Month: May 2011

MOUNTAINSIDE, NJ – The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders and the Department of Parks and Community Renewal are pleased to announce another intriguing and informative lecture at Trailside Nature & Science Center in Mountainside. David A. Steinberg, author of the guidebook, “Hiking the Road to Ruins,” will discuss his book and inspire the audience to hit the trail in search of adventure.

“This lecture will certainly offer the audience a unique opportunity to learn how to find some fascinating hidden sites and ruins located in Union County’s Watchung Reservation and throughout New Jersey,” said Freeholder Daniel P. Sullivan, liaison to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board. “It is sure to be an informative and fascinating presentation.”

The lecture is being offered for adults ages 18 and older on Thursday, June 9, from 7:30 – 8:30 p.m., as part of Trailside’s Adult Workshop Series. Pre-registration is preferred; walk-ins will be accommodated as space permits. The fee for the lecture is $8 per person for Union County residents and $10 per person for out-of-county residents.

Sharing years of exploration which are documented in his book, Mr. Steinberg offers a slide presentation and lecture highlighting his search for ruins and abandoned historic sites. After this enlightening lecture, the audience will want to explore the trails of the Watchung Reservation on hikes to unique areas including the Deserted Village of Feltville, two abandoned quarries, two mill ruins, a copper mine, the Magic Forest, a historic cemetery and a former Nike Missile site.

Audience members will have an opportunity to ask the author questions regarding his travels and recommendations of local sites to explore. Books will be available for sale and signing.

To register for this lecture, or for information on any other programs or upcoming events at Trailside, call 908-789-3670 or visit us at www.ucnj.org/trailside. Trailside Nature & Science Center is located at 452 New Providence Road (at Coles Avenue) in Mountainside and is a service of the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders.

Public Invited; Naturalists & Scientists Are Needed

BERKELEY HEIGHTS, NJ – Beginning at 5 p.m. on Friday, June 10, Union County will be offering an opportunity for people to get up-close and personal with wildlife in their own “backyard” during Bio-Blitz 2011. The event will have teams of plant and wildlife specialists, plus amateur naturalists, scouring a study site that includes sections of Union County’s Passaic River Parkway in Berkeley Heights, New Providence and Summit in search of plants and animals over a 24-hour period ending at 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 11.

“Everyone is invited to Bio-Blitz 2011, including people of all ages, as well as school, scout and community groups,” said Union County Freeholder Chairman Deborah Scanlon. “Expert and amateur scientists and naturalists are especially welcome to participate as team members. The success of Bio-Blitz 2011 is dependent upon the size and skill of the teams.”

To register as a volunteer or to receive a brochure and application, call 908-789-3683. When calling, please specify your level of experience and team preference.

Plant, fungi, insect, fish, bird, mammal, amphibian and reptile, and water monitoring experts (along with amateur naturalists) are needed to collect and identify species from the three sections of parkland. Teams will return to Bio-Blitz Central, an outdoor, tented field lab and exhibit space near River Road and Springfield Avenue in Berkeley Heights to sort and count what they find.

Nature-related programs will be offered free to all throughout the event. They will include evening programs from 6 – 11 p.m. on Friday, and daytime programs from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday. Shuttles will be available to get participants to and from program sites. Programs will include River & Stream Life; Owl Prowl; Wild Edibles Walk; Fungi Foray; Mammal Tracking; Morning Bird Walk, and more. Bio-Blitz Bingo will give younger “scientists” an opportunity to record their findings and enter a drawing to win nature-related prizes.

The primary purpose of the Bio-Blitz is to gain a “snapshot” of the biodiversity (or richness of species) in the 298 – acre Passaic River Parkway. Another important goal of the event is to raise public awareness of the importance of parkland as wildlife habitat and outdoor classrooms.

Although the study site is surrounded by suburban development, it is home to many plants and animals. The Passaic River Parkway, acquired by Union County in the 1960s, boasts some excellent floodplain, stream, river, meadow and woodland habitat. Greenways provide valuable habitat, and act as a stopover and corridor for migratory and resident wildlife, including red tail hawks, owls, great egrets, great blue herons, coyotes, fox, and much more.

Bio-Blitz 2011 is sponsored by the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders, the Union County Department of Parks and Community Renewal, Kean University and the Rahway River Association, with partial funding provided by PSE&G.

Team volunteers will be fed and “watered” thanks to generous donations from Whole Foods, Starbucks, New Jersey American Water, and ShopRite. Additional donations will be provided by the Rahway River Association, Home Depot, Halls Garden Center, M721 Organics, Back2Tap and Wild Birds Unlimited.

