Verona Commences New Five-Year Plan

Verona High School student Mira Braneck writes Letter to the Editor regarding Verona's five-year plan.

Verona is looking ahead to the next five years. The Verona Public Schools, at the end of the current five year plan, is in the process of writing a new Strategic Plan for the development and improvement of the district over the course of the next five years. “This plan is reflective of our growth as a district,” said Elizabeth Jewett, Director of Instructional Studies, and the Strategic Plan Internal Coordinator. Jewett, who arrived during the second year of the current Strategic Plan says that it “served as a guidepost” for the creation of the new plan, especially “for curriculum and instruction.” The past five year plan was focused on “teacher outcomes,” which was necessary to lay the groundwork for the current plan, said Jewett, which “…

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Stephen Raum: Still Moving Forward

Stephen Raum is out and about, continuing his recovery from a torn ACL.

Legal Impediment to Non-Lethal Deer Control Methods

Hilltop Conservancy Treasurer Theresa Trapp pens Patch Letter to the Editor on Deer Control.

Anti-culling activists insist there are economical and effective non-lethal alternatives to control local deer populations. A previous letter explored the high cost ($3,000+ per deer) and low effectiveness of immuno-contraceptives like GonaCon. Surgical sterilization (either tubal ligation or ovariectomy) would be less expensive (~$1,800 per deer) and far more effective – however, given New Jersey’s current regulations, neither method is operationally feasible. Under statute N.J.S.A. 23:4-42.4, a municipality wishing to conduct any kind of deer management program must first obtain a community-based deer management program permit from the DEP. Imbedded in this statute’s language is the requirement for prior written consent from surrounding …

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Deer Contraceptives – It's All About the Math

Hilltop Conservancy Treasurer Theresa Trapp pens Letter to the Editor regarding county deer hunt.

  Essex County’s 2013 deer hunt has come to a close, once again removing many of this over-abundant species from our reservations (Hilltop – 61, South Mountain – 43). Contrary to naysayers, deer have not become extinct because of the program, and there are small signs that our nature preserves are beginning to recover from decades of browse damage. Contraceptives are sometimes proposed as an alternative to hunting. However, we need to acknowledge that non-lethal methods to control deer populations would involve significant investment of taxpayer dollars, particularly immuno-contraception (e.g., GonaCon). Each GonaCon inoculation costs more than $1,000 per dose (including locating, immobilizing, inoculating and collaring). In addition, each…

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Valentine's Day Recipes: Dinner and Dessert for Someone Special

Have a romantic dinner at home with this three-course feast.

Editor's Note: Tammy Lipps' gourmet but easy, decadent but delicious Valentine's dinner menu was a big hit last year, so we're pleased she accepted our invitation to share another "eat in," romantic, flavorful menu. It’s me with that decadent, romantic, comfort food dinner for two. What’s on the menu? ***How do you cut a strawberry into a heart shape? If you look closely at the berry BEFORE you do anything to it, you can already see that if you carefully remove the green top with a paring knife, you have to do very little to actually shape the strawberry into a heart.  At the top, cut into the side of the green top on two sides, into the center, as if you are “coring” the berry, leaving the two round mounds (as if it were a heart). You may…

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Verona Women's Club Praises "Share Your Light Night"

Verona Women's Club members pen Patch Letter to the Editor

On December 8, 2012 friends and neighbors celebrated "Share Your Light Night" and the town of Verona was illuminated by the glow of community spirit. The Woman's Club and Juniorettes of Verona would like to thank our many wonderful volunteers and sponsors for helping make this such a joyous night, including students from OLL, the Junior class of VHS, the boyscouts, and many others. We would also like to thank Kings supermarket for their donation. And once again we thank our dear friend (and honorary member) Chuck Molinaro, who's kindness and generosity of spirit symbolizes the true meaning of the season. We look forward to sharing the light again in 2013. Leslie Regino and Cynthia Hawkins Co-Chairs Woman's Club of Verona

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Pack a Lunch With a Healthy Punch

This mom around town is planning back to school lunches and has some tips to share.

  In the spirit of the new year and resolutions galore, we're looking at interesting, healthy lunch box options. Add yours below: Peanut butter and jelly gets boring. Nutella has been a great backup especially paired with some strawberries, but that gets old, too. Regardless, both options will be in my pantry for busy mornings but I need some more interesting solutions. Do you have any good lunch box ideas? I asked around and some other moms shared their tips with me. Elise S., mom of two, told me how she brightens up peanut butter and jelly or tuna sandwiches with a little trick. “I sometimes cut them into different shapes with cookie cutters or use a little gadget that cuts the sandwich into a circle with no crusts.” Kids love the “no …

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Patch Editor's First Blood Donation Experience

Have no fear, donating blood is not scary or painful!

I was recently able to participate in the Blood Center of New Jersey Blood Drive hosted at the Cedar Grove Rescue and Ambulance Squad on Monday, Jan 14. Originally, I attended the drive to take some photos and speak to residents for a news story about the ongoing blood shortage. I felt I had to donate, not only to get an inside perspective on the process for my story, but because I was essentially promoting blood donation. It would be hypocritical if I were to write about the importance of donating blood and then just leave without giving a drop. So I put down my notebook and camera and picked up a form. I have never donated blood before in my life. I have had plenty of blood tests, especially to check for lyme disease since I often go on …

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Do You Plan to Quit Smoking in 2013?

A study released Tuesday says 34 percent of smokers say this is their year; are you one of them?

We here at Patch end up on mailing lists all over the place, for events and stories with absolutely no connection to our coverage areas. While an email we received Tuesday morning follows this path, it's a subject that goes well beyond geographic boundaries. The Legacy Foundation on Tuesday released a new study indicating 34 percent of smokers plan on quitting in 2013, twice as many as in 2012, the press release notes. How they were able to survey every smoker on the planet must be the work of magic and we are not going to dig deeper for fear they will turn us into a frog or something. One of the biggest reasons for the higher number of proposed quitters, according to the release, is the increasing cost of visiting Flavor Country. (For …

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anthony j. popola

4:25 pm on Wednesday, January 9, 2013

watch who you say that to...if you know what i mean   more ›

New Jersey’s Red Light Camera Program Has Failed

State Sen. Michael J. Doherty (R-23) pens letter to the editor.

To the Editor: A new report from the state Department of Transportation confirms what many opponents of red light camera ticketing systems have long suspected: cameras lead to more accidents, more injuries and greater cost. The report contains data showing that both the total number and total cost of crashes have increased at intersections after cameras were installed. The commonly stated goal of red light cameras is to reduce injuries from right-angle crashes, generally the most dangerous type of collision that results from running a red light. At the 24 intersections in New Jersey that have had cameras operational for at least one full year, the number of right-angle crashes decreased by 15%, from 60 to 51, when comparing crash data from…

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James C. Walker

11:29 am on Monday, December 31, 2012

For John Oh You are correct and there are many places in addition to Australia where the negative effects of red light cameras have been documented. Many of these are on our website. The only way to stop the scam is to have red light cameras banned, as they are in several states already. Get behind Senator Doherty's bill S1952. Contact your state officials and urge all your friends, neighbors and…   more ›