Category: North Arlington

sewer-repair-sewer-replacement-sewer-installation-north-arlington-nj

Posted on

Ridgewood High School Post strong showing for the 2012 All-Suburban cross-country first teams

RHS_Stadium_bike_theridgewoodblog.net

Ridgewood High School’s Ryan Neville and Nick Salamone made the 2012 All-Suburban boys cross-country first team

Ridgewood NJ, Both Ridgewood High School’s Ryan Neville and Nick Salamone made the 2012 All-Suburban boys cross-country first team. NMaing Ridgewood the only school beside Don Bosco to have two or more runners on the squad.

RYAN NEVILLE, Ridgewood — This junior proved to be a perfect complement to the Maroon lineup, scoring valuable points as his team continued its winning ways with a third straight state-sectional title. His personal ledger included a 31st at the Bowdoin Invitational, a 10th in the Maroon Invitational Groups 3-4 race and a 55th in the Shore Invitational C race.

Neville opened the postseason with an 18th in the Big North Freedom Division. A 14th in the Bergen A championships and a seventh in the North 1, Group 4 meet preceded a 14th at the BMOC and a 45th in the State Group 4 finals.

NICK SALAMONE, Ridgewood — After being named to the second team in 2010 and 2011, a strong senior campaign helped him move up to the elite unit this year. He was fifth at the Bowdoin Invitational, then won the Maroon Invitational Groups 3-4 race and ran 13th in the Shore Invitational C race before starting the final month with a sixth in the Big North Freedom Division.

Salamone was third in the Bergen A meet and came through with a win in the North 1, Group 4 meet to lead the Maroons to the team championship. After a seventh in the BMOC, he was 16th in the State Group 4 finals and, given a wild card into the SMOC, he placed 24th in his final high school race.

https://www.northjersey.com/sports/184378641_The_Ridgewood_News_All-Suburban_Boys_Cross-Country_Teams.html?c=y&page=2

4 from Ridgewood High School named to 2012 All-Suburban girls cross-country

Ridgewood NJ , The Ridgewood High School was well represented 2012 All-Suburban girls cross-country , with 10 Ridgewood High School women named for the 2012 All-Suburban girls cross-country .

KELLY CLEARY, Ridgewood — It was a consistent season for the sophomore, who will be a major contributor in 2013. She finished 39th at the Bowdoin Invitational before winning her first major race, the Ridgewood Invitational.

Cleary’s postseason started with a ninth in the Big North championships and a sixth at the Bergen A meet. Her 12th-place finish in the North 1, Group 4 meet and an 18th in the BMOC preceded a 57th in the State Group 4 finals that ended her season a step short of the State Meet of Champions (SMOC).

EMILY FISHBEIN, Ridgewood — The Maroons’ annual success is based on the depth of their lineup, and this junior helped her team to four major-meet team titles, including their 26th Bergen Meet of Champions crown.

Individually, Fishbein was 30th at the Bowdoin Invitational and 16th at the Big North championships, followed by and a personal best of fifth in the Bergen A race. She placed 10th in the North 1, Group 4 meet and 12th in the BMOC before closing her campaign with a 105th in the State Group 4 meet.

CATHERINE PAGANO, Ridgewood — After a freshman campaign that was derailed by a stress fracture, this sophomore came back stronger than ever and was the consensus leader of the Maroons. She ran fifth at the Bowdoin Invitational and was second in the Shore Invitational championship race before embarking on the postseason with a third at the Big North meet.

Pagano placed second at the Bergen A meet, then won the North 1, Group 4 title. she took third in both the BMOC and the State Group 4 finals before closing the year with a 15th-place showing in the SMOC, the highest finish by a sophomore in the state.

LAURA WEISBERGER, Ridgewood — This junior continued to get stronger as the fall wore on, solidifying her presence in the lineup as the postseason began.

Overcoming a stress fracture in the early going, Weisberger got things going with an 11th-place finish in the Big North championships and followed that with a third in the Bergen A meet. After finishing eighth in the North 1, Group 4 race, she ran a 25th in the BMOC and a 53rd in the State Group 4 finals, missing out on the SMOC.

and FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR:

SAM HALVORSEN, Ridgewood — Year in and year out, there seems to be a solid freshman runner on the Maroon squad, and this rookie can stand with the best of them. She ran nine races and finished in the top five in every one, beginning with fourth-place outings in both the Season Opener and the Darlington freshman meets as well as the Ridgewood Invitational.

Halvorsen followed with a pair of second-place finishes in the Maroon Invitational freshman race and the Brett Taylor freshman run. She then ripped off four straight winning performances, beginning with the Big North freshman race and continuing with the Bergen County freshman and the Doc Braver junior varsity races. She closed the season with a victory at the State JV/Freshman Championship Meet.

https://www.northjersey.com/sports/184378731_The_Ridgewood_News_All-Suburban_Girls_Cross-Country_Teams.html?c=y&page=2

 

Posted on

Concrete not the way to go at Graydon

Graydon Crowded baby beach water 2012 theridgewoodblog.net

Concrete not the way to go at Graydon

To the Editor:

What parent hasn’t said or thought, “Am I talking to the wall?”

