HUNTERDON COUNTYDIVISION OF PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICES

The mission of the Hunterdon County Division ofPublic Health is to prevent disease, promotehealthy lifestyles, and protect the health and well-being of all residents and visitors of HunterdonCounty. Services and programs of the divisioninclude:

Environmental and Consumer HealthEducates, enforces, and protects residents throughprograms in food safety, safe drinking water, sep-tic and construction planning, air pollution con-trol, solid waste enforcement, rabies control, ken-nel and public bathing place inspections, andmany others.

Public Health NursingThe Hunterdon County public health nursing pro-gram provides population-based communityhealth services in communicable disease controland education, pregnancy and prenatal care,chronic disease monitoring, childhood vaccina-tion, lead poisoning prevention, health education,blood pressure monitoring and professional de-velopment resources for the medical community.

Hunterdon CountyDepartment of Public Safety

Division of Public Health Services

Vector ControlThe mosquito & vector control program offers afull range of mosquito control and insect surveil-lance activities to the Hunterdon community. Keyservices include mosquito and black fly (gnat)surveillance and control, bed bug education, tickand Lyme disease education, and mosquito-bornedisease surveillance, control and monitoring.

Public Health PreparednessThe preparedness team is a group of specialiststhat create, develop, evaluate and implement ac-tion plans to help prevent, prepare for, and re-spond to serious public health crises includingemerging diseases, pandemic influenza, diseaseoutbreaks, wide-scale natural disasters, and ter-rorist attacks. The team recruits and maintainsthe Medical Reserve Corp, a team of volunteerstrained in public health preparedness efforts.

We invite you to learn more about the pro-grams and services offered by the HunterdonCounty Division of Public Health. Please visitour website at www.co.hunterdon.nj.us/health

ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTHinspectors work closely with public health nursesto investigate confirmed food-borne illness casesfrom restaurants in Hunterdon County. Inspec-tors conducted 64 non-routine investigations and20 inspections, some of which were associatedwith a possible food-borne illness.

BODY ART, TATTOO AND PERMANENTCOSMETICS SAFETY

In Hunterdon County there are now six approvedbody art establishments that we monitor for com-pliance with the State of New Jersey’s sanitarycode. Two of these establishments either expand-ed their services or moved to a new location in2016, and facility inspections were conductedthere. A third new body art facility opened inUnion Township this year — Immortal Ink —Jugtown. A complete inspection was conductedprior to its opening. A seventh body art establish-ment has applied for approval to open in 2017 inthe Borough of Lebanon, and we are workingwith the owner so that the estblaishment will bein compliance with the state’s sanitation code forbody art establishments.

We will continue to monitor these operations an-nually to ensure that they remain in compliancewith approved body art procedures as set by theState of New Jersey. Our goal is to continue pro-tect the public from health complications thatmight occur from a poorly run establishment.

RETAIL FOOD PROGRAM 2016

The retail food industry in Hunterdon County isvery dynamic with 710 establishments county-wide that require surveillance. This industry pos-es challenges to county inspectors because ofconstant changes in ownership, business failures,construction of new businesses. Ongoing surveil-lance ensures compliance with the state and locallaws and protects the public from the possibleeffects of improper food handling.

During the 2016 calendar year, county inspectorsconducted 710 fixed facility inspections, 21 mo-bile retail food inspections and 190 temporaryretail food establishment inspections. Temporaryestablishments are located at the many events andfestivals held in Hunterdon County each year.These include the New Jersey Festival of Bal-looning in Readington Township, the county’s 4-H fair in East Amwell Township and Lam-bertville’s Shad Festival. In addition, there were27 plan reviews conducted for new businessesand businesses undergoing renovations in 2016.New businesses that opened in 2016 were BuffaloWild Wings and Costco wholesale warehouse inRaritan Twp., More Than Q in Lambertville, andNJ and Bridge St. Bagels in Milford.

A big part of ongoing surveillance of the county’sretail food industry includes responding to citizencomplaints and reports of suspected food-borneillness incidents and outbreaks. County health

Hazardous Materials Response 2016 Updates

For the protection of residents and environmentalresources, the County of Hunterdon is responsiblefor maintaining a comprehensive response planfor incidents including but not limited to chemi-cal, biological, radiological, nuclear, or explosive(CBRNE) material.

