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Union County Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados and Vice Chairman Bette Jane Kowalski presents a resolution to Union County Human Services Director Debbie-Ann Anderson, Union County Child Support Supervisor Susan Ruiz and Child Support Specialist Tonya Hendricks recognizing and congratulating the Union County Division of Social Services Child Support Unit on being named the Child Support Agency of the Year for 2017. The Division of Social Services Child Support Unit strives to be of service to the custodial parents by providing the children and their families with the financial and emotional support to be productive and healthy citizens in our society.

Recently, at its annual conference in Atlantic City, the New Jersey Child Support Council presented their Child Support Agency of the Year Award to the Union County Division of Social Services Child Support Unit for their exceptional management and outstanding service to the children and families of it Child Support program during the year 2017.

Union County Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados, Vice Chairman Bette Jane Kowalski, Freeholder Linda Carter and Freeholder Alexander Mirabella this evening congratulated the recipients of the 2018 Women of Excellence Awards at the 26th annual Women of Excellence dinner in Garwood. They were joined by New Jersey State Senator Nicholas P. Scutari and New Jersey State Senator Joe Cryan and Union County Clerk Joanne Rajoppi.

The 2018 Women of Excellence awardees are:

• Malathi Narayan Ananthakrishnan, New Providence (Arts in Education)
• Dr. Ludovina Archeval , Holy Redemer Home Care of Elizabeth (Health/Medicine)
• Brooke Campbell, Cranford (Children’s Advocacy)
• Maria Carvalho, Elizabeth (Youth Advocacy)
• Councilwoman Rose Checchio, Scotch Plains (Government)
• Candyce Mayers, Linden (Women’s Advocacy)
• Marguerite Modero, Roselle Park (Special Needs Advocacy)
• Donna Puzella , Summit (Business Leadership)
• Patricia Roman, Clark (Volunteerism)
• Margaret Salisbury, Union (Lifetime Achievement)

(Photos by Jim Lowney/County of Union)

Union County Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados and Freeholder Bette Jane Kowalski attend the 2018 Union County Teen Arts Festival at Union County College in Cranford. The Union County Teen Arts Festival is an annual two-day celebration of the arts sponsored by the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders through the Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs in the Department of Parks and Recreation. The event is open to all students from public, charter, private and parochial middle and high schools in Union County.

Union County Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados and Freeholder Angel G. Estrada joined Jen Erdos of the Union County Office on Women in thanking Elise Joy of Girls Helping Girls Period as she delivered a donation of a year’s worth of feminine hygiene products to YWCA of Union County Director of Residential Programs Candyce Mayers at the YWCA in Elizabeth.

The donation, coordinated by the Union County Office on Women and YWCA Union County Executive Director Janice C. Lilien, was in honor of International Women’s Day.

Girls Helping Girls Period collects unopened boxes of products and distributes them to people in need, through food pantries, schools systems and outreach programs. For more information about the organization, visit www.girlshelpinggirlsperiod.org.

March 7, 2018
For immediate release
Contact: Sebastian D’Elia
Communications Director
908-527-4419
Union County Freeholders Announce New Office of Community Engagement and Diversity

Union County, NJ — The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders have announced the establishment of the Office of Community Engagement and Diversity. The new office is tasked with supporting and growing volunteer activities by identifying opportunities, coordinating events, building a volunteer network and strengthening relationships with the County’s diverse communities.

Union County Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados announced the new office as part of his “Moving Union County Forward” initiatives for 2018 in his address during the county’s 162nd Annual Reorganization.

“As someone active in the volunteer community, I know that Union County residents are passionate, energized, and eager to lend their time and their skills to make a real difference,” said Chairman Granados. “This new office will help volunteers connect with new opportunities to engage, and help all of our volunteer stakeholders – including business, non-profit and academic – coordinate their efforts for maximum impact.”

