Riverside Signal - Early Summer Edition

TOMS RIVER—The Racanellis have not had a good 18 months. A series of health and financial crises have battered their spirit and left them struggling to make ends meet.Looming largest has been an ongoing struggle with foreclosure on their Toms River home. The family believes their bank, Wells Fargo, not only foreclosed on them incorrectly, but has not worked with them in good faith to resolve their dispute.Their story is a long and winding one. Sometimes confusing and often a web of dates and numbers, it illustrates how difficult navigating the minefield of mortgages and foreclosures can be for many Americans - often with dire long-term consequences for those caught up in the process.It began as a familiar enough story: in 2005, the family borrowed $180,000 from Pinnacle Mortgage to purchase their family home, a single story bungalow on the wetland shore

Beachwood | Island Heights | Ocean Gate | Pine Beach | South Toms River | Toms River

PLUS

BEACHWOOD 3ISLAND HEIGHTS 11OCEAN GATE 32PINE BEACH 18SOUTH TOMS RIVER 25TOMS RIVER 36JOINT BASE MDL 46

Eric San Juan

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Last Chance for Peto House’s “Art of the Sail”

Beachwood • Island Heights • Ocean Gate • Pine Beach • South Toms River • Toms River

Truth • Heritage • Environment

Beachwood Youth is Junior OlympicGold Medalist

FREE • Early Summer 2012 • Beachwood, N.J.

Waking NightmareToms River Family Caught in Mortgage Meat Grinder

of Dillon’s Creek, standing at the edge of Gilford Park across from Island Heights. The first few years things went well. James Racanelli, 46, worked in law enforcement and with his wife, Belencita, raised their family of three children in their new home. In June 2008, as the financial world began to spin off its axis, Wells Fargo purchased the mortgage from Pinnacle.The financial crisis came and many watched, wondering what it meant for them. Then, something changed.

A police officer for 10 years, most recently with the Passaic County Sherriff’s Office, Mr. Racinelli was laid off in 2009 with some 1,000 other officers in the State of New Jersey.Things quickly went south.By late 2010, the Racinellis were past due on their mortgage, a problem further exacerbated when they had to shoulder the cost of burying Jim’s father and suffering a house fire in January 2011. Then Wells Fargo called for the money owed.One month later, the Racanellis

paid the past due amount on their home, but Wells Fargo sent the checks back and started proceedings to put the home in foreclosure instead. Working with an attorney, the family got the matter resolved. They thought it was just another bump in the road.Four months later, the former police officer was hit by a bus while on the job as a truck driver delivering cars to try and keep his family sheltered and fed, resulting in a rotator

Jim and Belencita Racinelli stand with their children on the front lawn of the Gilford Park home they are fighting to save, despite the quixotic efforts of the multinational bank that took over their mortgage. Erik Weber/Riverside Signal

ISLAND HEIGHTS—On a fireplace mantle, a dark 19th century trawler pushes across a smoky sea under an orange sun. Two children of the 1890s play in the water of a shoreline against white sails and a salt and pepper sky against a nearby wall. A wooden rumrunner sits at rest on a wide table in the master’s studio. Upstairs, heroic America’s Cup yachts race between curious Barnegat Bay catboat excursion parties, while sandbaggers float atop Long Island Sound at half-light.In two weeks, all of these sights, scenes and stories will dissolve into their original, singular elements as the John F. Peto Studio Museum’s immensely popular Art of the Sail exhibit cruises into the sunset following an initial run and extension to August 19th, three months to the day after it opened.Sailing, and by virtue of proximity, its depiction in paintings and other works by area artists, helped shape the identity, culture and history of virtually all communities on the Toms River and Barnegat Bay since the earliest days of the region’s settlement by European immigrants. So too was shaped the personal identity of John F. Peto, evidenced by his decision to move his home from Philadelphia to Island Heights in 1889 in a location just up the street from the quiet and protected Holly Cove, a childhood sketch depicting a sailboat containing his initials, various watercolors created as a young man of sailboats on the water and some family photographs that show the Peto family standing near a sailboat.“When he did a self-portrait continued on page 14

Erik Weber

BEACHWOOD—Residents here should rest a little easier knowing there’s now an internationally medaled karate champion in their midst.Earlier this year, 11-year-old Shae Papa attended the United States Amateur Athletic Union Junior Olympics in Las Vegas with her school, Rising Sun Karate Academy (RSKA) of Toms River, a mere two years after winning a contest and taking an initial two week trial at the school. In the days that followed, she earned two medals, a gold and a silver.This summer she was honored

by the Beachwood mayor and council, and given an opportunity to speak briefly about her experience starting and competing in the sport.“There was a circus kind of thing over by the [Ocean County Mall] and they had [Rising Sun Karate Academy] do a performance,” she said. At the performance, the school held a contest to give away two free weeks of karate lessons at their academy, which both she and her younger brother won. “It so happened that we won, and I tried it and I really liked doing it—it was really fun for me, it clicked.”Rick Herbster, owner and one of the instructors at RSKA, said

Karate Champ Shae Papa Also Brings Home SilverErik Weber

Beachwood resident Shae Papa won gold and silver medals in the 2012 Karate Junior Olympics plus three more at the 2012 USA Karate Open with her school, Rising Sun Karate Academy of Toms River, earlier this year. Erik Weber/Riverside Signal

Riverside Signal | Early Summer 2012 | Page 2

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Beachwood 1932Presented here are events, activities and reports of Beachwood during late spring and early summer 1932, as compiled from various resources within the Wheeler Room at the Toms River Branch of the Ocean County Library by Riverside Signal staff:

Mr. and Mrs. Oscar Loeser, the former a naval officer at Lakehurst Naval Air Station, moved from a residence on Hooper Avenue in Toms River to their new home on Forepeak Avenue, formerly the Harry Neinstadt bungalow, where it was noted they joined a large faction of other naval officers here… borough resident and machinist William Fischer began construction of a cement block shop on the west side of Cedar Point, South Toms River, which would be a marine engine shop. It stands to this day as part of Miller Yacht Basin, on Crabbe Road… during a district meeting of scoutmasters and troop committeemen in Toms River, borough residents J.C. Fellows gave a course on mapmaking while Malcolm Flory coached on holding ceremonies… Lt. Daniel Ward Harrigan, USN, moved into the rented waterfront home of Dr. Swan the same week he made the historic first airborne “landing” to a dirigible, the USS Akron, on May 3rd. He later invented the parachute life-raft pack for downed fighter pilots in 1936, which earned him the Legion of Merit—the service’s highest peacetime award—and went on to be the first officer in the Pacific Fleet to make a carrier landing in World War II before retiring with the rank of rear admiral… Mr. and Mrs. Cries temporarily occupied Mrs. Alice Lovett’s Beachwood Boulevard cottage while their own bungalow was under construction on the upper part of that street… Frank Combi rented his apartment over the garage on Beachwood Boulevard to Mr. Metzier, a businessman from South Toms River… Charles H. Haring stated that one method to kill mosquitoes [not recommended today for

Returned after serving his third tour of duty overseas, Beachwood resident and New Jersey National Guard Sgt. 1st Class Daniel Leonard attended the late May council meeting to present an American flag that had been flown over the American compound Camp Blackhorse during OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM in Afghanistan on March 2nd of this year.The sergeant, who has lived in Beachwood for approximately 20 years and the entire length of his military service, had been on duty since April 2011 and previously had the opportunity to surprise his family with a short leave over the Christmas holiday before returning and finishing out his tour in March.“When you’re overseas and you’re away from your family, your town—Beachwood actually holds a special place in your heart, because that’s your hometown,” he said, adding that he flew the flag on behalf of all residents of the borough and prepared a special certificate for the governing body to accompany it.Sgt. 1st Class Leonard briefly outlined his team’s mission.“We were a 12-man team that went over to mentor and train the Afghan National Army” to set them up in order for American troops to return home, he said. “I worked with the Albanian military; we went over there and trained the Albanians and brought them into Afghanistan with us and worked together for a long time and did a lot of good things. I’m very proud of my mission and very proud of my home.”Mayor Ronald Roma stated that the flag would be flown during the borough’s annual Memorial Day ceremony at Neilson Monument Park near the waterfront.All governing body members thanked the sergeant for his efforts.“He mentioned one thing—that was his third tour of duty and that’s a long time,” said Councilman Thomas Miserindino, also a war veteran. “When I had to go overseas to Vietnam I was fortunate enough or

Following over a year of discussion between the governing bodies of Beachwood and Pine Beach, including an earlier failed attempt last year, the Beachwood council unanimously approved a public ballot question for residents to decide whether the Beachwood First Aid Squad could enter a “Length of Service Award Program,” commonly referred to as LOSAP, that would reward members on a points-based criteria system with a fixed annual contribution for each year of active service.Beachwood officials first approached the Pine Beach governing body in early 2011 for such a ballot question, which had to be agreed upon by both communities the squad serviced and use the same wording in each. While Beachwood passed the resolution approving the ballot question for that November general election, Pine Beach officials stated they had not received the written language of the proposed ballot question and therefore had not discussed nor passed it in time.This year, the Beachwood governing body renewed its effort for the award program referendum with Pine Beach, and while tensions sometimes flared in various council meetings and messages and exchanges between Mayor Roma and Pine Beach Mayor Lawrence Cuneo and council members over accusations of purposeful delays on the part of Pine Beach and bullying on the part of Beachwood, the two towns ultimately agreed upon the ballot question in time for

The Beachwood governing body unanimously passed a resolution urging the state to approve the installation of cardiac care surgery services at Community Medical Center in Toms River, with Mayor Roma pointing out that in the event of a cardiac emergency, the two closest locations for emergency cardiac care were approximately 25 miles away at Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune, Monmouth County, and Deborah Heart and Lung Center in Browns Mills, Pemberton Township, Burlington County.The proximity of the large senior population within Ocean County, particularly in the Toms River area, created such an emergent need for more

Sgt. Daniel Leonard and his wife, Michelle, posed with the Beachwood mayor and council after presenting an American flag to the residents of this borough that had flown during Dan’s service in OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM, in Afghanistan, earlier this year. /Courtesy Michelle Leonard

LOSAP Referendum for Nov. 6th

Sgt. Daniel Leonard Presents American Flag from War

Council Supports CMC Cardiac Care

continued on page 4 continued on page 4

Erik Weber

Eric San Juan

Eric San Juan

The following items took place during the Beachwood Borough governing body meetings of May and June 2012. July and early August meeting information will be reported in the next edition of the Riverside Signal, posting August 10th.


this November election, with Pine Beach officials adding such provisions as a $750 per member per year cap; a maximum 50-member program cap, for a total maximum annual cost of $37,500 program cost; and that should the squad no longer actively respond to calls for service anytime in the future, the boroughs would no longer be required to fund the program.The mayor and council of Pine Beach earlier expressed concerns that the points system was set up with higher points values in certain areas that would make eligibility more achievable, particularly to line officers, and that as such it could cause problems within Pine Beach and the LOSAP program agreement they have with the Pine Beach Volunteer Fire Company, where the points system is somewhat lower. It was noted that the Beachwood First Aid Squad LOSAP program points system was based on the Beachwood Volunteer Fire Company’s program agreement, and borough officials in Pine Beach ultimately agreed on the award program as written provided they could insert the aforementioned caps and provisions.Overall, if approved by voters this November, the Borough of Beachwood would be responsible for 70 percent of the program’s maximum annual cost, or $26,250, while Pine Beach would be responsible for 30 percent of the program’s maximum annual cost, or $11,250, following the same financial responsibility percentage agreement the two boroughs hold on the squad’s annual insurance cost.

Council Approves First Aid Service Awardcontinued from page 3

Council Supports CMC Cardic Carecontinued from page 3

localized cardiac care, added the mayor.“I’m not just saying that seniors are the only ones who need care, but the truth is that most of the time it is our seniors, and we have first aiders here and I’m sure they can attest [to the need],” he continued, noting that following the late April council meeting, Councilman Gerald W. “Jerry” LaCrosse required sudden cardiac medical attention that turned out to be caused by an adverse reaction of his internal defibrillator and some allergy medication.While not major, Councilman LaCrosse later stated that a cardiac care center at Community Medical Center would be a benefit for all local residents as “when you have a heart issue, every second is very, very important.”

Beachwood Police Chief Willaim Cairns, in response to earlier complaints by residents of ongoing dirtbiking and all-terrain vehicle activity in the open tract of Berkeley Township land known locally as Johnson’s Pit, stated that he had met with the borough public works department and that barricades had been erected to disrupt the flow of easy access for such recreational vehicles coming through Beachwood to the pit area.“I walked the area from Walnut Street to behind the school, and the majority of it is Berkeley Township property they’re accessing,” he said. “I spoke to one of the Berkeley Township detectives who happened to stop while I was walking back to my car, and he said he’s out there pretty regularly” and sees recreational vehicle activity mostly during the late afternoon and evening.“He said they aren’t going to put their officers on quads in the afternoon or evening in fear of someone getting hurt,” the chief continued, adding that the detective stated the property owner had been notified as to the problem. “We have taken some corrective action and stepped up enforcement and if we see somebody pushing quads our guys are instructed to turn them around to go home—riding them out there, we will impound them.”He added that the public works department had reinstalled new signs “that prohibit that type of activity that had been damaged.”

Keith and Rachel Cousens of Nautilus Street approached the governing body seeking help in a household dispute involving a couple they had invited to stay in the basement of their home while transitioning to permanent housing.“In the beginning of March, a friend of ours was in desperate need for a place for her daughter and her daughter’s fiancee to stay,” said Mrs. Cousens. “My husband and I decided to help them out as it was only supposed to be a temporary situation. We informed the mother that we were not set up for anyone to live in our basement because the bathroom pump was broken, and we would need two additional doors. My washer and dryer were there also. The mother paid to fix the toilet and get the doors. We figured we could work around the washer and dryer since it was only a temporary thing and too much to move.”“There was no lease, no security and no other monies to date were ever received,” she continued, adding that in late April the couple later learned that having tenants in their basement was dangerous, a fire hazard and illegal. “We immediately informed them and asked them to vacate—they were going to begin to pay us May 1st if they were still here. We said forget it, please just leave. They have continually refused to leave and they even came to the town and reported it as an illegal apartment.”The borough then issued a notice to vacate and the Cousens offered a $2,500 cashier’s check to help the couple relocate, yet the couple in the basement still refused to leave.“We apologize for putting the town in this situation; we have received a summons from the town that we will pay and we have come to the town to respectfully ask that you help us speedily evict these two people from our home,” stated Mrs. Cousens. “We are emotionally strained and concerned for our family’s welfare.”Mayor Roma stated that the governing body appreciated their approaching the town about the situation, but that as they had a summons and a court date, they would not be able to further discuss the matter.“But we appreciate it and are well aware of it and we too are eagerly awaiting to see the outcome of the court date.”The Cousens’ illegal tenants later left the Nautilus Street home.

Maria Sessa, area manager with Jersey Central Power and Light for the Toms River region, approached the borough council on June 6th with information on a new online “24/7 Power Center” with power outage maps and services now available to customers via their smartphones and other mobile devices in the event of power loss.“During emergency situations it will give you the information based on how many customers may be out in part of the municipality, and it gives the overall view of what may be occurring in the area,” she said, adding that the public’s ability to access the map with cellular smartphone technology allows them to “report outages as well,” and that a new service to alert the company of off streetlights also existed on the site. “If there were a significant event it will also provide information where there are staging stations and ice and water” along with further outage-related news, safety reminders and other important information.Access to the 24/7 Power Center is available by going to firstenergycorp.com/outages. During significant service interruptions, outage information will also be available on the company’s Twitter accounts, which can be found at firstenergycorp.com/newsroom/social_media

Memorial Day PicnicMayo Park, May 28th, 2012

New JCP&L Online Outage MapsEric San Juan

ATV Riders and Dirtbikers in Johnson’s Pit

Basement Squatters Would’t Leave

Erik Weber Eric San Juan


For the fine work they’ve done, and are still bound to do. …in the middle of May, Mr. and Mrs. Lee Campbell and family of Tuckerton were weekend guests of her mother, Mrs. Widmaier, here, and of his mother, Mrs. Campbell… James J. Russell, a well-known resident of the borough, died suddenly at his home on Atlantic City Boulevard at Brigantine Street on Wednesday, May 18th of heart failure at 78, leaving behind a wife, one daughter and five sons, including William, who was aboard the U.S.S. Akron airship in California at the time of his death. The Russells first came to Beachwood several years earlier when their son was stationed to the Lakehurst Naval Air Station, and Mr. Russell was one of the most respected and well-liked citizens. The following spring, William, a survivor of the U.S.S. Shenandoah airship crash in Ohio in 1925, would lose his life along with 72 of the 76 men aboard the Akron when it crashed into the sea off Barnegat Light… Jeptha H. Lanning, Sr., 70, of Compass Avenue, passed away Sunday, May 15th at his home in Long Island following heart problems. Earlier that year his wife, Selina, had died, and together they left behind three children… Fred Harjes, owner of the newly constructed Woolworth store on Main Street in Toms River, stayed at his family home on the corner of Compass Avenue and Lookout Street in the middle of May and stated that his father brought the family to Beachwood among the very first families the first summer the resort was open in 1915, and they came every summer since… Ocean Gate resident Charles Snyder and his father opened a flower stand at the South Garage on Atlantic City Boulevard here, offering a variety of plants and shrubs. One clever piece of marketing that the younger Snyder put on was a sign for motorists just before they would come upon the stand that read, Do Not Look to Left. Naturally all traveling along the highway craned their necks left and got a full view of the offerings of Mr. Snyder and son… Neil Ericksen, a former borough resident and resident of South Toms River, was awarded $20,000 in damages against the New Jersey Pulverizing Company and its sand plant in Pinewald, Berkeley Township, for contracting silicosis, or the inhalation of silica dust while working at the plant, when proper prevention equipment was not readily available during plant operations. His wife, Ethel, testified following medical experts on his inability to work, stating that his bronchial inflammation and lung congestion prevented him from helping her operate a small business. The plant foreman and others testified that the workers at the plant often ignored using gas masks to keep out the silica dust, stating that they were more often worn loosely around

their necks as they felt it was too difficult and uncomfortable to breathe through, adding that the best possibly ventilation equipment of the era was running to draw the dust from the air space of the workers. The defense put on the stand a pulmonary expert from Jersey City who testified that Mr. Eriksen’s breathing troubles were actually the cause of heart problems contracted during an 1893 expedition to the Arctic and not the sand plant operations. The trial lasted three days… A.D. Nickerson, co-founder and civil engineer of this borough who later went into the real estate sales and bungalow building business, sold the William Mill Butler tract located at the top of the bluff overlooking Windy Cove at the Beachwood-Pine Beach border to the Harjes brothers of New York and Beachwood, who planned to have architect C.L. Steinbrenner, of Newark and Beachwood, design and construct three homes for three of the brothers—William,

Herman and Alfred—to be built by borough builders Albert Neilson, Fred Christensen and Clarence S. Coryell. The family had two weeks earlier opened the newly built Woolworth store on Main Street in Toms River, which was also designed by Steinbrenner. Mr. Butler, the owner of the tract they purchased, was the first historian for the Beachwood resort, writing the Beachwood Directory and Who’s Who 1924, and along with his wife were two of the early Beachwood pioneers, living in an attractive bungalow on the south side of Bayside Avenue, across which they owned the natural and wooded land sold above overlooking Windy Cove. By 1932 Mrs. Helen J. Butler was suffering from poor health as a result of a series of strokes, the third and final one of which would take her life later this year on December 9th, leaving Mr. Butler crushed. He would go on to sell his bungalow following her death and move into a

Beachwood 1932continued from page 3

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3211 Bridge Ave. Pt. Pleasant, NJ 08742732-899-9110 • Fax: 732-899-0126

Community Center Rental Deposit Refund Denied

A resolution unanimously passed to uphold the decision of Councilwoman Beverly Clayton to withhold the deposit monies from a rental of the Beachwood Community Center to Pennant Avenue resident Joseph Rotella due to the poor nature the borough public works employees found the hall after his party utilized it.“I can tell you that we spoke with everyone and his story is completely different than our employees,” said Mrs. Clayton. “The feces on the floor was more than we could take and I thought they deserved to have their complete deposit taken away.”“We have relied on Councilwoman Clayton for many years now with her judgments and decisions with the community center, and there have been very few deposits that we’ve either had to partially keep or fully keep,” stated Mayor Roma. “Our borough public works employees have said that this particular case warranted a forfeiture of the deposit and Mrs. Clayton has agreed.”

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obvious environmental implications ~ Editor] without spending money for the oil was to send a truck around to filling stations, collecting all refuse oil, and spraying it into standing water that could not be drained… Architect C.L. Steinbrenner of this borough, who designed the Woolworth store in Toms River, prepared plans for three new Beachwood cottages… the family of Mr. Charles Keizer, a local ice dealer, moved into the Walter Farrier bungalow on Atlantic City Boulevard, from Pine Beach… the barber who in 1931 was located in the Beachwood Circle Inn moved operations to the location formerly occupied by Erath’s butcher shop… Stella F. Dame wrote the following poem for the Beachwood Fire Company, titled (Volunteers): Awake to the siren!! Its call reaches the ears / And arouses to action our brave Volunteers; / Whatever they’re doing, be it business or fun, / Bound on quenching the flames they drop all and run; / They heed not the danger when fighting a fire, / To safeguard the neighbors, their only desire. / Here’s three rousing cheers for our brave fighting crew, / With their up-to-date engine, hook and fire ladder, too. / With this modern equipment greater speed yet they gain, / And the cash thus expended has not been in vain. / All praise we give to our firefighters true, /

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retirement home in Maplewood, where he passed away at the age of 87 in 1946… on complaint of Mrs. H.G. Skidmore, a resident here, Bertha Irvings, an African American maid of the Skidmore family, who was originally from New Brunswick was arrested in Toms River after allegedly threatening to stab Mrs. Skidmore and poison her children… the editor of the New Jersey Courier, which was published out of Toms River, joked that bathing suit manufacturers were apparently hit hard by the economic depression as the amount of material used to cover up bathers’ bodies was growing smaller and smaller, to where they were “scantier in size than at any times since we were boys and were allowed to go in swimmin’ anywhere on the south shore of the Toms River minus any clothes at all,” at a time before South Toms River, Beachwood, Pine Beach or Ocean Gate existed and the southern bank was largely undeveloped scrub pine woodlands… Beachwood had a scare on Monday, May 30th when Miss Esther Wright, 20, disappeared from her home in the morning. Night arrived and the young woman was still missing, along with her chow dog. The fire alarm was blown after darkness fell and firemen and others were joined by state troopers to search for her in all directions. At some point, a motorist driving nearby found her wandering around and brought her back to the borough, dog and all… Mr. and Mrs. George Hannon and daughters of Elizabeth opened their Japanese cottage on Brigantine Street over the Memorial Day weekend, spending a few days in town… Clarence Coryell completed a bungalow for a Mr. Cregg, of Bayonne, on Cable Avenue… in early June, the New Jersey Courier newspaper called attention and objected to a two-cent price increase for a gallon

of oil, up from 1931’s price of $0.0468 to mid-1932’s $0.0672… Oakland, California resident Nellie Tobias was arrested by Policeman Frank Turner in this borough and informed Justice Leary that Beachwood was the first place between the two coasts to have asked for her license. She was fined $3 plus costs…in early June, work by residents here as part of the Washington Bicentennial movement to plant shade trees along borough boulevards was well under way, having begun a year earlier under the leadership of Mrs. Marie Fay Moore, who asked the cooperation of residents and taxpayers to contribute to a fund for the purchase and planting of such trees. The Beachwood Woman’s Club, Property Owners Association and borough commissioners fully backed the plan, and a committee was formed, resulting in 100 Siberian Elms between 10 and 12 feet high gracing the boulevards and parks. It was noted that when the Beachwood resort was first established and opened in 1915, its pioneers ignored derision by those from outside municipalities who insulted their abundance of pine trees, and a concerted effort was made to preserve their standing from the very foundation of the town. The bicentennial tree committee included Mr. John Petterson, Mr. Ferdinand Hosp, Mr. Melbourne Carriker, Mrs. Anna Rechtwig, Mrs. Guy Swan, Mr. Carl Recht and Mr. Rheinhardt, with Mr. Rheinhardt’s son donating his time, labor and expertise to the planting itself. Mayor Joseph W. Rowe, Commissioner George Middleton and Commissioner Roland Staples gave personal financial support behind the effort, and Mrs. Moore hoped that the shade and beauty of the trees planted would recognize and commemorate the bicentennial community-wide. The Siberian Elms can still be found to this day across the borough in the areas planted in 1932, most noticeably in and around what today is the Mayo Park playground area and in front and side yards of many homes on the northern side of town nearest the river. Curious readers are encouraged to look up images of the Siberian Elm on the internet, identify its unique leaves, and then engage in a personal walking scavenger hunt anytime between mid-spring and mid-fall… the Polyhue Yacht Club opened its social season in early June with a Saturday evening dance held at the clubhouse with 175 in attendance and music provided by the New York Serenaders… Fred E. Christensen began enlarging the MacLean garage on Ship Avenue, making it a two-car garage with an apartment overhead… the governing body here publicly opposed plans by the Department of Banking and Insurance to charge a ten percent premium every two months that any home sat

Beachwood 1932continued from page 5

unoccupied, which would affect the majority of property owners in Beachwood, a large portion of whom were summer residents and were away for upwards of eight months in a year, which would incur a 40 percent premium charge… the borough commissioners passed five ordinances on first reading at their mid-June meeting, including a requirement that every dwelling have a sanitary cesspool or septic tank, right fitted with covers to prevent the escape of odors; another regulating the dumping of garbage and litter within the borough and adding that all trash be kept in watertight cans with tight fitting covers or bundled and placed at the curb for collection; a third prohibiting leaving any kind of lumber, rubbish, tin cans, oyster shells, bottles or other waste on streets or sidewalks; and a final that regulated the trimming of trees and shrubberies in public places in the borough. All carried fines or possible imprisonment as penalties for failure to comply… new building permits issued here including one for the construction of a garage for A.M. Rousseau at his home on Beachwood Boulevard and Nautilus Street; another for a two-car garage on the Dr. S.A. Loveman property; and alterations to a bungalow on Mermaid and Bowline avenues… the Beachwood Fire Company was called out to extinguish a kitchen fire in the Hoffman house on Atlantic City Boulevard on Saturday night, June 11th. Toms River Fire Company No. 2 also responded to the siren… the New Jersey Courier newspaper decried the local dumps as being “unpleasant features of modern life [where] waste is cast,” and that “usually people manage to find some place that is near settled parts of the community, or else along a

much traveled road. The dumps are unsightly, often rat breeders and mosquito breeders, and at times disease breeders.”… Harold Woolley, son of Mrs. Emily Woolley of Toms River, and Anita Caldwell, daughter of Mrs. Mary D. Caldwell of Beachwood, were married on Wednesday evening, June 15th, by Rev. I.E. Hicks at the Hicks home on Clifton Avenue. Mr. Woolley was an employee of the A.B. Newbury Company’s Toms River store… an unnamed child broke his nose when diving at Beachwood Beach on Tuesday, June 21st, marking the third person to have broken their nose at the beach that year… the Beachwood Property Owners Association announced the first dance of the season to take place at the clubhouse, located on the bluff above Windy Cove [today the parking lot across from the Mayo Park playground, as the building burned down in the mid-20th century] for July 2nd and a chicken dinner on August 6th… a strawberry festival held Saturday, June 18th at the Beachwood chapel to benefit the Beachwood Religious Association was a success, with the proceeds donated totaling $63.55… junior yacht club races started up for another season, using 15-foot sneakboxes, and it was noted that the races were originally started in Bay Head and dubbed “candy races” due to the boxes of candy that were offered as prizes. This trend later expanded to include small cups and boat accessories—including flashlights, sheath knifes, riding lights, boat hooks, flags, brass chocks and more—as prizes by some clubs that took up the practice from Mantoloking and down to Seaside Park, Island Heights, Lavallette and Ocean Gate and more…the Captain Joshua Huddy chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and

the Borough of Beachwood announced plans to celebrate the bicentennial of the birth of George Washington in the first week of July with a dedication ceremony of the Siberian Elms planted along borough roadways by Mrs. Marie Fay Moore and other volunteers and a two-day exhibit of colonial artifacts at the Brigantine hostel that was to include family heirlooms from area residents and include a garden party on its grounds that would “be lighted with colored electric bulbs, and pretty girls in Colonial gowns will serve the guests” and include live music… officials at the Lakehurst Naval Air Station announced to the local public that the U.S.S. Los Angeles airship had made her last flight and that its gas bags would be deflated and the ship placed in storage… Aviation Chief Machinist’s Mate August C. Quernheim, of the U.S.S. Akron airship, rented Mr. Walter’s home on Atlantic City Boulevard near Mermaid Avenue as a “yearly” tenant. ACCM Quernheim, a survivor of the U.S.S. Shenandoah airship crash in 1925, would be dead less than a year later when the Akron crashed into the sea off Barnegat Light… the Herman Harjes house on Compass Avenue and the William Harjes home on the riverfront continued construction and were said to be “coming along nicely.”…

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Councilman Trains in Pine Beach 5K

Councilman Steve Komsa, liaison to the Beachwood Recreation Commission, trained in the Pine Beach 5K last month as a runup to Beachwood’s first 5K competition, arriving this October through streets on the northern river end of town. Erik Weber/Riverside Signal


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Odds & Ends- The borough council unanimously approved an agreement with T&M Associates for the 2012 municipal aid program for road improvements to Barnegat Boulevard and Brigantine Street in an amount not to exceed $39,900.

- Borough Clerk Elizabeth “Bette” Mastropasqua noted that with the passage of the 2012 resolution of the borough entering the Ocean County Municipal Alliance grant program, it marked the 10th year that the program had existed in Beachwood, which holds proactive programs and events designed to educate and keep kids and adults away from drugs and alcohol, including the annual Beachwood Beach Luau, the weekly Family Fun Nights at Birch and Surf Park during the summer, monthly dances for intermediate school students and more.

- Mr. Miserindino, council liaison to the Construction Department, reported that the following were issued by the code enforcement officer to property owners during the months of April and May: 28 notices of violation, 38 warnings, and 11 court summonses plus a record of 23 conditions abated and 43 outstanding violations.

- Councilman Steve Komsa, liaison to the Recreation Committee, reported that plans and arrangements were ongoing for Beachwood’s first 5K race and one mile fun run event, to be held October 20th, with registrations available online at jerseyrunner.com. The course chosen would highlight the northern river section of town, which is also the borough’s oldest, original section, containing many pre-World War II bungalows, homes and the public beachfront, marina and open space/parkland.He added that Jersey Gold would perform during the annual Ocean County Carousel of Music program at Beachwood Beach on Saturday, August 17th at 7 pm, playing the hits of the 1950s and 1960s.

- Councilman Ed Zakar reported that during the months of April and May, workers compensation claims were trending downward and by late May had shown a 27 percent reduction from the year before.

- the borough authorized the cleanup of multiple unkempt properties across the borough by the department of public works with liens imposed to pay for the work

- Chief Cairns asked for the hiring of a new Class II police officer after Michael Sperber, a borough native who was hired and took his oath of allegiance earlier this year, left the department to join the state department of corrections.

- Chief Financial Officer John Mauder reported that the borough had received $18,716.96 in storm damage reimbursement from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which represented 75 percent of the overall $24,955 applied for, leaving 25 percent for the borough to match.

Mrs. Clayton reported that new guardrails would be installed along the westbound roadway leading to the Birch Street Bridge above the Sunset Road neighborhood later this fall to protect the residents living there.Earlier this year a group of residents approached the borough council about a lack of barrier and protection at the site, which was redeveloped last year by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority’s Garden State Parkway widening project, facilitating the need for a new bridge located nearer the residential homes to the north. As a result, a heavy amount of wooded area was cleared for the effort, exposing all of the lower Sunset Road to the Birch Street roadway and causing what many stated was an undesirable impact upon their property values and quality of life. The problem, they stated, was aggravated by an already failed real estate project on the neighborhood’s western perimeter where Wind River Developers were permitted to clear-cut a significant amount of wooden pine area bordering the Garden State Parkway for the construction of large luxury-style homes in what was billed as Cranberry Road Estates, and where only a handful of homes were built, leaving a new open exposure to the state highway.Plantings were later installed on the sloped hill from Birch Street leading down to the Sunset Road neighborhood by the state turnpike authority, but the failed real estate development remains largely as it was left several years ago.

