Category: Public Info

Union County Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados and Freeholders Angela R. Garretson and Mohamed S. Jalloh present a resolution to the players and coaches of the Roselle Catholic High School Lady Lions Girls Basketball Team congratulating them on winning the 2018 Union County Tournament Championship. They were joined by Assemblywoman Linda Carter. The Lady Lions, under the guidance of Head Coach Joe Skrec, captured their sixth championship in school history as the second seed in the tournament. (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)

Union County Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados and Freeholder Alexander Mirabella present a resolution to the players and coaches of the Westfield High School Blue Devils Football Team congratulating them on winning their third straight North Jersey, Section 2, Group 5 Championship with a 20-7 victory over Bridgewater-Raritan. They were joined by Assemblywoman Linda Carter. (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)

Union County Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados and Freeholder Angel G. Estrada present a resolution to members of the Elizabeth Portugal Day Committee congratulating Grand Marshal Leonilde Mateiro, Marshal Manuel Pinho (posthumously) and Honorary Marshal Marie Costa while recognizing the longest-running Portuguese Parade in the State of New Jersey. The 40th annual Portuguese Day Parade on June 3, 2018 in Elizabeth. (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)

Union County, NJ – Members of the Union County 4-H Teen Service Club volunteered as docents at the Rutgers Geology Museum last Saturday for a National Science Foundation program called In Search of Earth’s Secrets: A Pop-Up Science Encounter.

The students helped visitors navigate the interactive exhibits, as part of a collaborative project including the Rutgers University Department of Marine & Coastal Science, the New Brunswick Free Public Library, and the Girl Scouts of Central & Southern New Jersey.

Pictured here, Union County 4-H member Michael Laumbach of Scotch Plains explains plate tectonics to visitors.

Union County 4-H is a learn-by-doing youth development program run by the Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Union County, supported in part by the Freeholder Board. To join a club or to get more information contact Union County 4-H Agent Jim Nichnadowicz at jnichnadowicz@ucnj.org or visit online at ucnj.org/rce.

Photo credit: Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Union County.

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For all Union County programs and services visit ucnj.org, call the Public Info Line, 877-424-1234, email info@ucnj.org or use the online Contact Form.

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Union County, NJ – The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders invites parents and caregivers to attend any of the upcoming Union County Police Department Traffic Safety Education programs to learn about car and bike safety equipment for children.

“As children start to spend more time outside and the summer travel season approaches, now is the time for parents and caregivers to ensure they are wearing properly fitted bike helmets, and that child safety seats are properly sized and installed,” said Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados.

To help parents and caregivers ensure that helmets and car seats are adjusted properly, the Union County Department of Public Safety is offering a series of free Traffic Safety Education programs  in May, June, July and August, in partnership with IKEA.

Trained personnel will be on hand to provide guidance who can provide guidance and answer questions on bicycle safety and the proper use of a bicycle helmet, and to ensure that car seats are installed correctly.

“We want to encourage children to enjoy healthy outdoor activities, and it is also important to get children in the habit of using safety equipment that is adjusted properly,” added Chairman Granados.

New Jersey state law requires helmets for persons under age 17 using a bicycles, skateboards, in-line skates and conventional roller skates

The dates and locations for the programs are:

Friday, May 25

Child Seat Education Workshop (Bilingual)

8:00am – 10:00am

1122 E. Grand Street, Elizabeth

 

Saturday, June 2

 “Ask the Expert” Traffic Safety Education Table

1:00pm – 3:00pm

1000 IKEA Drive, Elizabeth

 

Sunday, June 3

Garwood Rocks Street Festival

10:00am – 5:00pm

Downtown Garwood

 

Saturday, June 16

Child Seat Inspection Clinic

12:00pm – 4:00pm

1000 IKEA Drive, Elizabeth

 

Saturday, July 14

Child Seat Inspection Clinic

12:00pm – 4:00pm

1000 IKEA Drive, Elizabeth

 

Saturday, August 4

Child Seat Inspection Clinic

12:00pm – 4:00pm

1000 IKEA Drive, Elizabeth

For more information about the Traffic Safety Education programs, contact Christine Marcantonio, Traffic Safety Program Coordinator at cmarcantonio@ucnj.org or 908-789-6830.    

 

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For all Union County programs and services visit ucnj.org, call the Public Info Line, 877-424-1234, email info@ucnj.org or use the online Contact Form.

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Union County, NJ – Home gardeners and property managers who are interested in joining the native plant movement can get resources and information – and plants – through the Union County “Plant Swap & Shop” event on Thursday evening, June 7, from 6:00 to 8:30 p.m. at the Union County Demonstration Garden in the Watchung Reservation.