Other partner organizations include the Arthur Kill Watershed Association, Berkeley Heights Environmental Commission, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Friends of Lenape Park, New Jersey Mycological Association, Newark Museum, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Fish & Wildlife, the NJDEP AmeriCorps Watershed Ambassador Program, Passaic River Coalition, Passaic River Institute, and the USDA’s Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service & Plant Protection & Quarantine Programs.

For more information or to receive a brochure, call 908-789-3683 and leave your email address; pick up a brochure at Trailside Nature & Science Center, 452 New Providence Road (at Coles Avenue) in Mountainside; or visit us at www.ucnj.org/trailside

Union County, NJ – The annual Union County Rhythm and Blues by the Brook free music festival at Cedar Brook Park in Plainfield is set for Saturday, June 4, from 12:00 noon to 7:00 p.m., headlined by the legendary Nile Rodgers & CHIC. The event is packed with numerous vendors and a car show, along with modestly priced amusement rides and free activities for children. DJ Bookeem leads off the festivities at 12:00 noon and provides entertainment between each act, with Melissa Providence appearing at 12:15, followed by DJ Red Alert at 1:45, Doug E. Fresh at 3:15, and Nile Rogers & Chic at 5:15.

Free offsite parking is available a short distance from the park, along with a free shuttle bus. Directions, a list of permitted/prohibited items, and many other event details are posted at ucnj.org/randb, or call the R&B hotline for more information, 908-436-2900.

For information on Union County’s free summer concerts and all other recreation events, visit the Union County website, ucnj.org.

Nile Rodgers & CHIC headline the annual Union County Rhythm and Blues by the Brook free music festival at Cedar Brook Park in Plainfield on Saturday, June 4, 12:00 noon to 7:00 p.m.

# #

For more information on any Union County press release, please contact Sebastian D’Elia, Communications Director for the County of Union, or a designee listed at the top of this press release. Please join the County of Union online at www.ucnj.org, on Facebook at www.ucnj.org/facebook, and on Twitter athttp://twitter.com/countyofunionnj.

Union County, NJ — In a unique program designed to help prevent childhood obesity, Queen City Academy in Plainfield has received a mini-grant of $7,500 to assist with nutrition education. The funds will help the K-8 school establish an educational garden along with other instructional activities. Queen City Academy is one of only nine schools selected for the mini-grant program statewide, through a process involving the Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Union County.

“The grant is small but it will go a long way, and Union County was up against some stiff competition to win these funds,” said Union County Freeholder Linda Carter. “On behalf of the Freeholder Board, I am very proud of Queen City Academy and the Extension for demonstrating the highest degree of professionalism and commitment to the goal of improving children’s nutrition.”

The Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Union County is supported in part by the Freeholder Board. It is part of a national program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in which counties provide the public with science-based information on health, nutrition and other areas including 4-H youth development. Freeholder Chairman Deborah Scanlon has included childhood obesity prevention in the Union County Chairman’s Initiatives this year.

The mini-grant program encourages children to include more fresh fruits and vegetables in their diet. Queen City Academy will use the funds to establish a vegetable garden, and to advise food service personnel on providing healthier choices at school breakfasts and lunches. Volunteers trained by the Extension will help the school integrate nutrition education in the classroom through engaging activities such as tastings and cooking demonstrations. The volunteers will also help schools connect the students’ families and communities with nutrition guidance.

“Research shows that children are more likely to try fresh vegetables that they have helped to grow, and gardening is a healthy outdoor activity that contributes to overall wellness,” said Carter. “This is a promising program and we anticipate that Queen City Academy will serve to inspire schools and families throughout Union County.”

Under the terms of the grant, the school garden will be planted and maintained by school personnel, students and parents during the school year and over the summer. The school garden must include at least three different vegetables that will be harvested and sampled by students. The project is also designed to promote teamwork and interaction among diverse student bodies.

A Union County Master Gardener will assist the school with the garden project. The Master Gardeners are volunteers who are trained and certified by the Extension. The school garden is one among many community projects undertaken by the group, which also maintains a large demonstration garden in the Union County’s Watchung Reservation.

Dr. Karen Ensle, RD, Department Head of Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Union County, along with Corey Wu-Jung, MS, RD, a Westfield resident and Northern New Jersey Coordinator for the grant will work with the Queen City Academy administration, faculty, parents, food service staff and students on the project, which comes under the New Jersey Department of Agriculture Grow Healthy New Jersey Garden-Based School Wellness Team Nutrition Grant Program. The selection process measured the ability of Queen City Academy to provide its students, staff, families and the broader school community with the best possible opportunities to improve health through improved nutrition and physical activity.