New Guardrails at Birch Street Bridge ApproachErik Weber


Beachwood Plaza and Western Boulevard ExtensionOn June 19th, officials and residents attended an information session on proposed ideas to extend Western Boulevard in Berkeley Township to Route 9 in the vicinity of the Beachwood Borough/Berkeley Township border. Prior to that session several Beachwood council members expressed concern over the impact of such an extension and any connections with residential streets, which holds the potential to turn them into “cut-through” avenues for motorists trying to get to and from the soon-to-be redeveloped Beachwood Plaza.“A lot of people had a lot of issues that have to be taken into consideration and worked out before anything moves forward,” reported Mr. LaCrosse, who had attended the meeting and is the proprietor of der Wunder Wiener, a hot dog stand located on the northern border of the plaza property. “I don’t see anything happening in the real short term, but long-term they would like to do something to alleviate the traffic situation as it affects Route 9.”“The only problem is that some of the solutions thought about simply takes the traffic problem from one location and moves it into Beachwood, which is not a good thing,” he continued. “But we were able to get a commitment from the supposed developer—I don’t know if it will be the developer in the long run or not—but we expressed to that person our displeasure with any sort of access into any kind of new complex from any of the roads in Beachwood because all that would do is bring traffic through Beachwood.”

Erik Weber

Beachwood Memorial Day May 28th, 2012

Beachwood held their annual Memorial Day celebration on Monday, May 28th, kicking off with the firemen’s memorial and bike decorating contest at the fire company grounds before the parade headed north toward the riverfront and Neilson Monument Park for the veterans’ ceremony.


Summer Reading Kickoff

Beware of dangers of artificial sweetenersQ: Why have I heard so much about avoiding artificial sweeteners and their dangers to health?A: There is good reason to avoid artificial sweeteners and, yes, they are very dangerous to your health. In writings from Dr. Mercola called ”Sweet Deception” he exposes the composition of each artificial sweetener. It is too lengthy to discuss all of them but I will give you the components of some and you will get the big picture. The names of the most common ones are; Saccharin Cyclamate (banned in 1969), Aspartame, Alitame (not yet approved), Sucralose, Acesulfame-K and Neotame. Most of these were discovered accidentally by chemists looking for other products; an insecticide in the case of Sucralose.Less than one year after Aspartame was added to soft drinks the FDA received 592 complaints of Aspartame effects including: aggressive behavior, extreme numbness, loss of depth perception, seizures, death, disorientation, excitability, liver impairment, suicidal tendencies, hyperactivity, memory loss, cardiac arrest, severe mood swings.The amino acids found in Aspartame are not found sequenced together anywhere in nature. The body does not recognize it and attempts to metabolize it. The other portion is methanol or wood alcohol (paint remover: causes fatal kidney damage, blindness, multiple organ system failure, and death). EPA defines safe consumption at 7.8 mg/day. There are 16mgs in a can of diet soda. It breaks down to formaldehyde and DKP, both known carcinogens.Sucralose was found by technicians attempting to make insecticides. They were adding a highly poisonous chemical to a sugar solution. They created a chlorinated sugar. They experimented with other chlorinated sugars until they selected one. The chemical name 1,6-dichloro1,6-dideoxy-beta-D-fructofuranosyl-4chlore-deoxy-alpha-Dgalactopyranoside. It was renamed “Sucralose” to sound more natural.The chlorine in Sucralose is dangerous. It is stored in your fatty tissue and the toxicity mainly affects your brain, heart and lungs. Digestion of this chemical can cause liver toxicity, genetic mutation, low birth weight in infants, and maternal toxicity.Splenda is mixed with bulking agents dextrose (glucose i.e. sugar) and maltodextrin (corn syrup solids). In other words a packet of splenda is 99-percent sugar!Don’t just avoid artificial sweeteners; eliminate them from your diet and your family’s diet. The next time you buy any artificially sweetened food product or soft drink, including juices and flavored waters read the label and put aside the ones with these poisons and replace them with naturally sweetened products. You owe it to your family and yourself to read labels and be educated about what you put in your body.Quote of the week: “Your only obligation in any lifetime is to be true to yourself.” – Richard BachDr. Steven J. Pollack began his career in 1981 and opened his own practice in Beachwood in 1983. Completing more than 300 hours in Applied Kinesiology, he became one of the first certified Chiropractic Pediatric physicians in the United States in 1996 and is a founding member of the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association. He donates his time to screen hundreds of preschoolers for scoliosis each year. Dr. Pollack can be reached by e-mailing him at [email protected] or writing P.O. Box 93, Beachwood, N.J. 08722.

SupportBeachwood Fireworks on the River

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Enjoy Last Week’s Fireworks? Send Your Support Today for 2013!

Ask the Chiropractor with Dr. Steven J. Pollack, D.C.

The demo team from Shotokan Karate of Bayville, Brick, Waretown and Barnegat helped literally kick off the summer reading program at Beachwood Library in late June.


The Storm July 6th - 7thA fierce storm ripped through the area in the evening of July 6th, where the following day evidence could be found mostly in the 300 to 600 blocks of the borough and at nearby Beachwood Plaza, Berkeley Township. The following morning and few days buzzsaws could be heard echoing up and down the streets and

avenues as homeowners and contractors cleaned up fallen trees and broken or damaged branches large and small. After cleaning up public properties, the Beachwood Public Works Department quickly cleared out the extra brush and debris from property owners and by the end of the week it was hard to tell anything had happened.


island heightsBeachwood • Island Heights • Ocean Gate • Pine Beach • South Toms River • Toms River

island heightsIsland Heights 1932


Presented here are events, activities and reports of Island Heights during late spring and early summer 1932, as compiled from various resources within the Wheeler Room at the Toms River Branch of the Ocean County Library by Riverside Signal staff:

In the late spring, Rev. Stanley Wagg took the town boy scouts to Seaside Heights for a meeting and hot dog roast on the beach… the Island Heights Volunteer Fire Company reported earning approximately $50 from a Saturday night oyster supper fundraiser… the Kintzing store on the corner of Central and River avenues was rented to Mrs. Jennie Wilber… the Island Heights Public Library received a generous donation of books from Mrs. LeRoy Hepburn of Philadelphia… Thomas Gratz, who occupied the Bentley house on West End Avenue, called state troopers to aid him in investigating unknown persons repeatedly ringing his doorbell on Friday night, May 6th, stating he had seen people run off into the nearby woods when he came to the door and that it was not the first time it had occurred, adding he was concerned they wanted to kidnap his small child. The troopers stopped several cars and questioned people in the area but found nothing further, and nearby residents thought it was just a prank being played by town youths… a son was born to Mrs. Agnes Yetman of Farmingdale on Wednesday evening, May 4th. Mrs. Yetman was the daughter of borough residents Mr. and Mrs. Charles Johnson… the Leming Agency rented the Siddons moving picture hall on Central Avenue to Mrs. Sara J. Harris, who will buy and sell second-hand furniture there… Browne’s bakery, Perennial Hotel, Viereck’s bakery and the A&P store in town all opened for the season on Saturday, May 28th… the Island Heights Boy Scout Troop traveled by bus with other local scouts to Washington’s Crossing… over the May 21st weekend, among

continue page 13

Wanamaker Organ Program Includes Island Heights History

ISLAND HEIGHTS—Richard L. Seifert, Jr., Wanamaker historian, gave a presentation to a packed house of just over 100 people here on Monday evening, June 18th as a program hosted by the Island Heights Cultural & Heritage Association in the Island Heights Methodist Church.“It is the story of John Wanamaker and his relationship to Island Heights, but primarily it’s the story of the greatest musical wonder in the world,” said IHC&HA President Barbara Rooberg. “It was an excellent program,” she continued. “Many hundreds of hours went into making this, and many of the pictures that are in the program are things that we provided to Rick [Seifert], and that’s how we came to know him and why he came here and did this as a thank you to us.”The presentation featured a

slideshow on the history of the organ and John Wanamaker and his famous chain of department stores, all of which was interlaced with music composed on the world-renowned pipe organ.According to Mr. Seifert, the massive instrument was relocated in 1909 to the Grand Court Room of the Philadelphia store after its run at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair ended and it was disassembled and put into storage.“It took eleven freight cars to transport all of the parts on the 900 mile journey to Philadelphia,” Mr. Seifert explained, “and forty people were hired to reconstruct the organ in the Grand Hall.”The project took two full years to complete, and when it was done the organ stood tall in the five-story hall of the Philadelphia Wanamaker department store. Its debut was on June 22nd, 1911 when its massive sound rang out in celebration timed to coincide with the crowning of King George V of England during

his coronation at Westminster Abbey, and from that point on the Wanamaker Organ would continue to make history.John Wanamaker’s son Rodman was in charge of the project and continually improved and expanded the size and sound of the organ. By 1930 there were 10,000 pipes installed, which later grew to an incredible 28,500 pipes.According to the Friends of the Wanamaker Organ at Macy’s Philadelphia website, “the console [has] six ivory keyboards and 729 color-coded stop tablets. There are 168 piston buttons under the keyboards and 42 foot controls. The console weighs 2.5 tons; the entire instrument weighs 287 tons.”Of course such a glorious instrument could not be fully appreciated without master musicians to make it sing, a fact that was not lost on John or Rodman Wanamaker, who sought out the most world-renown artists of their time,

Wanamaker Historian Richard L. Seifert, right, discussed some of the history of the organ and Mr. Wanamaker’s connection to Island Heights with Island Heights Councilman Peter Kier, left, and others. Steven J. Baeli/Riverside Signal

The following items took place during the Island Heights Borough governing body meetings of May and June 2012. July and early August meeting information will be reported in the next edition of the Riverside Signal, posting August 10th.

Problems with the delivery of supplies to the Island Heights Library was a topic brought before the governing body by Summit Avenue resident and library trustee, Betsy Hyle.“We are continually running out of toilet paper, paper towels and soap,” she said. “We can get as many as 900 people a week through that library; it’s a busy, busy place where people stop by to get a drink of water [and] use the computers all the time because of unemployment [besides] all the other programs for kids, adults and teens.”Mrs. Hyle, also a former borough council president, said it was unacceptable that the library staff were having to call for supplies when they run out or bringing their own from home.“It used to be a timed dropoff that lasted two to three weeks and then an automatic stop-in to make sure everything was okay,” she continued, adding that the supplies could be delivered when the public works department cleans the library once a week, but that they hadn’t been in the library the two weeks before the late June council meeting.Council President Jeff Silver stated that he didn’t feel the library needed an “excessive amount of supplies,” particularly now that they were in the offseason when school children were not regularly attending from the nearby grade school.“One of the things is that when it’s a bad economy, libraries all over the country are busier,” countered Mrs. Hyle, adding

Library Supplies Issues Discussed

Steven J. Baeli

Erik Weber

continue page 13


Secret Gardens &Scenic Porches Tour

ISLAND HEIGHTS

June 23rd & 24th, 2012hosted by the Island Heights Cultural and Heritage Association and the Island Heights Garden Club


Along the WaterfrontNEW HOMES

RENOVATIONSADDITIONSKITCHENS

BATHS

RICHARD YETMAN732-929-8955

that part of the agreement for the borought to have the country branch of the library system staffed and supplied with books, events and programs was the upkeep of the building and the supply of needed toiletries.“The Ocean County Library does a lot of things at our library that they shouldn’t be doing, but they do it,” she said, noting yard work and building repairs that became safety hazards, things that she had fought about while on council and ever since the end of her term in July 2010.The library trustee added that the county system could say that the borough was in breach of their contract for those more serious issues, and all she was asking for was toiletries.“I’ve dropped off stuff; I’ve dropped off trash bags and that’s not what we should be doing, buying and bringing ourselves,” she continued.Mr. Silver stated that it wasn’t a “habitual problem,” which Mrs. Hyle disagreed about.“I think Betsy’s right—stop fighting the library and just do what we’re contractually obligated to do,” said Councilman Brian Taboada. “It’s very simple—if it’s part of their job have them do their job.”An outside contractor cleans the library on Sunday mornings, but Mrs. Hyle said that the reason for asking public works for a weekly cleaning was that “by mid-week it’s filthy because we have 800 or 900 people coming through, little kids who don’t always keep the bathroom clean and are spilling stuff.”“It’s not a bridge building project, it’s simple stuff and it’s our obligation to do that—if public works was doing it in the past and did it well then I don’t get what is the problem with whoever is going down there or not going down there,”

said Councilman John Bendel, adding that if it was a particular day of the week that was a conflict for public works, that they could adjust the schedule when needed.Mrs. Hyle added that public works, library staff and volunteers had worked well together in the past on a painting project.No further action was taken on this issue.

Library (cont)

bringing in the likes of, “France’s Marcel Dupre, Louis Vierne and Nadia Boulanger, Italy’s Fernando Germani and Marco Enrico Bossi, and England’s Alfred Hollins.”Mr. Seifert also enumerated the four Grand Court Organists who have played the organ during shopping hours, giving customers the full benefit of both the master organist and his instrument.“Irvin J. Morgan was the first Grand Court Organist,” who he said commanded the console from 1911 to 1917, followed by Mary E. Vogt, who played in the Grand Court Room for fifty consecutive years. Dr. Keith Chapman next brought a sense of contemporary musical modernization with his playing until his untimely death in a car accident in 1989. Peter Richard Conte was appointed Grand Court Organist following the death of Dr. Chapman, and he continues to entertain shoppers of what is now known as Macy’s Department Store, which acquired the Wanamaker chain in 1995.The Wanamaker Organ, designed in 1904 by George Ashdown Audsley and made greater by the forward-thinking vision of Rodman Wanamaker is today considered a National Historic Landmark, and its symphonic sounds remain

a favorite to generations of shoppers and others who come just to hear the organ being played, such as Rick Seifert, who he said in his youth was mesmerized by the sounds that he heard and the mastery with which the musicians played it.Mr. Seifert also touched the connection of the organ to Island Heights, the borough becoming the home of training ground in 1902 for youthful John Wanamaker’s Commercial Institute (J.W.C.I.) employees, who were sent to the camp each summer to learn military skills and learn about Christianity, a subject dear to John Wanamaker’s heart. While there, both male and female cadets camped out on the hill overlooking the Toms River, practiced military marching drills, and learned to play instruments in the Wanamaker Band. The close quarters sparked many romances that turned into marriages according to Mr. Seifert.The program proved beneficial to many of the male teenage cadets who were drafted into the Great War, and the skills that they learned at Wanamaker Camp proved for many soldiers to be lifesaving.The war-time accounts of 142 cadets were documented in a collection of letters initiated by the Wanamaker Company wishing to preserve the memories of those who served their country. Those letters, now in the possession of the IHC&HA, were collected and transcribed in 1919 by Wanamaker Store employee William R. Scott.One particular veteran’s story in that collection stands out concerning fifteen-year-old Percy H. Hoskins, who was captured by the Germans during a battle in France on June 16th, 1918. According to his own account, Marine Private Hoskins, a resident of Philadelphia, was

captured after being slightly wounded in the leg by shrapnel. Hoskins managed to escape, but unfortunately did not describe his time as a prisoner of war in his letters. He did offer to write again to talk about what he described as his “six months in prison,” but no account of that story was found in the archive.Wanamaker Camp continued to train its employees until 1941 when child labor and minimum wage laws were passed making the hiring of young adults difficult and cost prohibitive. The United States Army took control of the complex in 1944 during World War II, utilizing the camp’s strategic point on the river to disperse patrols along the shores of the Barnegat Bay and the Atlantic Ocean.In 1949 a Presbyterian organization bought the camp grounds for $25,000, and immediately began to improve the property by repairing old buildings and constructing a new chapel, an infirmary, and cabins for the underage visitors who came to worship.On display to enhance the evening’s events were two silver Rodman Wanamaker yacht trophies on loan from the Island Heights Yacht Club, one for a sneakbox competition held on July 29th, 1922, and the other for a catboat competition, which sailed on August 5th of that same year.All in all the evening appeared to be a success.“I sat in the back of the room…and you could see that people were riveted,” said Mrs. Rooberg. “Numerous people came up and told me how much they enjoyed it.”You can visit the Island Heights Cultural & Heritage Cottage Museum located at 105 Simpson Avenue, and get more information about that organization at http://www.islandhts.org/IHC&HA.htm.

Organ (cont)


later in life, he included in the patches that were behind his face a sailboat,” said Alice E. Askoff, a borough resident and trustee with the non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the artist’s studio. “Out of all the things that he could have chosen to be a part of who he was, that sailboat was still there.”Mr. Peto, who lived until 1907, is internationally known for his still-life paintings in the trompe l’oeil style depicting everyday household objects of the late 19th century, and Mrs. Askoff stated that his apparent love of sailing appeared curiously to be a part of his personal life that was never really depicted in his professional work.She added that it was felt his small collection of sketches and paintings of sailboats were likely “basically for him—it wasn’t something that he tried to sell.”From there began the idea for the exhibit, which features exclusively 61 works by 20 hand-picked Jersey Shore artists, including contemporary artists and area residents John English, of Island Heights, and Eliza Auth, of Pennsylvania and Ocean Gate.“The earliest painting is from 1874, [and the most recent] goes up to 2012, which was completed just for this exhibition,” said the trustee. “We had certain people in mind and we also had to limit that because there are so many contemporary artists.”Part of the selection was to seek out works from places, homes and private collections the public normally wouldn’t have an opportunity to access.“That’s one of the impacts of this show—even the artist himself who has about 30 pieces here, John English, was blown away when he saw them all put together,” said Mrs. Askoff. “They had come from different homes and put together the way they are really makes an impact.”Another purpose behind the exhibit came in the form of its sponsor, the Island Heights Sailing Foundation, a nine-year-old non-profit organization established to preserve and

advance the tradition of recreational sailing in and around the borough with a primary mission of teaching each new young generation to enjoy the sport.Coupled with this, “we had a special offer from a benefactor to pay for the admission fee for any sailing program kids who want to come through with their sailing instructors,” said Mrs. Askoff. “So any sailing program members that come over here can get a personal tour with a really good program to get the kids into what they’re seeing and not let their eyes just glaze over.”The general public can also see how volunteers and trustees painstakingly reimagine and recreate the interior of the Peto house with each new show.According to trustee Don Roberts, they wanted to make the public always wonder what was going on within the walls of the historic cottage, and with each opportunity make it “look

Art of the Sail (cont)

similar but very different, so if you’re coming back you don’t go, ‘It’s the same old stuff, just scrambled up.’”“We definitely don’t want to get complacent, to get bored. We want people to say, ‘oh, I wonder what it’s going to be like for the holidays, I wonder what it’s going to be like with the next exhibit,’” agreed Mrs. Askoff, noting that membership to the museum was growing because of the always moving culture of the place itself beneath all of the exhibits.The John F. Peto Museum is located at 102 Cedar Avenue in Island Heights. Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for children age 12 and under. The museum is open during the special exhibition on Saturdays and Sundays from 1 pm to 4 pm. Group and private tours are available by appointment. For more information, please email [email protected] or call 732-929-4949.

Barnegat Bay Fest 2012


Ptl. Dworzanski Resigns for Cranbury Twp.The mayor and council accepted with regrets the resignation of Ptl. Jillian Dworzanski, who had applied for and received a position with the Cranbury Township Police Department in Middlesex County.Ptl. Dworzanski, a 2005 graduate of the Ocean County Police Academy, was employed by the Island Heights Borough Police Department since 2007 and held an associate’s degree from Ocean County College.The governing body later approved the advertisement of a Class II officer position within the department.

Summit Ave Beach DrivewayBay Avenue resident Matt Marvin requested a discussion on the private driveway/emergency easement located at the Summit Avenue Beach parking lot, stating that as the lot was repaved, a fence was supposed to be erected across the driveway and maintained by the Gunteski family, owners of the recently built home overlooking the beachfront.“During the construction process, they said that they would close it after [completion of the project],” said Mr. Silver.Previous issues had developed between the Marvins and Gunteskis during the construction and use of the new home, from construction trucks and private cars parked at the beach to allegations of blocked access on Mr. Marvin’s side, located adjacent Bay Avenue.“I acted in good faith and spent almost $1,000 trimming tree limbs on the easement,” said Mr. Marvin, adding that as a result it would not be possible for anyone to contend that access was encumbered.Lt. Arnold added that even though construction was complete on the project, the Gunteskis were placing their trash cans on Summit Avenue, rather than Bay Avenue.Mr. Taboada stated that the residents “do as they please” and that it was a matter of “what you can legally go after them for and what legally you’re willing to go after them for,” adding that the borough could erect a fence of their own across the access or “live with it as it is.”No further action was taken on this matter.

Kier Brother VisitsMr. Kier’s brother, John, was on a trip away from his home in California and visited the borough, attending the June

12th council meeting. Mayor Biggs noted that the Kiers’ father had served as mayor of the borough in 1950 and added that it was nice to see one of his sons serving on the borough governing body today, 62 years after their father.

Boy Scout Island SubdivisionThe borough unanimously approved a consent order to settle the conflict between the borough and Linda Tavares, proprietor of Cozy Cove Marina, following the corrected deed, updated survey, Recreation and Open Space Inventory (ROSI) list and minor subdivision of Boy Scout Island. The borough retained 0.87 acres on the eastern portion of the site.

Park AvenueCaving IssuesThe mayor and council authorized the engineer to investigate the deterioration of a section of the Park Avenue roadway, causing cave-ins of the road surface.“Residents along that road are concerned,” said Mayor Biggs. “I asked Mike O’Donnell to look at it and tell us what we could do to stave off any more cav-ins or erosion—there is now a space of maybe a yard or two between the water even at high tide and where the cave-ins have occurred, so this is a stopgap effort; it’s a way of shoring that up.”He added that a “truckload or two” of stone to reinforce the problem area might help solve the issue.The work performed by the engineer was not to exceed $2,000.

Issues @ Camp MeetingGround BluffsWest Camp Walk resident Don Kunz brought to light various

Police Vehicles UpdateCouncilman Joe Rogalski, liaison to the police department, reported that Lt. Kevin Arnold requested that two vehicles—a Lincoln Navigator and a S-10 Chevy pickup—given to the borough by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office be returned as the work they would be utilized for, “surveillance or narcotics work, wouldn’t be conducive for us in this town.”In addition, the borough had bid for and received three vehicles from Ocean County—a Chevy Lumina, a Ford Ranger and a Ford Taurus—that the councilman stated he “couldn’t see using as police vehicles as they would be too expensive to outfit and paint. The pickup has been vandalized on borough property and has a bashed in rear window and a flat tire.” He suggested they be auctioned off as “we paid a dollar for them and whether we get $50, $100 or $2,000 it’s still money we could use.”Mr. Taboada stated that he thought the fire company had requested the Lincoln Navigator received from the prosecutor’s office.Mr. Rogalski stated that if the vehicles were not used for police business, they would have to be returned anyway as they might have “another larger police department that would take it; we could not just give it [to the fire company].”Mr. Bendel made a motion for returning the two vehicles to the prosecutor’s office and abandoning the three vehicles purchased from Ocean County with the purpose of auctioning them off. Mr. Silver seconded the motion, and the measure passed with Mr. Heizler voting against, Mr. Taboada abstaining and the balance of the governing body approving it.Mr. Rogalski further reported that the police department’s Ford Crown Victoria, which had been sitting idle near headquarters for several years, was returned to the road after receiving a new engine and other work totalling approximately $4,300.Mr. Heizler inquired whether the borough would be able to set money aside for such recurring purchases as police vehicles in the budget.“I did ask some of my other resources and I was told that in order for us to set up something dedicated by rider it needs to be a state statute giving provision to set it up,” replied Chief Financial Officer Louis Palazzo. “We could raise money [and] set up a reserve within the budget; some other towns set up reserves for tax appeals.”Beachwood Borough, across the river, in particular has a reserve in its budget for annual snow removal costs that it pays into.Mr. Taboada asked whether police vehicles could be part of the capital budget.“Then call it the vehicle purchase capital project and carry it year to year as long as you don’t steal or siphon it to something else,” he said.Mr. Palazzo stated that the state doesn’t recognize police vehicles as being eligible as capital budget items as their useful lifespans is limited to three years, and capital funds only cover items with useful lifespans of five years or greater.Mayor Jim Biggs asked Lt. Arnold about the current stock of vehicles in the department and their mileage, which he stated to be the 2003 Ford Crown Victoria plus three other vehicles dating 2002, 2006 and 2008. Two of those held mileage in the mid-70,000 range, one had about 160,000 and the 2003 Ford was around 115,000.“So in other words, we are not spending any money in an irresponsible manner, we’re just simply saying we ought to allow ourselves standard operating procedures when needed to get a vehicle that is more in tune with our needs,” the mayor said.Mr. Taboada said that the department should get a hybrid car like the Toyota Prius as they could sit idling all the time while on duty without much impact in fuel consumption.

problems ongoing at the bluffs located off the camp meeting grounds there, including dead and dying trees as a result of rampant overgrowth of invasive creeping vines, a growing animal and rodent population thriving beneath the same overgrowth and digging holes in large limbs of the trees, an explosive tick investation, and the continuing practice of area residents dumping clipped grass and leaves down the bluff, adding to the ability for invasive species to thrive.“The kudzu is just strangling the trees over there and more and more have started showing signs of dying,” he said, referring to the invasive, noxious weed native to southern Japan and southeast Asia that grows over trees and shrubs so quickly that it kills them by extensive shading. “Somebody needs to take some action and do some maintenance or cleanup.”The West Camp Walk resident added that despite restrictions on dumping lawn clippings, there remains no signs explicitly prohibiting the practice.As a side issue, he noted that there was some juvenile activity along the bluff that should also be looked into.“A lot of trees really need to be trimmed or maintained—the ones with dead growth if not trimmed back soon it’s going to just take the tree,” Mr. Kunz continued.Mayor Biggs stated that he’d like to discuss with the engineer the condition of the bluffs and see what his recommendations were, “even if the recommendation is to get an arborist to go in there or an environmental individual—I would bring any costs back to [the council] but would like to get some official recommendation on the bluffs.”Mr. Kunz said that a neighbor had recently had an arborist come in and clear out the invasive weed to his property

More Boro UpdatesErik Weber

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New JCP&L Online Outage MapsMaria Sessa, area manager with Jersey Central Power and Light for the Toms River region, approached the borough council on May 8th with information on a new online “24/7 Power Center” with power outage maps and services now available to customers via their smartphones and other mobile devices in the event of power loss.“At times when customers are unable to make a call, they can go through the [power center map] online link and report the outage, which creates a ticket and is reported,” she said. “[The map] will also update when information is available as to when customers might be able to expect to have service restored.”Anyone logging onto the power center outage maps would also be able to see whether outages are widespread or more isolated, and on a non-emergency basis customers can report when streetlights are not functioning. During significant events, there would also be information on staging stations and ice and water along with further outage-related news, safety reminders and other important information that could be disseminated in concert with the local governing body and emergency management coordinators.Access to the 24/7 Power Center is available by going to firstenergycorp.com/outages. During significant service interruptions, outage information will also be available on the company’s Twitter accounts, which can be found at firstenergycorp.com/newsroom/social_media

New PavilionA new pavilion approved to go up at the T-shaped end of the public dock on Central and River avenues and funded jointly through public open space funds and private anonymous borough donors came under discussion during recent meetings, with some concern over the payment of application and engineering fees not previously considered as part of the project’s overall estimated $60,000 cost.In May, a bill of $1,800 submitted by O’Donnell Stanton and Associates, the borough engineering firm of record, for an initial state Coastal Area Facility Review Act (CAFRA) permit, triggered talks on these setup fees.“It’s obvious [the engineer] has been asked to start with this, but it doesn’t sound like the town has any idea what it’s going to cost,” said Mr. Taboada.Two residents present expressed concern that the new dock shelter construction would cost taxpayer money due to its setup fees.Mr. Bendel stated he was “reluctant to proceed” with the project due to the “open-ended” nature of added costs and made a motion “that we not proceed until we get some sort of commitment from the people wanting to do this that they reimburse the town out of pocket.” The motion was seconded by Councilman Peter Kier and unanimously approved.Two weeks later, a letter was submitted to the borough stating that anonymous benefactors would reimburse the borough for any out of pocket expenses for engineering and application fees.According to the application for the project, the new pavilion will allow members of the public the opportunity to enjoy being on the water under shelter and shade where previously they may not have been able to due to the currently unsheltered nature of the end of the public dock.

Harris Calls for Longterm Beachfront Revival PlanHighland Avenue resident Dr. Charles Harris repeatedly approached the governing body with an interest to see a long-term master plan adopted to restore the eroded bathing beaches at Longpoint Beach and Central Avenue, possibly through the use of groins that could redirect sand back to those areas.“This matter should be taken up by council and looked at seriously so it becomes a project,” he said. “There used to be a jetty and two beaches; now the jetty’s gone and we don’t have the two beaches.”Mr. Taboada replied that a local environmental group was working on developing natural living shorelines and that one of their project sites was located in the borough.“I’m glad to hear that—the river flows east and brings sand down and if something were to catch it I suspect the beaches might build up again—it seems logical,” Dr. Harris said. “For years when the jetty was here we had lovely beaches and as holes began to appear in the jetty the beach got smaller and smaller—I think it was more than coincidental.”Mayor Biggs stated that the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) was “very touchy” about “the whole idea of groins and jetties—there was an intention made to put one in somewhere down at the end of Simpsons Avenue and the state ordered it removed. We have to be very careful.”He added that while many were nostalgic for the days when the borough had three bathing beaches, restoring them “has been complicated by new research and by a general concern of shifting currents... and while once upon a time when we were able to as a borough to have excess sand removed from streets and sidewalks and dumped to enhance the beaches, today it’s illegal and an impossibility.”Mayor Biggs then stated that he would plan to discuss the various issues of beaches in Island Heights at the meeting of Ocean County mayors, where others from beachfront communities might have more information.“We’re not the only beachfront property-owning municipality in the county and there are some mayors who speak very eloquently and strongly about what is happening in their oceanfront communities that don’t affect us as much on the bay and river, but we can join with them in supporting them in making sure these issues are

heard,” he continued.Mr. Silver stated that the Longpoint Beach was receiving bulkheading and plantings to help stabilize it.“It’s an ongoing process and nature has its way of taking it away faster than we can put it back,” he said.“That’s encouraging,” said Dr. Harris.Ocean Avenue resident Jim Lenox, who lives in close proximity to Longpoint Beach, stated that sometime in the past decade the towns along the river were growing increasingly concerned with erosion occuring at their beachfronts particularly at a time when “boat traffic out there increased immensely,” noting that the wake they produced could almost allow an individual to “surf at Island Heights beaches.”He added that it would not be particularly expensive to make the entire river a no-wake zone.“It would make a tremendous difference in the wave action in there; that’s not a money thing, that’s a regulation thing,” the Ocean Avenue resident noted.Lt. Arnold said that boat traffic had increased with the opening of the Water Street Bar and Grille on Robbins Parkway in Toms River, which regularly attracts parties traveling in motorboats up the river from the Barnegat Bay.Mayor Biggs said that he would speak with Toms River Mayor Thomas Keleher and Berkeley Township Mayor Carmen Amato to see if there could be a joint enforcement or regulation plan between the three municipalities to begin curtailing the problems occuring on the river and creating more erosion on local beaches.“I think one of the unique things is Island Heights does go out into the middle of the river unlike Pine Beach, Beachwood or Ocean Gate which go to the low water mark,” he said, adding that Berkeley Township meets the Toms River and Island Heights boundaries mid-river, rights that the former township retained through the separation and independent incorporation of the four boroughs on the southern shore of the Toms River in the early 20th century.“This can’t be solved tonight or now but I would love to have some kind of agenda in place so future years and future mayors can look into it and correspond with the state,” said Dr. Harris. “Maybe the state would like to have the beaches here and maybe the problem could be solved and it would be really neat.”