For years we have urged the Village Council to appoint an expert task force to explore creative, minimally invasive, fiscally responsible ways to comply with Americans with Disabilities “Act guidelines to enhance accessibility into Graydon, with the first step a community needs assessment.

Not done. Now the passage of time is being used by Mayor Aronsohn as a driving force for a request for proposals leading to a $95,000-plus contract for a gigantic concrete ramp into the deep end that will destroy Graydon as we know it: the sight lines, the natural appearance, the ever-shrinking swimming area, part of the beach.

Being ignored:

• Graydon patrons have repeatedly stated that a gigantic ramp would co-opt too much swimming area, with seniors refusing to walk 40 to 60 feet to get into the water, yet their fictional enthusiasm for the ramp was the basis of Ridgewood’s successful application for a county block grant;

• The proposed ramp has been sharply criticized by architects, engineers, recreational therapy professionals, and those who would welcome easier entry into the water, including people using wheelchairs;

• Children and most physically challenged adults could/would not use a ramp into the 12-foot area;

• The ramp would block the spillway and be littered with slippery detritus;
• Neither entry to the premises (the No. 1 ADA priority) nor the bathrooms are ADA compliant;

• ADA does not require a ramp and barely mentions sandy-bottom pools, encouraging creative solutions sensitive to the setting – even Darlington County Park has no such ramp;

• Paving exacerbates flooding, a particular danger in the flood hazard area where Graydon and many homes and public buildings are located.

When we raise legitimate concerns about the ramp and propose alternatives, we are accused of disliking the disabled. Yet we have been the only group to thoroughly research the issue, interview experts, and locate appropriate products, such as a hydraulic lift off the T-dock with the “bridge” section widened – a fine use for the “concrete-only” $55,000 grant.

Last spring we supported the candidacy of Albert Pucciarelli, who led us to believe that he loved and understood Graydon. He encouraged the Planning Board to add Graydon to Ridgewood’s list of historic sites. Although we’d shared our concerns about the ramp, and his campaign mailing stated “No more concrete,” he now says he meant only that a concrete pool was unacceptable – a proposition that was already history.

Next Wednesday the mayor and the two council members who often join him as a voting majority are likely to approve building the ramp in the spring. They won’t mind spending at least $40,000 in municipal monies – originally $16,000 – having just floated a $3.8-million-plus bond and facing over $1.2 million in storm cleanup, not all reimbursable by FEMA.

Each council, the steward of natural beauty we have inherited, determines what future generations may enjoy. Meet the Ridgewood Parking Lot. Schedler, you’re next.

Marcia Ringel

Co-Chair

The Preserve Graydon Coalition

https://www.northjersey.com/news/opinions/181550261_Letter__Concrete_not_the_way_to_go_at_Graydon.html?c=y&page=1

Posted on

Democrats took control on a platform of fiscal responsibility and cost controls

County Courthouse

Democrats took control on a platform of fiscal responsibility and cost controls

Democrats name next Bergen County freeholder chairman
Friday, November 30, 2012    Last updated: Friday November 30, 2012, 4:36 PM
BY  JOHN C. ENSSLIN
STAFF WRITER
The Record

Bergen County Freeholder David Ganz has agreed to serve as the next chairman when Democrats take control of the board in January.

Ganz, a Fair Lawn Democrat who is the senior freeholder with 10 years on the board, confirmed Friday that his Democratic colleagues have tapped him to serve as chairman and that Freeholder Joan Voss of Fort Lee to serve as vice-chairwoman.

“I hope that 2013 is a year of bipartisanship, of lower taxes and hard work by all the freeholders on the behalf of the people of Bergen County,” said Ganz, who has served longer than any Democrat in the history of the board.

The Democrats regained control of the board for the first time in two years with a 4-3 majority as a result of the Nov. 6 election of Tracy Silna Zur of Franklin Lakes and Steve Tanelli of North Arlington.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/Democrats_name_next_Bergen_County_freeholder_chairman.html

Posted on

‘Smart’ traffic signals may ease traffic backups

GT shutterstock traffic+light

‘Smart’ traffic signals may ease traffic backups
Oct. 7, 2012, 12:11 p.m. EDT
The Record (Woodland Park, N.J.)

NORTH ARLINGTON, N.J. (AP) — Within a two-mile radius of where Schuyler Avenue and Belleville Turnpike intersect in North Arlington, drivers confront day-to-day traffic backups at stop lights and road-construction projects on roads built before World War II.

With bends and single-lane stretches, they are among the region’s busiest roadways, passing industrial zones, strip malls and apartments, leaving little room for widening or straightening to ease congestion.