The Division of Public Health and Office ofEmergency Management are mandated by statestatute for the provision of such services. Pursu-ant to N.J.S.A 26:3A2-21, et. seq., the CountyEnvironmental Health Act (CEHA) obligates thecounty Division of Health to maintain standard-ized countywide hazardous material (Hazmat)and CBRNE emergency response capability, ca-pacity, and competence. In addition to hazardousmaterials response, CEHA grant deliverables ofthe Health Division include air, water, and noisepollution control and solid waste enforcement.Likewise, the New Jersey State Police, Office ofEmergency Management is the lead enforcementagency for SARA Title III (Emergency PlanningProvisions, Subtitle A –Section 303) and has in-corporated its requirements into the local/countyemergency operations plans required by the NewJersey Emergency Management Act.

In order to provide safe and proficient hazmatresources for the protection of county land andresidents, the Division of Public Health and Of-fice of Emergency Management partner to createa program with the capacity, competency, andcapability to mitigate public exposure to hazard-ous materials.A tractor trailer accident on Route 78 impacts

the stream below. July 14, 2016

Hunterdon County All-Hazards MitigationPlan (HMP)

The Hunterdon County Office of EmergencyManagement is responsible for developing andmaintaining the All-Hazards Mitigation Plan.“Mitigation” is the effort to reduce loss of life andproperty by lessening the impact of disasters. Inorder for mitigation to be effective we need totake action now—before the next disaster—toreduce human and financial consequences later.This includes analyzing and assessing risk.

Division of Health leadership served on the steer-ing committee for the 2016 HMP, and publichealth threats/mitigation programs were a newlyadded piece in the county plan. Public healthissues included in the update are water-borne andvector-borne illness during flooding events,emerging infectious disease readiness for EMSpersonnel, public health implications of long-termpower outage events, and hazardous materialsresponse to CBRNE incidents.

HAZARDOUS MATERIALS RESPONSE

2016 RABIES TEST RESULTS

# Tested # Posi ve % Posi ve

Beaver 2 1 50%

Cat 41 5 12%

fox 4 1 25%

Raccoon 18 10 55%

Skunk 3 2 66%Otheraninmals 62 0 0

Applica on type 2014 2015 2016

New 46 39 30

Altera on 287 284 326

Repairs 379 440 510

Total received 712 763 866

SEPTIC PLANS RECEIVED 2014-2016

2012 2013 2014AIR POLLUTION 99 63 64RETAIL FOOD 55 46 61HAZMAT 84 73 55SEPTIC 35 51 37SOLID WASTE 53 55 55OTHER 103 97 43TOTAL 423 360 315

2015756741395148

321

2016646155375554

326

ENVIRONMENTAL DIVISIONCOMPLAINTS RECEIVED AND INVESTIGATED

JANUARY 1,2012-DECEMBER 31,2016

Environmental Health Activities 1/1/2014-12/31/2016

Category 2014 2015 2016Complaints received 315 321 326Ini al and follow up complaint inves ga ons 496 441 461No ces of Viola on issued 57 74 49Penalty Assessments issued 1 15 12Summonses Issued 17 6 4Retail food ini al inspec ons completed 727 676 650Spot Check and follow up retail food inspec ons 108 136 103Retail food preopera onal inspec ons 35 62 53Temporary event food vendor inspec ons 352 221 240Retail food establishment Plan reviews 29 39 26Dry cleaner inspec ons 4 4 3Emergency generator/boiler inspec ons 26 47 18Solid waste vehicle spot checks 19 50 39Solid waste roll off container spot checks 12 53 29Solid waste facility inspec ons 8 43 51Sep c system plans received 730 782 865Sep c installa on field inspec ons 1472 1663 1811Well installa on inspec ons 196 137 154Sep c and Well final cer fica ons issued 584 795 783Public non-community water system inspec ons 88 71 108Construc on referral permits issued 140 149 167Recrea onal bathing facility inspec ons 82 122 115Kennel ,pet shop, and shelter inspec ons 25 36 28Rabies specimen transport to Trenton lab 137 128 130Number of specimens posi ve for rabies 13 17 19Animal Bite reports processed 308 290 299Total 5981 6378 6543

MOSQUITO AND VECTOR CONTROL

The Mosquito & Vector Control Program offersa full range of mosquito control and insect sur-veillance activity to the Hunterdon community.The program’s primary focus is mosquitoabatement. There are approximately forty mos-quito species within Hunterdon County. A fewof these species play a role in disease transmis-sion. Others cause nuisance, and some have nohealth implications whatsoever. Each year, pop-ulations of these species are monitored through-out the county to perform abatement activitiesas necessary.

