA — AREA — AREA — For a 30-day period inApril, designated for the past 15 yearsas Stress Awareness Month, health careprofessionals across the nation joinforces to increase public awarenessabout the causes and cures for thismodern-day epidemic.

Sadly, stress has become prevalent inour society. Sure, we all experienceepisodic stress when dealing with par-ticularly anxiety-producing stimuli, butthe proportion of individuals sufferingchronically seems higher than ever.

There are many definitions and manytypes of stress. The Merriam-Websteronline dictionary defines stress as “aphysical, chemical, or emotional factorthat causes bodily or mental tension andmay be a factor in disease causation.” Ifyou look it up on www.dictionary.com,scroll down for this one:

“A mentally or emotionally disrup-tive or upsetting condition occurringin response to adverse external influ-ences and capable of affecting physicalhealth, usually characterized by in-creased heart rate, a rise in blood pres-sure, muscular tension, irritability, anddepression.”

There are other types of stress, in-cluding the kind you experience whenyou are excited about something oranticipating something that will occur.But what is the difference in our reac-tions? None. Both positive and nega-tive stressors, when left unchecked,have exactly the same effect on you.They deplete you, leaving you feelingexhausted.

The first step in dealing with stress isto define the sources of it in your life.Some may be subtle, but they are every-where because stress is a natural part ofliving. However, left unchecked, life canbecome unbalanced. Your personal rela-tionships, your job, and your health cansuffer. It can also be a factor in depres-sion, anxiety, and other disorders.

While not a complete checklist, youcan begin to look for signs of an un-healthy level of stress in your life byasking yourself questions like:

Do minor problems and disappoint-ments upset you excessively?

Are you noticing a change in yoursleep or eating habits?

Are you unable to stop worrying?Are you experiencing digestive prob-

lems or high blood pressure?Do you experience flashes of anger

over minor problems?Do you suffer from chronic pain,

headaches or backaches?If you answered “yes” to even one of

these, consider taking an active role inattempting to reduce stress at its roots. Ifunable – you may not be able to leave yourjob right now despite the fact that you havea boss who is making unreasonable de-mands – then it is time to take control.

Regain peace of mind with stressmanagement techniques such as deepbreathing, guided imagery or medita-tion, yoga, physical activity, soothingmusic, a hot bath, massage, animalcompanions, a cup of soothing tea,good friends or a hobby.

The Terra Sky Center for Wellness at510 Morris Avenue in Summit is agood place to start. Their focus is ontotal body fitness, working on the mind-body-soul connection. Stress-reductionmethods at the center include: yoga,

massage, meditation, energy healing,special workshops, psychotherapy andacupuncture. Visit them online at:www.terraskycenter.com for a completeschedule of services and special events.

Peter and Anne Ferraro are ownersof Westfield/Fanwood Yoga & PilatesCenter located at 250 South Avenue inFanwood, where there are classes andprograms that provide a variety of op-portunities to reduce stress. Mr. Ferrarobelieves “When one practices yoga andmeditation, the body reaches an idealcondition for healing, rather than adisease mode from the effects of stress.You feel more peaceful and you thenactually see more peace in the world.”

Ms. Ferraro added, “Stress is notinherently negative, but it is our emo-tional reaction to stressful situationsthat we need to be concerned with.”Other workshops include chanting, aseries to promote healing and a coursein miracles based on the Gospel ofThomas.

Fatima Tranquilli is the director andinstructor at the Therapeutic MassageTraining Center, 560 Springfield Av-enue in Westfield. Her unconventionalapproach to dealing with stress beganto take shape one month before she wasdiagnosed with cancer, when she de-cided to become a massage therapist. “Idid nothing conventional to treat mycancer, and now it’s four years later.”

She goes on to describe the physi-ological relationship between massageand stress, explaining how “massageincreases blood flow and stimulates thelymphatic system to do its work.Through manipulation of soft tissue,toxins are released,” reducing stress andleading to better overall health.

