Category: Public Info

Union County, NJ – Members of the Union County 4-H Third Grade Variety Club collected pet food for homeless pets and presented their donations to the Best Friends Thrift Shop last week. The store, located at 1750 East Second Street in Scotch Plains, helps support the Best Friends pet rescue and adoption organization, www.bestfriend.petfinder.org.  Pictured (front, l-r) are 4-H club members Pauline Tardif, Griffin Cederquist of Rahway, Nathan Lam of Westfield, Mikaeli Gomez of Plainfield, Talia Remba of Westfield, and club leader Martha Garcia of Union, with Best Friends volunteer Lorraine Jakubowski of Clark (rear). Union County 4-H is supported in part by the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders. To join a Union County 4-H club contact 4-H agent James Nichnadowicz by phone, 908-654-9854 or email jnichnadowicz@ucnj.org.

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4-H educational programs are offered to all youth, grades k-13, on an age appropriate basis, without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, gender, or disability. For additional information about 4-H clubs in Union County, contact 908-654-9854, or jnichnadowicz@ucnj.org.

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

BERKELEY HEIGHTS, NJ – The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders through the Department of Parks and Community Renewal is pleased to announce the availability of an exercise program at Runnells Specialized Hospital in Berkeley Heights for people who have had strokes or those who have other physical limitations.

“These special classes, which are instructed by a recreation therapist, a music therapist, and recreation therapy aides, address general fitness needs,” said Freeholder Angel G. Estrada, liaison to the Union County Advisory Board on the Disabled. “This non-stressful exercise program focuses on strength and range of motion, body awareness, overall health and exercises that can be performed in a participant’s home.”

Classes are accessible to those in wheelchairs and the program contains activities that can be adapted to everyone. The schedule of classes is every Tuesday and Thursday from 12:00 noon to 1:00 p.m. from April 5 through November 10.

Pre-registration is required by April 1, along with a current doctor’s release. There is a one-time enrollment fee of $20 per person for the modified exercise program.

Runnells Specialized Hospital is located at 40 Watchung Way in Berkeley Heights, and it is a service of the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders. For further information, please contact the Union County Department of Parks and Community Renewal, Programs for the Disabled, at (908) 527-4806 or email: mheisey@ucnj.org

Union County Clerk Joanne Rajoppi announced today a 30 percent increase in the number of property documents now accessible on the Clerk’s Property Website, bringing to 22 the total number of document types available.

“The addition of eight new document types is a major and substantial addition,” Ms. Rajoppi said. “It provides greater accessibility and information to our clients so they don’t have to leave the familiarity of their computer screens. All of the new document type additions are related to Construction Liens.”

These liens, Ms. Rajoppi explained, were legislated into creation in 1994 and are placed upon real property because a person’s labor, supplies or other goods were used to improve the property without full compensation of their services.

The Clerk’s Property Website at http://clerk.ucnj.org was initiated in 2001 and was the first in the state to pioneer on-line access. The site provides customers with the ability to search documents by name, date range, book/page or instrument number from 1977 to the present in different property categories. More than two million documents are indexed and available for viewing on the site with a total of more than eight million imaged pages.

Documents can now be downloaded free of charge. Customers also can use credit cards to gain certified copies of documents.

Last year, Ms. Rajoppi replaced the website’s server with a newer, more reliable and secure server. In order to protect against identity theft, personal identifiers are redacted before documents are placed on the site.

“My primary priorities,” Ms. Rajoppi added, “are the protection and integrity of residents’ property recordings and the security of their identities. We do everything possible to guard these concerns.”

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NEW PROVIDENCE, NJ – The County of Union will sponsor a recycling event for electronic equipment on Saturday, March 26, so Union County residents can get rid of unwanted computers, televisions and other electronic equipment in an environmentally proper manner.

The special recycling event will take place from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Alcatel-Lucent Technologies facility located at 600 Mountain Avenue in New Providence 07974.

All residents of Union County are eligible to participate at no cost. There is a limit of six electronic items per car.

