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A Letter from Katie

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A Letter from Katie

March 6, 2014

Dear GWMS Parents and Guardians,

Today I am writing to share with you the personal news that I was recently diagnosed with a rare type of breast cancer. While this news is admittedly difficult and challenging, I am grateful to report that I am working with a wonderful team of outstanding medical professionals in Boston who specialize in my type of cancer and that treatment has already begun.

My doctors are completely aware and fully supportive of my intent to maintain my professional and personal commitments during treatment. They know that GWMS is a top priority for me and they are on board with my goal to travel from Boston to Ridgewood between chemotherapy treatments so that I can be present at school as much as possible.

As many of you know, another top priority is the upcoming adoption of my son from China this spring. My doctors and I are very optimistic that this trip will go forward as planned and that I will bring home a son in April.

I have full confidence that during my periodic absences our school’s excellent administrators and staff will continue to move the school forward and that there will be minimal disruption to our learning community. In addition, in anticipation of my trip to China, the Ridgewood Board of Education recently approved the hiring of an excellent interim principal, Gene Solomon — a seasoned educator, Ridgewood resident and former middle school principal in Upper Saddle River — who will be covering for me during my adoption leave.

Much as I have confidence in the GWMS staff, I am also certain that our students will be fine. I care deeply about our GWMS children and for that reason I am planning to speak to them today via video, to tell them about my diagnosis and treatment plan and to reassure them that everything will be fine. News of illness can be difficult and frightening for children and it is important that their fears and concerns are addressed.  I would encourage you to answer their questions with the same honesty and optimism that I share my news with you. In addition, our staff and professional counselors are always available to you and your children and can be reached by calling the main office.

At GWMS we continually stress the importance of respect, compassion and teamwork. These elements are the basis of a strong support system. Just as I am fortunate to have such a skilled and caring medical team managing my case and have complete confidence in their judgment and abilities, I am also grateful to have such a wonderful and compassionate body of staff, students, parents and guardians that make up the GWMS family.

These next several weeks will no doubt bring challenges and opportunities for learning those important lessons that go beyond the classroom.  I thank you in advance for your thoughts, prayers and respect for my privacy during this very personal time and I look forward to sharing good news in the near future.

Sincerely,

Dr. Katie Kashmanian, Principal

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The solution: Home lunch delivery

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The solution: Home lunch delivery
Dan Johnson

To the Editor:

When I lived in Ridgewood, I often proposed solutions to Ridgewood’s many problems.

They were all good ideas. They were mostly ignored.

After 40 years, I had to move because of the village’s high taxes, but I still follow news about Ridgewood and now there is an issue I really can solve.

Some 400-plus kids in the village can’t cope with lunch that is provided by the schools or in a home-fixed brown bag.

Maybe their parents don’t like bags or don’t want to be bothered. So these kids need personal lunches.

Understandably, school staffers don’t want their days disrupted delivering personalized lunches and worrying about an extra threat to school security. Not so understandably, some parents who want personalized lunches for their kids – and some delis – are suing the school system.

There is a solution so simple no one can oppose it: Let the delis deliver a lunch to each child at home, just before he or she leaves for school.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/opinions/248949241_Letter__Home_lunch_delivery_is_the_solution.html#sthash.lZ18YZXo.dpuf

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Mass Email Blast in Support of New Village Manager Raises Eyebrows

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Mass Email Blast in Support of New Village Manager Raises Eyebrows

From: Nancy Johansen

Date: March 6, 2014, 5:24:39 PM EST

Subject: Ridgewood’s New Village Manager

Reply-To: [email protected]

Good evening! You may hear through the grapevine that Ridgewood has offered Roberta Sonenfeld the position of Village Manager.  Here’s a link to a Bergen Record story on her upcoming appointment:

https://bit.ly/1hR4MbJ.

This is a bold pick for Ridgewood and one that may get some discussion in the coming days.  I have gotten to know Roberta well and I wanted to share some facts about her so you can make up your own minds.