Advocates from the non-profit community thanked Granados and the Freeholder Board as a whole for creating the office:

Donna Lowe Alexander, CEO & President of Urban League of Union County, Inc. and Crystal A. Orr, President of Urban League of Union County Young Professionals, stated:

“As the new presidents of the Urban League of Union County, Inc. and Urban League of Union County Young Professionals (ULUCYP), we are happy that the Office of Community Engagement and Diversity has been established. Our mission is to empower and seek equality for people who are disadvantaged and underrepresented in Housing, Education, Employment and Healthcare. By creating this office, Union County is taking a vested interest to learn and access the needs of the diverse groups of people that we serve. We are looking forward to partnering with Nathalie and her team to continue to enhance our communities and change lives.”

Dr. Norma Bowe the founder of Be The Change NJ, a community service and activist group stated:

“Be The Change NJ Kean University is excited to partner on a variety of community based projects with the Union County Office of Community Engagement & Diversity. This weekend, we will be working with the Office and several other organizations to provide 1,000 sandwiches to 10 locations throughout the State to celebrate our 10 years of Homelessness Relief.”

Janice Lilien, Chief Executive Office of the YWCA of Union County said:

“The YWCA Union County is so pleased to work with the Office of Community Engagement and Diversity. As a leading agency addressing the empowerment of women as well as the elimination of racism, we rely on our entire community to work in partnership to address these important societal issues. Union County has led the way in improving our community and we are proud to work alongside them.”

Darwin Roman, President of the Union County Latino American Chamber of Commerce said:

“As President of the Union County Latino American Chamber of Commerce we are proud to partner with the County of Union. Union County is rich in Multicultural diversity. We feel that our chamber is in alignment with the goals and initiatives of the Office of Community Engagement and Diversity. The Latino community is poised for growth with our support in enhancing and advancing, both in education and economically. We look forward to reaching astronomical levels of success in 2018 and beyond!”

The Office operates under the Department of Economic Development, where it uses existing County staff and resources to carry out the following functions:

• Provide outreach to local community based groups and volunteer organizations to create a network and directory of same.

• Coordinate countywide community events and programs which foster and promote volunteerism in Union County.

• Reinforce strategies for building relationships with the County’s diverse communities to include culture, lifestyle, ethnicity, and race.

• Bring communities together on issues important to them and find creative & innovative solutions to ensure inclusion and collaboration on a multi-faceted vision for the County’s diverse communities.

During the past few months, the Office of Community Engagement and Diversity has completed the following projects:

 Donation Drives for Hurricane Harvey victims and YWCA Union County Domestic Violence Shelter in Elizabeth;

 Coordinated with the Urban League of Union County Young Professionals to collect business clothing for the Cinderella’s Closet at our Elizabeth & Plainfield One Stop Center;

 Coordinated with an Elizabeth resident and the Union County Department of Human Services to collect their donation of 20 cots for the County’s Code Blue Operations;

 Coordinated County Volunteer Days at the Community Food Bank of New Jersey and at Kean University to participate in Be The Change NJ’s 10th Anniversary of Operation PB & J to feed the homeless;

The office is currently working on projects with Bernice’s Place, We Are One NJ, Union County Family Success Centers, Be The Change NJ, and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Essex, Hudson, & Union Counties.

Individuals who wish to connect with a volunteer organization or initiative in Union County can register online with the Office of Community Engagement and Diversity, at ucnj.org/ office-of-community-engagement-diversity/volunteers.

“Part of the idea behind the registry is to provide our immigrant community with bilingual services and support, so I encourage individuals who speak a second language to sign up and participate,” said Granados.

Groups and organizations seeking to connect with volunteers can register at ucnj.org/office-of-community-engagement-diversity/groups.

For more information about the Office of Community Engagement and Diversity contact Nathalie Hernandez, the Office’s coordinator, at 908-527-4880 or nahernandez@ucnj.org.

Union County Freeholder Alexander Mirabella joined Mountainside Mayor Paul Mirabelli, Councilman Robert W. Messler, Councilwoman Deanna Andre, Councilwoman Wendy Fech Caccamo and Senior Citizen Coordinator Kim Moriak in cutting the ribbon officially opening the new Senior Lounge at the Mountainside Municipal Building.