To improve flow, Meadowlands region officials are turning to a new sort of traffic signal that can sense traffic jams, communicate with other “smart” traffic lights and automatically clear up congestion.

The project — called Meadowlands Adaptive Signal System for Traffic Reduction — an innovative network that includes cameras, computerized radios and sensors that will adjust the timing of traffic signals — began construction last year in Secaucus.

Once the system is up and running, it should cut travel time on historically congested roads and save on fuel consumption.

https://www.nj.com/newsflash/index.ssf/story/smart-traffic-signals-may-ease-traffic-backups/1151a27a8ea74621acf38e7f41600664

Posted on

PSE&G rate payer subsidies for solar energy hits home

PSEGSolar theridgewoodblog

PSE&G rate payer subsidies for solar energy hits home
September 9,2012
the staff of theRidgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ ,A month ago when Governor Chris Christie signed into law S1925/A2966. This law directs the electric utilities in the state like PSE&G to increase the amount of electricity they supply to their customers from solar panel generation. By signing this law the Governor basically created a solar subsidy.

Public Service Electric and Gas (PSE&G) runs a program known as Solar 4 AllTM Program. This is the program that gave the state those controversial telephone pole solar panels that have been so hotly debated on this blog .PSE&G also uses this program to fund solar panel farms
which the Governor spoke at a groundbreaking event celebrating the start of construction at the PSE&G Solar Farm in Hackensack, July of this year.

Like may of you I’ve been waiting for the punch line and wondering ,sounds great but how is PSE&G going to fund more projects like these? The answer it seems is a simple one PSE&G simply asked for rate increases from the Board of Public Utilities (BPU).

In the rate increase announcement, PSE&G emphasized, like the Governor did before that the jobs that this $800 million plus rate increase would create.According to the company the number of jobs is 300 which translates into each job costing $2,943,333.00 to create.That still better than n the first phase of Solar 4 All, when the company spent about $550 million and created 175 jobs.at $3,142,857.00 per job.( www.https://conservativenewjersey.com)

Screwing the rate payer in New Jersey is hardly a news worthy item now a days but the best part is that other politicians will also be paying the price. Many local elected officials have come to realized that any increase in utility rates will affect town budgets with the 2% cap on budgets, the increases could further pressure many towns and municipalities.

Westwood Mayor John Birkner: “We’ve got a serious mandate to maintain our budgets, and unfortunately increases coming from utilities are over 2 percent,” Birkner said.

From the town council in Glen Rock: “The Borough of Glen Rock finds it disingenuous that now PSE&G will raise the rates of its residents to subsidize the cost of installing those same solar panels that are supposed to, by their own admission, bring monetized value to their customers,” the resolution reads.

The Borough of Hillsdale had this to say: WHEREAS, the Borough of Hillsdale finds it abhorrent that PSE&G is expecting its residential customers to finance a loan program for its business customers;

North Arlington weighs in with this: If it’s true that the rate increase is due to the solar panel programs, the initial pitch for Solar 4 All as being a cost-saving measure was misleading, North Arlington officials claimed.

And from Fair Lawn this one comes from a councilwoman who isn’t the brightest blub on the string: “I just feel as much as I support solar energy,” said Councilwoman Lisa Swain at the council work session on Aug. 14, “taxpayers should not pay.” (https://conservativenewjersey.com)

So are some elected officials actually waking up and realizing just what a farce these programs are? One would hope so but could other forces be at work against the small town politicians.

 

sources: https://conservativenewjersey.com , https://www.pseg.com/info/media/index.jsp

Posted on

This week in golf: Peter Repetto of Ridgewood among local golfers teeing off in “Ike” qualifiers

tn Peter Repetto with Johnson Wagner theridgewoodblog.net

photo from https://www.caddyforacure.com/past_winners.php?CategoryID=15&MenuID=28

This week in golf: Peter Repetto of Ridgewood among local golfers teeing off in “Ike” qualifiers

MONDAY, MAY 28, 2012
BY GREG MATTURA
STAFF WRITER
THE RECORD

Adam Kugler, low amateur at this month’s New Jersey Senior Open, heads the cast of North Jerseyans trying to qualify this week for the Ike MGA Stroke Play Championship.

Kugler, who plays out of Alpine Country Club in Demarest and last week qualified for the State Amateur, is among 10 locals teeing off at Tuesday’s Ike qualifier at Paramount in New City, N.Y.

He will be joined by Matt Finger of Darlington, Phil Fabrizio of Knickerbocker and Jeffrey Alecci of Hackensack.