Roberta has incredibly deep professional experience improving organizations by focusing on customer service and streamlining operations.  At one point in her financial services career she had a team in excess of 2,000 people reporting to her. She has managed budgets five times greater than the budget of the village.  Often during her career she was asked to take on new challenges and always excelled.

Success in that career has given her the flexibility to apply those skills in public service.

If you volunteer your time in Ridgewood chances are you know Roberta too.  She is Vice President of both the Ridgewood Education Foundation and the Volunteer Center of Bergen County.  She is also on the Board of the Ridgewood Historical Society.  She participated in Bergen LEADS a premier civic leadership program for adults who live and work in Bergen County and as a result has a broad network throughout the county. I have worked closely with her on the Financial Advisory Committee where she has served as the vice chair.  She is engaged in our community in a way that demonstrates her commitment to keeping Ridgewood great.

Finally, Roberta is one of our neighbors.  She and her family have lived in the village for 17 years, she pays taxes in the village and her daughter graduated from Ridgewood schools.

These are challenging times for towns in New Jersey that will require strong leadership and creativity.  We need someone who can improve services while staying focused on the budget, someone with an open mind without preconceived notions on solutions, someone that knows the village and the people that live here. Roberta is the right person at the right time for Ridgewood village manager.

Feel free to pass this email to anyone that you think would like this information and please let me know if you have any questions.

Best,

Nancy

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Village has options other than a parking garage

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Village has options other than a parking garage

FRIDAY, MARCH 7, 2014
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

Village has options other than a parking garage
Boyd Loving

To the editor:

Re: “Parking partnership moves ahead,” The Ridgewood News, Feb. 28, page A1.

Ridgewood Mayor Paul Aronsohn routinely boasts that he’s “passionate” about improving parking in Ridgewood. In my opinion, the facts say otherwise.

For example:

* “Coins only” meters are in still place on streets throughout the village’s Central Business District (CBD); there are no street located multi-space pay stations offering alternative payment options that generate higher revenue streams along with virtually eliminating the possibility of “shrinkage,”

* A single, repeatedly malfunctioning, cash only, multi-space pay station that has frustrated users, and resulted in massive revenue losses for years, remains in place at the Chestnut Street lot.

* A Village Council-backed proposal to install a single, multi-space, cash only pay station at the very large Route 17 Park & Ride – sure to cause long lines at peak commuting times and continue Ridgewood’s tradition of “cash only, please” (despite the risk of continued “shrinkage”).

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/opinions/248948371_Letter__Village_has_options_other_than_a_parking_garage.html#sthash.I30G0Fzk.dpuf

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Leadership needed to establish goals

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Leadership needed to establish goals

FRIDAY, MARCH 7, 2014
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

Leadership needed to establish goals
Martin Walker

This letter was also sent to the Ridgewood Planning Board.

To the editor:

“Options ‘come down to economics’” (The Ridgewood News, Friday, Feb. 21, page A1) made good headlines, but Planning Board member objections to assisted living and parking facilities around building heights, location and aesthetics in North Walnut Street Redevelopment miss the enormity of issues affecting our community. Are we fiddling while Rome burns, or is there no leadership establishing goals and priorities?

The Organizational Development giant on leadership, Elliott Jacques, demonstrated that levels of institutional authority are correlated with the degrees of future time span awareness. Is no one in town governance articulating a vision for Ridgewood’s future? Doesn’t compromise require a shared goal in order to balance competing needs in the service of a greater good? Visionary leadership for Ridgewood requires a clearer articulation of where we are going.

The two perennial certainties, aging and taxes, provide the most stable variables around which to articulate any family community’s future. Every single one of us will age and the fact that tax revenue is tied to property values means our taxes will increase indefinitely. Visionary leadership must articulate what this means for our town.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/opinions/248948441_Letter__Leadership_needed_to_establish_goals.html#sthash.xjgQk81N.dpuf

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Ordinance opens spots for new Ridgewood police officers

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file photo Boyd Loving

Ordinance opens spots for new Ridgewood police officers

THURSDAY MARCH 6, 2014, 4:21 PM
BY  DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITER
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

A once-controversial police personnel ordinance was unanimously approved by the Ridgewood Council Wednesday night, paving the way for the department to hire two new patrol officers.

