Making New Year’s Resolutions And Managing Change

MILWAUKEE, Wisc. – When 2008 turns to 2009, champagne corks will pop, bubbly will flow and resolutions will be made. As usual, many New Year’s resolutions will involve goals for improved diet, exercise, and weight loss. Unfortunately, by the end of January, a multitude of the resolutions will lose their fizz as determination becomes flat.

TOPS Club, Inc. (Take Off Pounds Sensibly), the nation’s original weight-loss support group, shares the following tips to help make New Year’s resolutions stick:

Read Full Post »

Linden Residents: Learn Karate In 2009

LINDEN – Linden students between the ages of 5 and 15 have the opportunity to learn karate through classes offered by the Department of Public Property and Community Services next year. 

Grand Master Ralph Chirico, a 10th Degree Blackbelt with over 40 years of experience, will provide students with a strong foundation for becoming champions, not only in karate, but also in life.  In his “Total Learning Martial Arts Experience”, children build self-confidence, develop self-discipline, increase concentration and develop coordination.

Classes will be held Friday afternoons, from 4 – 5 p.m., Jan. 9 through Feb. 27, at the John T. Gregorio Recreation Center, 330 Helen Street.  

Read Full Post »

Champion Runner

 

Champion Runner—Steven Payne, a third grader at Madison Elementary School in Rahway, won first place at the Cross Country Cultures 2K Run held in Cincinnati, Ohio on Saturday, Dec. 6. Payne won with a time of 8 minutes, 36 seconds. Winter weather conditions made the race especially challenging – it was just 6 degrees and snowing.

Read Full Post »

Cooped Up & Feeling Down? It Could Be Indoor Allergens

MADISON, Wis.—The wind is howling. Temperatures are well below freezing. And you’re curled up on the sofa with the cat, a good book and a crackling fire. How could you possibly feel so lousy? 

Maybe it’s the indoor air that’s chock full of allergens or irritants.

“Depending on what you’re allergic or sensitive to, winter can be a really awful time of year,” says Dr. Robert Bush, allergy and asthma researcher and professor emeritus at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health (SMPH).

Read Full Post »

Kumpf Athletes Give Thanks

 

Kumpf Athletes Give Thanks—Kumpf field hockey team members thanked the Clark Benefit Fund, Inc. for donation of visitor and home team benches at the Kumpf Middle School Complex.

Read Full Post »

Linden Offers Yoga Classes For City Residents

LINDEN—The Department of Public Property and Community Services is sponsoring Yoga/Tai-Chi/Qi Gong classes for interested Linden adults in beginning next month.

Classes will be held Thursday evenings, Jan. 8 through March 19, from 7:30– 8:30 p.m. at the John T. Gregorio Recreation Center, 330 Helen Street.

Yoga is the oldest system of personal and healthful development that embraces your mind, body and spirit.  Tai Chi is an ancient discipline of non-contact arts and Qi Gong is a moving meditative practice which fathered Tai Chi.

Read Full Post »

High School Hosts Holiday Basketball Tournament

ELIZABETH—Benedictine Academy  in Elizabeth, along with the Benedictine Academy Parents Association, will host the “Dr. Rosemarie Battaglia Christmas Basketball Tournament” at the school, located at 840 North Broad Street in Elizabeth, on Dec. 26, 27 and 29. Basketball teams from eight New Jersey high schools, including Benedictine Academy, will compete for the championship title at the event. 

The tournament is named after Dr. Rosemarie Battaglia, who coached varsity basketball at Benedictine Academy from 1954-58. Battaglia will be honored at the Christmas Tournament on Dec. 29 at 7 p.m.  Her record while coaching at the all-female Catholic college prep high school was 36-4. The 1954-55 varsity basketball team was undefeated, with a 12-0 record. She has been inducted as a Hall of Famer several times including Benedictine Academy in 2004; the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) in 1999; and the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) in 1996. Battaglia was named “Coach of the Decade for the 1970s” by the Star Ledger.

Read Full Post »

A Holiday Plea For The Less Fortunate

By Mayor John E. McCormac

With the 2008 holiday season coming to a close and the New Year nearly upon us, let’s not forget that there are many less fortunate families throughout Woodbridge Township that need special help each and every day, not just during the holidays.

One of the most important missions I have embraced as mayor is trying to raise public awareness about the need to continually seek donations to keep the township’s food pantry’s stocked throughout the year. We in Woodbridge recognize that hunger knows no season and no boundary. And, our township knows that it is crucial to work every day to collect food so we can help provide the necessities of life to our neighbors who might otherwise go hungry.