Should your attempts at managingand eliminating excess stress fail, itmay be time to seek professional help.There are licensed professional coun-selors, psychologists and clinical socialworkers trained to work with you onresolving issues. There are psychiatriststo help you through a particularly acuteepisode or through chronic stress witha combination of therapy and medica-tions. Remember, there is always hope.

Get Outta’The House

ArArArArArea Sea Sea Sea Sea Students tudents tudents tudents tudents WWWWWinininininWH Science FWH Science FWH Science FWH Science FWH Science Fairairairairair

AREA AREA AREA AREA AREA – Alice Ren, Scotch Plainsresident and daughter of Dr. Hai-cangand Dr. Jessica Cha, won the recentScience Fair at the Wardlaw-HartridgeSchool in Edison, where she is a sopho-more. Alice, along with Plainfield resi-dent Cameron Rogers, a sophomore,and fellow sophomore Mi-Reu Park ofEdison won the top honor with their“Super Cooled Cloud Chamber.”

As part of the competition, the fresh-men and sophomores who competedin this year’s contest needed to demon-strate and explain the workings of theirconcept and execution of the experi-ment to the three judges.

Out of 23 project entries, second placewas awarded to Cari Rosoff of ScotchPlains, Zach Schwartz of Westfield andKirti Kewalramani of Edison for their“Solar Powered Water Heater.”

Third place winners from the areawere Chrys George of Westfield, SahilZubair of Colonia and RubySimmasalam of Edison.

Under the direction of Science andMath Society adviser and Scotch Plainsresident Roland Maronni, the club isthriving. It offers after-school guestspeakers on a regular basis, sponsors anannual fundraising dinner and recentlygave a $1,000 donation for microcreditloans to Bangladesh.

CDC to SCDC to SCDC to SCDC to SCDC to Stage Etage Etage Etage Etage Elton Jlton Jlton Jlton Jlton John,ohn,ohn,ohn,ohn,TTTTTim Riceim Riceim Riceim Riceim Rice’’’’’s s s s s AIDAAIDAAIDAAIDAAIDA in M in M in M in M in Mayayayayay

CRANFORD – CRANFORD – CRANFORD – CRANFORD – CRANFORD – Cranford DramaticClub (CDC) Community Theatre inCranford announced that it would bebringing its own production of Aida toarea residents beginning Friday, May 5and continuing through Sunday, May21.

Aida tells the tale of the love betweenan Egyptian soldier and an enslavedNubian princess – a love that con-demns them to death but ultimatelytranscends the cultural differences be-tween the two warring nations.

Shayne Austin Miller, who also di-rected the productions of Smokey Joe’sCafé and South Pacific at CDC, directsCDC’s production. Mr. Miller indi-cated that he has chosen to place spe-cial emphasis on lighting and the use offabric in his interpretation of Aida.Fabric played an important role in theculture and trade of ancient Egypt andis used in this production to evokevarious moods of the story.

Veteran CDC producer ElizabethHoward helms the production teamwith Mitch Kolesaire serving as theorchestra director, Tracy Glenn Murrayas vocal director and stage manage-ment by Kristin Pfeifer. Choreographyis by Kelsea-Janenne Fleisher. The largemulti-racial cast blends CDC regularswith a group of newcomers to CDC.

Wanda Toro (Aida), RichardMcNamara (Radames), MelissaLoderstedt (Amneris), Roger Hayden(Zoser), Michael Miguel (Mereb),Zhenia Bemko (Nehebka), HowardWhitmore (Amonasro) and MarcChandler (Pharaoh) fill the principalroles.

The show will be presented on Fri-day and Saturday nights at 8 p.m.,from May 5 to the 20, with a specialSunday matinee at 3 p.m. on May 21.Tickets are $20 on a reserved seat basis(senior and student discounts avail-able) and can be obtained by calling the

box office at (908) 276-7611 or throughthe theatre’s website atwww.cdctheatre.org. The CDC Com-munity Theatre is located at 78 WinansAvenue in Cranford, off CentennialAvenue near Exit 136 of the GardenState Parkway.