The ordinance abolishes a previously established maximum amount of officers and detectives that the police department may employ. It also encourages the re-creation of the school resource officer (SRO) position, of which the responsibilities will be determined jointly by the department chief, village manager and superintendent of schools.

“It gets rid of the arbitrary ceiling and allows for the public safety needs of the community,” said Mayor Paul Aronsohn, who shared equal enthusiasm for the possible return of a SRO to the school district.

With the new ordinance in place, the department is now legally allowed to hire additional officers without future ordinance amendments. Village officials have indicated that two conditional officers, whose employment was put on hold in January, will be retained.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/248889571_Ordinance_opens_spots_for_new_Ridgewood_police_officers.html#sthash.7SADc7qo.dpuf

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Planner for Citizens for a Better Ridgewood testifies before planning board

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Planner for Citizens for a Better Ridgewood testifies before planning board

THURSDAY MARCH 6, 2014, 4:57 PM
BY  LAURA HERZOG
STAFF WRITER
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

The planner for the grassroots group Citizens for a Better Ridgewood (CBR) said at Tuesday’s packed Planning Board hearing that three high-density multifamily housing developments proposed for the downtown area are “out of scale” with their surroundings.

CBR planner Brigette Bogart also said the proposed rezoning requests “appear to be akin to spot zoning,” the application of zoning to a specific parcel of land in a larger zoned area. She advised the board to engage in a cautious process, asking it to think about a “vision” for Ridgewood’s future as it moves forward. She also urged board members to consider the reasons for current master plan restrictions, as well as how the developments fit in with village concerns about parking, traffic safety, open space and increased student enrollment.

“The boundaries of a district should be based on the existing conditions of the neighborhood. From a planning perspective, there should be a clear delineation of the zone boundary lines proposed, and how these lines relate to the adjacent land uses,” she noted in her presentation, which CBR provided to The Ridgewood News.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/248894861_Planner_for_Citizens_for_a_Better_Ridgewood_testifies_before_planning_board.html#sthash.SC6wotWe.dpuf

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Ridgewood names new village manager; first woman to hold the post permanently

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Ridgewood names new village manager; first woman to hold the post permanently

THURSDAY MARCH 6, 2014, 10:33 AM
BY  CHRIS HARRIS
STAFF WRITER
THE RECORD

RIDGEWOOD – It has been six months since former Village Manager Ken Gabbert’s unceremonious dismissal, and in that time, the village council has been vetting candidates for his replacement.

That search ended earlier this week with the selection of Roberta Sonenfeld.

Sonenfeld, 59, will likely be formally appointed as Ridgewood’s next top administrator when the council meets next Wednesday night.

Sonenfeld, a village resident for 17 years with three decades of experience as upper management for a number of different financial institutions, said she is “ecstatic” about the new post and ready to hit the ground running March 31.

“My primary motivation is rooted in the desire I have to enhance the town and its financial stability,” said Sonenfeld. “I came across a posting on Facebook this week that said ‘It’s a beautiful thing when a passion and a career come together.’ That pretty much sums it up for me.”

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/ridgewood/Ridgewood_to_name_new_village_manager_first_woman_to_hold_the_post_permanently.html#sthash.zUKsrocF.dpuf

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Nationwide wave of store closings grows

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Nationwide wave of store closings grows

FRIDAY MARCH 7, 2014, 12:02 AM
BY  JOAN VERDON
STAFF WRITER
THE RECORD

The experts who keep track of store openings and closings have been forecasting for more than a decade that the day was coming when American retailers would have to pay for building far too many stores.

That day of reckoning, some say, has arrived, with one retail watcher predicting a “tsunami” of store closings this year.

That prediction, by Brian Sozzi of Belus Capital Advisors in New York, was made in January. RadioShack announced this week that it was closing up to 1,100 of its stores, and Staples said Thursday that it was shutting 225 of its locations.