Programs offered include:● Mosquito and black fly (gnat) surveillance

and control.● Bed bug education.● Tick and Lyme disease education.● Disease surveillance and monitoring.

Tick-borne diseases pre-sent a threat to humanhealth in HunterdonCounty. The black-legged tick (pictured tothe left imbibing blood)serves as the most sig-nificant vector of dis-ease. Tick-borne diseas-

es within the county include Lyme, ehrlichiosis,babesiosis, anaplasmosis and Rocky Mountainspotted fever. Powassan virus, although not yetconfirmed in the county, represents an emergingtick-borne illness for the region.

Sprayer Calibration April 29, 2016 and September 9, 2016

Outreach and education at NJAES Snyder Farm(June 24,2016)

Zika Virus in the Western Hemisphere(Dr. John-Paul Mutebi above) at theNJMCA103rd Annul Meeting—Atlantic City, NJ

Black flies, commonly referred to as “gnats,”are closely related to mosquitoes. Like mosqui-toes, adult female black flies require a blood

meal for egg produc-tion. As a result, somespecies are consideredpests. In HunterdonCounty the predominantpests are species withinthe Simulium jenningsicomplex. These speciesrequire open rivers tocomplete larval devel-opment. Simulium jen-ningsi then pupate andemerge as adult-flyinginsects. Adult S. jen-

ningsi can fly for several miles to obtain ablood meal. The adults live for at least a month.

BLACK FLIES

Primary areas that produce S. jenningsi larvae inHunterdon County are the Musconetcong, Lam-ington, Raritan South Branch, and Delaware riv-ers.

Larval (left) and pupal stage (right) of Simuli-um jenningsi black flies.

Adult stage of theblack fly species,Simulium jenningsi

BED BUGS

Bed bugs have been a problem in Hunterdon Countysince the early 2000s. These insects have been foundin a variety of settings including commercialbuildings, apartments and single-family homes.

Both the common bed bug(Cimex lectularius) and theeastern bat bug (Cimex ad-junctus) can be found inHunterdon County. Prior toabatement, residents are

advised to identify the species causing a problemin their home.

Eastern bat bug (left) and common bed bug(right).

TICKS

Ticks carry several pathogens in HunterdonCounty. These cause Lyme disease, ehrlichiosis,anaplasmosis, babesiosis Rocky Mountain spot-

ted fever and Powassanvirus. The most commontick-borne disease inHunterdon is Lyme. Alt-hough Lyme disease isdocumented year-round,the times of highesttransmission are mid-May through mid-July.The nymhpal black-

legged tick (also referred to as the deer tick) ismost commonly found during this time.

Deer tick nymphLocation of S. jenningsi habitat (left) and blackfly larvae collected on a leaf (right).

Mosquito Surveillance Activities from 2010-2016 in Hunterdon County

August 18, 2016. Adminstrator, Scott Crans, (far left) from the NJ Office of Mosquito Control Coordina-tion is interviewed by the media regarding a tire cleanup effort at the Alexauken Wildlife ManagementArea in Ringoes, NJ. Hunterdon County entomologist, Gary Donato (far right), assists in the tire cleanupeffort.