SIGNS OF SPRING...Friends of Music at St. Paul’s will present the Parish Choirof St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in concert on Sunday, May 7, at 7 p.m. FeaturingSt. Paul’s new organ, the works to be performed are Gabriel Fauré’s Requiem andFrancis Poulenc’s Organ Concerto. The choir will be joined by nationally re-nowned soloists and members of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra playingtheir Golden Age Collection of historic string instruments. The concert will beunder the direction of Charles Banks. St. Paul’s is located at 414 East Broad Streetin Westfield. For further information, contact Mr. Banks at (908) 232-8506,extension 17. A donation of $10 at the door is suggested.

PPPPPam Nam Nam Nam Nam Neeeeewwwwwell Hell Hell Hell Hell HostsostsostsostsostsArArArArArtists Gtists Gtists Gtists Gtists Gallerallerallerallerallery of Gy of Gy of Gy of Gy of GiftsiftsiftsiftsiftsWESTFIELD – WESTFIELD – WESTFIELD – WESTFIELD – WESTFIELD – For the last 20

years, Pam Newell’s 1881 Victorianhome has hosted biannually the ArtistsGallery of Gifts in Westfield. Eachseason, a collection of 10 to 20 vendorsjoins Ms. Newell at her home on 603Clark Street in Westfield.

This year the gallery will take placeon Friday, April 28, from 11 a.m. to 5p.m. and continue from 7 to 9 p.m.The gallery can be viewed on the week-end as well— on Saturday from 10a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 11a.m. to 5 p.m.

Vendors collect every season for athree-day showing of gifts that include:painted glass, garden accessories, floraldesigns, sterling silver and costumejewelry, imported straw and travel bags,hostess gifts, original watercolors andportrait art.

The spring show is geared towardsthe garden, while the fall show in No-vember previews the holidays.

Raffles are drawn each season ben-efiting Children’s Specialized Hospitalin Mountainside. Guests are invitedthrough the mail and walk-ins are alsowelcome.

Ms. Newell can be reached at (908)654-3614.

WHS SWHS SWHS SWHS SWHS Students Ctudents Ctudents Ctudents Ctudents CrrrrreateeateeateeateeateTTTTTibetan Sibetan Sibetan Sibetan Sibetan Sand Pand Pand Pand Pand PaintingaintingaintingaintingaintingWESTFIELD WESTFIELD WESTFIELD WESTFIELD WESTFIELD – Following the tra-

ditions of Tibetan artists, students inArt I classes at Westfield High School(WHS) recently participated in creat-ing a Mandala sand painting.

Starting with a four-foot-square blacktable top, the students first created anoutline of geometric designs drawn inwhite on the table’s surface. Next, thestudents used Chak-purs (metal fun-nels which hold the sand) to releasesmall sprinkles of sand into specificpre-drawn areas on the table. By rub-bing sticks over the Chak-purs, thestudents created vibrations, whichmade the sand flow out.

This is a traditional Mandala sandpainting method, according to WHSart teacher Roy Chambers. Mr. Cham-bers also made available a second tablefor a “community” Mandala sand paint-ing open up to anyone in the school toparticipate. According to Mr. Cham-bers, “This project is unique because itemphasizes the ‘process’ of creating artinstead of the finished ‘product,’ be-cause the finished product is erased atthe closing ceremony.”

Mr. Chambers learned the intricatedesign method from Tibetan Buddhistmonks through a program offered atRutgers University.

By MICHAEL S. GOLDBERGER1 & 1/2 popcorns

Everything is relative. For example,83 minutes is a rather short runningtime for a feature film these days. How-ever, in the case of Scary Movie 4, thelatest in the series of anything-for-a-laugh horror movie send-ups meant togross out, titillate and make feel supe-rior via its idiocy, it’s not short enough.