“Computer monitors and old televisions are the source of a considerable amount of lead – about five pounds per screen – and it is unlawful to dispose of them in with the regular garbage,” said Freeholder Christopher Hudak, liaison to the Union County Solid Waste Advisory Board. “Up to 95 percent of most electronic appliances can be recycled. This is a responsible way to keep hazardous heavy metals out of our environment.”

Electronic equipment that will be accepted on March 26 includes computer monitors, hard drives, modems, keyboards, CPU’s, mice, printers, scanners, speakers, televisions, VCR’s, fax machines, telephones, and circuit boards.

All that residents need to do is drive to the site with their unwanted electronic equipment. Workers at the site will unload the vehicles.

Pre-registration is not required for this special Saturday collection.

Refrigerators, washers and dryers, microwaves, and air conditioners will not be accepted.

A complete list of the materials that will be accepted on March 26 is available at the Union County Bureau of Environmental Conservation website: www.ucnj.org/recycle.

The electronics collection will be held rain or shine, for Union County residents only and not for businesses. There is a limit of six electronic items per vehicle. Proof of Union County residency is required.

In addition to the special March 26 recycling event sponsored by the County of Union, there are other local opportunities for residents to recycle electronic equipment. Visit https://ucnj.org/recycle for more computer and electronics recycling options.

Goodwill and Dell have teamed up to recycle computers. Goodwill in Union County is located at 126 Route 22 West, Springfield 07081, next to Macy’s Furniture. Call Goodwill at 973-912-0156 for more details or visit their web site: http://www.reconnectpartnership.com.

Best Buy stores now offer electronics recycling, including TVs, computer monitors, DVD players and other consumer electronics. Visit their website (http://www.bestbuy.com) for store locations, or call toll-free for information about electronics recycling: 1-888-237-8289.

Staples also offers a computer recycling program seven days a week. For more information, visit the Staples web site for store locations: http://www.staples.com.

An alternative drop-off program for recycling electronics equipment is available Monday through Friday between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. at Newtech Recycling, located at 600-A Apgar Drive, Somerset NJ 08873; (732) 469-9774.

For more information about recycling events, please call the Union County Recycling Hotline at (908) 654-9889.

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NEW PROVIDENCE, NJ – The County of Union will sponsor a recycling event for electronic equipment on Saturday, March 26, so Union County residents can get rid of unwanted computers, televisions and other electronic equipment in an environmentally proper manner.

The special recycling event will take place from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Alcatel-Lucent Technologies facility located at 600 Mountain Avenue in New Providence 07974.

All residents of Union County are eligible to participate at no cost. There is a limit of six electronic items per car.

“Computer monitors and old televisions are the source of a considerable amount of lead – about five pounds per screen – and it is unlawful to dispose of them in with the regular garbage,” said Freeholder Christopher Hudak, liaison to the Union County Solid Waste Advisory Board. “Up to 95 percent of most electronic appliances can be recycled. This is a responsible way to keep hazardous heavy metals out of our environment.”

Electronic equipment that will be accepted on March 26 includes computer monitors, hard drives, modems, keyboards, CPU’s, mice, printers, scanners, speakers, televisions, VCR’s, fax machines, telephones, and circuit boards.

All that residents need to do is drive to the site with their unwanted electronic equipment. Workers at the site will unload the vehicles.

Pre-registration is not required for this special Saturday collection.

Refrigerators, washers and dryers, microwaves, and air conditioners will not be accepted.

A complete list of the materials that will be accepted on March 26 is available at the Union County Bureau of Environmental Conservation website: www.ucnj.org/recycle.

The electronics collection will be held rain or shine, for Union County residents only and not for businesses. There is a limit of six electronic items per vehicle. Proof of Union County residency is required.

In addition to the special March 26 recycling event sponsored by the County of Union, there are other local opportunities for residents to recycle electronic equipment. Visit https://ucnj.org/recycle for more computer and electronics recycling options.