Recycling Yard Security CameraThe governing body unanimously approved replacing the broken security camera system at the public works yard that can provide coverage of the yard, recycling area and parking area to help prevent illegal dumping.

Community Forestry Plan Grant ApprovedThe governing boy unanimously passed a resolution authorizing a grant agreement between the borough and the NJDEP for the latter’s 2012 Green Communities Act, community forestry management plan.Mary Judge, chairwoman for the Island Heights Environmental Committee, stated that they had applied for the $3,000 grant last year and were awarded this year to have a professional community forester write a community forestry management plan.“This will give us Sustainable Jersey points as well as access to a variety of other grant opportunities—it’s been so long in coming,” she said.According to the state, a Community Forestry Management Plan “is an essential guide to successfully achieving a healthy, economically efficient and safe community forest [that] may lead to increased community safety, lower tree hazard problems, decreased tree maintenance and removal costs, less emergency tree calls, increased tree benefits, reduced municipal cost [and the development of] a proactive, not reactive, approach to tree and forest management.”

Plantings at LongpointMs. Judge reported that she was given approximately 100 beach plum and bayberry plants by Island Beach State Park that she was interested in having planted at recently bulkheaded and filled in Longpoint Beach “as naturalized planting to beef it up.”“Could we get someone to harvest beach plums and make some jelly?” asked Mr. Kier.“Can we plant them everywhere?” asked Mr. Bendel.“The beach plums stabilize by growing outwards to stabilize the soil from erosion,” said Mr. Silver.“That’s what’s holding Island Beach State Park together, isn’t it?” joked Mayor Biggs.Ms. Judge stated that “any kind of planting will help the soil and the wildlife, and I do not expect any kind of maintenance” required for the plants.

State Lifejacket ProgramMr. Rogalski alerted the mayor and council that the New Jersey State Police – Marine Bureau was interested in expanding their “Kids Don’t Float” life jacket availability program to the shores of Island Heights by erecting a small station by the borough boat ramp from which lifejackets could be obtained.“It’s a small structure that will hold a limited amount of lifejackets in different sizes on the honor system,” said Lt. Arnold. “The state police started it and it’s been successful in other towns, and they figured with the amount of traffic we get for the river and families that come down, it was a good idea and free of charge.”Originally started in 1996 in Homer, Alaska, the program offers free water protection for children while raising awareness that state and federal law requires anyone under the age of 13 to be equipped with the safety vest while aboard a boat.“We have no responsibility if the kids who take them don’t bring them back?” asked Mr. Rogalski.“It’s totally on the honor system,” replied Lt. Arnold, adding that they already had the program underway in Waretown and that the state police were hoping that “if someone’s crabbing or fishing they’ll take it and use it, or if they’re boating for the day and they pick up an extra child or a friend and put them on the boat.”


line, but that in less than two months the kudzu had returned.Mayor Biggs noted that the weed was “a very difficult thing to get rid of and is a problem that plagues some of the southern states.”Mr. Bendel noted that Stephen King had written a short story in the late 1970s, “Weeds,” that used that plant as a subject of horror.“Pretty nasty,” he said.“We have to begin a discussion on what to do about preserving [the bluffs] and what the implications are in regard to the NJDEP and all other adjoining authorities on that property,” Mayor Biggs said. “I think it’s something that needs to be taken seriously for any number of reasons, not least of which is preserving the bluff.”Mr. Taboada requested the mayor not utilize the engineer as he felt it would be a waste of money.“I don’t think it’s a bad idea—Mike doesn’t do that kind of work but I’m sure he’s in touch with the people who could help,” said Mr. Bendel, noting that a representative of the NJDEP should be called in to look at the issues as well.Former councilwoman Betsy Hyle was present at the meeting and stated she recalled O’Donnell Stanton and Associates possibly doing some studies of borough-owned lands already and that the mayor should first seek them out, adding that she liked the suggestion on calling the NJDEP out as they’d been “helpful on other things in the past.”

Public Contracts Extended for New Election CycleThe public contracts for borough professionals were formally extended from the old expiration date of June 30th to December 31st, 2012, reflecting the recent shift to holding non-partisan elections in the fall with the general election as a cost-saving measure.

Smoking at PavilionMr. Heizler reported that he had been approached by a couple of his neighbors who expressed some concerns, including if there was anything the borough could do to curb smoking on the recently reopened second floor of the Central Avenue pavilion, “for fear of fire and general nastiness.”“Why do we have problems now when people have been smoking on the lower deck forever,” said Mr. Bendel. “It’s all wood—I don’t get it; they shouldn’t be smoking there.”Ms. Hyle recalled that the town had an ordinance banning smoking at beaches, parks and open public spaces, including the pavilion.Mr. Heiring stated that the borough then only needed to post signage enforcing the ban, which Mr. Silver said he would work on.

Porto-Potty HijinksMr. Heizler said he was further alerted to possible juvenile activity ongoing in the portable toilets at Summit Avenue Beach after the beach was officially closed.“The other question was whether or not we could perhaps have lifeguards lock and unlock [them],” he said.Mr. Silver stated that locks had been purchased, while Lt. Arnold pointed out that lifeguards leave at 5 or 6 pm but crabbers are allowed out until 10 pm.“It’s not for the crabbers, it’s for the bathers,” said Mr. Silver.“That’s not true, it’s for people who use the public space,” replied Mr. Taboada.Ms. Hyle stated that the location and way the door access was positioned possibly made the toilets more secluded than they should be.“Shall we turn the potty around?” asked Mayor Biggs.“It might help,” replied Ms. Hyle.Mayor Biggs stated that they would turn it around so that the access is more visible to the parking lot area and that the police department would be tasked with locking them at 10 pm as it was “a public safety issue.”

Water RatesMr. Bendel stated that he would like to start looking into a formula by Spring 2013 to raise the water rates and remove the surcharge added last year as a result of the water treatment plant loan, noting that the sunset clause installed at the time of the increase would occur at around that same time.Mayor Biggs concurred, stating that the new rates should be based on useage and not an across the board surcharge.

Senior Advisory CommitteeMrs. Hyle reported that the borough’s senior advisory

committee had wound down to where it was only herself and Florence Kernaghan running the group, noting that the governing body should not get rid of the committee, as it could someday be revived and membership was often “cyclical.”“I suggest just keeping me as senior liaison, which I’m listed as on the website anyway, and I’ll continue to do my little things a couple times a year,” she said.

Water PlantAs work continued on the new water plant and tower at the Van Sant Avenue site, with perimiter walls of the building in place, Mr. Silver stated that the borough was going to need to come up with a color for the new 250,000 gallon water sphere that will replace the 280,000 gallon standpipe by the end of August at the latest.“I did suggest sometihng but it fell on deaf ears—I suggested painting the pipe going up brown and the top green and people will think it’s a tree there and that solves all of our problems,” joked Mayor Biggs.In February 2010, the governing body unanimously adopted a resolution first suggested by past Council President Al Gabriel to research holding a contest that would allow students in the Island Heights Grade School to offer suggestions and vote upon what should be on a new water tower.At that time, Mr. Heizler and Mr. Bendel suggested instead possibly finding a corporate sponsor who would pay to have their logo adorn the tower. That suggestion was ultimately rejected when the council voted for the grade school students to possibly determine what would appear on the new structure

Library Handicap Ramp ReplacementThe governing body unanimously awarded the $41,000 contract to replace the Island Heights Library handicap ramp to Midlantic General Contracting.Richard Ramirez, managing member of the firm, was present to express his personal thanks for the contact.“We’ve done work for the council before, I believe the boardwalk, so we’re excited to be getting this contract and doing a bangup job and making the library look great,” he said.

Town Revaluation/ReassessmentThe mayor and council held an ongoing discussion as to the possibility of a full revaluation/reassessment of town properties, with Mr. Taboada leading the inquiry as to when and whether it would occur.“We made a motion on it last August,” he said, adding that he wanted a status update.Mayor Biggs replied that Vital Services Group, which had worked with the borough on a tax assessment from December 2003 through June 2004 for

calendar year 2005, gave the borough a quote of $80,000 to perform a new assessment and that the borough had “approximately 30 property owners who have appealed their assessments and with a few exceptions very few got what they requested in the way of a reduction.”According to the March 2003 town newsletter, the borough council had unanimously approved contracts with Vital Services Group and Johnson Realty Services in the amounts of $49,500 and $9,500 respectively to “assist in the Borough of Island Heights reassessment.”The chief financial officer noted that the borough would be able to fund the cost of a reassessment over five years.The mayor further stated that recent sales of properties in town had not been out of range with the asking prices and assessed values, adding that a Summit Avenue property with an asking price of around $499,000 had sold for $479,000, which was “in the general ballpark of the figure that was asked and although it was below the figure asked it would seem on some of our more recent sales that the figure, while below the price set, have not been outrageously cheapened.”“I think the council ought to maintain a live discussion of this,” he added.“Since the conversation started back in August of last year, I was curious as to what kind of time frame we’re looking at and what we’re looking to gain here so I know what my expectations might be,” said Mr. Taboada.“Are you comfortable paying taxes now based on the assessment of your property?” asked Mayor Biggs.“I’m not comfortable paying taxes based on the budget we just passed,” replied the councilman.“So we will keep this discussion and bring it to a head; if the council says bring it to a head we will make a motion, second

it and enter into a discussion with the intent of either passing or not passing” the motion to reassess the properties within the borough, stated the mayor.

Motorhomes on River AvenueMr. Bendel reported to the mayor and council that he had “gotten complaints about the parking of motorhomes on River Avenue [and] I was wondering about the advisability of an ordinance regarding parking there—we obviously wouldn’t put up with trucks parking there.”Mayor Biggs said he noticed that Seaside Heights had a special area for the parking of motorhomes near the bridge entrance but that “we do not have an area where those larger campers could be parked.”“Do we have the authority to limit parking?” asked Mr. Bendel, noting that River Avenue was a county roadway.Borough Attorney William Heiring stated that the borough should get a consent resolution from the county to limit the parking there.“It is an issue—I was thinking simply limit the length of vehicles parked there. We’re not trying to limit height because it could get silly, but the length could give us something to hang our hats on,” said Mr. Bendel.Lt. Arnold warned that by limiting lengths, the borough might inadvertantly limit the parking of some more contemporary trucks and SUVs that are larger than average vehicles, and said he would look into the weight limit restriction of the roadway.“Couldn’t we make up ‘No Overnight Parking’?” asked Mr. Rogalski.“That’s probably the easier route to take,” said Lt. Arnold, who said the problem mirrored that of boats tying up overnight at the yacht club and public dock at Central Avenue.Mayor Biggs assigned Councilmen Bendel, Silver and Heizler to work on the issue as a committee.

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pine beachBeachwood • Island Heights • Ocean Gate • Pine Beach • South Toms River • Toms River

pine beach

Presented here are events, activities and reports of Pine Beach during late spring and early summer 1932, as compiled from various resources within the Wheeler Room at the Toms River Branch of the Ocean County Library by Riverside Signal staff:

In late spring, the Pine Beach Volunteer Fire Company was called out to a fire in a chicken house on the rear of the Garrison property, located on the south side of the railroad… invitations for the May 11th wedding in Philadelphia of Miss Amelia (Dolly) Schauer to Russell Whitman were mailed out. It was noted that Miss Schauer had spent every summer in Pine Beach since she was a young child, and that she was a very popular member of the summer colony… Mr. and Mrs. G.A. Rumpf spent an early season weekend in their log cabin on New Jersey Avenue with nephew, Edward Sprowl… the family of Mr. Charles Keizer, a local ice dealer, moved into the Walter Farrier bungalow on Atlantic City Boulevard in Beachwood, from Pine Beach…borough resident George Miller was sentenced to 30 days in the county jail when he was unable to pay a $50 fine for drunkenness and disorderly conduct on the property of Thomas Richardson, where he struck the property owner. George Bupkis, who was with Mr. Miller, was reprimanded and released… the Pine Beach Sunday School held a strawberry festival and dance Thursday night, May 27th at the firehouse… the editor of the New Jersey Courier, which was published out of Toms River, joked that bathing suit manufacturers were apparently hit hard by the economic depression as the amount of material used to cover up bathers’ bodies was growing smaller and smaller, to where they were “scantier in size than at any times since we were boys and were allowed to go in swimmin’ anywhere on the south shore of the Toms River

Pine Beach 1932

The following items took place during the Pine Beach Borough governing body meetings of May and June 2012. July and early August meeting information will be reported in the next edition of the Riverside Signal, posting August 10th.

Councilwoman Susan Coletti reported on various activities of the Pine Beach Clean Team, a group of volunteers who regularly donate their time to aid in the appearance and environmentally friendly aspects of the borough. The team, which had been inactive for some years, was recently given a fresh breath of life from resident and Toms River High School South junior, Lindsey Van Zile.Recent activities of Ms. Van Zile and the team included:

• collected 15 bags of garbage

the governing body with the idea of building a community garden that could be used either for gardeners themselves or donated to local food banks or area farmers markets. An early idea she had was to remove the basketball courts and utilize their space at Walling Field.“I don’t have a problem with that,” laughed Councilman Robert Budesa.Chief John M. Sgro, who is also the volunteer borough administrator, said that he didn’t think there would be enough sun in that location, and Mayor Lawrence Cuneo suggested possibly using part of the large Avon Beach parking lot for a community garden as it

off the beachfront area on Earth Day • established a TerraCycle program in town by placing collection boxes in town hall where residents can contribute hard to recycle materials that are turned into affordable green products. A full list of accepted materials and more information can be found on the borough website or by visiting www.terracycle.net • removed debris and litter from Pocket Park on the Motor Road/Riverside Drive corner • cleaned up the waterfront following the Independence Day firework display

Ms. Van Zile also approached

was not very often used or used to nearly the capacity it could hold.“Get it into an open area and people will see it all the time and you might get more people who want to participate,” he said.“That whole area is underutilized,” agreed Councilman Richard “Ritty” Polhemus.Councilman Barry Wieck said a garden would probably need a year to “turn the ground down, fertilize and crunch leaves in there.”The mayor also had concerns about how the ownership of certain areas of the garden would

A billboard may be in the works for a small piece of property that the town owns on Atlantic City Boulevard between the Atlantic Car Wash and the three-business plaza containing Water Works Pool Services & Supplies, Great Wall Chinese Food, and the Pine Beach Dry Cleaners.Chief John M. Sgro reported that a company had submitted for an outdoor billboard at the location, where currently sits a small, faded wooden sign advertising borough fire company hall rentals.Borough Clerk Charlene Carney thought that the strip of land was an old paper street from when the town was laid out in the first decade of the 20th century.“They want to lease the land from us and put the sign on there and they would be responsible for its maintenance and upkeep,” stated the chief. “The one that they sent a picture of in the proposal is up in Toms River right past where Carl’s Fencing is [on Route 9].”He added that the company offered signs that were anything from vinyl wrap to an LED version where the town would

be allotted certain advertising time to highlight events, programs, notices and more.“They do have one down in Stafford [Township] and I spoke to the administrator there; he had given a reference letter with the package and they said it works quite well for them,” the chief continued. “We’re of course not on Route 72 here.”Councilman Richard “Ritty” Polhemus asked whether the company had stated a dollar amount for renting the space.“It ranged from like $700 per month per sign and I think that can depend on how it’s set up—they can stack two on each side, so up to four signs, and if LED boards are put up because it will generate more revenue from it I think it’s $1,200 or more for each LED sign,” replied Chief Sgro.“Just as an aside, the land use board I know was concerned about the rapidity with which some of those changing signs change,” said Councilman Robert Budesa.The chief said that the state had regulations for the speed at which LED signs changed.“Sounds good chief, bring them in,” said Mr. Budesa.

Pine Beach Clean Team UpdatesErik Weber

Rt. 9 Billboard PossibleSteven J. Baeli

Pine Beach Yacht Club’s Kristi Shirey walks parents through an introduction to the club’s “River Rats” program, the starting point of their junior sailing curriculum, in June. E. Weber/R.S.

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be determined, and the general method of its operations, but felt it was a good idea.“You can ask people if they want to have samples of their garden [in the town community garden],” said Ms. Van Zile. “I already got a letter from a family friend in Pine Beach saying [that] they wanted to donate some of the plants to help out.”“I’d just be afraid it’d go down to individual plots and someone would decide, ‘I need tomatoes!’ and go over and take half a dozen tomato plants,” said Mr. Wieck.“I would think that if you got volunteers, it’s people who enjoy gardening,” said Mrs. Coletti. “It’s kind of a different breed of people.”“It would make sense to maybe get together and get a few people that are concerned and interested and some council members and whoever to actually look at it and try to come up with a master plan,” said Mr. Polhemus.Mayor Cuneo said they would also need to determine how great an interest in such a garden next year there was, “because you don’t want to do half the parking lot and have one person do it.”Mr. Polhemus added that the garden could also be made more of an attractive public use space with the addition of walkways and some benches “for people who want to sit and enjoy the view.”No further action was taken on this matter.

Clean Team (cont)

More Boro Updates

Early Summer Police ReportsPine Beach Police Chief John M. Sgro submitted department reports to the governing body that stated there were 231 calls for service in April and 219 in May, with some of the calls relating to a rash of vehicle burglaries taking place as the weather warmed up.“We’re hoping we do not have a repeat of last year and ask that everybody be vigilant of everyone locking your cars as well as your homes,” he wrote. “We are in a very bad economy and people are doing desperate things—please do not make it easy for them and make yourself a victim.”The chief went on to again commend the alert neighbor who notified police as to a breaking and entering in progress at a nearby home, resulting in an arrest.“I cannot stress enough that if you see something suspicious, do not confront anyone—call the police and pass the information on to us so that we can respond and investigate,” he wrote. “Also please be alert to person picking up scrap metal and other recycling from our curbsides; this is illegal and they are stealing recycling money and credits from the borough and therefore stealing from you.”Chief Sgro added that if any such activity was seen, to please call the police at (732) 341-2616.

Possible False Alarm OrdinanceThe governing body discussed and looked into a possible ordinance that would attach fines to repeat false alarm calls at residences and businesses.Councilman Richard “Ritty” Polhemus stated that when the fire company, police department and first aid squad had to respond to the same location “four, five, six times,” it was a problem.“It’s not so much as to produce revenue but more than anything else to act as a deterrent,” he said.Such an ordinance would have a one or two false alarm courtesy built into it.“I don’t think we have a big problem with false alarms at this time, we get them here or there,” said Chief Sgro, noting that the purpose would be to prevent a problem from establishing itself and to push owners to properly maintain and fix there systems if false alarms begin to trigger. “I know it’s an issue with the fire department responding to false fire alarm calls especially since they’re coming out all the time with these big heavy trucks from point A to point B—it’s endangering them to get there and even when they have to come out the public is put in jeopardy in the way they have to

respond.”Councilman Matthew Abatemarco said he was concerned that people could become reluctant to call in certain emergencies for fear of being told it was a false alarm.“I don’t think that’s what we’re looking to do—if someone calls and the alarm went off by the can running by, we wouldn’t [penalize them],” said Mayor Lawrence Cuneo. “I think it’s for malfunctions where they have to go on a repeat basis for nothing and maybe nobody’s even home.”Chief Sgro said that Toms River and Brick townships had such ordinances upon which Pine Beach could model theirs.“This really happens in businesses more than in homes,” pointed out Mayor Cuneo.“Our biggest offender for false burglar alarms used to be Pine Beach [Elementary] School until they put a new system in,” said Chief Sgro. “We used to get them there all the time.”“That was a long call because we were required to open up each and every door and each and every classroom and each and every bathroom and check it,” said Councilman Barry Wieck, who is also a longtime member of the Pine Beach Volunteer Fire Company.No further action was taken on this matter.

Public Works WeekThe mayor and council unanimously passed a resolution honoring Public Works Week as a way to honor the borough public works employees for the daily, around-the-clock tasks that they perform.“Our public works is working hard and have been faced with a lot of challenges in certain changes we had to endure, but overall I think they should be commended for their work,” said Mr. Polhemus. “I think the town is starting to look a lot nicer—there are certain things that we still need to address, but we’re definitely moving in the right direction.”

Municipal Properties SaleMultiple properties across the borough still owned by the town were authorized to go up for sale at the last assessed fair market value.“These are undersized lots that are being offered to adjacent property owners to try and get them back on the tax rolls for the town,” said Mayor Cuneo.Lots of 25’x125’ were offered for $23,400 while combined lots sized 50’x125’ were offered for $49,700.Avon Road resident Bill Hanle questioned the borough’s pricing, stating that he had purchased two lots for $10,000 in 1998 which “spiked” in value in 2006 but today were worth “less than half what I paid in

‘98.”Mayor Cuneo replied that the tax assessor set the value for borough properties, and that “the assessed value and what you might be getting in the market are not always the same.”Mr. Hanle stated that his offer of $5,000 for a 25’x125’ lot was “a reasonable offer based on the current market value, despite that the date of the borough’s last assessment was 2005, during an “up” economy.Mayor Cuneo said that the town was required to go by the last assessed value and could not accept his offer for the lot he wished to purchase.

New Court AdminFollowing 32 years of service, Borough Clerk Charlene Carney officially retired from the court administrator and deputy court administrator positions of her role in town hall, and the governing body unanimously hired Beachwood’s municipal court administrator Linda L. Felton as her replacement.“Unfortunately, Mrs. Carney decided she had enough of the courts and I can’t blame her,” said Councilman Robert Budesa, noting that Mrs. Felton had helped Mrs. Carney out when the need arose previously that had “worked out very well” and as such she was “very familiar with Pine Beach.”Mayor Cuneo and various governing body members thanked Mrs. Carney for her tenure in the borough court.“Having dedicated people like that in a town like Pine Beach makes it what it is, and it’s something we should all be proud of,” said Mr. Polhemus.“Thirty-plus years in the court is a long time and I’m sure you’ve seen a huge change in the court in how it operates and who’s coming through it,” said the mayor.“No, it’s the same people,” replied Mrs. Carney, and those present broke into laughter.

Riverfront BenchesSprucing up the waterfront further with the addition of some new benches was a topic brought to the council meeting by Mr. Wieck, who said that they would make a nice addition to the recent work of raising Riverwalk at Avon Road Beach and installing a platform where the shelter stood, and the refurbishment of the Station Avenue Beach shelter by volunteers from Boy Scout Troop 70 and C.T. Shirey Contracting.Chief Sgro said he had spoken with Stephen Bortko, supervisor of the public works department, and reported that it would cost approximately $100 per bench for new concrete forms and lumber.Mayor Cuneo asked whether they used composite decking instead of lumber.“We tried that and the problem is [it’s] too flexible and the hotter it is the more flexibile it becomes,” replied the chief,

adding that pressure treated lumber was stiffer and less costly.Mrs. Carney pointed out that one idea to offset the costs of the benches, which surrounding communities often offer, is to make them memorial benches that people can sponsor.“I would do one for my parents,” she said.Chief Sgro said it would be a good idea not only for the benches but also the dog waste stations along the walking paths in the borough, where residents can donate the materials to have it dedicated in a deceased pet’s memory.No further action was taken on this matter.

Garbage and Waste DisposalThe governing body reviewed the existing trash can ordinance that includes a $50 annual fee for use of a second garbage can at a private residence.Chief Sgro stated that the issue of the garbage cans had come up when some residents were complaining that one large collection can was not enough for their weekly waste generation.“Generally they come in and are willing to pay for the can,” he said.“For the life of me I can’t understand how some people generate garbage on top of garbage on top of garbage,” said Mr. Budesa. “It’s just beyond me to comprehend.”Mayor Cuneo agreed, pointing out that the majority of household waste should be recyclable.“They can’t make it any easier for them to recycle with single stream—you just throw everything into the grey can,” added Mr. Budesa.Chief Sgro said that the county had recently asked that rigid plastics be accepted by public works yards across the county for collection.“Resin chairs, tables, that sort of stuff because there is an issue with people trying to get rid of those a lot and we get them stuffed in the robo cans,” he said. “They try to get them in there and the big thing we have to stress with the robo cans is that if you put stuff in the robo cans it has to be bagged—if it doesn’t fit in the garbage bag and it’s not household trash then it doesn’t belong.”“We’re going to look at collecting the resin stuff though,” he added.

LOSAP Referendumfor Nov. 6thFollowing over a year of discussion between the governing bodies of Pine Beach and Beachwood, the Pine Beach council unanimously approved a public ballot question for residents to decide whether the Beachwood First Aid Squad could enter a “Length of Service Award Program,” commonly referred to as LOSAP, that

would reward members on a points-based criteria system with a fixed annual contribution for each year of active service.Pine Beach officials were first approached by two members of the Beachwood governing body in early 2011 for such a ballot question, which had to be agreed upon by both communities the squad serviced and use the same wording in each. While Beachwood passed the resolution approving the ballot question for that November general election, Pine Beach officials stated they had not received the written language of the proposed ballot question and therefore had not discussed nor passed it in time.This year, the Beachwood governing body renewed its effort for the award program referendum with Pine Beach, and while tensions sometimes flared in various council meetings and messages and exchanges between Mayor Lawrence Cuneo and Beachwood Mayor Ron Roma and council members over accusations of bullying on the part of Beachwood and purposeful delays on the part of Pine Beach, the two towns ultimately agreed upon the ballot question in time for this November election, with Pine Beach officials adding

Steven J. Baeli

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Pine Beach 1932continued from page 18

minus any clothes at all,” at a time before South Toms River, Beachwood, Pine Beach or Ocean Gate existed and the southern bank was largely undeveloped scrub pine woodlands… in early June, the New Jersey Courier newspaper called attention and objected to a two-cent price increase for a gallon of oil, up from 1931’s price of $0.0468 to mid-1932’s $0.0672… James Halligan installed new fixtures and showcases in his store on Midland and Linden avenues… Mrs. Blanche Fisher was reportedly very busy in her new Candy Kitchen… it was announced that Charles Schiel, of this borough, would marry Miss Elizabeth Newman, daughter of Mrs. Edgar Newman of South Toms River, on Sunday, June 19th at her home… the borough mayor and council met Saturday, June 4th for a regular meeting, where Mayor Hutchinson appointed a playground committee of Harry Hoffman, L.K. Schauer and Alex Lindewall to paint and install playground equipment, in addition to procuring a backstop for the ballfield… the work of oiling Riverside Drive for the season was to begin June 13th… George Bonsal began constructing a cottage on New Jersey Avenue above Springfield Avenue for his mother, Mrs. Sarah Bonsal… Albert Schweigart had a stone fence erected around his property on Hillside Drive… the New Jersey Courier newspaper decried the local dumps as being “unpleasant features of modern life [where] waste is cast,” and that “usually people manage to find some place that is near settled parts of the community, or else along a much traveled road. The dumps are unsightly, often rat breeders and mosquito breeders, and at times disease breeders.”… Jan Seidel, a carpenter employed at the Riethman bungalow on Midland Avenue, was overcome by the heat on Wednesday, June 15th. The Davis-Disbow ambulance with William Gwyer driving

responded and rendered first aid. After Mr. Seidel regained consciousness, he was moved to the Ingersoll bungalow on Riverside Drive, where he was staying while working in the borough… Mr. and Mrs. Russell Whitman returned from a trip to Europe, having visited France, Germany and Switzerland and expected to spend much of the summer in the borough home of Mrs. Whitman’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. L.K. Schauer of Henley Avenue… several motorists were stopped Sunday, June 12th by Officer Toy, who gave them a warning for speeding on Riverside Drive… Charles Albert Schiel of this borough and Mary Elizabeth Newman, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Newman of South Toms River, were united in marriage at the bride’s home on Sunday, June 19th. The bride was gowned in blue chiffon with matching hat and carried white roses. The house was decorated in pink and white and with laurel, and the reception was held in the home afterward. After a honeymoon trip to the south, the newlyweds would make their home in Pine Beach… Charles Albert Schiel of this borough and Mary Elizabeth Newman, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Newman of South Toms River, were united in marriage at the bride’s home on Sunday, June 19th. The bride was gowned in blue chiffon with matching hat and carried white roses. The house was decorated in pink and white and with laurel, and the reception was held in the home afterward. After a honeymoon trip to the south, the newlyweds would make their home in Pine Beach… junior yacht club races started up for another season, using 15-foot sneakboxes, and it was noted that the races were originally started in Bay Head and dubbed “candy races” due to the boxes of candy that were offered as prizes. This trend later expanded to include small cups and boat accessories—including flashlights, sheath knifes, riding lights, boat hooks, flags, brass chocks and more—as prizes by some clubs that took up the practice from Mantoloking and down to Seaside Park, Island

Heights, Lavallette and Ocean Gate and more… officials at the Lakehurst Naval Air Station announced to the local public that the U.S.S. Los Angeles airship had made her last flight and that its gas bags would be deflated and the ship placed in storage… the Pine Beach Volunteer Fire Company was called out on Monday morning, June 27th, at 6am to a fire on the railroad bridge between this borough and Island Heights. The blaze was discovered by George Frederick, who owned a bungalow near the bridge, and was quickly under control, but not before some damage was done to some of the ties… baseball games were held every Sunday at the ball field adjacent the Pine Beach Inn. On Sunday, July 3rd, the married men played against the single men of town… the Fourth of July committee was busy making plans for the annual celebration, including a parade with automobiles, organizations, school children and more starting at 9 am and led by a boy’s band of 60 pieces. Prizes were to be awarded to the best decorated cars, and afterward would be a ceremony at the ball field, field sports and then lunch. Following lunch water sports were to be held, with prizes for all events and music furnished throughout by the sixty piece band… Mr. and Mrs. Charles Schiel returned from their honeymoon and moved into their Midland Avenue home… the Pine Beach Yacht Club announced its summer social activities, which included card parties by the Ladies Auxiliary, dances, band concerts, field sports across from the clubhouse, an annual dinner and public reception to newlywed Mr. and Mrs. Russell Whitman, and a pajama dance… Mrs. Sarah Monsal and son occupied the Littel cottage while waiting for construction to complete on their New Jersey Avenue home…

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Pine Beach Elementary Barnegat Bay Blitz!Before their books were closed, teachers high-fived and chairs placed on desks, the graduating fifth grade classes of Pine Beach Elementary left their fellow classmates one last gift in the form of a cleaner, brighter Windy Cove and Beachwood Beach area.

Working with state representatives as part of the Barnegat Bay watershed cleanup, students found cans, cigarette butts and all types of plastics to be hauled away in the name of the environment as teachers and Councilman Barry Wieck pitched in.

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Volunteers Clean Up Admiral Farragut Academy Docks

Volunteers in the form of residents, council members, public works and police department staff and the police chief came out to help take down the stringers and decking off the old, dilapidated Admiral Farragut Academy docks, which have sat unused and closed to the public since the school closed in June 1994. More volunteer opportunities will be available in the future to help finish the job and turn the beachfront bluff area into a picnicing and passive recreational area. Erik Weber/Riverside Signal

Pine Beach Yacht Club ~ Feed the Need Regatta 2012


such provisions as a $750 per member per year cap; a maximum 50-member program cap, for a total maximum annual cost of $37,500 program cost; and that should the squad no longer actively respond to calls for service anytime in the future, the boroughs would no longer be required to fund the program.The mayor and council of Pine Beach earlier expressed concerns that the points system was set up with higher points values in certain areas that would make eligibility more achievable, particularly to line officers, and that as such it could cause problems within Pine Beach and the LOSAP program agreement they have with the Pine Beach Volunteer Fire Company, where the points system is somewhat lower. It was noted that the Beachwood First Aid Squad LOSAP program points system was based on the Beachwood Volunteer Fire Company’s program agreement, and borough officials in Pine Beach ultimately agreed on the award program as written provided they could insert the aforementioned caps and provisions.Overall, if approved by voters this November, Pine Beach Borough would be responsible for 30 percent of the program’s maximum annual cost, or $11,250, while the Borough of Beachwood would be responsible for 70 percent of the program’s maximum annual cost, or $26,250, following the same financial responsibility percentage agreement the two boroughs hold on the squad’s annual insurance cost.