The Wayanses (Keenan, Marlon andShawn) didn’t write or direct this one.That ended with installment two. In-stead, director David Zucker, the pro-genitor of nouvelle clueless who broughtus Airplane (1980), The Naked Gun(1988) and yes, Scary Movie 3, againtries his hand at the franchise.

Try is right. Scary Movie 4’s onlytrue wit begins and ends with its tagline:“The fourth and final chapter of thetrilogy.” The rest is unmemorable, agiambotte of ploys and mechanismsfrom several fright-inducing flicks,tossed together in no particular order.

Flitting through notions of TheGrudge (2004), The Village (2004),War of The Worlds (2005), Saw (2004)and Million Dollar Baby (2004), AnnaFaris reprises her role as CindyCampbell, dimwitted heroine and co-quette extraordinaire. She is againjoined in her adventures by ReginaHall as Brenda, the freewheeling an-tithesis always happy to extol her lackof virtue.

Somewhere between the first attackof the alien tri-pods and her discoverythat the house where she’s been hired tocare for an old lady (Cloris Leachman)is haunted, Cindy meets Tom Ryan(Craig Bierko). Irresponsible employeeand failed father, he is the ultimateloser as love interest…proof that thereis a lid for every pot. Unwittingly, theircourtship is a competition to see who’sthe stupidest.

Director Zucker, working from aragtag script by Craig Mazin and JimAbrahams, makes little effort to createany continuity among the loose-leafedsketches and half-baked vignettes thatcomprise the attempted satire. Curi-

ous thing is, in a reverse backfire sort ofway it works. If Scary Movie 4 has onesaving grace, it’s the utter absence ofpretense and ambition.

While a dubious distinction indeed,the nothing ventured, nothing gainedattitude is oddly liberating. Want tovisit the rest room? Go ahead. Care tocruise the concession? Feel free. Youwon’t miss anything. And by the sametoken, when a bit doesn’t quite work,such as Leslie Nielsen’s stint as a prac-tically naked, imbecilic President ofthe United States, that’s O.K. We un-derstand. Some things simply can’t befunnier than the tragicomedies theyintend to mock.

Besides, most of the ludicrous go-ings-on are really just an excuse to putvarious celebrities on display. The open-ing scene finds Dr. Phil McGraw andShaquille O’Neal engaged in a wittyrepartee whilst attempting to free them-selves from a dungeon. Others strewnabout in the kitchen-sink approach tocameo interjection include ChrisElliott, Bill Pullman, Michael Madsen,Carmen Electra and Molly Shannon.

All of which gives the Scary Moviedevotee only two responsibilities: toblurt out the movie being parodied andto name with equal self-satisfaction thestar briefly appearing therein. That thisis now considered entertainment insome pockets of our society isn’t neces-sarily a sign that the apocalypse is nigh.

In a less drastic supposition, you’llhave to consult with your favorite phi-losopher to confirm whether or notthis heralds a brand-new form of anti-intellectualism. But one thing is sure.While its aforementioned value as apsychiatric elixir for the world-weary isunproven, the lame-brained ScaryMovie 4 certainly gives the term simplepleasures a whole new meaning.

* * * * * * *Scary Movie 4, rated PG-13, is a

Weinstein Company release directedby David Zucker and stars Anna Faris,Craig Bierko and Regina Hall. Run-ning time: 83 minutes

See It In Color: www.goleader.com


RRRRRegister for egister for egister for egister for egister for WSWWSWWSWWSWWSW’’’’’s Earlys Earlys Earlys Earlys EarlyChildhood SChildhood SChildhood SChildhood SChildhood Summer Pummer Pummer Pummer Pummer Prrrrrog.og.og.og.og.

WESTFIELD WESTFIELD WESTFIELD WESTFIELD WESTFIELD – Registration hasbegun for the Westfield SummerWorkshop’s (WSW) early childhoodsummer program, now in its 35th yearof operation.