2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

# Traps Set 1,317 1,160 1,591 1,672 1,470 1,761 835

# Mosquitoes Collected 150,000 128,000 158,000 149,000 99,192 92,000 44,000

# Mosquitoes Tested for WNV 15,170 14,403 17,776 16,759 13,581 11,525 11,376

# Mosquito Samples Tested 360 318 465 409 327 265 288

# Positive Samples 27 65 96 58 11 21 39

% WNV positive samples 7.5 20.4 20.6 14.2 3.4 7.9 13.5

# Pesticide Applications 265 456 204 475 207 153 117

Mosquito Abatement Activities by Municipality for the Year 2016

Municipality # Traps SetMosquitoSamplesTested

Positive WNVSamples

InsecticideTreatments

Alexandria 34 7 0 5

Bethlehem 6 0 0 1

Bloomsbury 4 0 0 2

Califon 7 5 0 6

Clinton Town 28 9 1 6

Clinton Twp 97 41 7 13

Delaware 36 12 0 3

East Amwell 44 23 7 3

Flemington 72 23 2 5

Franklin 96 27 1 3

Frenchtown 32 7 0 3

Glen Gardner 2 0 0 0

Hampton 2 0 0 0

High Bridge 22 10 1 3

Holland 1 1 0 0

Kingwood 29 12 0 4

Lambertville 9 3 0 0

Lebanon 3 0 0 6

Lebanon Twp 7 4 0 3

Milford 11 6 0 0

Raritan 151 47 7 33

Readington 119 35 12 18

Stockton 12 7 0 0

Tewksbury 3 3 0 0

Union 3 1 0 0

West Amwell 5 5 1 0

Total 835 288 39 117

STAFFING: 4 Public Health Nurses (3FT&1PT) 1FT Bilingual Asst., 1PT Sr. Clerk, 1FT

Clerk

SERVICES:Communicable Diseases Reporting andSurveillance Immediate, 24-hour reportable diseases

and outbreak investigation (60 reportablediseases identified by NJDOH require suchinvestigations)

Tuberculosis (TB) control and case man-agement

Vectorborne disease investigationMaternal Child Health Services Improved Pregnancy Outcome Program School Immunization Audits Childhood Vaccine Program Childhood Lead Poisoning InvestigationAdult/Senior Health Program Brunch and Learn Program Blood Pressure Screening Paternity/Parentage TestingCommunity Health Improvement (Partnershipfor Health)

Partnership for Health – Healthy Weight Access to Prenatal Care Committee Hunterdon Maternal Child Health Coali-

tion Community Resources Support Emergency Preparedness

PUBLIC HEALTH NURSING AND EDUCATION (PHNE)

2016 STATISITCSCommunicable DiseasesThe total number of disease cases reported in2016 is 1855. PHNE investigated each reportedillness, provided education and implementedpreventive measures if needed. The top fivenumbers of reported cases (as of 2/03/16) are inthe following categories of illness:

*Note: the final numbers of confirmed, prob-

Disease Case*1. Vectorborne Diseases (Lyme,Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis)

1304

2. Hepatitis C (Chronic + Acute) 1453. Foodborne Illness(Campylobacteriosis, Salmonel-losis, Shiga Toxin-producing E.Coli ...etc.)

100

4. Varicella 455. Pertussis 40

2016 top five reported illnesses are similar to theyear 2015. Lyme disease remains the numberone reported disease in Hunterdon County.Outbreaks: There were a total of 18 outbreaks in2016. Ten out of eighteen were gastrointestinalrelated outbreaks, six out of eighteen were respir-atory illnesses and two were other outbreaks.The majority of outbreaks were involved inschools and long-term care facilities.

Emerging Infectious DiseasesZika virus surveillance has been the most interest-ing public health initiative of 2016. Zika virus isa viral infection primarily caused by the bite of aninfected mosquito. It can be spread from a preg-nant woman to her unborn baby. The virus canalso be sexually transmitted from an infected per-son to their partner.As new information emerged about the transmis-sion of the virus and its effects on newborn ba-bies, the New Jersey Department of Health keptlocal health departments (LHD) updated with bi-weekly Zika webinars, frequent messages andchanging Zika telephone scripts to field commu-nity questions and concerns.

Due to the high demand for Zika testing fromprimary practice providers and OB physiciansthe NJDOH delegated the LHD to field the req-uisitions and be the forefront of Zika testingapproval. This initiative began in July 2016.As of December 31, 2016 there have been onlytwo confirmed cases of Zika virus infection inHunterdon County. Both cases were travel re-lated in young non-pregnant females. At thelocal health department level we have fielded31 requests for testing. Public health nursespromote Zika awareness and Zika preventionfor travelers. PHN also assists with screeningpeople who have returned from affected coun-tries.

Tuberculosis (TB) Control and Case Manage-mentThere have been no confirmed TB cases in 2016,but 6 suspected cases were treated with TB medi-cations before patients had a negative culture test.Eight residents were followed and evaluated torule out TB. All of these 14 cases were investi-gated and reported to NJDOH. In addition, fivecases were exposed to TB and required screeningand medical evaluation. One case was diagnosedwith Latent TB infection and was monitored andprovided treatment by Public Health Nurses.

2016Active TB Cases 0TB Case investigations 14TB contacts 5ServicesVisits (home, office, hospital) 62

Professional Contacts 41Other Contacts (education, generalassistance, etc.)