BBP Sea Nettle ProjectAttempts to solve the stinging sea nettle jellyfish population explosion in the waters of the Toms River and Barnegat Bay continues to be a hot topic

on the minds of local officials and scientists, though cost and manpower availability sometimes stand in the way. This was the case earlier this season when Dr. Jim Vasslides, program scientist with the Barnegat Bay Partnership, contacted officials here with a program to erect temporary netting off the bathing beaches and test their impact.According to Dr. Vasslides, two test sites—one in Brick Township on the Metedeconk River, the other at the Brooklyn Avenue bay beach in Lavallette—provided results last year that showed the nets worked in successfully reducing the sea nettle population by about 2/3. Both municipalities asked for the program back this summer.“We went, from last year, to a one-and-a-half inch square hole in the net to this year down to a one inch hole,” Dr. Vasslides said, noting that they hoped to have better results this year. “We said well since we had sort of tested it out already, and have worked with the [New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection] NJDEP, we sent out an e-mail to all of the clerks and mayors along the river to see if anyone else was interested.”Anyone joining the program would be required to participate in its setup.“We put the nets out two days a week at each of the beaches and in both Brick and Lavellette the municipal staff actually puts the net out in the morning for us, at around 9:30 or 10 am, whatever time the lifeguards get their beaches set up and do their normal duty,” he said. “They put the net out for us after we teach them to do it—it’s really just a commercial style fishing net, in essence, and then in the afternoon myself and my crew come out and we seine both inside and outside of the net to test the effectiveness and see

how many jellyfish got through.”The program scientist said that any municipality that accepted the project would have to pay for the cost of the net—approximately $1,400 each—and part of the technician time—likely less than 20 hours per week and a summer total of approximately $3,500.“I think it’s an interesting concept—we have two beaches in town so if we do this we’re looking at $12,000 and we don’t bring anywhere near that in our beach fees, which would be hard to do,” said Mayor Cuneo. “We like people to get out there, but we’re not Seaside or Brick that has oceanfront and bayside beaches. We’re small and don’t have those revenues, which makes our kids tougher.”“I know there are sea nettles out there, I saw them this weekend, the big ones already, and I’d love to get rid of them but to protect our beaches with this I don’t know if it makes it feasible,” he continued.“And to be fair I don’t know if we can do it at two beaches—I just don’t think I can have the personnel and staff up that quickly to make that happen this summer,” replied Dr. Vasslides. “So then you have the problem of having to choose which [beach].”“The other idea we kind of floated, and I don’t know if there’s any potential interest, but perhaps you south side river towns can rotate back and forth and people can split the cost,” he continued. “I don’t know if that’s feasible, but we wanted to be as inclusive as we could.”Mayor Cuneo said he’d have to speak with the other officials in nearby towns before making any statements on that idea, but thanked Dr. Vasslides for taking time to approach Pine Beach about the project.Dr. Vasslides said he would keep an eye out for grants in the

future that could possibly fund such a project.

Council SupportsCMC Cardiac CareThe Pine Beach mayor and council unanimously approved a resolution supporting the state to authorize Community Medical Center in Toms River receive a cardiac care unit.“It’s kind of amazing with the population we have in this area and with heart-related diseases and illnesses that we do not have a cardiac surgery unit here,” said Mayor Cuneo.Upon taking the vote from council members, Mr. Wieck stated, “this leaky valve is in favor.”He added that he felt it was important to have a cardiac care unit closer than Deborah Hospital in Browns Mills, Burlington County or Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune, Monmouth County.

Station Ave BeachParking RealignmentIn an effort to improve and add parking at Station Avenue beach, Mr. Wieck stated he had a plan to move the handicapped parking spot out of the corner and nearer the boat access to prevent anyone parking there from having to step out onto a storm grate, which could also add more regular spaces along the eastern side of Station Avenue.Mayor Cuneo approved of the idea and asked that he bring it to Borough Attorney Jack Mallon for review, which the councilman agreed to.“I was speaking to Mr. [Bill] Stueber today, and his boy scouts [Boy Scout Troop 70] would also like to take that on if possible; they would like to do the line striping,” continued Mr. Wieck, adding that they would need only the paint as the troop

leader already had a line striper.The councilman later reported that Mr. Mallon was open to the changes but wanted the parking spaces to be nine feet wide as opposed to eight feet.

Parking at Elementary School Soccer FieldsMotor Road resident Dot Kulina informed the governing body that she had witnessed cars and even buses repeatedly parking alongside Washington Avenue adjacent and across from the soccer fields at Pine Beach Elementary School.Mayor Cuneo stated that they were not allowed to be parking there and when the soccer fields were upgraded in the early 1990s the school agreed that anyone utilizing them would have to drive into the school property and park on the asphalt lot on the other side of the fields nearer the school playground area.“We don’t want them crossing the street there because there’s no safe way to get across there,” he said. “Even when the high schools played there the buses weren’t supposed to drop them off on Washington Avenue.”Chief Sgro stated that the problem would be addressed.“It is a high volume street an people do use it to cut through and get off Route 9,” continued the mayor. “The last thing we want is for someone to let their child off and they sprint across the street without looking and no one is expecting it and have an accident or fatality there.”He added that while it may be slightly farther for sports participants to have to walk to get to the fields by parking on the school lot, “they are there for recreation and it’s not going to hurt them to walk a little farther so they can get the recreation they’re looking for.”“I like the logic,” said Mr. Wieck.

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Pine Beach 5K - June 24th, 2012


south toms riverBeachwood • Island Heights • Ocean Gate • Pine Beach • South Toms River • Toms River

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Founders Day PrizesCouncilman Sandford Ross, Jr. announced door prize winners from the late spring South Toms River Founders’ Day celebration, marking the 85th year since the borough’s incorporation, as coming from both in-town and surrounding municipalities as Toms River, Beachwood, Bayville and Lanoka Harbor. Prizes included pizza, a dinner date and an assortment of Lakewood BlueClaws tickets.

STR and Social MediaFollowing a particularly active number of weeks and months on two unofficial online Facebook groups named for the borough, Mr. Ross stated that he felt the time had come for the town to look at developing a “standard operating procedure for us for social media—we have pretty much managed not to, partly because some discussions have been—unproductive, let’s just say.”“It would probably behoove us [to have] a standard operating procedure or guidelines on using e-mail, Facebook, Twitter and all the different things readily available and used by many people,” he continued, adding that being in the position as an elected official, “it’s important that we don’t jeopardize the municipality perhaps through inappropriate comments in the heat of the moment.”Borough Solicitor Guy Ryan noted that he was beginning to hear about a case that might show possible violations in the Open Public Records Act and Open Public Meetings Act through digital communication, such as when an elected official sends an e-mail and copies every member of a governing body, thus handling the public’s business outside of an advertised, publicly-held meeting.“There are things like that we may not even think about,” agreed Mr. Ross, adding that he’d like the other council members to give it some thought so that in the near future he may “start some pretty active discussions to set up some formal guidelines.”South Toms River Volunteer First Aid Squad Captain Robert Krohn offered to provide copies of what they use in their organization, and Mr. Ryan said that he would do some checking into it.

Little Town with a Big HeartMr. Williams took a moment out of a recent governing body meeting to give a brief update on a trend he’s seen around the borough and express his dedication to the town.“A lot of young people I meet now, they grew up in town and now came back so their kids can have what they had,” he said, pointing to a recent example of when he ran into a young man that went to school with his daughter and recently bought a home here. “This is a wonderful town and anybody who doesn’t know it has really got a lot to learn—I’ve been here for 28 years and I’m not moving, I’m not going anywhere.”“Well said,” said Mr. Ross.

Mayor and council honored Borough Clerk Betty Silvestri for her 40 years of service during the borough’s 85th Founder’s Day celebration at Mathis Plaza earlier this year. Erik Weber/Riverside Signal

The front of this brochure, which dates to the 1950s, shows an aerial view of Miller Yacht Basin when it was known as Hotaling’s Boat Yard, on the corner of Atlantic City Boulevard and Crabbe Road. Note the railroad track used to move boats in and out of the water at the ramp.


Presented here are events, activities and reports of South Toms River during late spring and early summer 1932, as compiled from various resources within the Wheeler Room at the Toms River Branch of the Ocean County Library by Riverside Signal staff:

Work began the first week of May on the preparation for construction of the new Shell Oil fueling station at the western end of Mathis Plaza, with Leo McClenahan winning a contract to dredge 1,400 yards of sand from the river and widen the river channel by 30 feet. A 150-foot bulkhead was also to be built to allow vessel traffic, and the station itself was to “be of ornamental design and will be one of the finest owned by the company.”... Beachwood resident and machinist William Fischer began construction of a cement block shop on the west side of Cedar Point, which would be a marine engine shop. It stands to this day as part of Miller Yacht Basin, on Crabbe Road… the South Toms River Ball Club opened for the season on Sunday, May 15th against a team from Trenton and announced two benefit games that month, the first to aid the unemployed of this borough and the second for the same in Toms River. New uniforms were purchased for the 1932 season that were cream in color and had a light blue stripe, with the town’s name emblazoned across the front… Mayor Hortie G. Flint distributed four 200 barrels of sea fish to residents of the borough on Monday, May 9th, and announced plans to repeat the effort the following week… Fred O. Miller, a longtime resident of the borough and Flint Road, where he had a “handsome” home, died Wednesday, May 11th, approximately a month following the death of his wife, Sigrid… Walter Smith and his son, Walter Smith, Jr., both of Brooklyn, began mining operations of sand south of the Pennsylvania Railroad station located at the end of South Main Street… by mid-May, the bulkhead for the Shell Oil Company’s new filling station at the northern end of Mathis Plaza was under construction, though the steel that would be used to construct the station itself had not yet arrived… the David D. Glick poultry farm on Dover Road was sold to Julius and Julia Orban on foreclosure for $100… A meeting of Toms River Boy Scout Troop 101 on Tuesday, May 24th included a hike to the gravel pit in this borough, where games were played and contests staged, and Ocean County Agricultural Agent E.H. Waite addressed the troop over a campfire on the subject of nature observation, which he titled, “Stop, Look and Listen.”… Mr. and Mrs. John Hagaman of Perth Amboy

visited Toms River at the end of May, and it was noted that Mr. Hagaman used to own the feed and grain business south of the Central train station here in South Toms River, which in 1932 was operated as the United Feed Company… Neil Ericksen, a former borough resident and resident of Beachwood, was awarded $20,000 in damages against

the New Jersey Pulverizing Company and its sand plant in Pinewald, Berkeley Township, for contracting silicosis, or the inhalation of silica dust while working at the plant, when proper prevention equipment was not readily available during plant operations. His wife, Ethel, testified following medical experts on his inability to work,

Mother’s Day Flower Sale


Oyster Creek Nuclear Drill

Memorial Day at Mathis Plaza

Councilman Calls for Gun Safety EducationCouncilman Donald J. Williams reported on a recent event he and several other town officials plus South Toms River Police Chief Andrew Izatt and another officer attended on invite at a Jackson gun club, stating that “there were about 300 or 350 kids with different groups, and with their parents.”“It was amazing to see that so many kids were learning about gun safety and about what to do if you find a gun,” he said. “There were no problems and everyone had a good time—I personally would like to see our town get involved in that program for our kids because there are so many guns out there.”“It’s scary—a lot of young children are never taught to not pick up a gun and to call their parents, the police or a grownup,” he continued. “They pick it up and boom somebody ends up dead—the program out there is really amazing and really nice, really good.”

STR WorldwideMayor Champagne continues his drive to brand South Toms River in the hearts and minds of officials and residents of the state, nation and world in his travels and frequent speaking engagements, as he outlined earlier this summer.“My job is not only to do the borough’s business locally but to promote the town throughout the state and in other places,” he said. “I was invited to about six cities to speak in the past two weeks, and in one day I did five cities—don’t ask me how I did it.”He outlined that day as taking him from Roselle, Union County; Irvington, Essex County; Brooklyn, New York; Toms River and Paterson, Passaic County plus an engagement later that week in North Miami, Florida “where they’re giving me the key to the city and I will accept it on your behalf.”“South Toms River is not a forgotten town anymore—it’s becoming known more and more,” he added.

Neglected PropertiesThe existence of overgrown properties without current residents or tenants have popped up in some areas of town, and the borough council recently discussed methods for removing the blight while recuperating the cost.“There are quite a few of them throughout the town, and we talked about it a couple times but never set down a procedure,” said Mr. Cradle. “Something needs to be done about this; it’s not getting any better.”He said that a standard operating procedure should automatically take place that gives a neglectful property owner a certain time period of warnings and summonses before they property is cleaned up and a tax lien put in place to pay for it.“Our town would look better,” said the mayor, agreeing to the process.Work continued on these procedures and a larger update will appear in the next edition.

A practice drill was held by the state and involved the South Toms River Office of Emergency Management, including these members of the Manitou Park Volunteer Fire Company. E. Weber / Riverside Signal

The Jersey Shore Base of the U.S. Submarine Veterans were on hand to mark Memorial Day at their torpedo monument in Mathis Plaza. E. Weber / Riverside Signal

Members of the South Toms River Volunteer First Aid Squad sold flowers on Mother’s Day at their Dover Road squad headquarters. Erik Weber/Riverside Signal

South Toms River 1932


SOUTH TOMS RIVER - South Toms River Police Detective Timothy Meier reported that a quick response to a security alarm on Dover Road led to the arrest of a Newark man for the burglary of two local stores. Sergeant Anthony Melchionne responded to an alarm at Luigi’s Deli & Market on Dover Road at 3:30 am on Friday, June 8th. Upon arrival, Sergeant Melchionne observed the exterior glass door of the market had been shattered and inside the vestibule was a black male smashing the interior glass door with a large rock making entry into the market. As Sergeant Melchionne was awaiting back-up units, the suspect came out of the market through the broken glass doors. Sergeant Melchionne confronted the suspect, ordered him to get on the ground and advised him he was under arrest. Patrolman Jack Sayegh arrived at the scene and handcuffed the suspect without incident. The suspect was identified as Terrance B. Connor of Newark, NJ. Mr. Connor was found to have money, cigars, disposable lighters and change in his pockets. The Criminal Investigation Unit was called to process the scene. Upon arrival of the owner of Luigi’s, it was determined that the stolen property found in Mr. Connor’s possession was not from Luigi’s. All merchandise and cash behind the register at the deli was accounted for. Sergeant Melchionne sent the backup units to check the other stores along Dover Road because the property found on Mr. Connor was similar to products sold at the other stores. Patrolman Sayegh found that the Quick Foods Store at 370 Dover Road was also burglarized with the front door broken in a similar fashion to that of Luigi’s Deli and a large rock had been used to gain entry. Patrolman Sayegh notified the owner of Quick Foods to respond to the scene and the CIU was also informed to respond and process that scene as well. The owner of Quick Foods positively identified the items found on Mr. Connor as being removed from his store. Sergeant Melchionne transported Mr. Connor back to the station for processing and charged him with two counts of burglary, one for Luigi’s Deli and one for Quick Foods, and theft for the items found in his possession. He was also charged with two counts of criminal mischief for the destruction of the doors at the businesses. Mr. Connor is being held at Ocean County Jail on $35,000 bail with no 10% option.After transporting Mr. Connor to the Ocean County Jail, the owner of Luigi’s Deli contacted the police in reference to more stolen property found at his

Newark Man Caught in Act of Burglary on Dover Road Nabbed at Luigi’s Deli; Found with Stolen Items from Quick Foods

location. Patrolman Sayrgh responded and the owner of Luigi’s stated that the property did not belong to his store. Patrolman Sayrgh recovered a grocery bag filled with candy, 41 packages of cigarettes, tobacco, white tee shirts still in packages, disposable lighters and 54 cigars. Patrolman Sayrgh took the items to Quick Foods where the owner identified them as being stolen from his store. The value of the items in the bag, together with the items found in Mr. Connor’s possession was over $650.00. Further investigation at Luigi’s Deli revealed surveillance video showing Mr. Connor walking through the lot with the bag in his hand and placing it on the side of a shed on the property prior to his breaking into the deli. Another summons charging Mr. Connor with possession of stolen property was signed and served to Mr. Connor at the Ocean County Jail.Detective Timothy Meier also reported the following recent activity of the South Toms River Police Department:On Friday, June 8th at 8:20 pm, Patrolmen William Kosh and Michael Schneidt were at the 7-11 convenience store speaking to a concerned citizen when a store customer alerted the officers to two men fighting on the opposite side of a display rack in the store. Officers Kosh and Schneidt quickly approached the two subjects and tried pulling them apart from one another. As Officer Schneidt grabbed Shawn Davis of Toms River, Officer Kosh grabbed Tyrona Brown of Beachwood who attempted to pull away and continued to lunge towards Mr. Davis. Officer Kosh had to pull Mr. Brown to the floor where he was placed under arrest without further incident. Officer Schneidt arrested Mr. Davis as well. Both Mr. Brown and Mr. Davis were charged with disorderly conduct and were transported to police headquarters where they were processed and released.On Saturday, June 2nd at approximately 11:30 am, Patrolmen Robert Reitz and John Wissel responded to a report of a man just leaving their residence who is wanted out of Maryland for possession of a

gun. Officer Reitz was en route to the Baylor Street address when he observed a tall, thin caucasian male wearing white shorts walking with a young female near Brandies Road. When the subject observed the patrol unit he ran into a yard on Brandies Road and jumped the fence. Officer Reitz drove around the block but was unable to locate the subject and returned to check on the female. Officer Reitz brought the female back to the Baylor Street address where it was determined that she lived and left her with Officer John Wissel who was at the scene. Officer Reitz returned to locate the male subject and after 45 minutes located the subject hiding behind a tree in a back yard on Bucknell Drive. The subject was identified as Brandon M. Finkenauer of Germantown, Maryland. Mr. Finkenauer advised Officer Reitz that he ran because he was wanted out of Maryland. Further investigation confirmed that Mr. Finkenauer was wanted out of Maryland and also Lakewood, NJ. Mr. Finkenauer was placed under arrest and contact was made with Maryland and Lakewood police who both faxed detainers to the Ocean County Jail where Mr. Finkenauer was being held.On Saturday, May 26th at 1:30 am, Patrolman Jack Sayegh was on patrol in the area of Cornell Road and Alfred Road and noticed a white Nissan parked between two houses with fogged windows and tobacco leaves from inside a cigar on the ground next to the driver side window. Smoke was observed coming out from the vehicle’s window with a strong odor of burning marijuana as Officer Sayegh approached the driver’s side door. The occupants, identified as Mitterand M. Opepe of South Toms River in the driver’s seat and Cynthia M. Marquez of Toms River in the passenger seat, were both arrested. Further investigation revealed that the marijuana belonged to Ms. Marquez who voluntarily retrieved a burnt hand rolled cigarette containing green vegetative matter indicative of marijuana and handed it to the officer. While still on the scene, Mr. Opepe was released on his own recognizance and Ms. Marquez was arrested for possession of CDS.

Trash, Recycling and Bulk CollectionThe recent decision to reduce the number of weekly trash pickups to one and bulk pickups to every other month has ignited possibly more conversation online and off among residents here than anything in recent memory. The purpose, officials have said, was to test a new way that would free up manpower in the public works department to work on more infrastructure and beautification projects than have been given attention in years. Some of the more vocal residents have focused on the trash pickup and argued that they are unable to get by with less than two per week with the large robocans provided by the borough, despite that the majority of surrounding municipalities have only offered weekly pickups for years.The feedback is often described differently between various town officials, and following a report by Mayor Joseph Champagne detailing a number of positive responses he stated he heard with regard to the issue, Councilman Oscar Cradle chimed in with a statement saying he has heard more of a negative response.“Now, it’s done—we voted it in, and it’s done, but I think that it’s something we need to look at very carefully over the course of this year because I believe some changes can be made,” he said, noting that a lot of residents were set in the pattern of a twice weekly trash pickup and monthly bulk collection, and that a lot did not look at the collection calendars as a result.As a counterpoint, Mayor Champagne stated that he was informed by longtime Borough Clerk Elizabeth “Betty” Silvestri that she had driven around town with Ernest T. “Ernie” Hemmann, the longtime code enforcer, and “saw that our town is looking better despite some complaints here and there.”“We need to highlight the bad and also the good so that we can see the progress that we are making and where we need to make improvements as well,” he added.Mr. Hemmann noted that he recently issued 20 summonses for bulk pickup violations, of residents leaving bulk items out for extended periods of time despite the change in schedule, adding that he was “sick and tired and for us to go through this every year when we sent out the calendar and they don’t use it, or say they never got it, and people call me, call the mayor and complain and complain.”Mayor Champagne asked whether Mr. Hemmann was issuing warnings on such violations prior to summonses.“I do not give warnings unless I’m directed by the mayor and council, but if you want the town to look like a dump I’ll give warnings,” he said.Mr. Cradle said that while he didn’t think warnings should be issued “time after time after time,” he felt that with the recent switch to the bulk schedule, residents should be allowed time to adjust.“Lots of folks for whatever reason don’t realize that the times have changed,” he added.“Then why send the calendars out?” asked Mr. Hemmann.Mr. Cradle conceded that many likely threw it in the garbage, but that being a small town they should have the common decency to give a single warning before issuing summonses.The code enforcer said the biggest problem he was repeatedly dealing with were renters.“Unfortunately we live in a very transient community,” said Mr. Cradle.“Every town—Beachwood, Pine Beach, Ocean Gate—they’re all full of renters because of all the foreclosures,” said Mr. Ryan. “There are double the number of renters now than there were ten years ago.”Mr. Hemmann said he would test out giving a warning first before issuing summonses to see if it caused the residents to comply with the ordinance faster.“I’ll let you know next month how it doesn’t work out,” he joked.

Odds & Ends• a resolution authorizing roadway improvements to Lakeview Drive was approved• a resolution was passed without comment supporting the push from Community Medical Center, Toms River, for state authorization on receiving a cardiac care center• a resolution was passed authorizing the borough to become part of the Sustainable Jersey green initiative program, with South Toms River Environmental Committee Chairman Greg Handshy acting as liaison• Mr. Cradle announced that following a series of classes and tests, he was officially a certified recycling coordinator within the State of New Jersey and would therefore perform that role for South Toms River• a shared services agreement with Berkeley Township was signed for the production of signage in South Toms River

Jeri Morris


Police Unity Bike Tour at Mathis Plaza

Council Honorariums

STR Summer Camp NewsAs the recreation committee and their council liaison, Mr. Ross, were busy setting up for the annual summer camp, the councilman updated the rest of the governing body and public with some numbers and information on the current year.The camp, which ran July 2nd to 22nd, was “virtually booked” with over 60 kids signed up for the regular trips to bowling alleys, movie theaters, the Ocean County Fair, a Lakewood BlueClaws game, Jakes Branch Park, a roller rink and more, ending in a group family barbeque at the recreation center grounds off Drake Lane.Several years earlier, the camp had inserted a teen drug and alcohol awareness and prevention program to the slate of activities, and this year added to that list another educational aspect.“The Barnegat Bay Partnership contacted us through the [South Toms River] Municipal Alliance this past year and indicated they’d like to try and find a program in town where they could bring some sort of environmental educational aspect,” said Mr. Ross, stating that as a result campers were able to enjoy a trip to the Tuckerton Seaport Museum and a second trip to the Barnegat Lighthouse and Long Beach Island Foundation for the Arts, located near the historic icon. Further additions came in the form of Island Beach State Park learning excursions for hands-on experience with growing clam beds; seining at Cattus Island Park for the older campers while the younger ones experienced the nature center on site; and a trip to Jenkinson’s Aquarium in Point Pleasant Beach.He noted that the new educational aspects and Barnegat Bay Partnership were “like an answer to a prayer” for a camp that was going into its tenth year.

TimeclocksA new procedure to regulate the timesheets of all borough employees was set up earlier this season as a way to provide a greater and more accurate understanding as to their work schedules.“All employees now have to report to borough hall and use

the timeclock by the tax office,” said Mayor Champagne. “We are expecting they follow through with that new procedure.”Councilman Kevin McCormack pointed out that the timeclock at the public works garage had been repeatedly broken, and that workmen then would pencil in their times.“We need accountability but there has been no accountability,” he said. “The [chief financial officer] is going by what they write but to be fair everyone else has to clock in here so the CFO asked [that they clock in at borough hall as well].”Mr. Ross appreciated the reason but said that he was concerned over the small chance that an incident could occur when traveling in their personal

vehicles from borough hall to the public works yard after having punched in.Councilman Marvin Sykes argued that the distance was less than a mile between the two points.Mayor Champagne also noted a second new policy focused on the public works department for notifying when workers would take time off there, as recently a member of that crew had been out without previously notifying the borough clerk or officials.He said that from now on they would be obligated to fill out a “request for leave form that has to be turned into the borough clerk at the office, that way we can keep track of who’s there and who’s not there on any given day [so] that would end the surprises.”

(Fron top) The borough council continued its proud tradition of honoring all grade school honor students each month; Toms River High School South Wrestling Champion and STR resident B.J. Clagon was recognized for his accomplishments; and Mayor Champagne showed off a cake to celebrate Haitian flag day. Erik Weber/Riverside Signal

The state police unity tour traveled through town despite inclement weather to honor those officers fallen in the line of duty. Erik Weber / Riverside Signal

Portable Lavatories at Mathis Plaza DebatedA debate took place among mayor, council and clerk when Shore Vineyard Church, of South Main Street, and Dr. Doug Ripley of Abundant Life Chiropractic Wellness Center offered to supply portable toilets at Mathis Plaza during the Fireworks on the Toms River display on Independence Day. Ms. Silvestri has previously been in opposition of such facilities there on that day as she has stated her position that the fireworks display is Beachwood’s event.In years past, various officials from communities on the river have served on the fireworks committee that is hosted in that borough, but funds are raised throughout the area and committee members have repeatedly countered and stated that the display is an all-river event.“I explained that we don’t do that because the 4th of July is not a borough function,” said Mrs. Silvestri, when first approached about having the temporary lavatories donated. “I asked, ‘Well, are you going to continue them next year and the year after that?’ because otherwise a precedent is set now and we would have to comply.”“How would that be a precedent set where we have to supply porta-potties for events,” asked Mr. Murray.“If people see it there this year then next year they’ll want it there again,” replied Mrs. Silvestri.Mr. Sykes said that he would be fine with the toilets there if Beachwood Borough were “willing to absorb the costs of it.”“Everyone goes down and watches the fireworks and everyone is looking for a bathroom to go to,” said Mr. Murray, who added that he didn’t see the harm in having

the church and wellness center cover the cost.“The crowds that come to our park are not invited, it is not a borough event,” said Mr. Ross, who was concerned about the borough’s liability in accepting the bathrooms for the event. “We do get a lot of people for what is essentially a Beachwood event.”Mayor Champagne echoed that he felt it was exclusively a Beachwood event.“I don’t see it as expanding any liability on the municipality as long as the park is open there’s going to be some degree of liability there,” said Mr. Ryan, who said the portabile toilets wouldn’t attract any more people to the location than it would have otherwise.“All this time we have not had porta-potties there, and if we put them there now, next year people will want porta-potties,” said Mrs. Silvestri. “Remember that you can count the number of South Toms River residents [in attendance] on two hands—if we have ten families there from the borough, that’s good. I’m out there, I see.”Mr. Ross and Mr. Murray gave a motion and a second to allow the groups to contribute the portable bathrooms at the July event, as it was decided it did not set a precedent and as long as they signed a hold-harmless agreement.

The following items took place during the South Toms River Borough governing body meetings of May and June 2012. July and early August meeting information will be reported in the next edition of the Riverside Signal, posting August 10th.

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Riverside Signal | Early Summer 2012 | Page31

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Animal License DisputeChamberlain Street resident Jennifer Zimerla approached the governing body with a complaint over receiving a summons for failure to license her dog for 2012, stating that she often volunteered for various programs in the borough.Noting that she often worked 12 hour days, Ms. Zimerla stated that she felt communication was lacking from the borough, particularly in reminding residents to have their animals licensed, and added that in previous years a card was sent out that she was able to fill out and return with the license fee.“I spend thousands every year to do the Christmas party in town, and it’s not about the money but that money is taken away from things I like to do that are positive for the town,” the Chamberlain Street resident continued. “I would have happily paid for the license.”The fine for failing to license her dog was $100.She added that she felt the town made changes without notifying the public, including the recent change in trash and bulk collection, and added that her long hours prevented her from attending most meetings.Mayor Champagne responded that the borough had “made several communications [on the change in trash pickup] since November of last year—it was in the papers, we also did a robocall and we’ve done several attempts using several different channels to make sure everyone was apprised of the new change,” including distribution of trash, recycling and bulk pickup calendars.Ms. Zimerla replied that she did not feel her phone number was on the list to receive robocalls.Mayor Champagne said that

Portable New JCP&L Outage MapsMaria Sessa, area manager with Jersey Central Power and Light for the Toms River region, approached the borough council during their special afternoon meeting with the students to provide information on a new online “24/7 Power Center” with power outage maps and services now available to customers via their smartphones and other mobile devices in the event of power loss.Anyone logging onto the power center outage maps would be able to see whether outages are widespread or more isolated, and on a non-emergency basis customers can report when streetlights are not functioning. Each time an outage is reported,

if she left her number before leaving the meeting it would be added to the list.“I don’t know what happened with the mail but in November we did a second mailing explaining there would be a change in our bulk and garbage pickup,” he continued.Mrs. Silvestri said that while no letters on renewing dog licenses were sent out, the expiration date was clear on the bottom of each individual license.Ms. Zimerla said that she was still a first-time homebuyer only a couple years out since the purchase of her home, and that she was still learning about the various things she was responsible for, such as shoveling her front sidewalk from snow the previous winter, but that suddenly not sending a notice out after having sent one for the previous two years caused confusion.Mrs. Silvestri argued that they were a small office and that they didn’t have the time to get the notices sent out as a courtesy this year, but that the expiration date was on the bottom of all dog licenses.“I thank you for your critiques and we will definitely weight it and take it into consideration,” said Mayor Champagne. “What you stated is somewhat valid but what we did two years ago in a row were considered as courtesies above and beyond what we should do as a town.”The Chamberlain Street resident said that she was not going to waste any more time on the matter but added that “I’m not one who breaks the law and doesn’t want to follow things and doesn’t want to support the town, but sometimes it makes it real difficult to want to do things when things like this happen.”“The first year we sent those pink cards out [to remind residents to renew their dog licenses] we sent out like 1,200 and got less than 200 responses,” said Mr. Hemmann. “The second year there were like 169 responses—it was so bad that this year Mrs. Silvestri asked me to do something about some of

these licenses.”He said that he had done surveys and the police, when they had some spare time, had done surveys as to the animals present on private properties, but that he didn’t have time for that as he was now officially working on a part-time schedule and so wrote summonses out based on records.“I’m sorry this happened to this lady here,” the code enforcer continued. “It’s a big problem and the only way to solve it is probably next year somehow get someone to walk the streets and do a dog census.” Mr. Cradle said that in the future reminders could be sent out with the trash, recycling and bulk pickup calendar at no added postage cost.Councilman Ed Murray added that the dates should be posted on the borough website every year.

a ticket is created, and the maps can provide an approximate length of time before service would be restored.During significant events, there would also be information on staging stations and ice and water along with further outage-related news, safety reminders and other important information that could be disseminated in concert with the local governing body and emergency management coordinators.Access to the 24/7 Power Center is available by going to firstenergycorp.com/outages. During significant service interruptions, outage information will also be available on the company’s Twitter accounts, which can be found at firstenergycorp.com/newsroom/social_media


ocean gateBeachwood • Island Heights • Ocean Gate • Pine Beach • South Toms River • Toms River

ocean gateOcean Gate 1932Presented here are events, activities and reports of Ocean Gate during late spring and early summer 1932, as compiled from various resources within the Wheeler Room at the Toms River Branch of the Ocean County Library by Riverside Signal staff:

In late spring, Mr. and Mrs. Wilbur Hartman prepared their store in the Giblan building for an early season opening… Mr. and Mrs. C. Elwood Stringfield stayed at their riverfront cottage to prepare their flower gardens… the Pennsylvania Railroad station opened on Monday, May 2nd for the 1932 season, with a position changed from an agency station to that of a clerk operator, coming under the jurisdiction of the Toms River agency. Mr. Clarence Hunter of Mount Holly was named in charge… James Melville and Ocean Gate founder Charles Guttentagg visited the borough frequently… the Busy Bees club made its plans for the season… a good number of borough residents were in attendance at the grand opening of the new Woolworth 5 & 10 on Main Street in Toms River in mid-May… Walter Gill opened the Sweet Shoppe for the season with a full line of candies, ice cream and souvenirs… borough resident Charles Snyder and his father opened a flower stand at the South Garage in Beachwood, offering a variety of plants and shrubs. One clever piece of marketing that the younger Snyder put on was a sign for motorists just before they would come upon the stand that read, Do Not Look to Left. Naturally all traveling along the highway craned their necks left and got a full view of the offerings of Mr. Snyder and son… Clifford Angerer was awarded a year’s scholarship to the University of Pennsylvania to study the field of zoology… over the Memorial Day weekend, the Ladies Auxiliary of the Ocean Gate M.E. Church held their annual parcel post social in the church basement, offering many items for sale plus pie and cake and a luncheon… the Ocean Gate


The following items took place during the Ocean Gate Borough governing body meetings of May and June 2012. July and early August meeting information will be reported in the next edition of the Riverside Signal, posting August 10th, as will a mid-year update on the wind turbines and a look at the issues at Angelsea Avenue. Also in that issue will be a special section with our Ocean Gate Memorial Day and flagpole dedication ceremony photos.