Also competing are Luke Edelman and Justin Link of North Jersey, Alex Navarro of Apple Ridge, Peter Repetto of Ridgewood, Peter Elfers of Hackensack, and Jin Jeon of MGA eClub.

https://www.northjersey.com/sports/154951975_Kugler_leads_Ike_hopefuls.html

Posted on

>Payouts for unused sick days vary in North Jersey towns

>Payouts for unused sick days vary in North Jersey towns


Here’s a breakdown of data provided by Christie’s office for the obligation in each town in Bergen County:

Allendale – no obligation

Alpine – total obligation, $850,523.00; obligation per taxpayer, $1,169.46

Bergenfield – total obligation, $701,579.00; obligation per taxpayer, $83.44

Bogota – total obligation, $398,360.00; obligation per taxpayer, $162.76

Carlstadt – no obligation

Cliffside Park – total obligation, $100,000.00; obligation per taxpayer, $13.27

Closter – total obligation, $1,704,092.00; obligation per taxpayer, $549.02

Cresskill – total obligation, $319,192.00; obligation per taxpayer, $107.24

East Rutherford – total obligation, $1,101,518.00; obligation per taxpayer, $172.98

Edgewater – total obligation, $1,480,618.00; obligation per taxpayer, $266.69

Elmwood – total obligation, $2,004,685.00; obligation per taxpayer, $324.27

Emerson – total obligation, $400,926.00; obligation per taxpayer, $148.38

Englewood – total obligation, $5,353,655.00; obligation per taxpayer, $576.40

Englewood Cliffs – total obligation, $2,150,583.00; obligation per taxpayer, $793.98

Demarest – no obligation

Dumont – no obligation

Fair Lawn – total obligation, $1,635,758.00; obligation per taxpayer, $132.70

Fairview – total obligation, $1,473,045.00; obligation per taxpayer, $444.53

Fort Lee – total obligation, $9,225,587.00; obligation per taxpayer, $706.40

Franklin Lakes – no obligation

Garfield – total obligation, $2,692,885.00; obligation per taxpayer, $373.63

Glen Rock – total obligation, $1,004,087.00; obligation per taxpayer, $238.49

Hackensack – total obligation, $18,875,368.00; obligation per taxpayer, $1,030.51

Harrington Park – total obligation, $594,486.00; obligation per taxpayer, $356.08

Hasbrouck Heights – total obligation, $237,175.00; obligation per taxpayer, $55.77

Haworth – total obligation, $489,559.00; obligation per taxpayer, $370.61

Hillsdale – total obligation, $201,417.78; obligation per taxpayer, $56.48

Ho-Ho-Kus – total obligation, $1,283,024.58; obligation per taxpayer, $847.04

Leonia – total obligation, $551,626.93; obligation per taxpayer, $195.06

Little Ferry – total obligation, $227,896.00; obligation per taxpayer, $66.81

Lodi – no obligation

Lyndhurst – no obligation

Mahwah – total obligation, $2,033,561.94; obligation per taxpayer, $175.99

Maywood – total obligation, $140,840.00; obligation per taxpayer, $40.81

Midland Park – no obligation

Montvale – total obligation, $468,626.00; obligation per taxpayer, $129.63

Moonachie – total obligation, $552,913.00; obligation per taxpayer, $272.68

New Milford – total obligation, $2,738,820.00; obligation per taxpayer, $578.04

North Arlington – total obligation, $80,000.00; obligation per taxpayer, $17.53

Northvale – total obligation, $847,361.00; obligation per taxpayer, $402.78

Norwood – total obligation, $282,132.00; obligation per taxpayer, $135.63

Oakland – no obligation

Old Tappan – no obligation

Oradell – no obligation

Palisades Park – total obligation, $1,591,795.00; obligation per taxpayer, $328.29

Paramus – total obligation, $575,800.00; obligation per taxpayer, $38.45

Park Ridge – total obligation, $772,804.00; obligation per taxpayer, $230.36

Ramsey – total obligation, $2,425,192.27; obligation per taxpayer, $373.12

Ridgefield – no obligation

Ridgefield Park – total obligation, $678,973.00; obligation per taxpayer, $157.71

Ridgewood – total obligation, $7,203,566.23; obligation per taxpayer, $861.41

River Edge – total obligation, $733,050.20; obligation per taxpayer, $197.51

River Vale – total obligation, $1.00; obligation per taxpayer, $0.00

Rochelle Park – no obligation

Rockleigh – no obligation

Rutherford – total obligation, $3,620,854.00; obligation per taxpayer, $569.54

 Saddle Brook – total obligation, $1,295,495.00; obligation per taxpayer, $202.96

Saddle River – total obligation, $412,800.00; obligation per taxpayer, $318.05

South Hackensack – total obligation, $539,525.00; obligation per taxpayer, $320.47

Teaneck – total obligation, $4,379,922.16; obligation per taxpayer, $335.08

Tenafly – no obligation

Teterboro – total obligation, $94,299.77; obligation per taxpayer, $42.01

Upper Saddle River – total obligation, $986,895.00; obligation per taxpayer, $338.73