Plant Swap & Shop is free but pre-registration is required by emailing Union County’s Watershed Ambassador at watershed7@ucnj.org. The event is a collaboration between the New Jersey Watershed Ambassador program and the Union County Department of Parks and Recreation.

“Many Union County residents are eager to help conserve native plants and create a healthy environment in their own backyards,” said Union County Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados. “The ‘Plant Swap & Shop’ event is a good opportunity to explore your options and receive guidance from local experts.”

Participants in Plant Swap & Shop can bring an invasive plant to the event and trade it for a beneficial native plant, free of charge.

Additional native plants from the Toadshade Wildflower Farm will also be available for purchase at the Demonstration Garden during the event, and volunteer Master Gardeners will be on hand to provide tours of the garden including the Native Plants and Rain Garden beds.

“The benefits of native plants are well known, including water and soil conservation, and ease of maintenance,” said Chairman Granados. “Native plants can even benefit human health by eliminating problems linked to non-native species.”

One example cited by Granados is the Japanese barberry, a common but invasive, non-native shrub that can spread from landscaped properties into public parks and nature conservation areas.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has warned that Japanese barberry generates a humid micro climate that attracts deer ticks and white-footed deer mice, both of which are carriers of Lyme disease.

“Instead of barberry, ask your landscaper or local garden shop to recommend native species that create a more healthful environment for people, flora and fauna,” said Chairman Granados. “To help you search for alternatives we have also updated our Plant This, Not That guide for native plants that thrive in our area.”

Plant This, Not That was initially created by a local Girl Scout with assistance from the Union County Department of Parks and Recreation. The Parks Department recently expanded the guide with additional information and resources. The new version is available as a free download on the Union County website at ucnj.org/parks-recreation. 

The Demonstration Garden is located by Union County’s Trailside Nature & Science Center at 452 New Providence Road in Mountainside. Ample free parking is available.

The garden is run by the Master Gardeners, an all-volunteer organization supported in part by the Freeholder Board as a program of the Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Union County. For information about participating the Master Gardeners and other Extension programs in Union County, including Master Tree Stewards, Environmental Stewards and 4-H youth clubs, visit online at ucnj.org/rce or call 908-654-9854.

Volunteers who would like to help conserve native species in Union County parks can join the Adopt-a-Park program. Union County Adopt-a-Park is also a partner in the New Jersey Invasive Species Strike Team. For details contact the Union County Department of Parks and Recreation at 908-789-3683 or visit ucnj.org/parks-recreation.

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For all Union County programs and services visit ucnj.org, call the Public Info Line, 877-424-1234, email info@ucnj.org or use the online Contact Form.

Connect with Union County on social media.

Union County, NJ – The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders invites residents and visitors of all ages to celebrate the 50^th Anniversary of National Trails Day at the Watchung Reservation on Saturday, June 2, where the County’s Trailside Nature & Science Center will host four different guided hikes and an Adopt-a-Trail volunteer activity along with special programs throughout the day for all ages. The event is free, and ample free parking is available.

This year marks the 50^th Anniversary of the National Trails System Act, signed into law by President Johnson on October 2, 1968.

“Preserving, protecting and sharing the legacy of Union County’s public parks and nature preserves is a top priority for the Freeholder Board,” said Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados. “I encourage everyone, especially those who have never hiked our trails before, to come to the Watchung Reservation and enjoy these unique and enriching experiences, guided by experts from our Trailside Nature & Science Center.”

“During this time, as our country engages in a debate over the future of our national parks, it is all the more important to recognize and celebrate the value of recreation and nature conservation in all of our public lands,” added Chairman Granados.

Participants in National Trails Day can choose any of four themed hikes, each lasting approximately 45 minutes to one hour:

12:30: Sensory Awareness – Investigate one of our many trails using yours senses of sight, sound, smell and touch.

1:30: Geocaching – Learn all about this popular outdoor recreational activity and have fun on a geocaching scavenger hunt.

2:30: Learn to Lead – Find out how to read trail blazes and take turns leading the group on one of our marked trails.

3:30: Birding 101 – Discover the basics of birding and how to use binoculars.  Learn to identify local birds by sight and sound.

Throughout the day, participants can visit educational displays at the Trailside Nature and Science Center hosted by Wild Birds Unlimited of Scotch Plains, the Summit Environmental Commission, and the Rutgers Wildlife Society. 

Participants can also meet live reptiles native to the Watchung Reservation such as a painted turtle, box turtle and milk snake during “Reptile of the Hour.”