In the early childhood WSW pro-gram, taught by certified teachers, notonly are the creative arts offered, butthe children also have a hands-on expe-rience with animal skeletons, create anartistic rendition of volcanic actionand gain an appreciation of patterns inthe world at large.

This year the pre-school programwill be held at the Edison IntermediateSchool on Rahway Avenue in Westfield.The self-contained classrooms are child-friendly for the make-believe and rec-reational activities that go on all morn-ing. The program will run from Tues-day, June 27, to Friday, July 28, andwill be closed Monday and Tuesday,July 3 and 4.

The pre-kindergarten program is forchildren who are not entering kinder-garten in September 2006 and whowill be four years old by Tuesday, Oc-tober 31. The program runs Monday

through Friday, from 8:30 to 12:30a.m. with time for supervised outdooractivity. The activity-centers, withinthe self-contained rooms, give reign toimaginative play. Children come homewith yarn animals, chalk landscapes,sandpaper prints and a host of other artprojects.

Children who will be five years oldby October 31 are offered a kindergar-ten program held five days a week,from 8:30 a.m. through 12:30 p.m.The kindergarten program is a rota-tional one where children are exposedto science and early mathematical con-cepts in one area, and then switch tohave these lessons complemented withthematic stories, various arts and craftsprojects and dramatic make-believeactivities throughout the five-weekworkshop.

A highlight of the kindergarten pro-gram is the dramatic skit that the chil-dren perform. Children learn to recitelines, sing songs and do simple dances.

WSW is a division of the New Jer-sey Workshop for the Arts. Its pre-school program is one of 83 classesbeing offered this summer for stu-dents in grades one through eight.Separate drama programs, one forthose in grades six through nine, willpresent Seussical and another, for thosein grades nine through 12, will presentCarousel.

For more information, call (908)518-1551 and ask for a brochure, orvisit the NJWA office, located at 150-152 East Broad Street in Westfield.

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By MARYLOU MORANOSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

MOUNTMOUNTMOUNTMOUNTMOUNTAINSIDE –AINSIDE –AINSIDE –AINSIDE –AINSIDE – She’s onlybeen Miss Teen N.J. Galaxy for a fewmonths, but already she is making hermark in the world – and in our imme-diate area.

Gabrielle Apigo, an 18-year-oldfrom Mountainside, was crowned MissTeen New Jersey Galaxy in Decemberat the East Brunswick Hilton.

The mission of the Galaxy Pageantis to celebrate “beauty, culture andstyle.” To win her title, Ms. Apigo hadto be photogenic, as well as participatein an interview. She was also judged onher appearance in a swimsuit, eveninggown and other fashions.

A freshman at Farleigh Dickenson’sMadison campus majoring in chemis-try, Ms. Apigo hopes to eventuallyhave a career in medicine.

This explains, in part, her decisionto focus on awareness of the diseaseFibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiva(FOP) as the platform for her yearlongreign.

FOP, a rare disease that turns con-nective tissue and muscle into bone,eventually causes immobility. It is ge-netically transmitted.

“I will do anything I can to raiseawareness and help find a cure forFOP,” said Ms. Apigo.

There are approximately 500 casesof FOP worldwide; 14 are in NewJersey. One of these, 14–year-oldWhitney Weldon, is from Westfield.

“We are so thrilled that Gabriellechose FOP for her platform. Her gen-eration will be the next researchers andscientists of the world,” said HillaryWeldon, Whitney’s mother.

“Gabrielle’s FOP campaign will helppeople understand that a cure will havefar-reaching implications for treatmentof common disorders such as fractures,osteoporosis, hip-replacement surgeryand other forms of heterotrophic ossi-fication that occur in trauma and burnvictims,” Mrs. Weldon continued.

Ms. Apigo’s interest in FOP beganwhen, as a sophomore at GovernorLivingston High School in BerkeleyHeights, she wrote a report on thedisease for health class.