Waldwick – total obligation, $1,214,624.00; obligation per taxpayer, $324.61

Wallington – no obligation

Washington – total obligation, $567,071.00; obligation per taxpayer, $162.59

Westwood – – total obligation, $1,060,665.00; obligation per taxpayer, $247.79

Woodcliff Lake – no obligation

Wood-Ridge – total obligation, $1,417,724.00; obligation per taxpayer, $425.22

Wyckoff – no obligation

https://blog.northjersey.com/thesource/1768/payouts-for-unused-sick-days-vary-in-north-jersey-towns/

Posted on

>Kathleen A. Donovan : To suggest that the County is providing $400 million of public funds for the American Dream development in the Meadowlands is an outright lie

>November 3, 2011

Senator Robert M. Gordon
14-25 Plaza Road
P.O. Box 398
Fair Lawn, NJ 07410

Dear Senator:

You are running a campaign television commercial which irresponsibly misrepresents the County’s role and support for the region’s most significant economic development and job creating initiative.

To suggest that the County is providing $400 million of public funds for the American Dream development in the Meadowlands is an outright lie.  You know it.  But in your rush to pander to voters who rejected your party last year because of irresponsible bonding and borrowing practices you have evidently allowed your personal ambition to cloud good judgment.

To be clear, the County is not putting taxpayers at risk. Freeholder Chairman John Driscoll and I are in total agreement on this.  In fact, there is no proposal to provide taxpayer funds for this most worthwhile project.  Your commercial is a lie and should be immediately pulled.  You should apologize to the voters for misleading them and to Mr. Driscoll for purposely misrepresenting his record.

I support construction of American Dream.  It will provide over 9,000 construction jobs and some 15,000 permanent jobs with an economic ripple that will reach throughout the County.  For your information, unemployment in Bergen County is now nearly 10 percent and unemployment in the construction trades is a whopping 40 percent.  Your irresponsible action could jeopardize the greatest employment opportunity in not only Bergen County but throughout northern New Jersey.  You should apologize to these residents for undermining their opportunity to support themselves and their families.

I note that you stood by as a member of the State Senate and allowed private developers like EnCap to plunder Bergen County taxpayers by misusing tens of millions of dollars of public funds.  That scam, supported by Democrat administrations in Trenton and Bergen County, left a number of communities including Lyndhurst, North Arlington and Rutherford in total fiscal disarray. Local taxpayers will be paying for your silence for decades.  Moreover, you were silent when the Democrat administration that Bergen County voters kicked out of office last year doubled the County’s debt and borrowed over $100 million to complete one park — at least $70 million more than what was needed.  For this you owe every taxpayer in Bergen County an apology.

Let me be very clear.  Bergen County has not and will not commit to any taxpayer funds for this or any other private sector project.  Moreover, we have not been asked to do so by the developer. We will, however, assist wherever possible to make this project a reality.  Freeholder Chairman Driscoll joins me in that commitment.

American Dream will be an economic generator which will reverse the downturn that has hit so many Bergen County families.  It will be completed in spite of your irresponsible action and without taxpayer funding.  It deserves all of our support.

Sincerely,

Kathleen A. Donovan
Bergen County Executive

Posted on

>History of Memorial Day

>
Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation’s service. There are many stories as to its actual beginnings, with over two dozen cities and towns laying claim to being the birthplace of Memorial Day. There is also evidence that organized women’s groups in the South were decorating graves before the end of the Civil War: a hymn published in 1867, “Kneel Where Our Loves are Sleeping” by Nella L. Sweet carried the dedication “To The Ladies of the South who are Decorating the Graves of the Confederate Dead” (Source: Duke University’s Historic American Sheet Music, 1850-1920). While Waterloo N.Y. was officially declared the birthplace of Memorial Day by President Lyndon Johnson in May 1966, it’s difficult to prove conclusively the origins of the day. It is more likely that it had many separate beginnings; each of those towns and every planned or spontaneous gathering of people to honor the war dead in the 1860’s tapped into the general human need to honor our dead, each contributed honorably to the growing movement that culminated in Gen Logan giving his official proclamation in 1868. It is not important who was the very first, what is important is that Memorial Day was established. Memorial Day is not about division. It is about reconciliation; it is about coming together to honor those who gave their all.

Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11, and was first observed on 30 May 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. The first state to officially recognize the holiday was New York in 1873. By 1890 it was recognized by all of the northern states. The South refused to acknowledge the day, honoring their dead on separate days until after World War I (when the holiday changed from honoring just those who died fighting in the Civil War to honoring Americans who died fighting in any war). It is now celebrated in almost every State on the last Monday in May (passed by Congress with the National Holiday Act of 1971 (P.L. 90 – 363) to ensure a three day weekend for Federal holidays), though several southern states have an additional separate day for honoring the Confederate war dead: January 19 in Texas, April 26 in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi; May 10 in South Carolina; and June 3 (Jefferson Davis’ birthday) in Louisiana and Tennessee.