Thanks for Town ProjectsReturning to Ocean Gate for the summer, East Bayview Avenue resident and Ocean Gate Beach & Boardwalk Revival Committee member Larry McDowell stated that he and his wife “would like to express our appreciation for all you guys are doing—I probably don’t realize the amount of time and effort that goes into it all, and a lot of other people don’t, but I appreciate it.”“We got in last Sunday and drove around quickly the last couple of days, and the most positive things, the boardwalk construction, the roads being paved and a new green energy project with the [second] windmill—it’s just nice to know someone is watching over our little slice of paradise when we’re not here,” he said.Councilwoman Joella Nicastro responded, stating that while it is “definitely our duty and responsibility to sit up here and take complaints and listen and act on them, it’s very nice to have two people who were out of town so long to come in and give us a compliment,” she said. “Thanks very much and it makes me feel good that people do recognize there are some good things going on.”

Church Service atWildwood Ave. BeachBefore the summer season, Rev. Doug Rea of Faith Community United Methodist Church, Bayville, inquired about holding services on Sunday mornings at Wildwood Avenue Beach, a request that was tentatively

approved on a trial basis by the governing body granted no nearby neighbors complained about their presence.An early attempt to notify residents via flyers before the start of the season drew no responses, however Mayor Paul Kennedy pointed out that most hadn’t yet arrived in town for the summer.Councilman Frank Santarpia stated that he recalled the reverend said he would not play the organ or music at that hour, but wanted to utilize a small PA system.“I don’t know how legally we could tell them they can’t have it there,” said Ms. Nicastro, pointing to semi-regular meetings various groups hold on the beachfront off-hours when badges aren’t necessary. “I personally have no objection at all and think it’s a very nice thing.”“This borough has been very liberal in allowing use of their facilities to many different organizations and church groups and others in the past,” said James Gluck, borough attorney. “The practice has been if they make a request and it’s reasonable it’s granted by the borough. This takes it to a different level now [and if] another group wants to hold service at 8:30 am at a part of the beach you may have to make accommodations for them.”Councilman James McGrath felt that the nearby homeowners should have a say in the Sunday morning beach church service.Following Memorial Day weekend, no complaints had been registered and the governing body granted tentative approval for the church to hold services through late June in order to see whether any complaints or comments were lodged by the following council meeting.At that meeting, the mayor reported that he and Councilman Dave Kendrick heard that some comments were made about churchgoers present on Sunday mornings blocking the boardwalk where bicyclists wanted to get through, but that the church stated

Council HighlightsErik Weber

2nd Pier Kite Flying Skills



Ocean Gate 1932continued from previous page

School brought home the top prize in the county sewing exhibit, held at Tuckerton school. The contest was only open to one room schoolhouses in Ocean County… Mayor H. Warren Mease received the nomination for mayor in the primary, with no opposition… Ocean Gate resident William Griffin was one of two Civil War veterans who participated in the Memorial Day parade in Toms River, with the 88-year-old driving his car in the procession… the editor of the New Jersey Courier, which was published out of Toms River, joked that bathing suit manufacturers were apparently hit hard by the economic depression as the amount of material used to cover up bathers’ bodies was growing smaller and smaller, to where they were “scantier in size than at any times since we were boys and were allowed to go in swimmin’ anywhere on the south shore of the Toms River minus any clothes at all,” at a time before South Toms River, Beachwood, Pine Beach or Ocean Gate existed and the southern bank was largely undeveloped scrub pine woodlands… the Palm House Bakery came under new management, its building and business having been purchased by Monoray and Parks of Philadelphia and Ocean Gate after proprietor Charles Biernbaum was forced to leave the business after 20 years due to ill health… the Ocean Gate fire companies were called out around midnight Wednesday, June 1st to a fire at Holly Park… Clarence Hunter, agent of the Pennsylvania Railroad station, was sent to run the Whitings station; Robert Beck of Browns Mills took his place. It was noted that while employed in Ocean Gate, Mr. Hunter made many friends… in the first week of June, a building permit was issued for the construction of a small bungalow on the corner of West Point Pleasant and Red Bank avenues… one way streets went into effect Saturday, May 28th for the summer season, with all new signs placed and the street corner signs painted indicating the directions. Bayview Avenue from Ocean Gate Avenue east is the eastbound street and Lakewood Avenue from Narragansett is the westbound lane. It was noted that some problems with drivers operating vehicles at high rates of speed persisted among the borough during the summer months, endangering the youth who played on and around the roadways. Charles Guttentagg, chief of police and town founder, ordered Officer Shirk to watch vehicle traffic closely that year and break the speeding habit… Blanche Keeney opened her real estate office on Ocean Gate Avenue, fronting on the property of Otto Becker… Chris Angerer planned to begin work

on the Smith cottage of Cape May Avenue… in early June, the New Jersey Courier newspaper called attention and objected to a two-cent price increase for a gallon of oil, up from 1931’s price of $0.0468 to mid-1932’s $0.0672… the Ladies Civic Club planned to discuss the construction of several small pavilions along the boardwalk in the coming summer months at their regular monthly meeting on Tuesday, June 21st… the regular meeting of the borough mayor and council was held at borough hall on Saturday night, June 11th, at which time a discussion was held on whether to adopt a building code to restrict the types of buildings to be constructed here in the future. A vote was taken that a legal opinion be received from the State League of Municipalities as to whether the code might conflict with the restrictions placed in the deeds by the Great Eastern Building Corporation, the original development firm of the resort before it incorporated as a borough. The matter was tabled until further information was received… officials of the Ocean Gate Board of Education attended a business meeting held at the Riverview Hotel in Toms River… a gasoline pump standing in front of J. Frank Johnson’s store on Ocean Gate Avenue was pulled over and badly damaged when the hose caught in the rear bumper of a car belong to C. Frank Bertsch. He had stopped for gas and in starting away had not noticed the hose on the car. On Monday morning, June 13th, a crew from Tide Water Oil Company installed a new pump… local youth discovered the bounty of lost loose change accumulating beneath the public piers and on days with good weather upwards of 20 boys could be seen sifting the sand and gravel beneath for their rewards in pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters and half dollars. The least that any of them found during one day’s work was $0.35 while some collected as much as two or three dollars for only a few hours of work. They would dive down to the riverbed and fill their sifters with sand and gravel and then pick the money out… officials of the Ocean Gate Water Department asked that residents refrain from watering their lawns on Sundays throughout the summer season until after 8 pm… the Ocean Gate AT&T Ship to Shore transmitting station at Good Luck Point, Berkeley Township, along with the receiving station at Forked River, added four more ships to those in its service, including the Bremen, Europa, Deutschland and Albert Ballin, all of the North German Lloyd line. The ships which had for some time already offered telephone service to their passengers included the Leviathan, Olympic, Homeric, Monarch of Bermuda, Empress of Britain and Majestic. In June the company began experiments with communications to six

that they would ensure not to block access in the future, and the church group has enjoyed their early Sunday morning beachfront summer services since.

Infrastructure UpdateMayor Kennedy gave infrastructure updates on areas throughout the borough, including:Angelsea Avenue Pier – was demolished and rebuilt, partly through funds raised by the Ocean Gate Beach and Boardwalk Revival Committee.Stone Harbor Ave. B’walk – sections were removed and replaced, which, combined with Angelsea Avenue, brought the borough up to its annual 500 foot replacement goal for the boardwalk, now in its fourth year. The mayor noted that while construction was ongoing, some walkers ignored the multiple barricades, caution tape and workers to walk right through the sections being replaced.Adrian Hall – had two outside chimneys removed, the stucco exterior patched and painted, a new heating and air conditioning system installed, new soffits installed and the overgrown shrubbery surrounding the walls removed.Water System – ongoing problems discovered in the borough water system, which the mayor has repeatedly said was neglected for decades, is resulting in initial replacements of certain fire hydrants and over a dozen closed valves that overall will translate into raised water rates in the near future. Councilman Charles Mailot spoke more about the rates increase.“We’ve been looking into the water rates and we’re trying to figure out the best way, or the least painful way,” he said, “[but] they’re going to have to go up. We don’t really have any concrete numbers or percentages right now; basically we’ve had an infrastructure that’s been neglected for the better part of 80 years or so.”“We’re looking into various alternatives for funding and we do know times are tough for everybody—everybody up here, I’m sure, everybody sitting out there—things are difficult these days,” the councilman continued. “As I said before we’re trying to make this as least painful for everybody.”West Arverne Avenue resident Pat Barger stated that she and her husband and some of their neighbors suffered from low water pressure that was getting worse. Mayor Kennedy replied that they were working on the issue.Narragansett Avenue – the road and curbing project went through its final punch list of items to close it outBeach Cleaning – Ms. Nicastro reported that she witnessed “quite an improvement” to the beachfront when it was cleaned

through a shared services agreement between the borough and Toms River, adding that “it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary that they picked up but a lot of vegetation and debris, garbage and cups and things like that.”Jeffrey’s Creek/Duck Pond – Ms. Nicastro also reported that several volunteers worked at cleaning up the duck pond adjacent Ocean Gate Drive, adding that due to the low amount of trash they picked up, she felt the garbage cans and dog waste stations were “really doing their job.”

Police Unity TourHonors MarlesBetween 150 and 200 police officers from around the state on the Police Unity Tour, a bike marathon to honor and raise awareness of officers who died in the line of duty, stopped in Ocean Gate in memory of Ptl. Jason C. “Jay” Marles, who died at the hands of an intoxicated driver on Thanksgiving eve 2010 on his way home following a drunk driving detail in the borough.Ptl. Marles’ parents and children were present during the ceremony, where they received a golden rose in his memory and which took place in pouring rain.

Recreation NewsMr. McGrath reported that donations of basketballs and tennis rackets were received for use by borough residents through the recreation programs, and that Miss Bombeck would hold adult and child art classes at the second, or Angelsea Avenue, pier.Mr. McGrath also remarked that the committee had some difficulty hiring lifeguards for the season as “we’ve got four and we try to hire the kids but for some reason, I don’t know, they don’t want to work. Ain’t like when we were kids, I guess. We worked—we didn’t have a choice. They don’t want to, they’re entitled.”“They want to be on Facebook, you know that,” laughed the mayor.

Sunflower ContestThe second annual sunflower contest has been well underway for much of the season, with a new rivalry between the first and second ignited for the second year and originating when residents and vacationers nearer that second pier, Angelsea Avenue part of town missed out the previous year when it began along Wildwood Avenue, or the first pier, side of town.The two categories for sunflower growers include kids up to the age of 17 and adults older than 17, with a $5 donation buying the grower three seeds and their set of instructions. Measuring and awards are due to take place Labor Day weekend.

Comfort Station RentalContinuing the inaugural tradition forward for at least the

next two-and-a-half years, the Ocean Gate Soda Fountain was granted a contract to occupy and utilize the historic Comfort Station at the Wildwood Avenue beachfront through the end of the 2014 season, with no other applications received for the location.

Boarded Up Homeon Ocean Gate AvenueOcean Gate Avenue resident Katherine Ranuro inquired as to the status of the boarded-up house on the southeast corner of East Longport Avenue and Ocean Gate Avenue.“Was there a fire or something, and how long can an owner leave a building boarded up like that?” she asked. “It’s very unattractive.”Mayor Kennedy replied that the home was foreclosed upon several months earlier and that the tenants that were living there “destroyed the place and stole copper out of there—it’s ransacked.”As a result of the stolen copper plumbing, water flowing in damaged the home, which he felt would need to be demolished. It is currently for sale.

Crackdown on Dogs at BoardwalkWest Point Pleasant Avenue resident Rosemary Kindon reported to the mayor and council that she was seeing an uptick in the amount of dogs being illegally walked along the boardwalk leading into the summer season, and wanted to know if when seeing the dogs she and other residents should call and alert the police department.“Absolutely,” said Mayor Kennedy, adding that anyone can call the police direct at (732) 269-2468 and that anyone walking dogs on the boardwalk, riding bikes past the 10 am boardwalk cutoff time or riding a bike anywhere without a helmet would receive a summons.“Your assurance is very well received—I said something [to the dog walker] in passing and was only met with ridicule,” said Mrs. Kindon.“We all do,” replied the mayor.Detective Mike Kuchta stated that a number of summonses had already been issued and that police had been on the look out for violators as “everyone knows there’s signs posted.”

OG School @ OG CouncilBefore the close of the 2011-12 school year, Ocean Gate Grade School students from the 3rd through 6th grades were able to return to the council meeting chamber in borough hall for a special mid-day council meeting that gave them the opportunity to be reintroduced with their town leaders and the local democratic process.After Superintendent Frank Vanalesti thanked the mayor and council for adjusting their schedule and accommodating the classes, who easily filled the available rows of seating, students were able to approach

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more ships it could add to its roster… Thomas C. Summerill of the Salem Standard and Jerseyman, a leading South Jersey newspaper, began a vacation in the borough… Miss Carrie Bagot fell from a ladder in her home, the Cedarmere, and injured two ribs… junior yacht club races started up for another season, using 15-foot sneakboxes, and it was noted that the races were originally started in Bay Head and dubbed “candy races” due to the boxes of candy that were offered as prizes. This trend later expanded to include small cups and boat a c c e s s o r i e s — i n c l u d i n g flashlights, sheath knifes, riding lights, boat hooks, flags, brass chocks and more—as prizes by some clubs that took up the practice from Mantoloking and down to Seaside Park, Island Heights, Lavallette and Ocean Gate and more…Horace Whittle, manager of the television department from Bell and other electronics corporations, hosted about 30 men from his department in town on Thursday, June 23rd… Chief William Exall, a much revered

fire chief from Newark who summered and was honored in Ocean Gate, arrived at his cottage for the season by ambulance from his home city, having been in bad health for several months earlier but in “high spirits” to get back to the borough… the ship to shore station at Good Luck Point added the Hamburg and the New York ships to its roster of clients, both of the North German Lloyd lines… officials at the Lakehurst Naval Air Station announced to the local public that the U.S.S. Los Angeles airship had made her last flight and that its gas bags would be deflated and the ship placed in storage…Clifford Ackerman Angerer of this borough and Miss Helena May Hurley of Toms River were married at 9 am on Monday, June 27th, at Christ Church by Rev. R.S. Nichols, with only the immediate families present. The bride was attired in powder blue chiffon with light beige shoes and stocking and wore a shoulder bouquet of tea roses. Their honeymoon was planned to take them through the New England states. Mr. Angerer was a graduate of St. Stephens

College and Columbia University, in addition to graduate work at the University of Pennsylvania. Mrs. Angerer was a Montclair Normal School graduate and had for some time been a teacher in the Toms River grammar school. Both were Toms River High School graduates…Eddie Holloway started up his summer business of selling fish and other seafood… on Saturday evening, July 2nd, the Ladies Civic Club held a beano game at the Wildwood Avenue pier, the proceeds of which went towards erecting small pavilions along the boardwalk. The previous Sunday they met with borough officials and selected two places, one at Monmouth Avenue, and another at Asbury Avenue… the borough had signs along the boardwalk at intersections stating that changing clothes in cars for bathing was prohibited, but some visitors, including one young man at Stone Harbor Avenue, ignored them. Officer Shirk caught the young man and held him until his friends could raise the $2.50 fine… John Howard opened the meat market in his store for the season… the Ocean Gate school

board met on Thursday evening, June 30th, to assess the school property and determine what repairs were needed and to advertise for the next winter’s coal and supplies…

the governing body and ask questions about their town.“If I see something broken in town, what should I do?” asked Joseph, from Ocean Gate Drive, specifying a damaged pipe.Mayor Kennedy replied that he should have his parents notify the police if it was an emergency like a broken, open pipe but that for less serious issues Ileana Vasquez-Gallipoli, the borough clerk, should be alerted so she could route the issue to the proper department.A young girl named Patricia then asked Mayor Kennedy what he had to do to earn his position.Mayor Kennedy then walked the students through the process, from belonging to a political or non-political organization, submitting one’s name to be entered into a primary, and if winning that primary, entering a general election.“That’s how it works, then you go out and campaign and tell people why you want to be mayor and what you want to do,” he said. “In my opinion, I think you need some experience in government before taking on the position of mayor anywhere. Being the mayor of this town is the same as being the mayor of Toms River, the difference is there might be $100,000 in Toms River and only $2,000 here—you have a bigger budget and a lot more staff bu the same things have to happen; you have to know how to work with staff and spend the money the taxpayers pay to keep your town the way they would like it.”The mayor added that anyone preparing to take on the role of mayor would need to “be ready for your phone to ring and to not get too much sleep.”West Point Pleasant Avenue resident Joey asked what the governing body was going to do “about the bad park on Wildwood Avenue,” referring to the playground located on Wildwood Avenue across from East Atlantic Avenue, adjacent to where the recreation center stood before burning down in November 2009.Mayor Kennedy stated that the town had cleaned up graffiti that marked the equipment at the site and installed a new security light to replace the one lost when the center burned down.“Some people choose to vandalize things, and it seems the more we fix it the more the older kids or whoever these kids are break and destroy things,” he said. “I have no idea why.”A student from Ocean Gate Drive then asked the governing body what one change they would make to the town would be.“Get more businesses in town to raise the ratables and raise more in taxes to make

more improvements to the boardwalk and beach,” replied Mr. Kendrick. “We don’t have that many businesses in town and businesses pay a larger percentage of taxes that can be used to hire police and fix the boardwalk and buy new firetrucks and stuff like that.”Jacob wanted to know if the town would ban smoking on the beaches because while they were working on the Barnegat Bay Blitz beach cleanup, a number of cigarette butts were cleaned up.“I’m not against it I’m actually for it I guess because I never smoked, but I think the hardest problem anywhere is that we wouldn’t be able to do as Seaside Heights does it and open a special section on the beach to smokers,” Mayor Kennedy said, pointing out that they had a lot more police manpower to enforce such restrictions. “It’s a great idea—we do have ashtray stations along the boardwalk, seven of them, and for whatever reason I guess the smokers, some of them, don’t like them.”He added that some of the ashtray collectors were broken and thrown in the water by vandals.“We paid money for them and put them out to try and keep cigarettes off the beaches, but I guess those people really don’t care about the environment,” continued the mayor, adding that students who notice their family or friends smoking should ask them to put it in the right place.Mr. Kendrick added that the largest problem with cigarette butts were people who throw them out of their car windows while driving by.West Riviera Avenue resident Jake asked whether the town officials had any jobs other than running Ocean Gate.“Pretty much we all have jobs or are retired,” said Councilman Brian DiStefano. “As councilmen here we’re volunteers and aren’t getting paid for our services, so most of us have full-time jobs or are retired from our professions—being on council is added on top of what we do every day.”Mayor Kennedy said that the most important job many of those on the dais held were that of parents and spouses.“Sometimes in my home, my kids, my 13-year-old, is neglected because I’m here,” he said. “This is kind of like my second full-time job.”Councilman Frank Santarpia said he likely had a favorable position among his fellow governing body members because he was “retired and I can dedicate a lot of time to this; unfortunately the rest of them are way younger than I am so they have to support their family and it is trying to do what it is that they’re doing and bring in money for your family and then come in here and donate your time.”Mr. Kendrick said that he retired as a sergeant in the Woodbridge Police Department



Ocean Gate 1932continued from previous page


Yolanda’s River HouseGrand Openingafter 27 years of service but

found it necessary to return to work and so was working for a local extermination company in charge of their six dog K-9 unit used to detect bed bugs.Following the initial rounds of questions, a group of sixth graders approached and were granted permission to install a Box Tops for Education collection box in borough hall for all town residents to contribute to as a way of raising money for the Ocean Gate Grade School.A second delegation of upper grade students then requested a “children’s fun day” for borough kids, with ideas as games, rewards, tickets, potato sack races, cotton candy, ice cream, popcorn and candy and music by the local teachers’ rock band at the Wildwood Avenue pier.Mayor Kennedy pointed out that some of the aspects of the fun day were already done either during the annual July 4th games or throughout the regular summer programming, but said that some of their ideas could be incorporated into the annual Ocean Gate Founder’s Day in August.Mr. Distefano thanked all the students for attending their second council meeting of the school year.“It takes a lot of courage to get up and speak, it’s not the easiest thing to do, and it made me and the council very proud,” he said. “We like to see what the students have to say—we all live here around town and play in areas that sometimes as adults we tend to forget to look at, such as playgrounds,” the councilman added, saying that the insight gained from the younger borough residents helped him regain a focus on some areas of town that may need more attention in the future.

New JCP&L OnlineOutage MapsMaria Sessa, area manager with Jersey Central Power and Light for the Toms River region, approached the borough council during their special afternoon meeting with the students to provide information on a new online “24/7 Power Center” with power outage maps and services now available to customers via their smartphones and other mobile devices in the event of power loss.Anyone logging onto the power center outage maps would be able to see whether outages are widespread or more isolated, and on a non-emergency basis customers can report when streetlights are not functioning. Each time an outage is reported, a ticket is created, and the maps can provide an approximate length of time before service would be restored.During significant events, there would also be information on staging stations and ice and water along with further outage-related news, safety reminders and other important

information that could be disseminated in concert with the local governing body and emergency management coordinators.Access to the 24/7 Power Center is available by going to firstenergycorp.com/outages. During significant service interruptions, outage information will also be available on the company’s Twitter accounts, which can be found at firstenergycorp.com/newsroom/social_media

Public SafetyMr. Kendrick reported that Chief Reece Fisher informed him that “vehicle burglaries are exploding in town,” with most occurring on vehicles left unlocked.“People walk by, see something in the window, open the car door and are taking stuff out that doesn’t belong to them,” he said, telling the students present to go home and remind their parents to lock their cars in the driveway and on the street up.On June 12th, the state conducted drills with offices of emergency management in municipalities across the county, including Ocean Gate.“It was based on a nuclear plant disaster,” said Mr. Kendrick, thanking the volunteers at the Ocean Gate Office of Emergency Management (OEM), first aid squad, fire company and police department that were involved, as well as governing body members present. “I think by all counts the drill went off very well.”He added that public safety committee meetings were suspended for July and August, and that if anything came up, they would meet as needed.

New Class II Officer HiredOn June 20th, the mayor and council unanimously passed a resolution authorizing the hiring of a new Class II officer, Adam Sabatino, in the police department.Ptl. Sabatino thanked the governing body and chief for the opportunity and reported that he had lived across from the duck pond, in the Mill Creek section of Bayville, for the past 14 years, worked as a Class II police officer in Seaside Heights for the previous three years, and that he was “looking forward to coming here and getting to know you guys a little better, seeing your faces a little more—it’s a good department, and I’m honored to wear the black and grey.”

Parking DecalsEast Long Branch Avenue resident Mary Szewczyk asked the town officials about parking decals, stating that since moving to Ocean Gate 20 years ago she always thought they went into effect on June 15th, but found a ticket on her car over Memorial Day weekend. Upon investigation—of the signs, the meters and the beach badge paperwork she recieved—she couldn’t find the actual start date of May 15th anywhere.

“Is this a relatively new ordinance or has this been in place for a long time and I just lucked out the past 20 years?” she asked, noting that new people in town wouldn’t have any easy way of knowing the date at which the decals are required.“If it’s an old ordinance or not a relatively new ordinance, I did come down to try and pay my fine and when I went to the court clerk there was no fine on record for how much you have to pay,” she continued, adding that she would then have to attend a court date and appear before the judge.Mayor Kennedy said that since it was first brought to their attention he had been in contact with the municipal court judge and borough attorney and was actively working to straighten the problem out, adding that he would look to have the May 15th date added to badge and decal paperwork in the future.It was later reported that the signs around town would be replaced to reflect the correct ordinance that has information on the parking and violation fines.

Beach Badges for VolunteersThe mayor and council unanimously approved the distribution of beach passes to all members of borough volunteer organizations, such as the fire company and first aid squad.

Town WebsiteMr. Distefano reported that he was actively pursuing the borough’s own .gov web address, to be boroughofoceangate.gov, that would become the town’s official website. Earlier issues arose when the state police mandated that all police agencies use a protected .gov e-mail address, resulting in the need for the change.“We’re moving on that as well as designing the new website once we get the domain name,” he said.

Movie on the BeachThe annual movie on the beach is slated for Saturday, August 25th at dark after 8 pm, taking place on the Wildwood Avenue beachfront. The movie to be shown will be Dolphin Tale, a 2011 movie starring Morgan Freeman, Ashley Judd and Harry Connick, Jr. and centered around the story of a friendship between a boy and a dolphin whose tail was lost in a crab trap. The two other selections reviewed by the mayor and council but ultimately rejected were We Bought a Zoo and Warhorse.The movie on the beach is made possible by the Ocean Gate Civic Club.


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toms riverBeachwood • Island Heights • Ocean Gate • Pine Beach • South Toms River • Toms River

toms riverToms River 1932 Presented here are events, activities and reports of Toms River during late spring and early summer 1932, as compiled from various resources within the Wheeler Room at the Toms River Branch of the Ocean County Library by Riverside Signal staff:

Stock began arriving to fill the shelves at the new Woolworth store on Main Street even as contractors rushed to complete work on the building’s 28-foot by 100-foot interior during the early weeks of May, and manager J.J. Brennan announced the store would open for inspection on Friday, May 13th before a grand opening the following day. It was reported that a great deal of the stock was arriving at the Pennsylvania and Central railroad freight stations in South Toms River, besides more arriving daily by truck. The building, its front composed of a granite base, Indiana limestone and brick front and plate windows set in copper, was built by the Harjes family of Beachwood and New York… Mr. and Mrs. Oscar Loeser, the former a naval officer at Lakehurst Naval Air Station, moved from a residence on Hooper Avenue to their new home on Forepeak Avenue on Beachwood, where it was noted they joined a large faction of other naval officers in that borough… Burton Snyder took over the fish market on Water Street on May 1st, which was previously run by Capt. Alonzo Hyers… Sam Brinley opened his new vegetable store on Hyers Street at Washington Street in the P.L. Grover building. Formerly in charge of vegetables at the American store in town, he was replaced when he fell ill the previous winter, and subsequently chose to start up his own operation… Saturday, May 7th marked the first Saturday night in many years that the First National Bank of Toms River and Ocean County Trust Company would not be open, halting a trend in the face of rising danger of robberies with the depressed economy… boatyards across the region reported a sudden

rush in vessel overhauls, coming later in the season than expected but a welcome change nonetheless… Jennie Holman, wife of Ocean House proprietor George W. Holman, entertained state officials and members of the Dames of the Loyal Legion in New Jersey, an organization composed of daughters of Union officers who served in the Civil War, at their Main Street establishment on May 4th. Mrs. Holman was born Jennie Rawlins, daughter of Gen. John A. Rawlins, Chief of Staff and afterward Secretary of War under General U.S. Grant. General Grant, while serving as the nation’s president, was a noted guest at the Holman’s September 1882 wedding in Brooklyn, New York… area scoutmasters and troop committeemen met at Harris restaurant for a banquet followed by a meeting in the offices above the establishment where various skills were introduced, including map making, signaling and ceremonies. Charles A. Morris also gave a talk on the “Nature of a Boy.”… Lieut. Byron Hall Hanlon, USN, rented the E.G. Mixner home in Cranmoor Manor after being transferred to Lakehurst Naval Air Station from Washington D.C. Lt. Hanlon, son of an Army veteran of the Spanish-American war, was later captain and commander of Underwater Demolition Teams, Amphibious Forces, Pacific Fleet during World War II starting in late 1944 and assigned the task of making reconnaissance missions on the eastern beaches of Iwo Jima in early 1945. Hanlon retired with the rank of admiral and was ultimately awarded the Navy Cross, Army Distinguished Service Medal, Navy Distinguished Service Medal, and Legion of Merit both for actions during that war and the Korean War in the early 1950s. The U.S. Navy’s Underwater Demolition Teams were a precursor to the Navy SEALs… G. Rix Yard, head of the Toms River Kiwanis, rented his Cranmoor Manor home to Lieut. Frederick M. Trapnell, considered one of the best and

cuff tear that required surgery. Temporarily disabled and unable to work, they lost his income and fell behind, eventually being accepted into the New Jersey Rapid Recovery (NJRR) program.The family was caught in a whirlwind. They owed money, but who to pay wasn’t always clear. The web of mortgages, foreclosure laws, and banking regulations proved to be a nightmare - especially when, according to the family, most agencies did not give them clear direction on what to do next.They did all they could to do the right thing, said Mr. Racinelli, but while trying to resolve the matter they got the runaround at every turn.“We were told we were in foreclosure but not active foreclosure both verbally and in writing, and then were told both verbally and in writing that we were in active foreclosure,” he said, adding that at the same time they said they kept getting calls demanding payment even though Wells Fargo would not accept their money.

“It was just a real circus,” the former police officer said. “They (the bank) knew by July that I was in an accident.”An increasingly contentious series of emails fluttered between the corporate bank and the Toms River family through August 2011. The Racinellis attempted to have their mortgage paid through a third party. Wells Fargo indicated that to set up a payment plan, the family would need to go through its Loss Mitigation department. The family insisted they did not need a payment plan, they simply wanted to make their mortgage payment. A stack of correspondence from the time shows both parties appearing to talk past one another.After “constant arguing” and “badgering” that Mr. Racanelli said bordered on harassment, he told them to “cease and desist all telephone calls.”When contacted for this story, a Wells Fargo representative said the bank cannot comment on individual foreclosure cases.Financial woes related to housing are nothing unusual

these days. When the U.S. housing bubble burst, Americans lost some $7 trillion in household wealth. Families who once sat securely on an investment that might protect them from financial ruin—their home—found that they would no longer be able to recoup their investment if they sold it.Things further spiraled downward for the family, and in August 2011 the Racanellis received a notice of intention to foreclose from Wells Fargo with a September 13th deadline on payment to resolve the matter.On August 31st, the Ocean County Board of Social Services approved the family for assistance under the Temporary Mortgage Assistance Program, effective October 1st. Under the terms of their assistance, the Racinellis’ back mortgage would be paid and $891 per month would be provided to subsidize the mortgage, with the family responsible for the remaining $166.Despite this, the Racinellis received a letter on October 25th indicating foreclosure

Waking Nightmare (cont from front)

Welcome to the Neighborhood!