“FOP is not very well known, and ifI can raise awareness, more doctors willbecome interested. This may eventu-ally affect my career and the way Ipractice medicine,” Ms. Apigo noted.

Ms. Apigo plans to attend as many

events as possible in the next fewmonths to get her message about FOPout to the public.

In January she attended the inaugu-ral ball of Governor Jon Corzine, whereshe handed out leaflets about FOP.

Not all of Ms. Apigo’s appearances,however, are as well-planned as theinaugural ball.

“Sometimes I hear about an eventat the spur of the moment and I justgo,” she said.

She recently took part in the FifthAnnual Comedy Show to BenefitWeldon FOP Research Fund held atthe Mountainside Elks Lodge. Theevent raised $25,000 for FOP research,according to Ms. Apigo.

Ms. Apigo also plans to visit theUniversity of Pennsylvania MedicalCenter in Philadelphia, where the dis-ease is being studied intensely, to seefor herself how FOP research is con-ducted and to speak with researchers.

Ms. Apigo has recently received rec-ognition from the Borough ofMountainside, as well as the UnionCounty Freeholders, for her tirelessdedication to FOP. For more infor-mation about the Weldon FOP Re-search Fund, log on to www.ifopa.org.

WSO’WSO’WSO’WSO’WSO’s ‘Ss ‘Ss ‘Ss ‘Ss ‘Stars Otars Otars Otars Otars Of f f f f TTTTTodayodayodayodayoday’ Align ’ Align ’ Align ’ Align ’ Align WWWWWithithithithithHHHHHigh Schooligh Schooligh Schooligh Schooligh School’’’’’s ‘Ss ‘Ss ‘Ss ‘Ss ‘Stars Otars Otars Otars Otars Of f f f f TTTTTomorromorromorromorromorrooooowwwww’’’’’By VICTORIA MCCABE


WESTFIELD — WESTFIELD — WESTFIELD — WESTFIELD — WESTFIELD — Saturday’s WSOconcert was absolutely exhausting.

The good kind of exhausting. Thekind of workout where you flop downon your couch, totally drained butenergized at the same time, so proud ofwhatever physical exercise you’ve justdone that, in spite of your tiredness,you think, ‘wow, I can’t wait to do thatagain.’

Well, perhaps in this case, that senseof accomplished exhaustion really be-longs to the musicians – the WestfieldSymphony Orchestra (WSO) and theWestfield High School (WHS) Con-cert Choir and Chamber Orchestra.

After all, they were the ones doing allthe work at Saturday evening’s concert.But their performance was so supremelyoverwhelming that the audiencecouldn’t help but feel deeply connectedto their energy.

Piano soloist George Vatchnadzebegan the concert with the crisp open-ing chords of Beethoven’s Choral Fan-tasy, and the fine instrumentalists sup-ported him through his invigoratinginterpretation of the work. He lovinglyintroduced the piece’s dolce theme,and his dialogues with the flutes andwith a rich quartet of the string princi-pals exuded incredible emotion. It waswonderful to watch WSO conductorDavid Wroe and his orchestra commu-

nicate so beautifully with their pianosoloist; piano and lower strings shim-mered in one of the piece’s more reflec-tive moments, and at other turns theentire group would explode with all theferocity that Beethoven’s works so of-ten demand.

The high-school musicians exhib-ited both professionalism and talent.The Concert Choir singers (under thedirection of Bill Mathews and SharonReynolds) looked and conducted them-selves like a professional choir duringthe lengthy instrumental part of theChoral Fantasy, and their performance,albeit brief in the grand scheme of thenight, certainly ranks among one ofthe group’s finest in recent memory.The student soloists who performedthe vocal sextet were stellar; their blendand tone quality far exceeded anythingone would expect from high-schoolstudents.

In perhaps the concert’s sole disap-pointment, the orchestral frenzy dur-ing the last minutes of the ChoralFantasy nearly drowned out the choirat several points; the fury of instru-mental activity overpowered the su-perb male soloists for a good portion ofone of the exposed vocal solos.