Goodwill and Dell have teamed up to recycle computers. Goodwill in Union County is located at 126 Route 22 West, Springfield 07081, next to Macy’s Furniture. Call Goodwill at 973-912-0156 for more details or visit their web site: http://www.reconnectpartnership.com.

Best Buy stores now offer electronics recycling, including TVs, computer monitors, DVD players and other consumer electronics. Visit their website (http://www.bestbuy.com) for store locations, or call toll-free for information about electronics recycling: 1-888-237-8289.

Staples also offers a computer recycling program seven days a week. For more information, visit the Staples web site for store locations: http://www.staples.com.

An alternative drop-off program for recycling electronics equipment is available Monday through Friday between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. at Newtech Recycling, located at 600-A Apgar Drive, Somerset NJ 08873; (732) 469-9774.

For more information about recycling events, please call the Union County Recycling Hotline at (908) 654-9889.

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Union County Freeholder Linda Carter reads to children at the Barnes & Noble bookstore in Clark on March 2 during the Union County Education Association’s annual Read Across America event. Read Across America is an reading motivation and awareness program that calls for every child in every community to celebrate reading on March 2, the birthday of children’s author Dr. Seuss.  (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 Bette Jane Kowalski reads to children at the Barnes & Noble bookstore in Clark on March 2 during the Union County Education Association’s annual Read Across America event. Read Across America is an reading motivation and awareness program that calls for every child in every community to celebrate reading on March 2, the birthday of children’s author Dr. Seuss.  (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

Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Union County offers free class

Union County, NJ – If you are trying to teach a child healthier food and exercise habits, but are feeling overwhelmed by the amount of information available, help is at hand. The Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Union County is offering a free class on basic youth wellness called “Youth Wellness: How Can Parents Help?” The class will sort through the facts and focus on common sense solutions that work. All parents and other caregivers are welcome. The class is conducted by Rutgers professor and nutrition expert Dr. Karen Ensle. It will be held on Thursday, March 24, 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. at the new County building in Westfield, 300 North Avenue East. There is no fee but pre-registration is required by contacting Digna Torres at the Extension offices, 908-654-9854 or dtorres@ucnj.org.

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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 Christopher Hudak reads to second-graders at School No. 6 in Linden on March 2 during the school’s Read Across America event. Read Across America is an reading motivation and awareness program that calls for every child in every community to celebrate reading on March 2, the birthday of children’s author Dr. Seuss. (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

The Union County Home Care Consortium extends its training to address the growing need for in-home care for the elderly and disabled

(Union County, NJ) – The Union County Department of Human Services, Division on Aging, announces its next training program for Home Health Aides beginning May 2nd and ending June 2nd. Classes will be held at Jewish Family Services, 655 Westfield Avenue, Elizabeth from 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Monday through Thursday. When training is completed, students will have the knowledge and skills required by the New Jersey State Board of Nursing to become certified home health aides.

Space in the class is limited. Student interviews will be conducted beginning March 29th. Applicants must be 18 years of age, U.S. citizens or qualified aliens, and have the ability to read, write and speak English proficiently. They must be physically capable of participating in class work such as lifting, getting patients out of bed, giving bed baths, aiding transfers for those with limited mobility, and other patient related care.

The $75.00 registration fee includes textbook and workbook costs. There also is a $65.00 application fee payable to the New Jersey State Board of Nursing. A passport photo is required to be attached to the application.

“Certified home health aides are at the core of home care services that make it possible for people to live more independently in their own homes,” said Freeholder Chairman Deborah P. Scanlon.

To address the growing need for in-home care for the elderly and disabled, the Union County Home Care Consortium, established in 1986 by the Union County Department of Human Services, Division on Aging, was created to attract, train and retain home health aides to provide in-home services.

The Consortium is comprised of non-profit and public agencies committed to providing top quality home health services and dedicated to providing students with superior training in this important service area. Since its establishment, the Consortium has successfully trained more than 800 students, many of whom are still working in the healthcare field.

For more information about Home Health Aide training, call Donna Farrell, Union County Division on Aging, at 908-527-4858. For information about all Union County government services and programs, visit the Union County website,www.ucnj.org.