The Cookie Cab and Traco Theater crew welcomed Luna Nueva to the downtown area with a special cake bearing their logo as they set up in the space formerly occupied by Bistro 44 earlier this season. Erik Weber/Riverside Signal


proceedings would officially begin.The family was outraged. Payments were made on October 1st, 2011 for the regular monthly mortgage, and again on October 26th, 2011 for the past due balance.“Wells Fargo received checks and were well aware of when the checks were coming because they agreed to this,” Mr. Racanelli recalled. “They even received a large check from NJRR and they returned it, claiming it was sent to the wrong office. The next explanation for returning checks was that we were in foreclosure and they weren’t obligated to accept them.”This is not an unusual problem for homeowners in foreclosure. Once in active foreclosure, payments often no longer go directly to the bank, but instead go to a separate agency handling the foreclosure. Paying the bank will cause the checks to be returned. Whether or not this happened to the Racanellis is unclear, though it is clear that the bank refused to accept partial payments, but it is illustrative of how difficult the process can be.Mr. Racanelli said this way of doing business continues only because people don’t have the money to fight them. “They think they can get away with it because most attorneys charge by the hour for this and is not based on contingency. So how do you fight them? Even if you could afford an attorney, their attorney will just drag it out and run you into the ground and either [you’re] not be able to afford the attorney or that even if you win, you lose.”Though the Racanellis say Wells Fargo purposely makes it difficult for families to grapple with the possibility of foreclosure, the bank disagrees.According to a statement released to address protests over the bank’s practices in April by Wells Fargo spokesperson Ruben Pulido, the bank seeks to avoid foreclosure when it can.“Wells Fargo makes efforts to keep people in their homes,” Mr. Pulido said. “Over the past year, less than 2 percent of owner-occupied loans in our servicing portfolio have resulted in foreclosures.”But it is not, the spokesperson said, always possible to keep a family in their home.“Unfortunately some people have seen their incomes drastically reduced due to unemployment or underemployment,” Mr. Pulido said.Yet Mr. Racanelli said in the end money wasn’t the issue, it was the bank’s willingness to accept payment. The Board of Social Services was sending checks, but the bank, Mr. Racanelli said, was finding ways to turn them away “despite the fact that not only would the payments have brought us current, but also at that time would have paid the January payment in advance.”But Wells Fargo is not required

to accept payments that are not sent to the right place or for the exact amount, according to Zucker, Goldberg & Ackerman, a Mountainside, Union County law firm that specializes in handling debt- and foreclosure-related cases. They are the bank’s attorney in this case.A representative of the firm was not available for comment.After the family complained about returned payments, in January 2012, Jaime R. Ackerman of Zucker, Goldberg & Ackerman informed the Racanellis in a letter, “Although you take issue with my client not accepting funds from the Board of Social Services which would ‘begin’ to bring the load current, my client is not obligated to accept partial reinstatement funds at this time.” The stance was repeated in a February 22nd letter and is not unusual as many lending institutions will refuse partial payment once a mortgage is in the foreclosure process because accepting partial payment effectively resets the clock for them, forcing them to re-start the process from the beginning. Anything less than full payment will be refused.This is the wall the Racanelli family ran into, and it proved to be a problem. They said because so many checks were returned by Wells Fargo and due to the ongoing problems, the family was eventually kicked out of the NJRR program.“The people at NJRR have told us there is nothing more they can do at this point,” Mr. Racanelli said. “We cannot pay anything now. If we don’t get some intervention/assistance now we will be out on the street with three young children and no money or place to go.”This experience has not been atypical for homeowners in the United States over the last few years as homeowners go into foreclosure and find themselves in a maze they can’t understand.Just as things have not been easy for borrowers, the road has not been smooth for lenders, either, resulting in a series of changes in the foreclosure process. Wells Fargo is one of several banking institutions hit by lawsuits accusing them of illegally pursuing foreclosures. Last December, the state of Massachusetts sued the five largest mortgage servicers in America, and Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley told The Los Angeles Times that “the banks have charted a destructive path by cutting corners and rushing to foreclose on homeowners without following the rule of law.”Currently, a coalition of states, including New York, Delaware, California, and others are negotiating with lenders in an effort to reach a settlement regarding their foreclosure practices. In addition to Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Citigroup, Ally Finance (formerly GMAC), and JPMorgan Chase are at the negotiating table.

On December 1st, 2011, The Los Angeles Times reported that according to the Massachusetts suit, these lenders “pervasively used fraudulent documentation in the foreclosure process, foreclosed without showing they owned the actual mortgage, and failed to uphold loan modification promises to borrowers.”The suit comes on the heels of several years of increased scrutiny on lenders. In 2010, these lenders admitted to “irregularities” in the way they handled foreclosures. According to the law firm Parker Waichman LLP, “In their rush to process foreclosures, many mortgage servicer employees were not even reading or verifying the court documents that they used to justify home seizures.”Later that same year, organizations including Bank of America put a nationwide freeze on foreclosures as attorney generals across the nation announced they would be launching a coordinated investigation into what was being called a “foreclosure crisis.”Wells Fargo, however, was not among those banks that opted to freeze foreclosures, even after two separate Wells Fargo employees admitted they signed hundreds of foreclosure documents daily without ever actually reading the documents.In a May 2010 deposition, Wells Fargo employee Herman John Kennerty admitted he signed between 50 and 150 documents daily without checking anything other than the date. He also admitted that he did not know who, or how, the information on the paperwork he signed was verified.Earlier, in March 2010, Wells Fargo employee Xee Moua said she sometimes signed upwards of 500 documents a day, verifying nothing more than her name and title.Initially, Wells Fargo took a defensive stance, suggesting the matter was an isolated case and that its practices were sound.By October 2010, they had

changed their tune. The bank amended some 55,000 mortgages because they “did not strictly adhere to the required procedures.” The bank, however, still maintained that in no case did “these instances (lead) to foreclosures which should not have otherwise occurred.” While Bank of America and others were freezing foreclosures, Wells Fargo pressed on with them.Wells Fargo was not alone in resubmitting foreclosure documents. Chase and Bank of America, for instance, were reviewing over 100,000 cases each.Bad paperwork had hurt Wells Fargo even prior to these cases. In a high profile 2009 case, the Massachusetts Supreme Court found that two foreclosures made by Wells Fargo and US Bancorp were invalid because the companies could not prove they actually owned the mortgages. In January 2011, that decision was held up on appeal.In a statement issued January 7th, 2011, Wells Fargo laid the blame outside its doors, stating, “The loans at issue in the court’s ruling were not originated, owned, serviced or foreclosed upon by Wells Fargo. As trustee of a securitized pool of loans, Wells Fargo expects the entities who service these loans to abide by all applicable state laws, including those laws that govern foreclosure sales.”Perhaps the best-known case of someone’s struggles with a Wells Fargo foreclosure is the story of Norman and Oriane Rousseau. The California couple found themselves evicted from their home after the bank misapplied the cashier’s check used to pay their mortgage. The bank cashed the check, but claimed the Rousseaus missed a payment, began applying fees, and initiated foreclosure proceedings. The matter stretched on month after month, from 2009 to this year, with the couple first being told they had caught up on their mortgage, their payments then being refused and the bank

again demanding money, only to return to the cycle.In May 2012, two days before he was set to be evicted from his home, Norman Rousseau shot and killed himself out of despair.The Racanellis are not destined for that end.“I’m still fighting with them,” Mr. Racanelli said.The former police officer stated he doesn’t want to avoid paying his debts, he just wants a fair chance at getting his like straight. “I’m not ducking the calls. I don’t tell them I’m not paying them. I tell them truthfully my situation.”Both the Racanellis are now working part-time jobs to help make ends meet. The jobs are seasonal, ending in September. What happens after that is not clear.As of this writing, the Racanelli’s foreclosure is ongoing.

TOMS RIVER – The River Lady, a familiar and hard-to-miss attraction on the Toms River and Barnegat Bay, is celebrating her 24th season this year. Navigated and managed by Captain Lance Chambeau, Jr. since its inaugural cruise in 1989, this authentic reproduction 85-foot Mississippi paddle wheel riverboat continues to charm her passengers with delightful maritime

adventures year after year.






SUPPORTOUR SPONSORS


Chief Mike Mastronardy reported the following recent activity of the Toms River Police Department:• On Friday, June 1st at 2 pm police were advised of a road rage incident on Route 37 West near Saint Catherine Boulevard. The caller advised dispatch that the occupants of an Altima with New York plates that was heading east on Route 37 waved a handgun. A short time later, Sergeant Chris Dudzik observed the suspect vehicle and, along with other officers, conducted a felony stop on the car on Route 37 near the K-Mart Shopping Plaza. The two occupants in the car, both 19 years old, volunteered to have the vehicle searched. The officers were unable to locate the weapon described by the witness who reported the incident.• After a month-long investigation into narcotics activity, the police emergency services unit executed a warrant at 108 Lavenham Court on Tuesday, May 29th. Salim Cofi, 31, residing at the address was arrested and charged with possession and possession with intent to distribute marijuana and cocaine. Police recovered cocaine, marijuana, a digital scale and packaging materials during the execution of the warrant. Mr. Cofi was held in Ocean County Jail on $25,000 bail. Anyone with information about suspicious activity can contact Sergeant Shaun O’Keefe, Supervisor of the Special Enforcement Team at (732) 349-0150 ext. 1272.• On Sunday, May 27th at 7:30 am, a 2008 Honda Civic was south bound on Route 166 when it crossed the northbound lanes and struck a utility pole at Suburban Drive. Further investigation found that the driver, Sean Combs, 22 of Schenectady, New York, apparently fell asleep while driving. Quality Medical Services took Mr. Combs to Community Medical Center for minor injuries. Officer Mark Nater issued Mr. Combs a summons for careless driving. Pleasant Plains Fire Company also assisted with the accident that closed down Suburban Drive for the rest of the day while utility workers replaced the utility pole.• Police are investigating a residential burglary that occurred during Friday morning, May 25th on Bayshore Drive. According to witnesses, a black male, bald, wearing a long sleeve red dress-shirt, approximately 40 years old, was observed running from the residence at about 11 am. The suspect broke a rear kitchen window to gain entry into the residence. Over $6,000 in jewelry and a Nikon D90 digital camera was removed from the residence. Further investigation

Toms River Police Report Early Summer Activity

by Officer Joshua Kuhlwein determined that the suspect left in a tan Lincoln. Anyone with information can contact Detective John Turner at (732) 349-0150, ext. 1264.• At 6 am, Friday, May 25th, Frank Favocci, 23 of Lakehurst, was westbound in a 2006 Infinity when he reportedly fell asleep at the wheel and left the roadway striking a merge sign and then a truck that was in the process of exiting the Exxon gas station at Route 70 and Route 527. The truck, operated by Bruce Persons, Jr., 40, of Jackson then went into reverse and struck a light stanchion. The stanchion punctured the fuel tank and released over 50 gallons of diesel fuel. The truck then struck a parked Toyota that was unoccupied in the parking lot. Frank Favocci was transported to Community Medical Center where he was treated and then released. Officer Eric Harris issued Mr. Favocci a summons for careless driving. Pleasant Plains Fire Company and the New Jersey Department of Transportation personnel responded to the fuel spill.• After a two-month investigation that began with information provided to the Police Selective Enforcement Team, New Jersey State Police Crime Suppression Unit and Toms River Special Enforcement Team conducted early morning raids at Winteringham Village on Friday, May 18. As a result of the raids, Zahid Evans, 23, of 2202 Winteringham Village and Jihad Burns, 20, of 1105 Winteringham Village were arrested and charged with possession of cocaine and possession of cocaine with intent to distribute. Police seized 6 ounces of cocaine, a digital scale, marijuana and $14,768 in cash. More than 30 officers participated in the arrests that included the New Jersey State Police, Toms River Police K-9 Unit and members of the Ocean County Prosecutors Office. Jihad Burns is being held in Ocean County Jail on $100,000 bail with no ten percent option and Zahid Evans is being held on $200,000 cash bail as set by Ocean County Superior Court Judge Wendel Daniels. Detective Captain Bruce Burgess wanted to thank residents for their assistance in providing information regarding suspicious activity at the apartment complex on Route 166. Anyone with information about suspicious activity can contact Sergeant Shaun O’Keefe at (732) 349-0150 ext. 1272.• Police are investigating a robbery that occurred on Sunday, May 13 at 3:30 pm at an apartment at the Villages of Bey Lea. Two black males rang the doorbell of an apartment and forced their way inside once the victim answered the door. The suspects indicated that they had weapons and assaulted the resident, Ryan Maletto, 25 and

two male visitors, ages 23 and 25, that reside in Brick. All three victims were transported to Community Medical Center for injuries sustained during the robbery. The suspects reportedly fled with over $400 in cash, a $17,000 gold necklace and 30 Roxicet pills. One suspect was described as a black male, 6’ tall, 200 lbs., with four gold teeth wearing a blue long-sleeve shirt, blue jeans, sunglasses and a black baseball cap. The other suspect is described as a black male, 5’9” tall, 220 lbs., cornrow hairstyle, wearing tan pants and shirt and a tan baseball cap. Ocean County Sheriff’s Department, Officers Art Pennell and Frank Moschella are investigating. Anyone with information is requested to call Detective Chris Fluck at (732) 349-0150 ext. 1222.• Officer Michael MacDonald arrested Anthony Kanaris, 24, of Corbin Street in Lakewood after he was involved in shoplifting $119 worth of electric breakers from Home Depot on Friday, May 4th at 5:30 pm. Mr. Kanaris was approached by a loss prevention employee and then fled through the garden center and tried to climb a fence. Mr. Kanaris became physical with the loss prevention officer and was therefore charged with 2nd degree robbery and held on $25,000 bail as set by Judge Murray.• Officers Chris McDowell and Kevin Tye are investigating the attempted burglary of the Wave Food Mart at 215 Route 37 West on Monday, April 30th at 2 am. Unknown suspects broke the front glass door with a brick causing the alarm system to be activated. The suspects apparently fled after setting off the alarm and no entry or proceeds were taken.• Officer Chris Raia arrested Thomas Tedesco Jr., 46, of Kettle Creek Road on theft charges for attempting to steal a generator from the vacant County Manor Nursing home on Whitesville Road on Sunday, April 29th at 7:30 pm. A representative of the nursing home heard a loud bang and upon investigation observed Mr. Tedesco in the process of removing the generator that was attached to a concrete slab with an excavator. Mr. Tedesco fled in his truck after being questioned and was stopped on Hooper Avenue by Officer Raia. Upon further investigation, Mr. Tedesco told Officer Josh Pedalino that he bought the generator from a man in Atlantic City whom he paid $1500 and told him to use the equipment on the site to remove the generator. Officer Pedalino charged Mr. Tedesco with 3rd degree theft and criminal mischief. Mr. Tedesco’s bail was set at $20,000, but he was also held on a no-bail warrant out of Ocean County Sheriff’s Department. Police are still investigating the ownership of a John Deere excavator that was used during the theft.

MARINE PAINTINGS & ARTIFACTS FROM THE BAY & BEYOND

102 CEDAR AVE. PO BOX 1022 ISLAND HEIGHTS, NJ 08732

For reservations or appointments call 732-929-4949

HOURS : Saturdays & Sundays 1- 4 PMGENERAL ADMISSION: Adults $ 10 Children $ 5

May 19 - August 18, 2012

or visit www.petomuseum.org

Private & group tours available by appointment.

TOMS RIVER POLICE DEPARTMENT2012 ENTRANCE EXAMThe Toms River Police Department will be accepting applications for the position of Probationary Police Officer between May 1st and August 31st, 2012. Applicants must be between the ages of 18 and 34 unless currently enrolled in the New Jersey Police and Fire Pension System. Applicants must possess a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university or a minimum of 64 college credits plus; either two years active duty military experience or two years full-time regular police experience.The police department will host an orientation/ information session regarding the hiring process on Wednesday August 1st, 2012 at 7pm. The orientation will take place at Toms River Intermediate North, 150 Intermediate North Way Toms River, NJ. Attendance at the orientation is voluntary. The written exam will be presented by the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police. It is scheduled for Saturday September 22nd, 2012. The highest scoring 150 candidates will be invited to participate in a physical task assessment and swimming test on October 27th, 2012. Upon completion of the physical task assessment and swimming test the top 100 candidates will be interviewed and placed in rank order on a final candidate list. Applicants on this list will be eligible to proceed in the hiring process between January 1st, 2013 and December 31st, 2015.Applications and an information sheet are available online at www.trpolice.org or at the following locations:• Toms River Police Department 255 Oak Avenue Toms River, NJ• Toms River Town Hall 33 Washington Street Toms River, NJ• Toms River Department of Public Works 1672 Church Road Toms River, NJIf you have any questions please contact Lt. Jeffrey Lenox (732)349-0150 ext 1225

Area firefighters examined the wares available at the East Dover Fire Company’s Fire Expo held earlier this year. Erik Weber/Riverside Signal

Jeri Morris



Toms River 1932continued from page 36

most experienced USN test pilots, who was sent to Lakehurst from Washington, D.C. to become a member of the airplane group for the first airplane carrying dirigible, the U.S.S. Akron. When that vessel crashed into the sea off Barnegat Light in April 1933, he was reassigned as commander of the airplane group for its sister ship, the U.S.S. Macon, until June 1934. Retiring with the rank of admiral in 1952, Trapnell marked many historic and g r o u n d b r e a k i n g accomplishments on his career record, including a test pilot for aircraft to be flown in World War II and later coordinator for the postwar jet propulsion testing center at Pawtuxet River, Maryland and integral in the first successful deployment of jet aircraft aboard an aircraft carrier in 1950. Readers interested in learning more about Adm. Trapnell are urged to visit the extensive, detailed Davis-Monthan Aviation Field Register website at www.d m a i r f i e l d . c o m / p e o p l e /trapnell_fm/ …in his early May report, township relief director C.W. Herflicker reported that no new donations had come in to aid those affected by the depressed economy, and that he had to pay $60 of his personal funds for materials in demand in the hope that the township would reimburse him. His report noted 26 families who received food supplies in addition to eight that were previously cared for by the Overseer of the Poor; four individuals received clothing; daily milk supplies to 13 families; temporary work found for four people; medicine for two; and an added two were included on the roster, totaling 321. Mr. Herflicker added that many people previously on assistance were back at work in their regular jobs, and others had found temporary work… sparks in a brush pile by the roadside at the head of Long Swamp were quickly contained by the Pleasant Plains Volunteer Fire Company after they ignited… Max Kenvin of the Kenvin Poultry Farm sold several acres of land to John H. Morris of Elgin, Illinois, who intended to operate a roadside stand there… Pleasant Plains boys organized a nine-member baseball team, with Clinton Clayton as manager, Harvey McKelvey as captain, and games held on the Stephen Bills property… in testimony given on the fraudulent practices of the Toms River Trust Company, all directors save one implicated President Anthony M. Then and chairman of the board of directors, Benjamin W. Sangor, the latter of whom was the owner and head developer for Pinewald and the Royal Pines Hotel, Berkeley Township, which had gone into receivership. The hotel was closed in Spring 1932, less than two years after it was built, by

the receiver as a means to stop it from losing further revenue… a fire at the Morris Weiss farm on Freehold Road destroyed chicken houses containing 2,000 chickens… Architect C.L. Steinbrenner of Beachwood, who designed the Woolworth stores, prepared plans for three new Beachwood cottages… H.M. Hinteman moved his garage business from the A.B. Cranmer building on Hyers Street to the former Ford headquarters on West Water Street and Traco Avenue… township residents and Beachwood Mayor Rowe complained that raw sewage was entering the river because the township sewage plant was not being maintained, a charge which the township superintendent denied after an inspection of the plant proved no pollution… Mr. Herflicker noted that his last day in office as the township’s relief director would be the last day of May, and that he hoped the township would settle all unpaid bills at that time… the Silverton Boy Scout Troop 123 received a new scoutmaster in the form of Floyd Peppin, a first aid instructor, following the departure of the previous leader, Rev. B.V. Smith, when he left the area for Ohio… David Veeder sold a four-acre tract of land in the White Oak section of the township to Mr. Arneth… Dover and Brick townships continued to dispute the municipal boundary that ran through Squan Beach in the resort of Normandy Beach, and were expected to agree on a bill to be submitted to the state legislature to end the dispute… on May 13th, township committeemen passed an ordinance allowing the Bay Bridge Development Company, developers of Gilford Park, to change a street layout near Dillon’s Creek in order to hire the Westervelt Dredging Company to dredge a harbor almost parallel with the creek and fill the nearby marshlands for building purposes… Sarah Ann, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. C.T. Jones of the Four Mile Colony, and a direct descendent of Capt. Joshua Huddy, underwent an appendicitis operation in Philadelphia… an unknown youth was heard regularly driving around the village and greater township between one and three o’clock in the morning in a car that backfired so often it replicated the sound of a machine gun, a noise which the individual accompanied by repeatedly blaring the horn… Rev. George C. Welsh of St. Joseph’s had the old barn located adjacent the rectory on Hooper Avenue near Water Street torn down, as he had purchased the property the previous summer for the establishment of a new school within the church. The barn was erected in the 1890s by the Mortimer family, a wealthy and socially prominent New York family who lived where in 1932 the Riverview Hotel stood. The site of the old barn was to be used for the construction of a home for the nuns who would

teach at the new parochial school… the Crew-Levick gas station at Main Street and Legion Court was given a new paint job… the Sun Oil Company began building a pier at their station site on the Main shore road at the end of the Washington Street bridge to the beach, and would bring oil and gasoline here in barges from Atlantic City… the Toms River Forestry Club was joined by E.L. Scovill, a forestry expert from the state college at New Brunswick, to plant spruce and white pine on a tract in Double Trouble, Berkeley Township… it was reported that the address of Capt. Charles Hugh McLellan, formerly of the life saving service in the township, was 33 West 67th Street in Manhattan… the township was assured that state money for proposed improvements of Vaughn Avenue, Bay Avenue and Long Swamp Road from Washington Street to Hooper Avenue were available, with the state supply ¾ of the funding, or $13,500, and the township throwing in $4,500. The roads would be oiled and graveled… Stanley McClenahan, township resident who had been away to Russia on business, reported that while in Siberia he dined with two other Americans, one of whom pulled from his wallet a $5 bill issued by the First National Bank of Toms River and signed by the late Henry A. Low, president, and Frank W. Sutton, Jr., cashier…New York City resident Howard A. Slagle crashed into the traffic light at the corner of Main and Water streets, beside the First National Bank, and was fined $14 plus costs and had the car he was driving, which belonged to his wife, seized until $350 in damages were paid to fix the traffic light and control box… Brick Township submitted a bill to the state recommending a jagged border along Normandy Beach, which Dover Township officials objected to, and the fight for a few blocks of beachfront taxes continued… six boys from Toms River Boy Scout Troop 101 attended

camporee at Camp Burton in Allaire park, including Melbourne Carriker, Nelson Yard, Jack Wainwright, Roland Mayer, Donald Waters and Kenneth Fees. While there they had to pitch their own tents, cook their own meals and generally care for themselves. A meeting following camporee on Tuesday, May 24th included a hike to the gravel pit in South Toms River, where games were played and contests staged, and Ocean County Agricultural Agent E.H. Waite addressed the troop over a campfire on the subject of nature observation, which he titled, “Stop, Look and Listen.”… Mr. and Mrs. John Hagaman of Perth Amboy visited town at the end of May, and it was noted that Mr. Hagaman used to own the feed and grain business south of the Central train station in South Toms River, which in 1932 was operated as the United Feed Company… township youth and Toms River High School graduate Max Hoberman continued to gather honors at Brown University in Rhode Island, by adding membership to the Cammarian Club to his position as editor of the Brown Daily Herald, member of the Debating Union, Sphinx Club and Pi Lamda Phi… township resident Capt. Anton Heinen spoke to the Lakewood Kiwanis Club on Tuesday, May 24th, about dirigibles and their possibilities for the future… the public library book committee announced plans to purchase and install 200 new volumes to shelves in summer 1932… Woods Market, the grocery store owned by Jack Woods in the Traco Theatre building on Washington Street, was renovated and updated top to bottom over a single weekend in late May. Mr. Woods was a native of Liverpool, England and came to Toms River as manager of the American Store here, later rising to the position of district superintendent before leaving and starting his own market. With an admired home on Walton Street, the

independent market owner enjoyed a great deal of success and accolades as the best grocer in town, and his civic efforts benefitted township schools, boy scouts, and baseball and football organizations, among others… Ray H. Stillman, a real estate developer out of Eatontown, announced the sale of several more lots at Shelter Cove on Barnegat Bay at the foot of Bay Avenue in the Cedar Grove portion of the township. Mr. Stillman owned 130 acres along the cove and also began dredging a second lagoon of a total four planned for the entire development… Edward M. Garnar, 66, of Locust Street, died Wednesday, May 25th, leaving a wife, daughter and son. Residing in Toms River for the previous 20 years, he made a business of painting automobiles before opening a pool hall in the early 1920s—being an expert cue shot—and earning the nickname “Pop” by the youth who frequented it… Toms River High School graduate and former Cedar Chest staffer William S. Liming, who was the grandson of William B. Singleton, a longtime postmaster in the township, was announced as new editor for his college newspaper, the Bucknellian, at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania… the repair truck of the Jersey Central Power and Light Company, which was stolen from in front of the Neptune police headquarters, was found a week later on a back street in this township… Charles W. Herflicker stepped down from his position as head of the special relief work in Dover Township at the end of May, stating that the need for special relief had passed and that the regular Overseer of the Poor could handle the amount of cases then still open… Pleasant Plains resident Clinton Clayton, along with his sons Albert and Marvin, traveled to Hopewell Township on Friday, May 20th to see famed aviator Charles Lindbergh’s home and the place


where the body of his kidnapped and murdered infant son was found eight days earlier nearby. The Lindberghs wound up donating the home to charity and moving away… two Civil War veterans, William Griffin, 88, of Ocean Gate and Richard Walton, 82 (but “officially” 86, as far as the military was concerned, as he lied about his age when at 14 he enlisted in the war as an 18-year-old) of this place, participated in the Memorial Day parade through the township. At the time of the war, neither were from this area, as Mr. Griffin hailed from Pennsylvania, and so was part of that regiment, and Mr. Walton grew up in Bass River/New Gretna, and so was part of the Burlington County regiment… plans were made by bankruptcy referee Richard W. Stout to sell the stock of the former Betty B. Shoppe, which operated in downtown Toms River before closing due to lack of revenue, in order to satisfy its creditors… the editor of the New Jersey Courier, which was published out of Toms River, joked that bathing suit manufacturers were apparently hit hard by the economic depression as the amount of material used to cover up bathers’ bodies was growing smaller and smaller, to where they were “scantier in size than at any times since we were boys and were allowed to go in swimmin’ anywhere on the south shore of the Toms River minus any clothes at all,” at a time before South Toms River, Beachwood, Pine Beach or Ocean Gate existed and the southern bank was largely undeveloped scrub pine woodlands… at the Dover Township committee meeting on Friday, May 27th, police chairman Dunham was authorized to purchase 24 two-hour parking signs and enforce the two-hour parking ordinance between 8 am and 7 pm at the demand of merchants downtown… demand for oysters increased through the summer and the rest of the year due to advances in modern refrigeration, where previously there existed a saying that oysters were only good in months that contained the letter “R”, or every month except May, June, July and August… Mr. and Mrs. Frank Buchanan lived in Ortley Beach while their two sons stayed in town with their grandparents, Capt. and Mrs. Alonzo Hyers, in order to attend school… an unusual display of the Northern Lights, or aurora borealis, was witnessed above the township and surrounding municipalities on Saturday and Monday, May 28th and 20th, around midnight, with a light back of the clouds in the north and at times pulsating lights running from the horizon to the zenith… the summer camping season kicked off Memorial Day weekend, with hundreds pitching tents on beach hills, nearer the sea, adjacent inland

streams, on the bay shore and even within wooded areas around the township… Pleasant Plains resident Stephen Bills sold five acres of land to Mr. Dray of Pennsylvania, who planned to operate a road stand and gas station… Courtney Reinhold’s new home on Whitty Road was nearly complete, marking the eighth new home built within a small radius in Pleasant Plains in two years… the cellar was dug for John Arneth’s new home on Drummond’s Log Road in the Pleasant Plains section of the township… 24 boys and 22 girls graduated as the 42nd class of the Toms River High School on Thursday, June 9th… in early June, the New Jersey Courier newspaper called attention and objected to a two-cent price increase for a gallon of oil, up from 1931’s price of $0.0468 to mid-1932’s $0.0672… on Tuesday, June 6th, Sheriff Chafey sold two “unusually important” properties: the Marion Inn, located in downtown Toms River, and Pelican, or Sunset, Island near Seaside Heights. The Marion Inn was sold back to its original owner, builder and namesake, the actor Dave Marion, for $125,500, or $500 above the valuation from 1927. Mr. Marion had sold it at the height of the boom years to Anthony M. Then. Pelican Island, which up until the late 1920s and early 1930s was an undeveloped low meadow in the Barnegat Bay, was purchased by the Sunset Island Improvement Company and filled in, expanded, bulkheaded and graveled with streets and paved with sidewalks besides having curbs, water, sewer, electricity and trees installed. Unfortunately, the stock market crash and ensuing economic depression was too great for the firm to deal with and the whole island was purchased at sheriff’s auction by George C. Zeller of Bordentown for $100 plus the $90,525 claims against the property, a result of the remaining balance of the original $120,000 mortgage plus interest… Ocean County Librarian Miss Margaret Doolittle reported to the Board of Freeholders that the demand for books increased with the worsening of the economic depression due to the “desire of people to get away from their own troubles, and also save the cost of movie entrance, of gasoline, and other methods of amusement that were so common for the ten years after the war.” Using lending numbers alone, 48,575 books were taken out in 1926, while 57,835 were borrowed by area residents five years later, in 1931… residents renewed their demand that peddlers pay a license to sell their wares in the township, noting everything from milk wagons, bread wagons, pie wagons, feed trucks, fruit trucks, vegetable trucks, and fish wagons selling goods along roadways and door to door throughout the township from as far north as Newark and as far

west as Mount Holly and Bordentown, all taking a bite out of the local establishments and trade… seven boys from the Toms River Forestry Club camped out at Double Trouble in Berkeley Township… Marion Garland, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Richard Garland of Dayton Avenue, broke her wrist Saturday, June 4th while riding a new amusement device at Seaside Heights… a son was born that same day to Mr. and Mrs. Byron Maynard at Paul Kimball Hospital, Lakewood, and named Maurice William. They had another son then three years old; Mr. Maynard was a newspaper writer in Toms River… Malcolm Flory moved from Beachwood to the Ridgeley McKelvey house in Pleasant Plains, where the White Oak school house formerly stood… Ray Browne of the A&P store on the corner of Main and Washington streets exchanged places with Charles L. Tilton, manager of the Water Street A&P store. Mr. Browne had been in his store since it first opened… Jacob Cooke McClenahan, 85, father of Leo W. McClenahan of Toms River, died in Philadelphia on Saturday, June 4th after having spent part of a long and active life in this township, where he was a member of the township committee, and a contractor and building operator. First arriving to Toms River in 1903, he bought what later became the veteran convalescent home property, formerly the Gowdy house, on Washington Street for his home, the site of which today stands the Toms River Elks B.P.O.E. 1875. Later he sold that farm and bought the Perkins property on the opposite side of Washington Street, which was struck by lightning and burned to the ground sometime around 1910. Mr. McClenahan then bought various properties around town, building or rebuilding houses on Highland Parkway, three houses on Walton Street, the Lillie house on Washington Street, the Hale house on Main Street and others. He also started the Fox building corner of Washington and Robbins streets, which he intended for a theatre. He also built the Glover laboratory at Water and Robbins streets. During his residence here Mrs. McClenahan died and one son, a boy half grown, drowned while swimming in the river. Originally from Edinborough, Scotland, where he was born in 1847, Mr. McClenahan was an early pioneer of modern cement construction in San Francisco, in the state of Ohio and other regions before arriving at Toms River. He left behind three sons—Timothy, of San Francisco, California; Leo W., of Toms River; Stanley, who recently had returned from business in Soviet Russia and was then in New York; and two daughters, Mrs. Stella Curry of Hebron, Ohio and Mrs. Louise Hayden of Philadelphia. His final resting place is in Ohio…