In 1915, inspired by the poem “In Flanders Fields,” Moina Michael replied with her own poem:

We cherish too, the Poppy red
That grows on fields where valor led,
It seems to signal to the skies
That blood of heroes never dies.

She then conceived of an idea to wear red poppies on Memorial day in honor of those who died serving the nation during war. She was the first to wear one, and sold poppies to her friends and co-workers with the money going to benefit servicemen in need. Later a Madam Guerin from France was visiting the United States and learned of this new custom started by Ms.Michael and when she returned to France, made artificial red poppies to raise money for war orphaned children and widowed women. This tradition spread to other countries. In 1921, the Franco-American Children’s League sold poppies nationally to benefit war orphans of France and Belgium. The League disbanded a year later and Madam Guerin approached the VFW for help. Shortly before Memorial Day in 1922 the VFW became the first veterans’ organization to nationally sell poppies. Two years later their “Buddy” Poppy program was selling artificial poppies made by disabled veterans. In 1948 the US Post Office honored Ms Michael for her role in founding the National Poppy movement by issuing a red 3 cent postage stamp with her likeness on it.

https://www.usmemorialday.org/backgrnd.html

  Bookmark and Share

Posted on

>Have State, Bergen Dems hit rock bottom?

>Have State, Bergen Dems hit rock bottom?

Party needs leadership and unity if they are to take on the likes of Christie, Donovan and a rejuvenated GOP!

https://natoday.net/havestatebergendems.html

Sometimes things have to go badly before they get better.

In the case of the Bergen County Democratic party, the meteoric rise to power under the leadership of former county chairman Joe Ferriero has been literally wiped clean in two election cycles as county Republicans have won five freeholder seats, the county executive and the office of sheriff!

Democrats have been reduced to just two of the five seats on the seven-member board of freeholders and now hold only one of the three constitutional offices with incumbent Surrogate Mike Dressler.

At the legislative level, Governor Chris Christie is making an all out effort to reduce the number of Democrats in the legislature and districts 36, 37 and 38 are prime targets of Republican redistricting should they control the map in the next cycle.

A Republican-authored map in all probability could wipeout incumbents Paul Sarlo and Robert Gordon in the senate as well as assembly members Connie Wagner, Joan Voss, Gary Schaer and newly appointed Nutley assemblyman Kevin Ryan.

To Sarlo’s credit, he has secured a seat on the commission but his presence does little to ensure what map will ultimately be put in place by the courts.

Too make matters worse, the federal census has determined New Jersey will lose a congressional seat and thus an electoral vote come the 2012 presidential elections.

In effect you have thirteen incumbents seeking re-election in just twelve districts.

Congressman Steve Rothman of Englewood, long a friend to North Arlington Democrats could be a casualty of GOP gerrymandering and could find himself seeking re-election in another district against a neighboring incumbent such as Democrat Bill Pascrell or Scott Garrett, a conservative Republican.

more : https://natoday.net/havestatebergendems.html

Bookmark and Share

Posted on

>Ridgewood Knights Distribute "Shake the Can" Proceeds

>

A+Ridgewood+resident+makes+a+donation

Event+Organizer+Mike+Dougherty

Ridgewood Knights of Columbus Distribute “Shake the Can” Proceeds

Ridgewood-NJ-November 8, 2010: The Ridgewood Knights of Columbus Council #1736 is pleased to announce that the following organizations have received donations generated from the annual “Shake the Can to Help Handicapped Citizens” fundraiser:

– Alfa Development, Inc., Paramus, NJ
– Camp Sunshine, Ridgewood, NJ
– Archdiocese of Newark, Ministry for Persons with Disabilities, Newark, NJ
– Friends to Friends (First Reformed Church), Ridgewood, NJ
– Spectrum for Living, River Vale, NJ
– Putting the Pieces Together, North Arlington, NJ

The Knights are easily recognizable in their yellow vests, working the sidewalks and intersections throughout the village every Spring for this annual event. “This three day event is one of our main fundraisers throughout the year, and we thank everyone in the community for helping out”, said Mike Dougherty, organizer of the annual event.

“Charity is one of the main pillars of our organization”, said Peter Bernardo, Chair of the Ridgewood Knights donations committee. “Performing good works for our community is what we do”, Bernardo said.

Bookmark and Share

Posted on

>Memorial Day History

>

Three years after the Civil War ended, on May 5, 1868, the head of an organization of Union veterans — the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) — established Decoration Day as a time for the nation to decorate the graves of the war dead with flowers. Maj. Gen. John A. Logan declared that Decoration Day should be observed on May 30. It is believed that date was chosen because flowers would be in bloom all over the country.

The first large observance was held that year at Arlington National Cemetery, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C.

The ceremonies centered around the mourning-draped veranda of the Arlington mansion, once the home of Gen. Robert E. Lee. Various Washington officials, including Gen. and Mrs. Ulysses S. Grant, presided over the ceremonies. After speeches, children from the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Orphan Home and members of the GAR made their way through the cemetery, strewing flowers on both Union and Confederate graves, reciting prayers and singing hymns.

