Category: Public Info

Union County Freeholder Chairman Bruce H. Bergen and Freeholders Linda Carter and Alexander Mirabella presented a resolution to Union County Vocational-Technical Schools Superintendent Peter Capodice, National Future Farmers of America (FFA) advisor and horticulture instructor Bonnie Baldasare, FFA member Aaron Etienne and FFA president Emiliano Chirigliano designating the week of February 20, 2016 through February 27, 2016 as National Future Farmers of America Week in Union County. (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)

All Union County veterans and their families are invited to attend a series of free classes covering all aspects of healthy living from nutrition and fitness to cooking, yoga and tai chi. Come and discover new, fun, and interesting strategies for improving your overall wellness and helping your children to make healthy choices, too. 

The series kicked off on February 1 and it will take place twice weekly at the Cranford VFW, at 479 South Avenue in Cranford, until June 29. All classes and workshops start at 6:30 p.m. and last 1-2 hours.

No need to pre-register, just drop in and enjoy!

Trinitas Regional Medical Center is sponsoring the series. For more information, contact Trinitas at 908-994-7278.

Union County, NJ – The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders is pleased to announce that the Union County Means Green seminar is scheduled for Monday, March 7, 8:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon at the Donald R. Conklin Conference Center, Kean University STEM Building, 1000 Morris Avenue in Union Township.

Union County Means Green is a free breakfast networking and information event connecting local businesses and commercial property owners with information about environmental programs, goods, and services that can help engage customers and boost the bottom line.

Municipal agencies, environmental commissions and non-profits are also welcome to attend.

Full details and pre-registration information will be available soon.

Union County Means Green is sponsored by the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders with the generous support of Covanta Energy.

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.

Focus on Families Community Conversation will be next Wednesday, February 17th from 6 PM- 8 PM at Abraham Clark High School in Roselle.

Residents, Businesses and Community Stakeholders are welcome.

There will be giveaways and a light dinner. Come and join an important conversation to make change happen.

CRANFORD, NJ – Do you like working with artists, teachers and students? The Union County Teen Arts Festival provides an opportunity for volunteers to get involved.

The Union County Teen Arts Festival is a two-day celebration of the arts. It is held annually at Union County College in Cranford and is sponsored by the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders through the Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs in the Department of Parks and Recreation.

This year’s Teen Arts Festival is scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday, March 23 and March 24. The event is open to all students from public, charter, private and parochial middle and high schools in Union County.

“Nearly 3,500 students participate in performances, critiquing seminars, master classes and workshops with a staff of 55 professional artists in every discipline – visual art, music, creative writing, theater and dance,” said Freeholder Chairman Bruce H. Bergen.

“Volunteers are needed to assist artists with workshops, manage performance sites and staff information stations,” said Freeholder Bette Jane Kowalski, who serves as the Freeholder Liaison on the Cultural and Heritage Advisory Board. “Volunteers get to see some of the great work our kids are doing. It’s really a lot of fun!”

If you are interested in any of these activities, contact the Union County Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs at 633 Pearl Street, Elizabeth, New Jersey 07202. Telephone: 908-558-2550; NJ Relay Users call 711. Or e-mail us at: culturalinfo@ucnj.org.

The U. S. Small Business Administration announced today that due to a steady decrease of activity, the Recovery Centers located in Bergen, Essex, Hudson and Union counties will cease operations on Feb.  11.  The Centers located in Atlantic, Monmouth and Ocean counties will remain open until further notice.  However, in observance of Presidents’ Day, the Centers located in Atlantic and Ocean counties will be closed on Friday, Feb. 12 and Monday, Feb. 15; the Monmouth County Center will be closed on Feb. 15 for the holiday. 

SBA’s Customer Service Representatives are available at the Centers to answer questions from businesses and residents affected by Superstorm Sandy about the disaster loan program and help survivors complete their applications. 

The following Union County location and hours of operation are as indicated below: 

Union County
Union County Administration Building
2nd Floor, Department of Human Services Suite
10 Elizabethtown Plaza
Elizabeth, NJ 07207
Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday – Friday
Closing Thursday, Feb. 11

Anyone unable to visit a Center may apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via SBA’s secure website at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela.

Businesses and individuals may also obtain disaster loan information and application forms by calling the SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955 (800-877-8339 for the deaf and hard-of-hearing) or by sending an email to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.  Loan applications can be downloaded from www.sba.gov/disaster.  Completed applications can be returned to a center or mailed to: U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road,
Fort Worth, TX 76155.

The filing deadline to return applications for physical property damage is Dec. 1, 2016.  The deadline to return economic injury applications is Dec. 1, 2016.

Union County, NJ – It’s never too early to start planning ahead for the gardening season, and you can get a head start on a successful harvest by attending the fourth annual, “Get Your Vegetable Garden Growing” workshop on Saturday, February 27, 9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. at the Union County Vo-Tech Schools campus, 1776 Raritan Road in Scotch Plains.

All gardeners are welcome, with or without experience, including backyard gardeners and persons interested in starting a school or community garden.

A nominal fee of $25.00 includes lunch, materials, and a full day of workshops and seminars conducted by Rutgers agriculture experts.

More details and a brochure with a registration form are available at the Union County website, ucnj.org.

To register online, visit tinyurl.com/schoolgardenconference by February 17. Registrations are also accepted by mail. To request a brochure and registration form by mail, call the Extension office in Westfield at 908-654-9854.

The Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Union County is a program of the Rutgers New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, supported in part by the Freeholder Board. For more information other Extension programs including 4-H, Master Gardeners and Master Tree Stewards, visit ucnj.org/rce.

#  #

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.

Photo credit: Ali Eminov via flickr.com, creative commons license.

Union County, NJ – On Tuesday, February 9, 2016 at 8:30 a.m. Union County Sheriff Joe Cryan presided over a ceremony at the Union County Courthouse in Elizabeth, promoting Sergeant Nakera Sherman from the rank of Sheriff’s Officer to Sheriff’s Officer Sergeant.

Sergeant Sherman is a 13 year veteran of the Sheriff’s Office.  She resides in Plainfield with her two daughters, Kayla and Jada, both of whom were present at their mother’s side for the ceremony.

Sheriff Cryan administered the oath and addressed the crowded courtroom afterwards.

“It is my honor and pleasure to promote Sergeant Sherman.  She is quite deserving of this promotion.  She has been a consistent performer and professional wherever she has been assigned for her entire career.  I have the utmost confidence in her going forward, and I congratulate her and her family on this milestone,” said Cryan.

Sergeant Sherman briefly addressed the crowd. “I want to thank Sheriff Cryan for his confidence in me,” she said, “And I want to thank my family and God for this opportunity and this challenge.”

Sergeant Sherman will be assigned to the Complex Security Division.

#  #

For information about the programs and services of the Sheriff’s Office, visit online at ucnj.org/sheriff.

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:

Photo caption (photo attached): Veteran Sheriff’s Officer Nakera Sherman is sworn in to her new rank of Sergeant by Union County Sheriff Joe Cryan with the help of her daughters Kayla (far l.) and Jada. Photo: Jim Lowney/County of Union.

Through the NYU Langone Medical Center, the Cohen Veterans Center is currently conducting a research study to determine how to better diagnose PTSD, TBI and depression in veterans and active service members.

They are looking for participants who:

• Served in Iraq or Afghanistan in Operation
• Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and/or Operation New Dawn
• Are veterans or active duty service members.

All information is confidential and will not be shared In addition to travel expenses, participants may receive up to $550 compensation for their time and effort

For more information or to participate in the study, please contact 877-698-3299.