the Board of Freeholders opposed a plan backed by the state board of commerce and navigation for the Sun Oil Company to construct a fuel wharf off the Seaside bridge, for fear of pollution and an interruption of boat traffic to the draw… Toms River was expected to lose its state trooper substation, as would Tuckerton, due to the down economy and a substation between the two at Forked River was proposed… Max Leet, a former Toms River merchant who first went into business with a dry goods and clothing store in South Toms River before moving to the corner of Washington and Robbins streets, which by 1932 was Fox’s, was named manager of the Poultrymen’s Service Corporation, South Toms River…Robert F. Cummings of Ortley Beach and J. Milton Slim of Normandy Beach complained to the township committeemen of nude bathers of both sexes on township beaches in mid-June, adding that they needed police officers on hand at the barrier island beaches to curtail and halt the activity… title searcher August Oxner recalled being hired sometime earlier than summer 1932 to research the title of the Dunham property at the north end of Hyers Street, known to old-timers as the Munsell place. He discovered that John Munsell, Jr. bought the property in 1848 and that John Munsell, Jr. sold the property in 1916, or 68 years later, but the title company that would guarantee the clean title refused to believe his findings until Mr. Oxner inquired about Mr. Munsell with older residents and learned that he had purchased the property when he was 24 years old and later sold it to Anthony A. Dunham one year before his death in 1917, at the age of 93. The title company then accepted his findings… the New Jersey Courier newspaper decried the local dumps as being “unpleasant features of modern life [where] waste is cast,” and that “usually people manage to find some place that is near settled parts of the community, or else along a much traveled road. The dumps are unsightly, often rat breeders and mosquito breeders, and at times disease breeders.”…the township gas plant was found to be polluting the river when oily gum, a resident in gas manufacture, was being washed out to that body of water during heavy rains. Jersey Central Power and Light, the owners of the plant, promised it would be cleared up immediately… Miss Rhoda Birdsall, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Herschel Birdsall of Red Bank, graduated Wilson College on June 14th. Approximately 20 years earlier, her father had been in the insurance business in Toms River, prior to transferring north, and was one of the sons of Capt. and Mrs. Jacob H. Birdsall of Waretown. Capt. Birdsall was a freeholder from Ocean Township and manager of the Bay View Hotel, which he

built upon returning from the sea… Miss Margaret Widdemer, a well-known writer and the daughter of Rev. Howard Widdemer, who lived in Toms River in the 1890s, published a novel called “Prewar Lady.” Miss Widdemer earlier won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1919 for her collection, “The Road to Paradise,” sharing the prize with Carl Sandburg, who won for his collection, “Corn Huskers.” Miss Widdemer’s memoir recounted friendships with eminent authors as F. Scott Fitzgerald, T.S. Eliot, Thornton Wilder and others…the first, smaller diner car of the Bradley Diner on the Legion property site, adjacent Main Street, was scheduled to be moved to Seaside Heights, as it had not been used since the larger, newer diner was opened on the same property… the Toms River Boy Scouts had a practice hike on Tuesday evening, June 14th where they built a bridge across the gap in the old mill dam on the south branch of the Toms River, where the flood gate washed out years earlier… the Toms River Forestry Club planted approximately 250 seedlings in a forestry plantation at Double Trouble, Berkeley Township, and began construction on a log cabin for their headquarters… on Wednesday night, June 15th, Policeman Costa gathered up a group of boys who were playing about the corner of Main and Washington streets and took them to town hall before Recorder Leary’s court. Complaint was made in person and through the police that boys were annoying the merchants and passersby; Justice Leary took their names, gave each a talking to—saying he knew them all and were not bad boys, but were thoughtless and inconsiderate—and promised a $25 per person if they were every brought before him again… Harold Woolley, son of Mrs. Emily Woolley of Toms River, and Anita Caldwell, daughter of Mrs. Mary D. Caldwell of Beachwood, were married on Wednesday evening, June 15th, by Rev. I.E. Hicks at the Hicks home on Clifton Avenue. Mr. Woolley was an employee of the A.B. Newbury Company’s Toms River store… the Toms River High School Rifle Club was issued a charter by the National Rifle Association… C.W. Herflicker sold four lots in Winteringham Park to Toms River residents… township residents pulled pranks on visiting carloads of vacationers, lining up on Freehold Road and motioning for the cars to pull over, and then laughing at them when they do… raising pigs gained some popularity in the Pleasant Plains section of the township as a way to brace for the coming winter… the Leming Agency reported the sale of the V.D. Book property at Money Island to Gertrude V. Bradley… Mr. and Mrs. J. Ashley Brown and son Jack of Westfield spent the June




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TRHS North Graduation 2012

that the Papa kids were both “very dedicated,” and that “Shae works really hard and comes to her classes. That’s really the key—she has a great attitude, practices a lot and perseveres through everything we throw at her.”Before going to her first class, Ms. Papa thought that the sport would be “hard, but I saw the people that were doing it, and I thought it was pretty cool—I was nervous though.”Shortly after starting her training, she said that the challengers were becoming easier for her to accomplish, and that “it didn’t take much effort to do the things I had to do.” Further challenges were introduced, and with practice and work, they, too were surpassed. Before long, two years had passed and she was on her way to Las Vegas.“It was nerve-wracking,” the borough youth recalled, smiling. “Everyone just being there and then waiting in the backstage, watching people perform—it was just me being chosen out of a lot of people. It was amazing.”Mr. Herbster added that over 3,000 competitors from 45 countries competed in the Karate Junior Olympics and the Karate USA Open, which he attended with his students and their parents.“Both events were held the same weekend at Caesar’s Palace, and Shae did a great job,” he said.Ms. Papa’s gold medal was earned when she took the top spot in beginner kata in her age group, beating out a competitor from Utah. Kata is an exercise consisting of several of the specific movements of karate, used in a pattern for defending oneself against several attackers.

Ms. Papa then took the silver medal in beginner kumite, or sparring, in her age group, being bested by the Utah youth, who took the gold, but surpassing that of another competitor whose home country was listed as Ecuador.While in Las Vegas, Ms. Papa and her school also competed in the Karate USA Open, held by the same national organization as the Junior Olympics. In those tournaments, she took home one first place and two third place medals. The first place medal was earned in the Age 10-11 Female Beginner Kumite, and the two third place medals were earned in the Age 10-11 Female Beginner Kata and Age 10-11 Beginner/Novice Weapons, the latter of which included the use of the bow weapon.At a June governing body, the mayor and council honored Ms. Papa’s accomplishments, and Councilman Gerald W. “Jerry” LaCrosse pointed out the unplanned series events that led her to that day.“When you see how things fall into place, it’s a little domino effect,” he said. “Had you not gone to the mall, you wouldn’t have seen the demonstration; had you not seen the demonstration, you wouldn’t have [entered the contest]; and had you not won you may not have taken this up—it all fell into place and here you are today. Congratulations.”Ms. Papa continues to attend Rising Sun Karate Academy and compete in tournaments, and thinks that more area youth should try the sport because she thinks “they would enjoy it because it’s a lot of fun.”For more information on the Karate Junior Olympics and USA Open, please visit www.usankf.org.Soon-to-be graduates and their parents, family, friends, well-wishers, teachers and more packed into all

three high schools last month to see them off on the first leg of their future as adults. Erik Weber/Riverside Signal

Karate Kid(cont from front)


18th weekend here, and Mr. Brown brought Mr. Irving Crane of Westfield down for a sail in his yacht Nina, plus further introduced him to “the Saturday night gang” at Grover’s store. On Saturday afternoon they sailed to Bay Head and towed down a sneakbox from Mort Johnson’s to Toms River. Mr. and Mrs. Brown planned to open the Capt. Amos Birdsall homestead on Washington Street for a summer home, and Mr. Brown expected to commute via Point Pleasant to and from Newark, where he was president of the United States Trust Company… up Lakewood Road, the retail prices of eggs on the signboards in front of chicken farms ran 25 to 30 cents per dozen, while they were priced a bit less on the less traveled side roads… Sam Brinley built a fruit and vegetable market in front of the annex of the Ocean House, located on Water and Main streets, moving his business from Hyers and Washington streets… a severe electrical storm that hit the township and surrounding area on Wednesday, June 22nd, submerged the intersection at Main and Washington streets… Frank W. “Billy” Sutton III, a township schoolboy who lived on Main Street, shot himself through the left foot on Saturday afternoon, June 18th, while playing with a .22 caliber rifle at the Warner poultry farm in South Toms River. Working at the First National Bank of Toms River, where his father was manager, Billy was let out on the half day Saturday schedule and was shooting at a mark with his rifle along with some other boys when it jammed. Upon trying to eject it by holding the muzzle of his gun down, his hand slipped, the cartridge went off and the ball went through the flesh of his foot but hit no bones… during a special meeting of the Board of Freeholders, the resolution objecting to the Sun Oil Company pier proposal was rescinded as new information had come to light regarding modifications in the plan that the county and oil company officials would make the pier safer and less likely to run the danger of polluting the Barnegat Bay and Toms River. The application was then before the U.S. Army Engineers for review… Isaac Weinman, a graduate of the University of Wisconsin and son of Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Weinman of Lakewood Road, here, who was a leader of the local poultry industry in the Jewish community in the northern part of the township, moved to Russia to teach his modern “Toms River” methods of poultry raising to collective Jewish colonies in the Crimea for the Agrojoint company, making him one of several Jewish residents who moved from Toms River to Soviet Russia either on contract with the government, to establish a

new farming industry or to seek out a new life in the Soviet country. All those who moved were of Russian descent and able to speak Russian prior to leaving… instead of his traditional annual fishing trip, Traco Theatre Manager Isadore M. Hirshblond invited the heads of the film exchanges from Philadelphia and New York for a day of golfing at the Cranmoor Country Club on Tuesday, June 21st, where they then ate dinner at the clubhouse and listened to the Sharkey-Schmelling fight on the radio before heading home… junior yacht club races started up for another season, using 15-foot sneakboxes, and it was noted that the races were originally started in Bay Head and dubbed “candy races” due to the boxes of candy that were offered as prizes. This trend later expanded to include small cups and boat accessories—including flashlights, sheath knifes, riding lights, boat hooks, flags, brass chocks and more—as prizes by some clubs that took up the practice from Mantoloking and down to Seaside Park, Island Heights, Lavallette and Ocean Gate and more… on Sunday morning, June 19th, J.S. Stevens of Dayton Avenue parked his car on Main Street, but the brake didn’t hold and the car rolled down the street, across the sidewalk and into the A&P storefront, splintering the sill but not breaking the glass… area relief directors reported that “modern” housewives, in need of food for their families due to the economic depression, were refusing deliveries of flour and asking for loaves of bread as they did not know how to bake their own bread… Franklin H. Berry and Kenneth V. Bennett, two Toms River lawyers associated with Howard Ewart’s law offices here, passed the examination and became counselors-at-law… Hiram H. Earnest of Mount Holly planned to move to the David Imlay house at 707 Main Street and open the Earnest Funeral Home. A third-generation family member in the funeral business, Mr. Earnest had sold his business in Mount Holly and Pemberton and retired to Florida in the winters, but later decided he was too young to give up work… faced with being overrun by outsiders, Seaside Park officials chose to begin charging for access to its beachfronts, passing an ordinance that would make access cost $0.25 per day per adult, free for children 15 and under, and offer season tickets for $2… Lt. and Mrs. Roland G. Mayer held a farewell gathering for Lt. Rosendahl at their home in Cranmoor Manor that was attended by dozens of air base officers and their wives. While it was held, the U.S.S. Los Angeles flew overhead and saluted its former commander with her flag. The previous week, Lt. Rosendahl was presented with an inscribed sword by the crew of the Akron… the Captain Joshua Huddy chapter of the Daughters

of the American Revolution and the Borough of Beachwood announced plans to celebrate the bicentennial of the birth of George Washington in the first week of July with a dedication ceremony of the Siberian Elms planted along borough roadways by Mrs. Marie Fay Moore and other volunteers and a two-day exhibit of colonial artifacts at the Brigantine hostel that was to include family heirlooms from area residents and include a garden party on its grounds that would “be lighted with colored electric bulbs, and pretty girls in Colonial gowns will serve the guests” and include live music…a double-sided bronze marker on a steel pole marker was placed by the State Commission on Historic Sites on the east end of the bridge spanning Toms River and South Toms River, between Huddy Park and Mathis Plaza, containing a description of the Revolutionary War Block House fight in March 1782. The commission was originally supposed to erect a more elaborate stone monument to Capt. Huddy and the Blockhouse defenders inside Huddy Park, but due to the economic depression and slashed budgets, the scope of the marker was severely scaled back… celebrated small boat builder J.H. Perrine of Barnegat, famous for his 15-foot Barnegat sneakbox that was designed for hunters but also sailed in races, stopped in and greeted the regular customers hanging out at Grover’s store on Saturday night, June 25th… Hooper Avenue was oiled to keep the dust down from Washington Street to Osbornville corner… township automobile salesmen reported that sales were just 50 to 60 percent of what they were in 1931… staffers at the New Jersey Courier newspaper noticed “one of J.H. Perrine’s new Barnegat sneakboxes, going north on his truck, and in the cockpit two small boys, with smiling faces and alert eyes” on Main Street, where their offices were located… Mr. and Mrs. Frank Johnson, who lived on Robbins Parkway for several years, moved into their sons’ home in Lakewood. Mr. Johnson was employed for a number of years by the Irons Bros., who ran the livery stable, and later became the night watchman at the A.B. Newbury Company… two booths were set up by merchants selling fireworks on Main Street for the July 4th holiday… a number of township merchants installed radios in their businesses for themselves and the public to hear the broadcast of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago from June 27th to July 2nd that would decide the candidate who would challenge Herbert Hoover that November. The winner? New York State Governor Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who promised the American people a “new deal” if he won the election… officials at the Lakehurst Naval Air Station announced to the local public that the U.S.S. Los Angeles

airship had made her last flight and that its gas bags would be deflated and the ship placed in storage… John C. Trinkle of Newark announced plans to occupy the I.M. Myers store, next to the new Harjes Woolworth building on Main Street, and operate a bakery beginning in July. Mr. Trinkle noted that his father was a baker in Toms River 40 to 50 years earlier… the Toms River Yacht Club reported that they would operate through the 1932 season without a steward due to the economic depression… Clifford Ackerman Angerer of Ocean Gate and Miss Helena May Hurley of this township were married at 9 am on Monday, June 27th, at Christ Church by Rev. R.S. Nichols, with only the immediate families present. The bride was attired in powder blue chiffon with light beige shoes and stocking and wore a shoulder bouquet of tea roses. Their honeymoon was planned to take them through the New England states. Mr. Angerer was a graduate of St. Stephens College and Columbia University, in addition to graduate work at the University of Pennsylvania. Mrs. Angerer was a Montclair Normal School graduate and had for some time been a teacher in the Toms River grammar school. Both were Toms River High School graduates…the 60-foot Norwegian bank Roland Amundsen, a Viking ship built as a replica of the sailing craft Leif Ericsson traveled in when he discovered North America 500 years earlier than Christopher Columbus, left New York for Norway after sailing 23,000 miles over the routes of early American explorers under the direction of Capt. Gerhard Folgaro. The previous fall, the ship arrived at Toms River when its crew visited local boat builder Charles Thompson, a native of Norway. At that time she was visited by many area schoolchildren who were impressed by the ship with its row of armor shields and a large, square red and white striped sail… the New Jersey Courier newspaper published an op-ed column on July 1st arguing for the need of a state park on the ocean 21 years before the state purchased the lands that became Island Beach State Park. It has been reprinted here: “State Seashore Park – The state seashore parks are a growing need. This year Seaside Park, visited each summer by thousands of auto parties week after week is compelled in self protection to close its bathing beach to the picnickers who come by auto, bring their lunches, wear their bathing suits and enjoy all the costly privileges of a summer resort without paying a cent. Recognizing the fact that local taxpayers must pay for the beach, policing, lifeguards and all that goes to make up a seashore bathing resort, there is another deciding factor in the situation—the fact that a certain percentage of such visitors are

invariably inconsiderate of everyone else, make themselves obnoxious, and if allowed to have their way, would soon drive from the resorts the owners and renters of cottages and the hotel guests who make the bathing beach and its privileges possible. Thus every year the places open to the picnic visitor from the city, or from the farm, or the interior village, grow fewer, while the number of these auto parties seeking salt water beaches increases. There is but one answer—the state must supply state parks! The state has recognized the need of state parks, but so far, it has placed all that it owns in the mountains and woodlands where the demand for them is not one-thousandth part of the demand for salt water beach parks. Last week end, the first warm Sunday of the summer, Long Beach was spied out by thousands of autos to which it had hitherto been a stranger. A few miles more or less means little to the auto driver. Knowing that he cannot make any of the northern beaches, and hearing there are no restrictions on Long Beach, last Sunday he drove down to see—and he drove in scores, in hundreds, in thousands. Does this mean that Long Beach will be the resort this summer of those kept out of the beaches between Sandy Hook reservation and Seaside Park? It looks so. The state should wait no longer. The argument this year was that in these hard times the state could not afford a seashore park. It is in hard times when the pressure and the worry of affairs are so great, and when money for vacations is so scarce, that the state park is most needed.”… the Sunset Island Land Company, successor of the Sunset Island Improvement Company which filled in and made improvements to Sunset, or Pelican, Island in the Barnegat Bay between Toms River and Seaside Heights before going out of business due to the depression and then seeing the entire island sold at auction, advertised a “Cleanup Sale in Seashore Homesites” there of “150 Homesites to be sold at Prices that are very low for purpose of liquidation. Choice of the following Sites to Early Purchasers” included 46 waterfront sites at $15 per front foot, 18 state highway sites at $8 per front foot, and 16 Roanoke Avenue sites, 35 Ceylon Avenue sites, 9 St. Lawrence Avenue sites and 27 Trinidad Avenue sites at $12 per front foot. The advertisement added that they had available “Large Level Building Sites, Private Bathing Beach, Growing Trees, Cement Sidewalks and Curbs, Water Mains and Fire Plugs, Gravel Streets.”… Carl Grimm and son of Indian Hill made good progress on the house they were building for Mr. Grimm’s son-in-law, John Arneth, on Drummonds Log Road in the Pleasant Plains section…



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joint base mdlLakehurst Naval Air Station

1932

305th Air Mobility Wing Aircrew Celebrate ‘Become a Pilot Dayby Airman 1st Class Alexander W. Riedel / Air Force News


Presented here are events, activities and reports of Lakehurst Naval Air Station during late spring and early summer 1932, as compiled from various resources within the Wheeler Room at the Toms River Branch of the Ocean County Library by Riverside Signal staff:

In late spring, Mr. and Mrs. Oscar Loeser, the former a naval officer at Lakehurst Naval Air Station, moved from a residence on Hooper Avenue, Toms River, to their new home on Forepeak Avenue on Beachwood, where it was noted they joined a large faction of other naval officers in that borough… Lieut. Byron Hall Hanlon, USN, rented the E.G. Mixner home in Cranmoor Manor, Toms River, after being transferred to Lakehurst Naval Air Station from Washington D.C. Lt. Hanlon, son of an Army veteran of the Spanish-American war, was later captain and commander of Underwater Demolition Teams, Amphibious Forces, Pacific Fleet during World War II starting in late 1944 and assigned the task of making reconnaissance missions on the eastern beaches of Iwo Jima in early 1945. Hanlon retired with the rank of admiral and was ultimately awarded the Navy Cross, Army Distinguished Service Medal, Navy Distinguished Service Medal, and Legion of Merit both for actions during that war and the Korean War in the early 1950s. The U.S. Navy’s Underwater Demolition Teams were a precursor to the Navy SEALs… G. Rix Yard, head of the Toms River Kiwanis, rented his Cranmoor Manor home to Lieut. Frederick M. Trapnell, considered one of the best and most experienced USN test pilots, who was sent to Lakehurst from Washington,

JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. -- Aircrew from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst celebrated the annual “Become a Pilot” family day at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum June 16th, in Chantilly, Virginia.More than 45 aircraft were on display as the museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, including two A-10 Thunderbolt IIs and a C-17 Globemaster III, which had its cargo bay and flight deck opened to the public.In the C-17 and other aircraft, kids could climb behind the controls, ask questions to experienced pilots and aircrew and learn about what Capt. Anthony Bombaci, of the 305th Air Mobility Wing at JB MDL calls ‘”the best job in the Air Force.”“I really love flying this aircraft,” said Capt. Bombaci of the C-17. “So I like to share some of the enjoyment I find in my job and hopefully motivate some of the kids (to pursue a career in aviation).”After guiding a young visitor to the pilot’s seat, he smiled. “I wanted this job since I was about his age so anytime I get the opportunity to show somebody else what I do, that’s awesome.”Nothing in the C-17, from the cargo bay to the flight deck, was off-limits, but while Capt. Bombaci’s head was on a constant swivel to prevent injuries to visitors and damage to his aircraft, he said he was not worried—his crew had their eyes on everything.“We get a lot of really good questions,” he continued, adding that he’s a frequent visitor to the museum himself and could spend hours perusing the different aircraft. “It’s a great chance to show people what we do [and] I’m like a little kid here. Even though I

get to do this for a living, I am all-smiles myself, checking it all out.”His feelings were shared by his crew.“Events such as this are one of my favorite things to do,” said 1st Lt. David Bishop, the C-17’s co-pilot. “It’s nice to see people get excited about what I do; it’s one of the easiest things to talk about.”The lieutenant hoped that some of his enthusiasm for his profession may inspire future generations.For Kiron Khashnobisch, 12, the event did just that.“I liked the glass display,” he said, speaking of the C-17’s heads-up display. “It has different colors and information, and it was really cool.”While Kiron was new to aviation, others his age were already veterans of the flightline. Cadets of the Virginia Civil Air Patrol, clad in battle dress uniforms, assisted with flight-line security for the parked aircraft.“Today’s events provide the cadets a good experience of working with aircraft,” said CAP 2nd Lt. Iain Ronis, of the Leesburg Composite Squadron in Leesburg, Virginia. “What they get to experience at events like this really exposes them to a wide range of things that other kids typically may only read about -- here they get to go out to see, do, touch and feel aviation.”While the event hosted a wide variety of aircraft, including the president’s VH-3D Sea King helicopter, better known by its call sign “Marine One,” the C-17 was by far the biggest aircraft outside the museum’s hangar.“The C-17 is hands-down the winner,” said Margy Natalie, the museum’s docent program manager and event organizer. “Kids and parents love seeing

and experiencing the aircraft. It’s big and it’s cool. The CAP cadets just stopped in awe when they saw it.”For her, Become a Pilot Day is one of the best ways to get children interested in aviation and technology.“A lot of people simply don’t know what it takes to become a pilot,” she said. “With tighter security at airports, they also don’t have the opportunity to get up-close and personal with

the aircraft and personnel, so we try to highlight and offer all types of aviation whether it’s military or civilian -- we have everything.”Planning the event that hosts an expected crowd of more than 15,000 visitors, is a work of passion for the organizer, who is a pilot herself. “We’re the National Air and Space museum, so we like airplanes -- I’m already thinking about next year,” she said.The museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center is located in Chantilly, Va., near Washington Dulles International Airport. The museum is open daily from 10 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. (closed Dec. 25). Admission is free, but there is a $15 fee for parking at the Udvar-Hazy Center.

First Lt. David Bishop, a pilot with the 305th Air Mobility Wing, answers questions about the controls of a C-17 Globemaster to Nicholas Kendall, 10, at “Become a Pilot Day” near Chantilly, Va., June 16th. Become a Pilot Day is an annual event at the National Air and Space Museum, intended to introduce children to careers in aviation. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Alexander W. Riedel)


Air Base

JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. -- Marine Aircraft Group (MAG) 49 Commanding Officer Col. Christopher J. Papaj relinquished command to Col. Robert T. Tobin III June 16th, here.Col. Papaj began his tenure as MAG 49’s commander in July 2010 and oversaw the group’s historical move to Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in 2011, effectively integrating the first Marines to join the joint-base family.Col. Tobin took the reins of this MAG headquarters which “takes great pride in supporting our squadrons that stretch from the Gulf Coast, across the Eastern Seaboard and to the Hudson River,” according to the group’s unit page on the official Marine website, www.marines.mil/uni t/marforres/4thMAW/MAG49/Pages/default.aspx.The change of command ceremony took place on the tarmac in front of the Marines’ aircraft hangar against a backdrop of several aircraft and ground-support vehicles. The Marine Forces Reserve Band New Orleans provided entertainment and music as they paraded in front of guests of honor and attendees.Commanding general of 4th Marine Aircraft Wing, Maj. Gen. Rex C. McMillian, officiated the change of command and presented the Legion of Merit to the outgoing commander. He also presented a certificate to Col. Papaj’s wife, Diane, for her generous support of and participation in various morale and welfare programs.

First JB MDL Marine Commander Bids Farewell by Master Sgt. Denise Johnson / Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst Public Affairs

Maj. Gen. McMillian thanked the JB MDL senior leaders for attending the event and greeted attendees before expressing his gratitude for Col. Papaj and his wife, closing his comments by welcoming Col. Tobin and his family and expressing confidence in the incoming commander’s abilities to accomplish the mission.He then handed the microphone to Col. Papaj, who took center stage for his final commander’s address. The outgoing commander acknowledged the support he’s received from commanders and mentors - such as Maj. Gen. McMillian - and from the executive officers and Marines on his staff. He attributed this support and guidance as the key to his success.“I want to thank you for giving me enough rope to hang myself,” Col. Papaj said with a grin. “I appreciate the mentorship and support and the opportunity to be a part of such an outstanding organization.”The MAG 49’s eventful recent history, from moving to the joint base; to overseeing the construction of a technologically-advanced “green” headquarters building and hangar; and the subsequent move into that new building was all conducted under Col. Papaj’s leadership. The outgoing commanding officer said he tried to ensure he held true to his philosophy, “If you’ve done your job right, you’ll train those behind you to carry on the right way.”Before wrapping up his speech,

he thanked his wife for taking care of the family when he couldn’t be there; and he told his daughter, Julie, “No matter where I was, you were always in my heart and on my mind.”The colonel’s final words were for Tobin.“I couldn’t be happier; I couldn’t be turning this command over to more capable hands,” he said, looking at Col. Tobin and adding a bit of advice: “One: enjoy it; it goes by quick! Two: don’t blink.”Col. Tobin, the last speaker, stepped forward and faced the crowd as the newly-appointed commanding officer of MAG 49, addressing the challenges that may lay ahead when leading the diverse teams which make up the active, reserve and civilian workforce in the aircraft group.“We have a common thread,” he said. “We are Marines.”Col. Tobin, a naval aviator, was commissioned in 1988 as a second lieutenant. Since then he has earned his wings supporting myriad operations in varied locations such as Operation RESTORE HOPE in both Mogadishu, Somalia in 1992 and Rwanda in 1994. He has also been assigned to a varied list of organizations in his 24-year career, including Marine expeditionary units; Marine heavy and medium helicopter squadrons; and an aviation weapons and tactics squadron.The colonel deployed with HMH-462 from January through July 2002. The squadron conducted unprecedented operations in Tinian, Singapore,


Commanding General of 4th Marine Aircraft Wing, Maj. Gen. Rex C. McMillian, pins the Legion of Merit on Col. Christopher J. Papaj during a change of command ceremony here June 16. Papaj, who hails from Glendale, Calif., relinquished command of Marine Aircraft Group 49 to Col. Robert T. Tobin III. Tobin hails from Lake Havasu City, Ariz. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Denise Johnson/

JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. -- Naval Support Activity Lakehurst Commander and Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst Deputy Commander Navy Capt. Andrew Butterfield relinquished command to Navy Capt. William Bulis June 21st, here.The change of command ceremony took place inside the Westfield Hangar, the home of the N.J. Army National Guard’s 1/150th Helicopter Assault Battalion. Participants and attendees were flanked by UH-60 Blackhawk Helicopters, which served as a fitting tribute to the outgoing commander who spent much of his naval career flying the U.S. Navy’s version of the aircraft.To highlight Butterfield’s career and dedication to those he served with, Col. John Wood, JB MDL commander, told a story about Butterfield as a young lieutenant junior grade helicopter pilot stationed on the USS John F. Kennedy in 1988, when he was called to respond to a fire aboard the submarine USS Bonefish.“There were 92 lives at stake that day,” said Col. Wood. “His crew goes out and, as they were searching for survivors to save their lives 150 miles off the coast, he sees them first.”Capt. Butterfield’s aircraft was one of six helicopters involved in the three-hour rescue. “He saved 19 lives that day,” the colonel continued. “He had the opportunity to save a life that day and he’s done everything he can to train and make sure Sailors are ready to do the same.”Col. Wood commended the captain for his dedication to service members during his career as well as his tenure at JB MDL and welcomed Capt. Bulis to the command.“If you look back at the beginning and where he came from, it’s an honor to stand on this stage with (Navy) Captain Butterfield and it will be an honor to serve with (Navy) Captain Bulis,” he said.Capt. Butterfield, who is retiring from active duty after 27 years of service, said he stayed in the Navy much longer than he initially intended.“I stayed because of the people and the caliber of people who I worked with,” he stated. “We’ve worked together, lived together, breathed together we’ve enjoyed some laughs together - it’s a special bond.”As one of his final acts as a commissioned officer, the captain presided over the re-enlistment of Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael Rodriguez.Capt. Butterfield served as the first commander of NSA Lakehurst since the stand-up of the joint base in October 2009. He was the 50th naval commander of the area once known as Navy Lakehurst. In this roll, the captain served first as deputy commander for the 87th Mission Support Group, and more recently as deputy commander of JB MDL.Capt. Bulis thanked the Sailors and civilians of NSA Lakehurst for welcoming him and his family to the joint base.“You guys have spent three years knocking the rough edges of this joint-basing process into a fine machine,” he said. “It is my honor to serve you as [commanding officer] as we go through this and again make it an even better machine.”A native of Long Island, Capt. Bulis was commissioned in May 1990 upon graduation from the U.S. Naval Academy with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering. He was designated a Naval Aviator in September 1993.Prior to his assignment here, Capt. Bulis served aboard the USS. Harry S. Truman as “Air Boss.” In that role, he completed a successful combat deployment supporting Operations ENDURING FREEDOM and NEW DAWN, as well as overseeing the Truman’s 15-month overhaul in Norfolk Naval Ship Yard in Virginia.