Local Observances Claim To Be First Local springtime tributes to the Civil War dead already had been held in various places. One of the first occurred in Columbus, Miss., April 25, 1866, when a group of women visited a cemetery to decorate the graves of Confederate soldiers who had fallen in battle at Shiloh. Nearby were the graves of Union soldiers, neglected because they were the enemy. Disturbed at the sight of the bare graves, the women placed some of their flowers on those graves, as well.

Today, cities in the North and the South claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day in 1866. Both Macon and Columbus, Ga., claim the title, as well as Richmond, Va. The village of Boalsburg, Pa., claims it began there two years earlier. A stone in a Carbondale, Ill., cemetery carries the statement that the first Decoration Day ceremony took place there on April 29, 1866. Carbondale was the wartime home of Gen. Logan. Approximately 25 places have been named in connection with the origin of Memorial Day, many of them in the South where most of the war dead were buried.

Official Birthplace Declared In 1966, Congress and President Lyndon Johnson declared Waterloo, N.Y., the “birthplace” of Memorial Day. There, a ceremony on May 5, 1866, honored local veterans who had fought in the Civil War. Businesses closed and residents flew flags at half-staff. Supporters of Waterloo’s claim say earlier observances in other places were either informal, not community-wide or one-time events.

By the end of the 19th century, Memorial Day ceremonies were being held on May 30 throughout the nation. State legislatures passed proclamations designating the day, and the Army and Navy adopted regulations for proper observance at their facilities.

It was not until after World War I, however, that the day was expanded to honor those who have died in all American wars. In 1971, Memorial Day was declared a national holiday by an act of Congress, though it is still often called Decoration Day. It was then also placed on the last Monday in May, as were some other federal holidays.

Some States Have Confederate Observances Many Southern states also have their own days for honoring the Confederate dead. Mississippi celebrates Confederate Memorial Day on the last Monday of April, Alabama on the fourth Monday of April, and Georgia on April 26. North and South Carolina observe it on May 10, Louisiana on June 3 and Tennessee calls that date Confederate Decoration Day. Texas celebrates Confederate Heroes Day January 19 and Virginia calls the last Monday in May Confederate Memorial Day.

Gen. Logan’s order for his posts to decorate graves in 1868 “with the choicest flowers of springtime” urged: “We should guard their graves with sacred vigilance. … Let pleasant paths invite the coming and going of reverent visitors and fond mourners. Let no neglect, no ravages of time, testify to the present or to the coming generations that we have forgotten as a people the cost of a free and undivided republic.”

The crowd attending the first Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery was approximately the same size as those that attend today’s observance, about 5,000 people. Then, as now, small American flags were placed on each grave — a tradition followed at many national cemeteries today. In recent years, the custom has grown in many families to decorate the graves of all departed loved ones.

The origins of special services to honor those who die in war can be found in antiquity. The Athenian leader Pericles offered a tribute to the fallen heroes of the Peloponnesian War over 24 centuries ago that could be applied today to the 1.1 million Americans who have died in the nation’s wars: “Not only are they commemorated by columns and inscriptions, but there dwells also an unwritten memorial of them, graven not on stone but in the hearts of men.”

To ensure the sacrifices of America ’s fallen heroes are never forgotten, in December 2000, the U.S. Congress passed and the president signed into law “The National Moment of Remembrance Act,” P.L. 106-579, creating the White House Commission on the National Moment of Remembrance. The commission’s charter is to “encourage the people of the United States to give something back to their country, which provides them so much freedom and opportunity” by encouraging and coordinating commemorations in the United States of Memorial Day and the National Moment of Remembrance.

The National Moment of Remembrance encourages all Americans to pause wherever they are at 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day for a minute of silence to remember and honor those who have died in service to the nation. As Moment of Remembrance founder Carmella LaSpada states: “It’s a way we can all help put the memorial back in Memorial Day.”

Bookmark and Share

show?id=mjvuF8ceKoQ&bids=146261

Posted on

>A History of Memorial Day

>462425589 152e35a275
https://www.usmemorialday.org/backgrnd.html

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation’s service. There are many stories as to its actual beginnings, with over two dozen cities and towns laying claim to being the birthplace of Memorial Day. There is also evidence that organized women’s groups in the South were decorating graves before the end of the Civil War: a hymn published in 1867, “Kneel Where Our Loves are Sleeping” by Nella L. Sweet carried the dedication “To The Ladies of the South who are Decorating the Graves of the Confederate Dead” (Source: Duke University’s Historic American Sheet Music, 1850-1920). While Waterloo N.Y. was officially declared the birthplace of Memorial Day by President Lyndon Johnson in May 1966, it’s difficult to prove conclusively the origins of the day. It is more likely that it had many separate beginnings; each of those towns and every planned or spontaneous gathering of people to honor the war dead in the 1860’s tapped into the general human need to honor our dead, each contributed honorably to the growing movement that culminated in Gen Logan giving his official proclamation in 1868. It is not important who was the very first, what is important is that Memorial Day was established. Memorial Day is not about division. It is about reconciliation; it is about coming together to honor those who gave their all.