The new Senior Lounge and other improvements to the borough’s Senior Center were made by possible with a $25,000 Union County Senior Focus Grant from the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders. (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)

Union County Freeholder Bruce H. Bergen has been appointed as the Chairman of the Raritan Valley Rail Coalition (RVRC), a rail transit advocacy group representing towns and counties along the NJ TRANSIT Raritan Valley line.

“I congratulate Chairman Bergen, and I look forward to working hard with him on the Coalition,” Kowalski said. “With the welcome change of leadership and direction in the Governor’s Office, we look forward to making progress on both our long-term and short-term goals in improving rail service.”

Union County Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados congratulated Bergen on his appointment and added the Freeholder Board would work to strongly support his goals on the RVRC.

“Union County as a whole is a regional transit hub, and long-term improvements to its rail system are crucial to the economic well-being of our residents,” Granados said. “My colleagues and I look forward to working with Freeholder Bergen, who is leading the RVRC, and Freeholder Vice Chairman Kowalski in their efforts to lobby for crucially needed changes to the system.”

As a major part of his objectives, Bergen noted he would emphasize supporting Governor Phil Murphy’s goals of improving rail service and increasing funding, not just for the Raritan Valley Line, but for the crucially important Gateway Project, and other vital efforts at NJ Transit.

Bergen expressed the RVRC’s support for the Gateway Project, which includes the construction of an additional two-track tunnel to New York, adding that the existing network is on “life support,” and in dire need of repair and expansion. Construction of new tunnels under the Hudson River could provide sufficient capacity under the Hudson River to give the Raritan Valley Rail line a full schedule of one seat rides to New York Penn Station.

“The importance of the Gateway project to the travelling public and the regional economy cannot be understated.  While there are recent news reports of a setback in funding from the Trump administration, this is a project of utmost consequence and one that the RVRC has been vociferously advocating for. While some suggest shrinking the scope of the Gateway project is a solution to the funding problem, reality calls for full completion of the work.”

Bergen added he would also support a current NJ State legislative bill which includes $5 million in state funds for capacity improvements to the Raritan Valley Line.

To further improve the Raritan Valley Line, the RVRC supports a rail “flyover” that would alleviate switching problems between the Raritan Valley Line and Amtrak, which today causes train delays. It also supports the triple tracking of a section of the rail line and it urges further work on a same-platform transfer at Newark Penn Station.

The RVRC was created in 1998 to advocate for a one-seat ride on the Raritan Valley Line. At the time, Raritan Valley riders had to switch trains at Newark because diesel engines were not allowed into the tunnels under the Hudson River. 

In 2014, NJ Transit began using dual-mode locomotives that could switch from diesel to electric power, making it possible to have a direct ride into New York City. The first midday, off-peak weekday one-seat rides into New York started in March 2014, and evening service started in January 2015. However, rush-hour commuters still have to change trains in Newark.

The Raritan Valley Line is a commuter rail service operated by NJ Transit which serves passengers in municipalities in Union, Somerset, Middlesex and Hunterdon counties in New Jersey. Union County stops include: Union, Roselle Park, Cranford, Garwood, Westfield, Fanwood,  Netherwood and Plainfield.  From Union County, the trains travel westward to High Bridge with eleven additional stops.

The RVRC website is www.raritanvalleyrail.com

Union County Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados welcomed Trisha Yurochko, the head coach of the Children’s Specialized Hospital Paralympic Sports Club Children’s Lightning Wheels, to the Union County Roundtable meeting for the Special Needs Community at the Cranford Community Center.

They were joined by Union County Department of Human Services Director Debbie-Ann Anderson, Union County Division of Outreach and Advocacy Director Maureen Segale-Glenn and Manuel Ramirez and Nicole DeAugustine of the Union County of Office for People with Special Needs.

The roundtable meeting was facilitated by Trisha Yurochko as more than 40 participants discussed and assessed current programs and services offered to individuals with special needs throughout Union County.

The creation of the state’s first-ever Office for People with Special Needs is part of Chairman’s “Moving Union County Forward” initiatives.

For more information about the Office for People with Special Needs, visit www.ucnj.org/departments/human-services/office-for-people-with-special-needs.

(Photo by Jim Lowney/County)