County of Union, New Jersey
Union County Freeholder Vice Chairman Bruce H. Bergen and Freeholders Alexander Mirabella, Bette Jane Kowalski and Christopher Hudak presented a resolution to Lisa Housel and Dominic Romeo of the Clark Shop Rite thanking them for the store’s efforts to fight hunger with their “Help Bag Hunger” events. They were joined by Union County Clerk Joanne Rajoppi. The Freeholder Board proclaimed September “National Hunger Action Month.” (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)
Union County Freeholder Sergio Granados was one of four recipients of the 2015 Service Award given by the Boys Scouts of America, Patriots’ Path Council, during a recent dinner at the annual Boy Scouts of America Scouting…Vale la Pena Service Awards Dinner held at the Portuguese Instructive Social Club in Elizabeth. The Patriots’ Path Council includes Morris, Sussex, Somerset, Union, and Middlesex counties. This year’s honorees included Granados, Maria Navedo vice president and branch manager at Santander Bank, Amilcar “Mickey” Colon, Union County Undersheriff, and Luis O. De La Hoz senior vice president at the Intersect Fund, a non-profit micro-lender.
These recipients are chosen for their outstanding services as evidenced by the interest and leadership they have demonstrated within the community. They are citizens who live the ideals of the Scout Oath and Law in their daily lives. The 2015 dinner chair was George A. Castro II, broker and owner of Century 21 Atlantic.
Caption: Union County Freeholder Sergio Granados (pink tie, blue jacket), tenth from left, joins fellow recipients of the 2015 Patriots’ Path Service Award, and members of Boy Scouts Troop 101, 104, and 4, at the awards dinner in Elizabeth on Saturday.
Event Scheduled for 1 p.m. features speakers from County of Union, UNICO District X, and Italian American ONE VOICE Coalition
Elizabeth—The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders today announced the County’s seventh Annual Columbus Day Flag Raising event is set for Friday, October 9th, at 1 p.m. on the steps of the historic Union County Courthouse.
The keynote speaker/guest of honor is Paula Maida Mooney, an Italian American author from Summit, who also works with HomeTowne Television, a local community TV media and production company based in Summit.
Her non-fiction book, “My Father’s Last Meatballs: A Heavenly Entrée,” is a compelling story, replete with moxie, humor and food. It deftly mixes an Italian immigrant family, the Second World War, Brooklyn in the 40s and 50s, the inevitable moves to the suburbs and a batch of relatives who grew up and grow old along the way. Finally, it pays tribute to an enduring parental relationship and the extraordinary journey the author took to Italy where memorable events happened.
Mooney has a unique connection through her ancestry to the founding of Columbus Day. Her paternal great grand-father, the Honorable Rocco M. Marasco, a prominent businessman and political figure in New York City during the earlier part of the century, led the lobby to have Columbus Day made a Holiday in New York state.
Scheduled speakers at the flag raising include: members of the Union County Freeholder Board including Al Mirabella, who is emceeing the event this year, County Clerk Joanne Rajoppi, UNICO National President Ann Walko, Plainfields’ UNICO President Santi Buscemi; Italian American ONE VOICE Coalition President Manny Alfano; and UNICO District X Govenor Bill Hearon. UNICO is the nation’s largest Italian American service organization whose chapters and members engage in promoting and defending Italian culture and heritage, as well as providing scholarships, engaging in community service and other philanthropic endeavors.
The Courthouse is located at 2 Broad Street in Elizabeth at the corner of Rahway Avenue. In the event of rain, the program will be moved in doors to the County Courthouse Rotunda.
UNICO District X and Plainfields’ UNICO work to organize and co-sponsor the event.
Italian-style refreshments will be served after the program in the historic Union County Courthouse.
Parking (pay) is available in the Midtown area at the J. Christian Bollwage Parking deck at Elizabethtown Plaza and Caldwell Place. A second deck is Elizabeth’s Parking Deck #6 on Jefferson Avenue and Dickinson Street—the entrance is on Dickinson Street.
MOUNTAINSIDE, NJ – The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders is pleased to announce a fall workshop, for adults ages 18 and older, that will teach participants the basics of digital photography at Trailside Nature and Science Center in Mountainside on Saturday, October 10 from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM.
All workshop registration is now available online at www.ucnj.org/trailside.
“This program offers an opportunity for adults to learn the basics of digital photography, timed perfectly to capture the autumnal beauty of the scenic Watchung Reservation,” says Freeholder Chairman Mohamed S. Jalloh.
Professional photographer, Joan Pamboukes will bring clarity to such topics as focal length, aperture, shutter speeds, and white balance. This workshop is ideal for any student who hopes to familiarize themselves with their single lens reflex digital camera or sophisticated “point and shoot” camera with fully manual settings. Composition and basic lighting strategies will also be addressed.