Read Full Post »

Christmas & New Year’s Eve Memories

by Diane Norek Harrison

SOUTH AMBOY-Back in 2001, I was given the history of the Bells of St. Nicholas, the electric, automatic Christmas tree bells manufactured by the E.J Nicorvo MFG. Corp. of South Amboy in 1948. They were made at 210 North Broadway. I had the history in a column in another publication. Here’s a picture of the box, which belongs to my set of the Bells of St. Nicholas.

Here is a picture of the box from my Bells of St. Nicholas, manufactured in 1948, in South Amboy. Photo by Diane Norek Harrison

This New Year Eve column is my own research from 1954:

Read Full Post »

Merry Christmas

Happy Holidays from School #4–Linden School #4 Pre-K and the entire School #4 family wishes everyone a Happy Holiday, Photo by Christine Hudak, Linden Public Schools

Read Full Post »

Car Accident Claims 92-Year-Old Rahway Resident

RAHWAY – Last week, a 92-year-old Rahway resident was struck and injured while walking along Kline Place. She died two days later as a result of her injuries, authorities said.

According to a preliminary investigation, Maria Juhasz was walking on the sidewalk of Kline Place at approximately 2:22 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 15. Juhasz was struck by a 2007 Nissan Murano that was backing out of the driveway of 1266 Kline Place, authorities said. She fell to the ground and suffered injuries to her head, police said.

Juhasz was transported to University Hospital in Newark by the Rahway First Aid Squad.  She died on Wednesday, Dec. 17.

Read Full Post »

Year End Reflections

By Red Stinger

My new-found free time is allowing me to reconsider years of memories.  My office is littered with pictures and stuff.  A lot of the stuff is about Jiminy Cricket.  I really don’t remember what got me started, but I guess I have a hundred things about the Cricket.

I also have an International Star registered in my name given to me by my bride years ago.  I can’t see it up there in the sky but I know it’s there.

Of course Jiminy isn’t real either, but he was Pinocchio’s conscience. Perhaps he’s mine also.

Read Full Post »

Small Plane Crashes In Linden

LINDEN – A Virginia couple were seriously injured Sunday when their small plane crashed and burst into flames in an industrial area of Linden.

The crash victims – Jason Snyder, 33, and his wife Jennifer, 34 – were found conscious, lying next to the single-engine aircraft, authorities said. They were flown to University Hospital in Newark, where they were listed in critical condition Sunday night. Officials remained hopeful that the couple would recover from their injuries.

The crash occurred around 4 p.m., shortly after take off from Linden Airport, officials said. Witnesses saw the plane, a Beechcraft Sundowner Model 23, flying low before slamming into trees in a railroad right-of-way near Linden Avenue. Fire engulfed the plane, but firefighters were able to stop it before it spread. The plane did not hit any people or buildings, authorities said.

Read Full Post »

Officials Warn Of Lottery Scam

TRENTON—The New Jersey Lottery announced that it is investigating several reports of altered tickets that have cropped up throughout the state in recent days, one of which was recently featured in a local news story.

The alleged scammer tells potential victims that he hasn’t been able to cash in a winning top-tier instant ticket, and that even if he was able to, state-sanctioned garnishments would probably take away most of his prize.  Victims are then offered the ticket for far less than the apparent worth of the ticket.  However, when the victims try and claim the ticket as a winner, scrutiny by the Lottery’s Security Department-as well as the State Police-has proven these alleged ‘winning’ tickets are nothing more than several non-winning tickets carefully pasted together.

“As news reports have shown, at this time of year, people need to be especially vigilant,” said William T. Jourdain, acting executive director of the New Jersey Lottery, “This scam, unfortunately, is just one of the latest scams that our Security Unit has seen throughout the international gaming community.  Please-at this time of the year or any other-make certain you purchase your tickets from a licensed New Jersey Lottery retailer, whether you are buying them for yourself or as gifts.”

Read Full Post »

Holiday Book Drive Spreads The Joy Of Reading

LINDEN – All of the students at Linden Public School No. 1 will be receiving books thanks to Barnes & Noble’s Holiday Book Drive, held in conjunction with the United Way.

 “This generous donation is very helpful in several ways,” said Dr. Rocco Tomazic, assistant superintendent, Linden Public Schools.  “First, it adds to our resources to get kids excited about reading.  Second, it helps our families of limited means by providing ready access to a wide variety of books for out of class reading.  Kids need to read at home and at school,” he added.  “This book ‘give away’ by United Way and Barnes & Noble helps bring to our district more books beyond those we have planned for in our budget.” “The Linden Public Schools,” he continued, “greatly appreciates this generosity and we know it will be of ongoing benefit to our students.”

Read Full Post »