The mini-grant is part of a Team Nutrition Training Grant from the United States Department of Agriculture to train food service professionals, increase fruit and vegetable consumption, and promote locally grown produce in school meals.

# #

For more information on any Union County press release, please contact Sebastian D’Elia, Communications Director for the County of Union, or a designee listed at the top of this press release.   Please join the County of Union online at www.ucnj.org, on Facebook at www.ucnj.org/facebook, and on Twitter athttp://twitter.com/countyofunionnj

Union County Freeholder Angel G. Estrada (L) and Assemblywoman Linda Stender (R) watch as Fanwood Mayor Colleen Mahr and Tom Powers (2nd L) and Amerigo Checchio of Elite Properties break ground for the Fanwood Crossing project, a new mixed use retail and apartment complex that will be built at the corner of South and Martine Avenues in the heart of downtown Fanwood.  (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)

For more information on any Union County press release, please contact Sebastian D’Elia, Communications Director for the County of Union, or a designee listed at the top of this press release.   Please join the County of Union online at www.ucnj.org

On Facebook at www.ucnj.org/facebook

On Twitter at http://twitter.com/countyofunionnj

Union County Freeholder Christopher Hudak presents Doris J. Henel with a resolution congratulating her on being named the 2011 Outstanding Senior Citizen of the Year by the Linden Department of Public Property and Community Services during the city’s 52nd annual Senior Citizen Day ceremony at the John T. Gregorio Recreation Center in Linden. (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)

For more information on any Union County press release, please contact Sebastian D’Elia, Communications Director for the County of Union, or a designee listed at the top of this press release.   Please join the County of Union online at www.ucnj.org

On Facebook at www.ucnj.org/facebook

On Twitter at http://twitter.com/countyofunionnj

Union County Freeholder Chairman Deborah Scanlon (3rd R), Vice Chairman Alexander Mirabella (4th R) and Freeholders (from left) Linda Carter, Mohamed Jalloh, Angel G. Estrada, Christopher Hudak and Bette Jane Kowalski congratulate Mike Jones of Hillside on his retirement after 38 years of service with Union County. (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)

For more information on any Union County press release, please contact Sebastian D’Elia, Communications Director for the County of Union, or a designee listed at the top of this press release.   Please join the County of Union online at www.ucnj.org 
On Facebook at www.ucnj.org/facebook
On Twitter at http://twitter.com/countyofunionnj

Union County Freeholder Christopher Hudak (2nd L) presents a resolution to Linden Councilmen Richard Koziol (L) and Richard Puschel and Molly Lenz of the Linden Cultural Committee in honor of Linden celebrating its 150th anniversary as a city.  (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)

For more information on any Union County press release, please contact Sebastian D’Elia, Communications Director for the County of Union, or a designee listed at the top of this press release.   Please join the County of Union online at www.ucnj.org 
On Facebook at www.ucnj.org/facebook
On Twitter at http://twitter.com/countyofunionnj

Union County Freeholder Vice Chairman Alexander Mirabella (2nd L) joined (from left) Scotch Plains Recreation Commissioner Tom Kucin, Eileen Lawrence, Scotch Plains Mayor Nancy Malool, Recreation Director Ray Poerio, Mike Dempsey and Neil Kaufman, president of the Scotch Plains-Fanwood Youth Baseball Association in cutting the ribbon at the grand reopening of Brookside Park in Scotch Plains.  (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)

Union County, NJ – Russell Landwehr of Linden displays his catch during the Spring Fishing Derby at Union County’s Echo Lake Park earlier this month. An avid fisherman, Mr. Landwehr attended with his daughter, Jan, to celebrate his 92nd birthday. The East Central District Elks organized and staffed the event with volunteers, and provided lunch and prizes. Union County partners with the Elks and other groups to offer recreation activities for people with disabilities of all ages including golf, swimming, karate, ice skating, horseback riding, ceramics, horticulture, cooking, yoga, and more. For more information on the Union County Recreation for People with Disabilities programs visit www.ucnj.org or contact Margaret Heisey, Program Coordinator, 908-527-4806 or mheisey@ucnj.org (photo: County of Union).

#  #

For more information on any Union County press release, please contact Sebastian D’Elia, Communications Director for the County of Union, or a designee listed at the top of this press release.   Please join the County of Union online at www.ucnj.org, on Facebook at www.ucnj.org/facebook, and on Twitter athttp://twitter.com/countyofunionnj.