Please bring your camera (with a fully charged battery), the manual and a tripod if you have one. Weather permitting, participants will walk around the grounds and create beautiful images. By the end of the class, basic camera functions will no longer be a mystery.
The fee for this workshop is $45 for residents of Union County and $55 for out-of-county residents. Pre-registration for this program is required; walk-ins will be accommodated as space permit.
For more information about this workshop, or other activities at Trailside, please call 908-789-3670 or visit www.ucnj.org/trailside. Trailside Nature and Science Center is located at 452 New Providence Road in Mountainside and is a facility of the Union County Department of Parks and Recreation.
Union County Freeholder Vice Chairman Bruce H. Bergen and Freeholders Alexander Mirabella, Bette Jane Kowalski and Christopher Hudak joined Union County Clerk Joanne Rajoppi in congratulating Louis, Maria and Anthony Papa of Clark and Erica Lee of Scotch Plains on winning the scare crow building contest at the 34th Annual Harvest Festival at Trailside Nature and Science Center in Mountainside. (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)
Citing an awareness of the growing national trend in property related fraud, Union County Clerk Joanne Rajoppi has taken the initiative to provide Union County property owners with a Property Fraud Alert Notification system. The new system, launched today, enables Union County property owners to respond quickly to unauthorized, potentially fraudulent activity involving their property. The program is completely free for Union County property owners.
“When it comes to property fraud, knowledge is power,” said Rajoppi. “The new Property Fraud Alert system will enable you to identify a potential problem as quickly as possible, so that you can re-establish your property rights promptly and with relatively little expense.”
“Nationwide, property fraud is the largest growing white collar crime according to the FBI,” said Rajoppi. “It is especially insidious because seniors are often the target, and the victims often have no idea that their property rights have been compromised until it’s too late.”
Property owners in Union County can subscribe to the free Property Fraud Alert system by visiting the Property Fraud Alert system online at propertyfraudalert.com or on the phone by calling 1-800-728-3858, and providing their name, or their business name. Property owners may also register additional names free of charge, to cover common misspellings.
Subscribers will be notified when the name they have registered is used in any recording activities within the office. When subscribing, the user will have the option of receiving the alert via phone or email. All subscriber information will remain confidential. Users with common names may receive multiple alerts.
Information received through the alerts can be verified by visiting the Union County Clerk’s property search website at clerk.ucnj.org or by calling the Property Fraud Alert call center at 1-800-728-3858. The call center is available from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Starting October 1, 2015, the call center will offer expanded hours Monday through Thursday, from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Friday hours will remain 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
“This program protects consumers, offers an extra safety net and provides early notice that someone may be committing fraud against them,” explains Rajoppi. While the Property Fraud Alert system does not prevent fraud, it provides an early warning to the potential of fraudulent activity so that property owners can alert local law enforcement. Fraud is a criminal offense.
For information about all County Clerk programs and services, visit online at ucnj.org/county-clerk or call 908-527-4787.
Union County Sheriff Joseph Cryan congratulates new Sheriff’s Captains Melissa Fernandez and William Bukowski during their promotion ceremony at the Union County Courthouse in Elizabeth. Captain Fernandez is the commander of the Crime Scene Unit and Captain Bukowski is the commander of the Office of Professional Standards. (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)
Union County’s celebration of Early American life featuring music, children’s crafts, games, demonstrations and displays, a petting zoo the Scarecrow Contest much more. Rain or shine event.
Trailside Nature & Science Center
11am – 5pm | Sunday, September 27th
$4 per person
Ages 7 and under are free
Fees are charged for some activities
To learn more about voting by mail, click here.
Union County Clerk Joanne Rajoppi and Union County Freeholder Vice Chairman Bruce H. Bergen hosted a New Jersey Notary Training Seminar at the County Administration Building in Elizabeth. Vice Chairman Bergen, Esq. gave a presentation on law and the responsibilities of a Notary.
The Notary Public course is a new service being offered by the Office of the Union County Clerk. It is designed to instruct Notaries Public on how to perform their duties with confidence and diligence. Notaries will learn about the new online application process and the legal aspects of performing the duties of a Notary Public in an effort to avoid liability issues.
The Union County Clerk’s Office administers Oaths of Office to commissioned Notaries at two convenient locations in Westfield and Elizabeth. The Elizabeth office, located at 2 Broad Street, Room 114, is open from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. The Westfield Annex Office, located in the Colleen Fraser Building, 300 North Avenue East, in Westfield, is open Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.; Tuesday and Thursday from 8:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.; and Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
For more information, call the Union County Clerk’s Office, 908-527-4787.
(Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)