That small imbalance aside, the per-formance of the Choral Fantasy was atremendous achievement – three inde-pendent musical groups mergedseamlessly under Mr. Wroe’s baton todeliver a powerful performance of acolossal work.

The students of the WHS ChamberOrchestra, under the direction ofRaymond Wojcik, had the opportu-nity to weave themselves into the WSOconfiguration and play among the pro-fessionals for both the Choral Fantasyand Handel’s Royal Fireworks Music.One might have expected the resultingorchestra to display at least a few hintsof wavering intonation or have somephrasing or ensemble glitches, but Mr.Wojcik’s chamber group responded tothe challenge like seasoned musicians;indeed, it was nearly impossible todistinguish the student instrumental-ists from the WSO professionals sur-rounding them.

“Stars of Tomorrow” was an apt titlefor the evening’s program, but the cali-ber of all the student performers provedits label a bit ironic. The ‘stars of today’who garnered top honors in the NewJersey Music Teachers Association(NJMTA) concerto competition werenothing short of awe-inspiring.

Ninth-grader Melissa Chan’s dexter-ity infused emotion into Ravel’s PianoConcerto in G, first movement. A pas-toral moment she shared with the

FFFFFoundation 432 Aoundation 432 Aoundation 432 Aoundation 432 Aoundation 432 Acts tocts tocts tocts tocts toBBBBBenefit FWenefit FWenefit FWenefit FWenefit FW’’’’’s Ms Ms Ms Ms Murphy Furphy Furphy Furphy Furphy Familyamilyamilyamilyamily

By LINDA B. CONDRILLOSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

FFFFFANWANWANWANWANWOOD — OOD — OOD — OOD — OOD — As reported in theApril 20 edition of Westfield Leaderand The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times,Paul Murphy, a surveyor from Fanwoodand beloved husband of Judy SingerMurphy, father of five and grandfatherof three, passed away in March. Abenefit concert in his honor was heldlast Saturday evening at the MillingtonBaptist Church, where Mr. Murphyhad been a member of the choir.

Words rarely come easily to thoseasked to describe a loved one who haspassed away. Music sometimes worksbetter. The family Mr. Murphy leftbehind has the good fortune of beingpart of an extensive group of friends,family and church members — manyof whom are musically inclined. At

the concert, acoustic guitarist andchildhood friend of Mr. Murphy’swidow Chip Mergott provided notonly consolation but also inspirationwhile playing a collection of Christianfolk songs.

Mr. Mergott, a singer-songwriter andproducer, was first to thank his sister,Carroll Owsinski, and Dean Pratt ofFanwood for organizing the benefit,which he would like to see become anannual event in honor of his friend.

Mr. Mergott told The Leader andthe Times, “Right after Paul passedaway, I said I’m available if anybodywants to do anything – which is easy tosay, but it was Dean Pratt and my sister,Carroll Owsinski, who were the realmotivators in getting it done. Beinghere and playing music is the easiestthing in the world to do for a friend’sfamily. Paul was a great man of faithand a shining example to many of us,and I’m honored to do this in hismemory.”

Mr. Pratt explained to the crowd,many of whom drove from afar despitethe elements, that the fund set up byMillington Baptist Church to assistfamilies in need, called Foundation432, has a special meaning. Mr. Prattsaid, “The ‘foundation’ for the founda-tion stems from Acts Chapter 4, Verse

32 (King James Version), which reads,‘And the multitude of them that be-lieved were of one heart and of onesoul: neither said any of them thatought of the things which he possessedwas his own; but they had all thingscommon.’”

In that spirit, Mr. Pratt told TheLeader and The Times, “The proceedsfrom the fund will help a family whohas had the breadwinner pass awayafter a very debilitating disease,” not-ing the financial expenses for main-taining a household as well as the costto educate the kids.