Even retailers that recently have been in expansion mode are trimming their store counts. Teen retailer Aéropostale is planning to close 175 stores in coming years. The Children’s Place of Secaucus, while continuing to open stores, will shutter 125 of its weakest shops by 2016.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/Nationwide_wave_of_store_closings_grows.html#sthash.yTp8hWWq.dpuf

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New health insurance marketplaces signing up few uninsured Americans, two surveys find

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New health insurance marketplaces signing up few uninsured Americans, two surveys find

By Amy Goldstein, Published: March 6

The new health insurance marketplaces appear to be making little headway in signing up Americans who lack insurance, the Affordable Care Act’s central goal, according to a pair of new surveys.

Only one in 10 uninsured people who qualify for private plans through the new marketplaces enrolled as of last month, one of the surveys shows. The other found that about half of uninsured adults have looked for information on the online exchanges or planned to look.

The snapshots from the surveys released Thursday provide preliminary answers to what has been one of the biggest mysteries since HealthCare.gov and separate state marketplaces opened last fall: Are they attracting their prime audience?

The findings emerge as the Obama administration has been revising a series of rules that define how the 2010 law works in practice. According to a variety of health-policy experts who support and oppose the law, the changes are in response to consumer hesitancy and political opposition that linger — at least, in the early going — as the law’s major provisions have taken effect.

The rule changes have postponed or relaxed aspects of the law, sometimes to adjust for technical problems, other times to push into the future controversies that have arisen from specific groups of consumers or parts of the health-care industry.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/health-insurance-marketplaces-signing-up-few-uninsured-americans-surveys-say/2014/03/06/cdae3152-a54d-11e3-84d4-e59b1709222c_print.html

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Ridgewood YMCA Offers International Summer Camp Program to the Dominican Republic

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Ridgewood YMCA Offers International Summer Camp Program to the Dominican Republic

The Ridgewood YMCA is now accepting applications for its summer 2014 International Camp Program to the Dominican Republic. The program is open to teens in grades 10 through 12 and offers life changing experiences and the opportunity for personal growth while completing important service projects abroad. The trip will take place from July 6 through 14.

Gary Imhoff, Director of Marketing and Membership at the Ridgewood YMCA says, “Our International Camp Program is unique in that it is first and foremost a service project trip. The goal of the program is to challenge each participant to develop a strong sense of self confidence, independence and cooperation and an appreciation for the diversity of cultures throughout the world. However, the trip also includes exciting day trips and visits to cultural landmarks so it’s a great mix of work and fun”.

Participants in the program will work alongside local Haitian and Dominican teens on the repair and building of homes for families in need, and will also complete vital reforestation projects.

Says Imhoff, “Two of the greatest benefits a participant will gain from the program are the life- long friendships made and the interpersonal skills developed by traveling to a foreign country with a small group of people. ICP provides a wonderful cultural and character building experience for everyone involved”.

Interested participants may learn more about the program and download applications by visitingwww.ridgewoodymca.org/icp or by calling 201.444.5600 x500.

The Ridgewood YMCA is located at 112 Oak Street in Ridgewood, NJ.

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Super Science Saturday Comes to Ridgewood March 8

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Super Science Saturday Comes to Ridgewood March 8

Crowd Source a World’s Record Idea, See a 3-D Printer and more
At Super Science Saturday on March 8

Ridgewood NJ, Super Science Saturday 2014 returns to Ridgewood on March 8 and is inviting visitors to crowd-source ideas for a world’s record that could be set at next year’s event. This is just one of the many exciting activities at Super Science Saturday, which returns for its 26th year on Saturday, March 8, from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at Ridgewood High School, 627 East Ridgewood Avenue. Admission is free.

Visitors can select from a menu of world-record-setting ideas or submit a creative one of their own. The winning idea will be tested for feasibility of setting a world’s record at Super Science Saturday 2015.

Visitors to this year’s event also can see a 3-D printer at work, and meet special guests, such as America’s first scientist, “Benjamin Franklin,” and WABC-TV NY Meteorologist Amy Freeze.