General John A. Logan
Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, [LC-B8172- 6403 DLC (b&w film neg.)]

Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11, and was first observed on 30 May 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. The first state to officially recognize the holiday was New York in 1873. By 1890 it was recognized by all of the northern states. The South refused to acknowledge the day, honoring their dead on separate days until after World War I (when the holiday changed from honoring just those who died fighting in the Civil War to honoring Americans who died fighting in any war). It is now celebrated in almost every State on the last Monday in May (passed by Congress with the National Holiday Act of 1971 (P.L. 90 – 363) to ensure a three day weekend for Federal holidays), though several southern states have an additional separate day for honoring the Confederate war dead: January 19 in Texas, April 26 in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi; May 10 in South Carolina; and June 3 (Jefferson Davis’ birthday) in Louisiana and Tennessee.

In 1915, inspired by the poem “In Flanders Fields,” Moina Michael replied with her own poem:

We cherish too, the Poppy red
That grows on fields where valor led,
It seems to signal to the skies
That blood of heroes never dies.

She then conceived of an idea to wear red poppies on Memorial day in honor of those who died serving the nation during war. She was the first to wear one, and sold poppies to her friends and co-workers with the money going to benefit servicemen in need. Later a Madam Guerin from France was visiting the United States and learned of this new custom started by Ms.Michael and when she returned to France, made artificial red poppies to raise money for war orphaned children and widowed women. This tradition spread to other countries. In 1921, the Franco-American Children’s League sold poppies nationally to benefit war orphans of France and Belgium. The League disbanded a year later and Madam Guerin approached the VFW for help. Shortly before Memorial Day in 1922 the VFW became the first veterans’ organization to nationally sell poppies. Two years later their “Buddy” Poppy program was selling artificial poppies made by disabled veterans. In 1948 the US Post Office honored Ms Michael for her role in founding the National Poppy movement by issuing a red 3 cent postage stamp with her likeness on it.
Traditional observance of Memorial day has diminished over the years. Many Americans nowadays have forgotten the meaning and traditions of Memorial Day. At many cemeteries, the graves of the fallen are increasingly ignored, neglected. Most people no longer remember the proper flag etiquette for the day. While there are towns and cities that still hold Memorial Day parades, many have not held a parade in decades. Some people think the day is for honoring any and all dead, and not just those fallen in service to our country.

There are a few notable exceptions. Since the late 50’s on the Thursday before Memorial Day, the 1,200 soldiers of the 3d U.S. Infantry place small American flags at each of the more than 260,000 gravestones at Arlington National Cemetery. They then patrol 24 hours a day during the weekend to ensure that each flag remains standing. In 1951, the Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts of St. Louis began placing flags on the 150,000 graves at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery as an annual Good Turn, a practice that continues to this day. More recently, beginning in 1998, on the Saturday before the observed day for Memorial Day, the Boys Scouts and Girl Scouts place a candle at each of approximately 15,300 grave sites of soldiers buried at Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park on Marye’s Heights (the Luminaria Program). And in 2004, Washington D.C. held its first Memorial Day parade in over 60 years.

To help re-educate and remind Americans of the true meaning of Memorial Day, the “National Moment of Remembrance” resolution was passed on Dec 2000 which asks that at 3 p.m. local time, for all Americans “To voluntarily and informally observe in their own way a Moment of remembrance and respect, pausing from whatever they are doing for a moment of silence or listening to ‘Taps.”

The Moment of Remembrance is a step in the right direction to returning the meaning back to the day. What is needed is a full return to the original day of observance. Set aside one day out of the year for the nation to get together to remember, reflect and honor those who have given their all in service to their country.

But what may be needed to return the solemn, and even sacred, spirit back to Memorial Day is for a return to its traditional day of observance. Many feel that when Congress made the day into a three-day weekend in with the National Holiday Act of 1971, it made it all the easier for people to be distracted from the spirit and meaning of the day. As the VFW stated in its 2002 Memorial Day address: “Changing the date merely to create three-day weekends has undermined the very meaning of the day. No doubt, this has contributed greatly to the general public’s nonchalant observance of Memorial Day.”

On January 19, 1999 Senator Inouye introduced bill S 189 to the Senate which proposes to restore the traditional day of observance of Memorial Day back to May 30th instead of “the last Monday in May”. On April 19, 1999 Representative Gibbons introduced the bill to the House (H.R. 1474). The bills were referred the Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee on Government Reform.

https://www.usmemorialday.org/backgrnd.html