The National Trails Day celebration also includes children’s activities, crafts, nature touch tables and giveaways throughout the day. 

The Adopt-a-Trail activity will take place rain or shine from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Volunteers will learn how to repair a section of trail bed and remove invasive plants. Tools and a continental breakfast will be provided. Trail work participants must be seven years of age or older and children must be accompanied by an adult, and pre-registration is required by contacting bkelly@uncj.org.

Union County’s park system includes 36 distinct parks that encompass nearly 6,200 acres, from small neighborhood parks to the nearly 2,200-acre Watchung Reservation, the crown jewel of the Parks system and home to the Trailside Nature & Science Center, Watchung Stable, Lake Surprise and The Deserted Village of Feltville.

Union County was one of the first counties in the U.S. to establish its own system of parks, beginning in the 1920’s. Trailside was added to the Watchung Reservation in the 1940’s.

“Trailside also marks a first, as it is the first natural history museum established in New Jersey,” said Chairman Granados. “Today Trailside reaches thousands of residents and visitors every year with important messages about our natural heritage and environmental stewardship.”

For more information about National Trails Day and other activities at Trailside, call 908-789-3670 or visit online at ucnj.org/trailside.   

The Trailside Nature & Science Center is located in the Watchung Reservation in Mountainside, at 452 New Providence Road.

Quick links to more information about Trailside, Union County parks, and all of Union County’s environmental programs and activities are available at The Green Connection, ucnj.org/green-connection

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For all Union County programs and services visit ucnj.org, call the Public Info Line, 877-424-1234, email info@ucnj.org or use the online Contact Form.

Connect with Union County on social media.

Union County, NJ – The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders is proud to announce that the rainbow flag will fly for the first time at the Union County Courthouse in recognition of June as LGBTQ Pride Month. A public Pride Flag Raising Ceremony event is planned for Monday, June 4 at 1:00 P.M. on the steps of the historic Union County Courthouse on Broad Street in Elizabeth.

“Raising the rainbow flag at our County Courthouse is a significant symbol of inclusion and support for the LGBTQ community in Union County,” said Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados. “It is an honor to invite LGBTQ individuals, allies, elected officials and community leaders from throughout the county and the state to join us for this historic event.”

Demonstrating the Freeholder Board’s commitment to stand with LGBTQ individuals, advocacy groups and supporters to advance equality, the Pride Flag Raising Ceremony is an invitation to everyone—near and far—to join us in celebration, awareness and advocacy.

The ceremony will feature a performance of “This is Me” (from the Greatest Showman) by students of Elizabeth’s Thomas Jefferson Arts Academy Acapella Chorus, proudly coordinated by counselors of the YES (Youth Enrichment Services) Program.

“Now more than ever, in the face of daunting challenges for the LGBTQ community at the national level, the unity found through Pride events is essential to advancing the equal rights movement,” said Freeholder Alexander Mirabella, liaison to the Freeholder’s LGBTQ Ad Hoc Committee.

The “Pride Flag” was popularized as a symbol of the gay community by San Francisco artist Gilbert Baker in 1978 at the request of LGBT-rights activist Harvey Milk, who challenged Baker to create “an insignia of pride capable of affirming social independence.” In the late 1980’s Baker noted the meaning the Pride Flag has come to signify when he said, “The flag is an action – it’s more than just the cloth and the stripes. When a person puts the Rainbow Flag on his car or his house, they’re not just flying a flag. They’re taking action.” Today, the Pride Flag is globally used to further the movement towards equal rights.

In addition to the Pride Flag Raising Ceremony on June 4, the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders is hosting Union County’s first Light Up The Night TEEN PRIDE (the alternative prom) on Friday, June 15 at UCPAC’s Hamilton Stage in Rahway, as well as the 2^nd annual Family PRIDE CommUNITY Picnic on Saturday, June 16 at Rahway River Park in Rahway. For more information about these events visit ucnj.org/pride.

Union County’s Pride Month events are organized by the Office of LGBTQ Services. Established as part of Chairman Granados’ 2018 Moving Union County Forward initiatives, the Office of LGBTQ Services, under the Division of Outreach and Advocacy in the Department of Human Services, is the first County government office of its kind in the State of New Jersey. It provides a platform for leadership and collaboration to support equality, serving as a catalyst for advocacy, awareness and action.

For more information about the Office of LGBTQ Services, contact Danni Newbury, coordinator, at 908-527-4742 or dnewbury@ucnj.org or visit ucnj.org/lgbtq.

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