The day includes a new favorite—a 26-foot egg drop contest—and ever-popular traditions, such as “The Great Paper Airplane Contest” and model rocket launches on the high school football field at 1:20 p.m.

Scientists from the famed Franklin Institute of Philadelphia will present the day’s featured shows—“How to Build a Storm: The Weather Show” at 9:30 a.m. Super Science Saturday also will have interactive exhibits from dozens of professional and amateur scientists, including solar telescopes, robotics, super-cold science, New Jersey’s special environment, health and medicine, chemistry, and the technology used by our police, fire and EMT professionals.

This event, the largest of its kind in Northern new Jersey, encourages students of all ages—from elementary through high school—to exhibit their experiments in the Hall of Science.  There is still room for students from any school district to sign up and exhibit at www.supersciencesaturday.org.

Super Science Saturday is underwritten for the sixth-consecutive year by The Valley Hospital, which provides state-of-the-art medical, emergency and preventive care in Northern New Jersey, and The Foundation, which supports innovative learning programs and enrichment activities for Ridgewood Public Schools.

Students looking for ideas on science presentations can get help at The Ridgewood Public Library’s Youth Section, or go to the “Kid Zone” section of the Super Science Saturday Web site—www.supersciencesaturday.org. To sign up to as a student or professional exhibitor, or to learn more about the event, visit:www.supersciencesaturday.org

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Somerville School’s Thinking Cap Quiz Bowl team, took second place out of 10 in the Northeast Regional competition

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Somerville School’s Thinking Cap Quiz Bowl team, took second place out of 10 in the Northeast Regional competition 

Ridgewood NJ, Somerville School’s Thinking Cap Quiz Bowl team, consisting of eight Fifth Grade students took second place out of 10 in the Northeast Regional competition on February 14.

The Thinking Cap Quiz Bowl offers a fun, computer-based, team competition that tests a variety of types of knowledge, as well as student ability to work effectively in a team.  Subject areas covered include math, geography, government, sports, spelling, science, literature, English, history, general information and “just plain fun trivia.” Somerville teacher Kerry Calaman has coached the school’s team for the last eight years.

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The pink tutu project: Saddle River photographer helps wife, others fighting breast cancer

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The pink tutu project: Saddle River photographer helps wife, others fighting breast cancer

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5, 2014    LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY MARCH 5, 2014, 11:20 AM
BY  SACHI FUJIMORI
STAFF WRITER
THE RECORD

On a quiet afternoon in April 2012, Ridgewood police were dispatched to the town’s half-empty swimming hole, Graydon Pool, after receiving several calls that a man was standing on the high dive wearing nothing but a pink tutu.

The man, Saddle River’s Bob Carey, a 53-year-old with the physique of someone who hasn’t exactly been pumping iron daily at the gym, had a very good reason to be teetering on the high dive in pink tulle. He was doing it for his wife, Linda, who has breast cancer.

Since 2003, when Linda was first diagnosed, Carey, a professional photographer, has been shooting a series of self-portraits where he stands in picturesque and sometimes surprising locations wearing a pink tutu and nothing else, save for pink gym shorts underneath. He calls it the Tutu Project. Proceeds from the photographs benefit women with breast cancer and their families.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/248500271_Saddle_River_photographer_wears_pink_tutu_to_help_his_wife_and_thousands_more_fighting_breast_cancer.html#sthash.2Z0cgxA0.dpu

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Lets Stay Aquainted Senior Luncheon – Thursday, March 6th

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Lets Stay Aquainted Senior Luncheon – Thursday, March 6th

LET’S STAY ACQUAINTED

Village residents are invited to join Councilwoman Gwenn Hauck each month for an opportunity to meet, share a provided light lunch, and participate in an activity. It is Mrs. Hauck’s desire to become familiar with residents, learn of their experiences living in the community, and increase awareness and use of the Village Community Center.

“Photography: A Door to New Worlds” – Naturalist , photographer Doug Godell will present a narrated slide show presenting images of travel in the United States, Central America and throughout the world.

If you need transportation assistance – call 201/670-5500 x203 to make a reservation for a ride on the Senior Bus.