First JB MDL Navy DeputyRetires, New Deputy Welcomedby Bill Addison / Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst PublicAffairs

Navy Capt. William A. Bulis reads his orders and assumes command of Naval Support Activity Lakehurst from Capt. Andrew A. Butterfield during the NSA Lakehurst change of command ceremony June 21 at the Westfield Hangar. Bulis also assumed the Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst deputy position. (U.S. Air Force photo by Wayne Russell/Released)


JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. - Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst opened its doors to the public for a two-day open house and air show here May 12th and 13th, and approximately 200,000 people walked in.Crowded onto the base’s airfield to witness aerial stunts and ground displays, patrons gaped in awe at demonstrations by the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, F-16 Fighting Falcons, the Navy F/A-18 Super Hornets, the U.S. Army Golden Knight parachute team and the Marine air ground task force.“I came here expecting a great show, but I was definitely impressed,” said Olivia Eckenridge, a Philadelphia native. “This was my first air show and I hope it won’t be my last.”The open house and air show gave the U.S. military a chance to strut its stuff by giving the general populace a small taste of its power-projection capabilities.“Much like our joint base, this air show featured all five services’ important contributions to our country’s current missions,” said Col. John Wood, 87th Air Base Wing commander. “We were more than happy to host this event.”Attendees put hand to heart at the start of the show as a Golden Knight parachutist floated to the ground with the American flag streaming behind him to the tune of the national anthem.“My favorite part was the Golden Knight demonstration,” said Patrick Brown, a junior ROTC member who traveled from Coatesville, Pennsylvania, for the first open house since the merger of McGuire Air Force Base, Fort Dix and Naval Air Engineering Station Lakehurst in October 2009. “I’ve never seen anything like that before.”“I’m thrilled the Navy could be highlighted during this weekend’s performances,” said Navy Capt. Andrew Butterfield, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst deputy commander. “I’m proud of my sailors for showing the attendees what the navy is all about.”Members of the Air Force delayed enlistment program took their oath of enlistment in front of the entire air show audience before the Thunderbirds took flight during Saturday’s line up. The young men and women - who will soon leave for basic military training - will start their military careers in this unique way.“I feel very fortunate to be given this opportunity,” said Michael Curran, who will leave for basic military training on June 19th. “This awesome air show has been made even more awesome by this experience and I can’t wait to serve my country.”Mr. Curran’s mother, Colleen, was also more than enthusiastic about the events of the day.“I am so proud of my son for his decision to join the Air Force,” she said. “We’ve had a great time here. I love air shows because they give civilians like me a chance to understand why the military is so important.”The multitude of successes did not come without the combined efforts of the joint base community as hundreds of volunteers teamed up to make this year’s event a fruitful endeavor.“This was a large undertaking, requiring a huge amount of coordination and planning with both internal and civilian elements,” said Col. Wood. “We definitely learned a few things during the process and we hope the next open house and air show we put on will even more of a resounding success.”The myriad static displays and aerial displays reflected the now-joint base missions, representing each of the Department of Defense’s branches of service as well as numerous civilian aircraft.The show included displays such as the U.S. Coast Guard strike

Open House, Air Show Sparks Inspiration in Local Community by Airman 1st Class Ryan Throneberry

team, the historic DAV B-25B, FedEx Airbus, U.S. Marine CH-53D Sea Stallion helicopter, U.S. Army UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter, U.S. Navy C-9 and many more.“We were so glad to come out to see all the different displays,” said Sandra Kraft, wife of retired Chief Master Sgt. Andrew Kraft. “My husband spent 30 years in the Air Force and this air show was a great way for us to maintain a connection to the service.”Vendors touted their wares to the multitudes, selling an array of food items and memorabilia amid a fair-like atmosphere designed to entertain both children and adults alike. Joint-base personnel joined in the festivities alongside visitors, turning their heads and pointing skyward in unison as each new demonstration flew past.“I have to admit, the Thunderbirds did scare me because they are so loud and fast,” said Daria Sbraccia, 12, from Roebling, Burlington County. “This was my first air show and I can’t believe all the cool things I’ve seen here.”“I hope it’s not another four years until the next air show at JB MDL,” said Dave Barrett, CBS News radio correspondent from New York City. “This was terrific. I heard stories all day from service members about why they joined. I think it’s important for people to hear those stories.”

See Photos page 50 & 51

Patrick Brown, a Coatsville, Pennsylvania native, turns his gaze upward to witness some of the aerial acrobatics at the Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst Open House and Air Show on May 12th. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Parker Gyokeres)

NAVAL AIR SYSTEMS COMMAND, PATUXENT RIVER, Md. – The Navy team that makes it possible for deployed aircraft to launch and land in any terrain was honored with a Naval Air Systems Command award June 20th.The Aircraft Launch and Recovery Equipment’s Expeditionary Airfields, or EAF team, located at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, received the NAVAIR Commander’s award for small business advocacy during a ceremony held at NAVAIR headquarters in Patuxent River, Md. “The many small businesses that support EAF are valuable members of the EAF team that has accomplished so much during this period,” said Bruce Chiodi, EAF team lead. “They have provided the quality products that have allowed the EAF Marines to meet their missions time and time again, as was demonstrated both in Iraq and Afghanistan.” EAF is a shore-based, aviation support system that allows rapid deployment and recovery of aircraft within range of ground forces, usually overseas. According to the award nomination submission, the EAF team recognized and fostered the importance of supporting small business programs. They utilized all available resources to successfully locate new and viable small business opportunities. The team, along with ALRE contracting and program management, worked closely with the NAVAIR office of small business programs to initiate long-term contracting vehicles and flexible strategies to meet the immediate requirements of the Marine Corps. “The EAF team is a group of enthusiastic individuals who have actively embraced the use of small business over the past several years,” said Jen Vaccaro, contracts team lead. “By contracting directly with the small businesses, contract lead-time has been reduced enabling faster product delivery to the warfighter.”EAF members examined market research and located small business resources that could deliver high quality products and services in a timely fashion to support their ultimate mission – to equip the Marine Corps and support naval aviation with the flexibility and capability to rapidly deploy and create survivable, self-sustaining airfields in austere environments.Although EAF can be as basic as a grass landing zone to support helicopter operations, the installation of one or more subsystems adds versatility and/or durability to the site. EAF equipment provides not only mobile matting, but also arresting gear and lighting for runway guidance.“I have been with the EAF team for less than a year, but I find myself working with a group of professionals that work tirelessly to provide the Marines with the support they deserve,” said Mr. Chiodi.

JB MDL Navy Team Earns Small Business Advocacy Awardby Julie Copsey, Aircraft Launch and Recovery Equipment(PMA-251) communications

Aircraft Launch and Recovery Equipment program’s Expeditionary Airfields Deputy Team Lead, Nancy Delaney, and EAF Team Lead, Bruce Chiodi, join Vice Adm. David Architzel, NAVAIR commander to accept the 2012 NAVAIR Commander’s award for Small Business Advocacy June 20 during a ceremony held at Patuxent River, Md. (Photo by Kristine Wilcox, Aircraft Launch and Recovery Equipment program communications)

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D.C. to become a member of the airplane group for the first airplane carrying dirigible, the U.S.S. Akron. When that vessel crashed into the sea off Barnegat Light in April 1933, he was reassigned as commander of the airplane group for its sister ship, the U.S.S. Macon, until June 1934. Retiring with the rank of admiral in 1952, Trapnell marked many historic and g r o u n d b r e a k i n g accomplishments on his career record, including a test pilot for aircraft to be flown in World War II and later coordinator for the postwar jet propulsion testing center at Pawtuxet River, Maryland and integral in the first successful deployment of jet aircraft aboard an aircraft carrier in 1950. Readers interested in learning more about Adm. Trapnell are urged to visit the extensive, detailed Davis-Monthan Aviation Field Register website at www.d m a i r f i e l d . c o m / p e o p l e /trapnell_fm/ … reports arrived that the Graf Zeppelin had completed its fourth round trip flight between Friedrichshafen, Germany and Brazil, taking less time in flight than a steamship would take at sea… two U.S. sailors, part of the ground crew attempting to land the U.S.S. Akron airship in San Diego following a flight from Lakehurst Naval Air Station under command of Commander Charles E. Rosendahl, died when they were holding onto the mooring rope and a gust of wind swept the great vessel up, causing the two men, Robert Edfall and Nigel Henton, to drop a fatal 200 feet. A third member of the ground crew, Bud Cowart, hung onto the cable for nearly two hours before being pulled up into the ship and saved… reports from California stated the Akron would not enter maneuvers with the fleet but instead would follow a schedule that included a likely nonstop flight to the Pacific northwest… the Navy Department announced that the eight-year-old U.S.S. Los Angeles would be decommissioned and stored at the air station due to a defunding of its operations… the Associated Press newswire ran a store stating that the Akron returned to California skies on Wednesday, May 25th following a two-day cruise to the Pacific Northwest, where Canadians interpreted its appearance along the border over the Strait of Juan de Fuca as a salute of good will, despite that the airship’s inability to enter foreign airspace without a permit… the Cathedral of the Air was announced for construction “at once,” with reports that $50,000 raised in 1930 should sufficiently pay for the entire project, according to Paul Phillipe Cret, architect. A resident of Philadelphia, he was a native of France and veteran soldier for that country in the Great War, after which Mr. Cret

designed several memorial churches and other monuments there, receiving a great deal of attention and praise. It was reported that the church would be “a memorial to all the heroes of the air, and a special tablet will be inscribed for those who went down with Shenandoah on that last trip in Ohio.” Bids for the project were opened on Wednesday, May 25th and the contract was to be awarded on June 6th, with approval of the Navy Department using plans adopted by the American Legion committee, who fundraised for and is erecting the house of worship… the sister ship of the Akron, the U.S.S. Macon, was expected to be completed and ready for flight by the dawn of the new year 1933, and as a result Congress reportedly made their decision to ground and decommission the U.S.S. Los Angeles, or L.A., as local residents called it, and possibly sell it. One offer was received by an unnamed motion picture studio specializing in serial films, but to date no actual buyers showed up for the vessel. Commissioned in 1924, the airship had flown more than 120,000 air miles by mid-1932 in its 7 ½ years of service… it was announced that no civilian employees of the naval air station would lose their jobs following the decommissioning of the Los Angeles, as more were expected to be needed with the operations of the forthcoming Macon airship… first class seaman Robert Towne was in critical condition suffering from severe injuries on Saturday, May 28th in the Philadelphia Naval Hospital after falling 60 feet from the top of the hangar to the concrete floor. He had been working on the Navy blimp ZMC-2, the only successfully operated metal skinned airship ever built, at the time of the fall… reports arrived that the Akron was to do scouting work with naval forces off the California coast the first week of June before heading east… on June 3rd, Congress was asked to bestow the Distinguished Flying Cross upon Lt. Cmdr. Charles E. Rosendahl by Representative Sutphin, of Matawan, “for extraordinary achievement in aerial flights and significant contributions to the development of aviation.”… the naval air station laid off 36 men, laborers and mechanics on Saturday, June 4th as the special appropriation made by Congress to fund their employment ran out and was not renewed… plans were announced to lay the cornerstone of the Cathedral of the Air on Independence Day, with contracts expected to be signed that would have E.E. Hollenbock and Company of Trenton to perform the construction work at their lowest bid arriving at under $50,000… the U.S.S. Los Angeles flew over Elizabeth on Wednesday, June 8th, where a commemoration of the battle of Elizabethtown was held… the Akron returned here on

Wednesday evening, June 15th, and was docked at 8 pm, after having been away on a cruise to the Pacific coast… the June 17th edition of the New Jersey Courier newspaper reported in a column the various aspects of the U.S.S. Akron, reprinted here in its entirety: “The following information concerning our Akron (we who live so close are wont to call it “our” Akron) ought to be entirely correct as it came originally from the Navy Recruiting Information Bulletin. There are so many new facts concerning the Akron that are published from time to time that we begin to think that if we lived any nearer to it we would know just nothing about it. The Akron (more familiarly known as the “Acorn”) has an elaborate telephone system consisting of 17 phones, a switchboard and three miles of wire. In an emergency all 17 phones can be rung at once so the captain can bawl out 17 people all at once, a great saving in time. It might also serve to wake up a lot of people, sort of a wholesale alarm clock affair. The switchboard is only 42 inches wide, 35 inches high and 12 inches deep, yet it controls the generators, electric motors, storage battery charger, and circuits to the generator room, engine room, fire control, interior lights, running lights, gangway lights, electric fans, phone and galley equipment. There are probably a few andsoforths to be put on the end as a governmental department never tells all. Considering its source we felt that the above information must certainly be correct, but once upon a time we almost copied a snitzy story concerning the Akron that was entirely all wet. It was told in the Newark Sunday Call by E.B. Berlinrut, the aviation editor, and when we began to make inquiries, everybody thought we were nerts. One can’t be too careful.”… at 8 am on the morning of Wednesday, June 22nd, Lt. Cmdr. Charles E. Rosendahl turned over the command of the U.S.S. Akron to Cmdr. Algar H. Dressel in a brief ceremony that had the officers and crewmen standing beneath the airship. Denied promotion by naval rules unless he sees sea service, his service in the air not being considered equivalent to service on the water, Lt. Cmdr. Rosendahl was to go aboard the U.S.S. West Virginia for three years, after which he was expected to return to aviation… it was reported that the decommissioning of the Los Angeles at the end of June would send several of her officers back to sea duty while most of the ship’s crew of 79 would remain at the air station, likely to begin service on the U.S.S. Macon when its construction completed at the end of the year in Akron, Ohio. Lt. Raymond F. Tyler, one of the oldest lighter-than-air craft men in the navy was ordered from duty with the Akron to the U.S.S. Richmond. Com. A.T. Clay was ordered to the general board, navy department, Washington, D.C.;

Lt. George F. Watson to the U.S.S. Mississippi; and Lt. Alexander MacIntyre to the U.S.S. J. Fred Talbot. The airship’s captain, Com. F.T. Berry, would become executive officer of the Lakehurst Naval Air Station… on Sunday, June 26th, ground was broken on the Cathedral of the Air, with nearly 100 people in attendance. Herbert W. Blizzard, past commander of the New Jersey American Legion, along with Commander William W. Edel and the originator of the cathedral concept, Rev. Gil Robb Wilson, raised the first spade of dirt on the site, which would be built as a “memorial to those who lost their lives in aviation during the World War and since in the development of flight.” Plans were announced for a cornerstone laying in early August and the hope that a large ceremony could be arranged when the cathedral was completed, with the American Legion turning the property over to the U.S. government, possibly with the president in attendance. It was also noted that a memorial window was planned to honor the lost lives of Commander Zachary Lansdowne and the men of the Shenandoah airship, which crashed mid-flight in Ohio in 1925. Lt. Rosendahl was also aboard the ship at that time, but survived in one of the broken apart sections where the gas cell remained inflated enough for a smoother landing. Photos of the groundbreaking ceremony were taken, with the stated intention to be their placement in the cornerstone… Lt. Calvin Bolster was called to his hometown of Youngstown, Ohio where his four-year-old son, Calvin Jr., was killed when hit by an automobile in the street where he was playing while his wife visited her parents. The child was hit on Thursday, his skull being broken, and died Sunday after his father’s arrival… Lt. and Mrs. Roland G. Mayer held a farewell gathering for Lt. Rosendahl at their home in Cranmoor Manor, Toms River that was attended by dozens of air base officers and their wives. While it was held, the U.S.S. Los Angeles flew overhead and saluted its former commander with her flag. The previous week, Lt. Rosendahl was presented with an inscribed sword by the crew of the Akron… the Los Angeles received a new paint job, despite imminent plans for decommissioning, giving her cabin and the fins of her tail a yellow color and a star on her nose… officials at the base announced to the local public that the U.S.S. Los Angeles had made its last flight and that its gas bags would be deflated and the ship placed in storage… Aviation Chief Machinist’s Mate August C. Quernheim, of the U.S.S. Akron airship, rented Mr. Walter’s Beachwood home on Atlantic City Boulevard near Mermaid Avenue as a “yearly” tenant. ACCM Quernheim, a

survivor of the U.S.S. Shenandoah airship crash in 1925, would be dead less than a year later when the Akron crashed into the sea off Barnegat Light…

Lakehurst Naval Air Station 1932continued from page 46

Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines. He also deployed with MAG 16 in support of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM in 2003 where he participated in combat operations flying with HMH-462.The versatile officer moved to MacDill Air Force Base in January 2004 when he received orders to U.S. Special Operations Command in Tampa, Florida. As the commanding officer of HMH-465, Col. Tobin deployed to Al Asad, Iraq, in support of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM. The squadron conducted numerous direct action and assault support missions throughout the Al Anbar Province, earning the Keith B. McCutcheon Award as the 2007 Heavy Helicopter Squadron of the Year.Col. Tobin continued to expand his horizons when, in July 2008, he was reassigned to Washington, D.C., as a CMC Fellow at Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. He assumed the duties of Branch Head, Expeditionary Aviation, in July 2010, working on the Chief of Naval Operations’ staff.MAG 49’s new commanding officer has accrued more than 3,300 hours in tactical aircraft. His decorations include the Bronze Star Medal, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal with two gold stars and the Air Medal with five Strike/Flight Awards.The MAG-49 units, manned by 760 U.S. Marine Corps Reserve and active-duty personnel at JB MDL, are part of the 2,200 Marines at seven MAG 49 sites and the 39,600 U.S. Marine Corps Reservists training throughout the United States and participating in real-world operations globally.

First JB MDL Farewellcontinued from page 47


2012 Open HouseJOINT BASE MDL


and Air Show May 12-13thJOINT BASE MDL


JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. -- With a KC-135 Stratotanker at their backs, the Airmen from the 108th Wing stood at attention inside Hangar 33-33 as Col. Kevin J. Keehn assumed command of the 108th Wing, New Jersey Air National Guard, from Brig. Gen. Michael L. Cunniff, here, May 20th.Col. Keehn accepted the 108th Wing’s flag from Maj. Gen. Maria Falca-Dodson, New Jersey Air National Guard commander, during a Change of Command ceremony before his wife, Connie, and their children.“I would not be where I am today without the support of his family,” said the colonel. “Thank you for having my back.”Brig. Gen. Cunniff, the outgoing commander, also thanked his family for their support and the Airmen of the Wing for their loyalty and support while he was the commander.“You are the best Airmen in the Air Force,” he said. “You made my job as commander much easier.”The brigadier general was recently appointed the Adjutant General of New Jersey and assumed command of the 8,500 Soldiers and Airmen of the New Jersey National Guard.

Keehn Named New 108th Wing Commanderby Staff Sgt. Armando Vasquez / 108th Wing Public Affairs

Col. Kevin J. Keehn accepts the 108th Wing’s flag from Maj. Gen. Maria Fal-ca-Dodson, New Jersey Air Na-tional Guard com-mander, during a Change of Com-mand ceremony here in front of his wife, Connie, and children May 20. (U.S. Air Force courtesy photo/Released)

JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. -- The joint base community members came together June 4th to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Midway at Hangar No. 1.The annual ceremony is held to honor the Sailors and Marines who displayed courage, sacrifice and heroism in the Pacific during one of the most significant naval battles of World War II.“Today, we commemorate the 70th anniversary of one of the Navy’s and the nation’s most historical significant naval victories,” said Cmdr. Chip DeWalt, VR-52 Squadron commander. “The Battle of Midway changed the tide of the war in the Pacific and the course of world history. As we commemorate this day in history, let us reflect the lessons learned and the battle that change U.S. history.”The Battle of Midway ended when a U.S. carrier aircraft found and bombed Hiryu, the last of the Japanese aircraft carriers and Combined Fleet Commander Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto called off the Midway operation and retreated.During the ceremony, Cmdr. DeWalt placed a commemorating wreath, honoring the 307 U.S. causalities of the battle. The U.S. also lost one carrier, one destroyer and 150 aircraft during the battle.Japanese forces lost more than 100 trained pilots and more than 700 trained aircraft mechanics, four large carriers and 248 aircraft during the battle. The balance of sea power in the Pacific shifted from the Japanese to the U.S. immediately after the battle.Two distinguished guests attended this year’s ceremony - Joseph L. Waller, who served on the USS Yorktown and Eugene Fitzmaier, who served on the USS Portland.Rear Adm. Randolph L. Mahr, who was the guest speaker for the ceremony, expressed gratitude toward the two Battle of Midway survivors.“Without [these Battle of Midway survivors] who are wearing the hats and still wear their uniforms, we would not be sitting here today,” said the rear admiral, who is a native of Elizabeth, Union County and the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division commander and assistant commander for Research and Engineering, Naval Air Systems Command at Patuxent River, Maryland. “I honor them for their service. These veterans served with honor and courage so that America could remain free.”He went on to thank the service members at the ceremony.“Thank you all for what you do every day,” said the New Jersey native. “Thank you for that honor, that courage, that commitment and that gallantry. It’s truly an honor today to stand here in the presence of the young men and women who continue to join and service in the U.S. Navy.”America could remain free.”He went on to thank the service members at the ceremony.

Joint base honors 70th anniversary of Battle of Midway

Rear Adm. Randolph L. Mahr, U.S. Navy Commander Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, addresses the Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst community as the guest speaker for the Battle of Midway 70th Anniversary Commemoration June 4. Mahr spoke on the key role that military, contractors and civilians played in repairing the crippled USS Yorktown (CV-5) in three days of non-stop working to get her back in to the battle and the decisive role she played. (U.S. Air Force photo by Wayne Russell/Released)

by By Greg Hannon / U.S. Air Force Expeditionary Center Registrar and Historian

Society of Illustrators visits USAF Expeditionary Centerby By Greg Hannon / U.S. Air Force Expeditionary Center Registrar and Historian

JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. -- “Receiving and looking at a digital photo sent to you electronically today is almost something you do as an afterthought, but there is something timeless and enduring about looking at a painting on canvas,” said artist John Witt as he discussed his nearly-five decade-long involvement with bringing the sacrifice and service of American military members to life on canvas.Mr. Witt led a delegation of six artists from the Society of Illustrators during a visit to the U.S. Air Force Expeditionary Center (EC) May 19th, where members of the 421st Combat Training Squadron

Artist Joan Chiverton, of the Society of Illustrators, photographs members of the 421st Combat Tactics Squadron as they perform simulated combat operations during a visit to the U.S. Air Force Expeditionary Center, May 19. (U.S. Air Force courtesy photo/Released)

continued next page


the guests at the Peto house was the well-known artist Eugene Murray of New York… the Jennie Shoppe, located on the corner of River and Central avenues, opened for the season on Saturday, May 29th… the Riverview Hotel, on the corner of Central and River avenues, advertised its reopening as a “rebuilt and enlarged… up to date place that has been refurnished, redecorated throughout and has running water in all rooms” by proprietor H.L. Hendricks… the Hendricks store was rented for the summer… guests staying at the Riverview Hotel over the Memorial Day weekend came from varied places as Yonkers, New York; Wilmington, Delaware; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; New York City; Freehold; Collingswood and Llanerch, Pennsylvania… the Comfort Station opened for the season with Mrs. Annie Vanderherchen as matron… a diving board and two new slides were erected at the public dock… Miss Dorothy Middleton, daughter of Melbourne F. Middleton, and granddaughter of Dr. M.F. Middleton, one of the founders of Island Heights, reportedly had “one of the finest collections of Indian relics” in her possession, about which the Philadelphia Inquirer wrote an article describing its over 15,000 pieces collected, traced and indexed over a three year period. Miss Middleton, a member of the New Jersey State Museum’s Research Board on Indians, valued the collection at over $100,000, which was further described as containing “equipage, both warlike and domestic, used in various parts of the United States [from] 16 different tribes,” some dated as being 4,000 years old, while other more modern pieces only went to the mid-19th century… in early June, the New Jersey Courier newspaper called attention and objected to a two-cent price increase for a gallon of oil, up from 1931’s price of $0.0468 to mid-1932’s $0.0672… Mrs. Frank Toscan of the Pines hotel, here, was still in bed suffering from injuries as a result of a beating she received from a woman guest at the hotel using a large water pitcher and her fists on May 31st, who later fled to Seaside Heights. As of June 9th, a warrant for her arrest was still outstanding… a chimney fire on Thursday evening, June 9th, at the A.W. VanSchock cottage on Ocean Avenue, then occupied by the Harned family, called the fire company who quickly extinguished the flames… Mrs. Fred Wilson of the Perennial Hotel on the riverfront donated a number of books to the Island Heights Library Club… it was reported that Miss Katharine Hepburn visited Mr. and Mrs. Jellett of Chestnut Hill, and that Miss Hepburn would return June 13th with Mrs. Jellett’s daughter, Miss Mary Horner and Miss Marjorie Dorwarth

as her guests. It cannot be confirmed if this was the famed motion picture actress, who would have been 25 at this time, but Miss Hepburn, the actress, later did have a summer home in Mantoloking…borough resident Roosevelt Brazzell was brought before Justice Leary on an accusation from his wife that he had thrown ammonia in her face. The conflict was “toned down to “a morning after” domestic quarrel,” and Mr. Brazzell was reprimanded and allowed to leave… Miss Katherine McCormick, an artist, was a noted guest of the Peto cottage over the June 10th weekend… on Monday, June 13th, a new red garbage truck belonging to Neal of Cassville rolled backwards down the hill by the Perennial, where it had been parked, jumped the boardwalk and landed full length in the river on the west side of the Island Heights Yacht Club. A number of volunteers with planks and cars soon had it back on the street…when Mrs. Jennie Wilber, who manages the Jennie Shop, went to open the store on Tuesday, June 14th, she found that someone had been tampering with one of the large storefront windows and found an empty basket outside. The window appeared as if someone was trying to use a jimmy on it, but nothing seemed disturbed inside the shop… the Leming Agency reported the sale of the V.D. Book property at Money Island to Gertrude V. Bradley… the Pennsylvania Railroad station opened June 16th and would remain open until September 16th, with Samuel Leming the agent in charge… Mrs. Albert Atkinson and daughter, Miss Celia Patterson, together with Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd Hulings and daughter Jean, of Merchantville, opened their summer home, the Arbutus Lodge, on River Avenue for the summer season… junior yacht club races started up for another season, using 15-foot sneakboxes, and it was noted that the races were originally started in Bay Head and dubbed “candy races” due to the boxes of candy that were offered as prizes. This trend later expanded to include small cups and boat accessories—including flashlights, sheath knifes, riding lights, boat hooks, flags, brass chocks and more—as prizes by some clubs that took up the practice from Mantoloking and down to Seaside Park, Island Heights, Lavallette and Ocean Gate and more… officials at the Lakehurst Naval Air Station announced to the local public that the U.S.S. Los Angeles airship had made her last flight and that its gas bags would be deflated and the ship placed in storage…

Island Heights 1932continued from page 11

took time to pose and meet with the delegation for sketches and photographs which will serve as the artists’ inspiration for future Air Force art projects, with composition of the new paintings starting almost immediately.Some of the skills and training demonstrations captured by the six society artists present included a military working dog presentation hosted by Master Sgt. William Gaskins and accompanied by his dog, ‘Jumpy’; EC members posing next to a Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle and demonstrating life saving techniques and perimeter defense while wearing full combat gear; hand-to-hand combat; a tour of the armory; and a flight aboard a McDonnell Douglas KC-10 Extender—a military version of the three-engine DC-10 airliner used primarily for transport and aerial refueling—courtesy the 514th Air Mobility Wing, where the illustrators sketched, photographed and drew inspiration from the Airmen in action throughout the trip.Mr. Witt, a past society president who served as a combat artist starting in 1966 during the Vietnam War and in recent years has traveled to Iraq and Afghanistan, said he plans to have some of the new artwork—which will come to life on canvas in acrylic and watercolor mediums to become framed and live long after the members’ assignments, deployments, careers and retirements—ready to display in October during the annual showcase at the National Museum of the United States Air Force located at Wright-

Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.The Society of Illustrators began February 1st, 1901, with nine artists and one businessman founding the organization with the simple credo, “…to promote generally the art of illustration and to hold exhibitions from time to time.” This basic concept has been maintained for the 111 years since that day, but the society’s roots in supporting the nation’s military go much deeper, beginning when past society president Charles Dana Gibson was called upon by the federal government during World War I to generate posters to recruit soldiers and generate public support. He then enlisted James Montgomery Flagg, N.C. Wyeth and Joseph Pennell to produce some of the war’s most lasting imagery, including the famous “I Want You” poster commissioned by Mr. Flagg using a modified version of his own face for the likeness of Uncle Sam.In a time before the widespread use of journalistic photography, eight society members were commissioned by the U.S. Army and sent to France to sketch their impressions of the war. Following the 1918 armistice, the artists helped operate the School for Disabled Soldiers.A little over 20 years later the society found itself mirroring the intensity of the nation’s massive war effort during the Second World War, participating in morale and recruiting posters and creating illustrations depicting scenes of the war in both the European and the Pacific theaters of operations. Illustrators also visited veterans’ hospitals to sketch the wounded in a program to send their portraits home to the subjects’ families as morale boosters.In 1954, illustrators with the society were given the opportunity to travel the world to military facilities and

exercises under the U.S. Air Force Art Program to record the people, places and events they witnessed as part of the nation’s military culture. Hundreds of works have been produced since that time.The U.S. Air Force Expeditionary Center at Joint Base MDL currently houses a very large and varied collection of Air Force art totaling 80 pieces. The newly commissioned works will go on display at various venues throughout the country, with some making their way back to the EC to be displayed here as their permanent “home.” Mr. Witt has painted several of the artworks that are now in the center’s collection, including the large work titled “Airpower from the Ground Up,” currently on display at the facility’s entrance. The past society president also recently completed a new painting depicting staff sergeants Phillip Peterkins and Kyle Miller of the 421st Combat Training Squadron (CTS) who posed for sketches in November.Participants of the demonstrations captured by the artists included staff sergeants Brandon Koehne, Maurice Johnson, Quentin Humphries, technical sergeants Jeffrey Cadogan, Lallchan Seunarine, Stephen Smith and Master Sgt. Keith Tartaglia. Co-organizer of the event was Tech. Sgt. Erica Boylen, whose tireless efforts were not lost on the contingent of illustrators.For more information on the Society of Illustrators, please visit them online at www.societyillustrators.org.

Society of Illustrators..continued

Honoring Memorial Day


CORRECTIONS POLICYThe Riverside Signal is committed to fairness and accuracy in its reporting, but in the event that a factual error does occur, it will be corrected quickly and without issue. To request a correction, contact Erik Weber at 732-903-8477 or [email protected].

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The Riverside Signal is published every two weeks by Riverside Signal, LLC and distributed throughout the Toms River area, including Toms River, Beachwood, Island Heights, Ocean Gate, Pine Beach, South Toms River, Berkeley Township and the barrier island communities of Ortley Beach, Seaside Heights, Seaside Park and South Seaside Park. Individual copies of the Riverside Signal can be mailed upon request at a postage and handling charge of $3 per copy. Subscriptions are available for $20 per year within Ocean County; $30 per year outside of Ocean County.The entire contents of The Riverside Signal are copyrighted 2012 by Riverside Signal, LLC. Reproduction of any matter appearing herein without specific written permission from Riverside Signal, LLC is prohibited. All rights reserved.The submission of non-fiction and fiction manuscripts, photographs, art and poetry for consideration are welcome. To have material returned, be sure to include an addressed envelope and adequate postage. Freelance article work inquiries and article suggestions also welcome.

Editor, the Riverside Signal:Thanks for the up-date. How can The Signal be better, achieve readership? By concentrating on current subjects. For example you did take notes on my suggested revisions Primary Care Medicine--that is certainly a topical subject. It calls for discussion, invites rebuttal and converesation. Why suppress it? What are you afraid of? controversy? Or afraid your advertisers may be afraid of Controversy. I held a newspaper audience for 20 years with subjects that were were controversial.You shy away from events and subjects that are destroying lives in America. That is not in the tradition of a newspaper. A “newspaper” cannot succeed as a historical pamphlett dealing with old murders. You opened the door to fiction in your newspaper by publishing fiction that had nothing to do with anything yet refused a follow-up story that was an fictional addendum to some dark-sided meditation about a pooch that never asked to become a hero. Any good editor would have jumped at that response. Any copywrite intrusions that you used to avoid publication could easily have been overcome.I suspect you have fallen into the advertising trap-- Good newspapers learn how to overocome that.You are young, you have energy somehow enough vision to start

the thing on the internet and even go to a broad sheet--but at that point the vision failed.You have created a platform from which something important could be launched but the rockets fizzled. it cannot be built on cronyism. Quite the contrary--it must be built on the tradition of the noble profession of news reporting--the facts ma’am only the facts!The greatest blow the internet has dealt this nation has been the erosion press coverage, local press coverage in particular. I had hoped you would help compensate for that. I wonder whether you will even publish this letter!Dr. Charles HarrisIsland Heights

[In his letter, Dr. Harris makes reference to an interview several months ago regarding his ideas for a different healthcare system than is currently in place, which the Signal temporarily shelved, along with other features, as it worked out some production issues. An article on that interview and other subjects already covered will appear later this year. Dr. Harris also refers to a fiction piece he wrote using characters published in a story written by John Bendel last summer. As Mr. Bendel owns the copyright to the original work, the Riverside Signal is not authorized to publish stories by others utilizing his characters. – Editor]

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