300

TB Skin Test 13

Maternal Child Health Services

Childhood vaccine program - works with Hunter-don Medical Center affiliated practices to provideimmunizations for noninsured and underinsuredchildren who meet federal poverty guidelines.

Childhood lead poisoning program provides edu-cation and surveillance for children with leadpoisoning. PHNE collaborates with the environ-mental health staff to investigate cases with ablood lead level over 10.

No. of New Lead Cases 2016 8No. of Home Visits 2016 7

School Immunization Audits29 out of 53 public and private schools were au-dited in this reporting year. Working with dedi-cated school nurses, the compliance rate was98%. 37 daycare centers and preschools are au-dited annually since most required vaccinationsare administered during early childhood. 26% ofthe nursery schools did not meet the compliancerate recommended by NJDOH. Initial audit re-sults indicated that 5% of children in nurseryschools had no age-appropriate DTP (Diphtheria,Tetanus and Pertussis) vaccine and 2-9% of par-ents claimed a religious exemption against vac-cination for either one or multiple vaccine anti-gens. PHN promotes vaccination and follows upon deficiencies to ensure that our communityreaches herd immunity. See the table below foroverall audit results.

2016Total school audits (public, pri-vate and nursery schools)

69

# of records reviewed 5367# of records with deficiencies 194Total deficiency rate (public, pri-vate and nursery schools)

3.61%

Deficiency for only nursery schools 6.88%

The Public Health Nurse coordinates with theRegistered Environmental Specialist to inspectaffected child’s home.

Improved Pregnancy Outcome Program(IPO) Provides prenatal/postpar tum educa-tion, support and referrals for at-risk pregnantwomen who reside in Hunterdon County. Theprimary goal is to help ensure a healthy out-come for mother and child by coordinating thedelivery of essential prenatal care and byproviding prenatal and postpartum education.In addition to being individual-focused, PHNEcollaborates with healthcare providers, hospi-tals and community agencies to improvehealthcare access for qualified clients.

Among the women being admitted, 22% wereyounger than 20 or older than 35 (ranging from15 to 42 years of age). 90% of the clients hadno insurance or had Medicaid.

Outcome: 88% of the clients delivered fullterm (> 37 wks), 91% of the newborns were ofnormal birth weight, and 58% of new mothersexclusively breastfed. Only 26% of programparticipants had cesarean delivery compared toalmost 33% of all births countywide in 2014(the most recent data available).

Pictured left: Juliet Leonard,RN conducted a postpartumand newborn visit. The visitincludes assessing for postpar-tum depression, newborn as-sessment, addressing feedingissues, newborn care and exer-cise, weight loss, etc.

Women Admitted 83Newborns Admitted 57

Services Categories 2016Counseling and Education 1469General Assistance 2630Professional Contacts 1995Prenatal Vitamins Dispensed 158

Service LocationsHome Visits 91PHNE Office 657

Programs CountDNA/Buccal (parentage) tests 32BP Screening 533Brunch & Learn Program (B&L) 13B&L program participants 238

New Jersey Health Initiatives (NJHI)Robert Wood Johnson Grant Opportunity

In 2016, the Hunterdon County Partnership forHealth was awarded a 4-year New Jersey HealthInitiatives grant. Karen DeMarco, health officer,serves as one of the members of a six personteam representing Hunterdon County. The grantprovides leadership training and access to subject-matter experts to “Build a Culture of Health” inHunterdon County, with a focus on evidence-based and sustainable programming for the great-est community impact. In year one, the NJHIteam is participating in training opportunities andenhancing collaborative opportunities for theHunterdon County Partnership for Health. Othermembers of the team include Dr. Cindy Barter,Collette Camisa, Kim Blanda, Rose Puelle, andFreeholder Director Suzanne Lagay.