Initially set up as a fund to help thefamily of a boy from the parish suffer-ing from leukemia to help defer treat-ment costs, Foundation 432 is now setup with a separate sub-fund to benefitnot only the Murphys but also otherfamilies in need. Mr. Pratt noted, “Halfof the proceeds from the benefit con-cert will be divided between the Murphyfamily and another needy family.”

Jim Winder, also a singer-songwriterof Christian folk music, was on stagethroughout the evening performingselections from his CD “The Hard ButRight Way – a Pilgrim’s Journey,” whichwas largely inspired by John Bunyon’sclassic allegory “The Pilgrim’s Progress.”

Linda B Condrillo for The Westfield Leader and The TimesIN MEMORY…Chip Mergott, Jim Winder and Kimberly Winder pose at theMurphy Benefit Concert at the Millington Baptist Church last Saturday night.

By CHRISTIE STORMSSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

Ever step outside on one of the gor-geous spring days we’ve been havingand wish you could just bottle up thewarm sunshine, vibrant blossoms andgentle breezes to take back inside withyou? While I’m sure someone some-where has probably claimed to havedone this and is now selling it for aridiculous price on eBay, there are otherways to bring a touch of spring intoyour home.

Flowers can add an instant burst ofcolor and fragrance, but for ultimateimpact, try thinking outside the vase.

Jamie Burke of KaBloom in Westfieldrecommends floating Gerber daisies inwater over Oriental grasses in a globe-style bowl.

“It’s almost like a crystal-ball effect,and it’s so easy to take care of becausethe flowers are already floating in wa-ter,” Mr. Burke said. “You can even putflower additive and preservative in thereand it should last at least two weeks.”

Kurt Christoffers of ChristoffersFlowers in Mountainside said Ranun-culus flowers create a dramatic effectfloating in a bowl.

“They look like little tissue papercabbage roses,” Mr. Christoffers said.“They’re chubby blossoms with many,many petals and their colors range fromwhite to fuchsia to chartreuse, orangeand pastels. Try using a low, dark bowlwith bright flowers.”

Add Some SpringZing To Your Home

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Mr. Christoffers also added thatcontainers need not be traditionalplanters. “Try using an old souptureen or other serving bowl thatmaybe has a chip in it and is nolonger used for food. Add flowersand turn it into a special accent thatlooks much more personal than aplain vase.”

Lisa Mohn of Apple Blossom FlowerShop in Scotch Plains said, “You canput flowers in anything that can holdwater. Try old pitchers, creamers, ma-son jars and teapots.”

Lori Flowers of Scotchwood Floristin Fanwood cited a current trend wherepeople are doing away with containersaltogether.

“You can just layer some greens withindividual blooms like orchids directlyon your tablecloth in the dining room,”Ms. Flowers said. “Works great com-bined with small candles as a center-piece.”

And spring displays need not belimited to flowers.

“I’ve filled a row of little glass cubeswith stones and placed sprouts ofOriental grasses in them,” Mr. Burkesaid.

“There are also many types of vinesthat have become popular, such as onecalled a potato vine, which is brightchartreuse,” Mr. Christoffers explained.

“Mix greenery like ivy with someannuals to make topiaries,” Ms. Flow-ers said. “Use a wire frame in any shape,and the greens will grow into thatshape.”

Also keep in mind that spring flow-ers and plants need not be restricted totabletop displays.

Mr. Christoffers suggests, “You cantake a wicker wall basket and line itwith poly foil so you don’t damage yourporch or front door. Try filling it withivy and a blooming plant like NewGuinea Impatiens.”

While Mr. Christoffers cautionedthat caring for a wall basket long-term

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ROLL OUT THE ROYAL CARPET… ‘Prince George,’ also known as GeorgeMinnium of Scotch Plains, left, reads “Puss and Boots” to first-grader Anuva Goelof Piscataway on Fairy Tale Day at The Wardlaw-Hartridge School. The annualevent crowns the first graders for a day and allows the fourth graders to dress incostume to present classic tales to the little ones.