Adult/Senior Health Program

Public Health Preparedness

Since 2003, New Jersey has designated the Hun-terdon County Division of Health as the leadagency for public health preparedness in thecounty. A multidisciplinary team of specialistshas developed, evaluated and implemented actionplans to help prevent, prepare for, and respond toserious public health crises including emergingdiseases, pandemic influenza, disease out-breaks,wide-scale natural disasters, and terrorist attacks.Preparedness staff members focus on buildingand sustaining capacities associated with sevenpublic health preparedness capabilities containedwithin the Centers for Disease Control & Preven-tion’s National Standards for State & Local Plan-ning. These capabilities include:

•Emergency Public Information & Warning•Information Sharing•Mass Care•Medical Countermeasures Dispensing•Medical Material Management and Distribution•Public Health Surveillance & Epidemiologic•Investigation•Volunteer Management

Public Health Preparedness

Regional POD ExerciseIn March, Hunterdon County participated in ajoint exercise with Mercer and Somerset countiesto set up a point of distribution (POD) to medi-cate community members in the aftermath of abioterrorism event. The counties together testedthe number of medication dosages that could begiven in the shortest period of time, the set-up ofthe facility with-in four hours of notification of abio-terrorism event, the staffing coordination be-tween each of the agencies, the ability to establishand maintain a multi-disciplinary/jurisdictionalcommunications network, and to establish a jointinformation center to test the dissemination ofinformation to the media and public during anemergency.

Public Health Nurse, Kathy Jaeger, distributesmedication to community members at the Region-al POD exercise on March 24, 2016.

On-Going Preparedness Projects

The Preparedness Team has been working with agroup of Hunterdon County municipalities tocreate a POD that would be set up and managedby those municipalities. Currently, the county andmunicipalities are creating this plan, with the goalto set up a table-top exercise in 2017.

Throughout 2016 the team worked on updatingthe Everbridge® database with contacts of localstakeholders that would need to be contacted dur-ing emergencies. Many small drills were conduct-ed using this system to make sure that messagesand responses could be received.

Monthly communication drills were also heldwith other counties via the 800 megahertz radiosystem, and Hippocrates, a state run communica-tion system.

The team also received training on a new systemcalled Mutualink. This system allows transmis-sion of video, audio and file sharing, and the teamparticipated in communication drills with thisnew system as well.

Local businesses were recruited to the fixed facil-ity plan, a plan that distributes medicationthrough businesses to their employees and fami-lies during a Public Health Emergency. The teamclosed out 2016 with plans for a full-scale fixedfacility POD exercise to take place at the Everitts-town garage in February of 2017.

TEEX training held at theRte 12 county complex.12-14-16

Public Health Nurses Juliet Leonard and JanisClark set up the nurses station at the MedicalNeeds Shelter Set-Up Drill on April 18, 2016.

Regional Medical Needs Shelter Set-Up Drill

In April, the three counties came together againto set up a medical needs shelter (MNS) in theconference room of building one at the Route 12complex. The goals of this drill were to initiateactivation of MNS, transport MNS resources tothe MNS location, establish a timeline for settingup and demobilizing the shelter, and communi-cate with relevant partners, including the originalrequesting county, that the MNS is set-up andready to receive evacuees.

When Tropical Storm Hermine threatened NewJersey over Labor Day Weekend, public healthand preparedness staff were ready to open theMNS with the training and practice they receivedduring this MNS set up drill.

Hunterdon County Division of Public HealthJoins Healthy Workforce Initiative

In May 2016, the Hunterdon County Division ofPublic Health joined the Chamber of Commerceas a partner in the Healthy Hunterdon WorkforceInitiative. The goal of the initiative is to create“a culture of health” for employees. The HealthDivision joins with other businesses throughoutthe county in this effort, and the Chamber ofCommerce provides activity ideas and quarterlymeetings for participating employers.As increased physical activity is shown to im-prove overall health, and result in decreased sicktime and better productivity for employees, thenewly formed Health Division Wellness Commit-tee focused their efforts on creating opportunitiesfor staff to get moving. Before scheduling events,the committee surveyed fellow employees abouttheir preferred activities and current level of fit-ness.

Between the months of May and November, thehealth division staff kept track of their weeklysteps, and successfully walked the mileage of a“Walk to Hollywood.” To help staffers achievethis common goal, the wellness committee orga-nized group hikes after hours, with a focus oncounty park lands. From the months of June toNovember staff walked a total of 4,233 miles.This surpassed the goal of 2,735 miles by 1,498miles! Twelve staff members participated andcompleted a total of seven group hikes throughthe various parks of Hunterdon. These includewalks along the canal in Lambertville, Ken Lock-

wood Gorge, andColumbia Trail.We are lookingforward to startingup our group hikesin the spring andwill reverse coursefrom California toNew York this

time.

For 2017, in addition to hiking, the wellness com-mittee is planning lunch and learn opportunitiesabout nutrition and stress reduction, a weight losschallenge, and a Polar Plunge for employees whowould like to participate.