Seventeen inches of snow might have blanketed North Bergen last weekend, but there was no way the wintry mess was going to delay the township’s annual Christmas Party.
There might have been a blizzard all day Saturday, but come Sunday morning, when the sun appeared for the first time after the winter blast, the township’s Parks and Recreation Department were ready to greet the 500 or so youngsters who anxiously anticipated the day.
"We were monitoring the weather forecasts pretty well," said Commissioner Allen Pascual, who heads the township’s Parks and Recreation Department. "We were always hopeful that we were going to pull it off. Sure, there was a little fear, especially with all the snow we received. But it was going to go on."
Part of the reason the party had to be held was that it was moved to Schuetzen Park for the first time to accommodate all the children and their parents. Postponing the event for another week might not have been an option, with the catering facility’s always hectic schedule.
Plus, many of the 1,000 gifts and toys were already transported to the site beforehand.
"Too many people were awaiting this party," Pascual said. "We had to hold it."
In fact, many of Pascual’s workers were out in the snow on Friday and Saturday purchasing the items in time for the party.
"We got most of the last-minute shopping done Friday and Saturday," Pascual said. "The Recreation workers did the shopping, and the Parks guys did the transportation. But they all really worked so hard to make sure everything got done."
Recreation secretary Barbara Roger was the driving force behind the purchasing of the toys and gifts. Parks supervisor Joe Rotondi made sure that the gifts arrived on time.
"It really turned out nice," Pascual said. "We had a nice turnout and everything went off without a glitch."
North Bergen Mayor Nicholas Sacco said that the move to Schuetzen Park from the old St. Rocco’s bingo hall on Kennedy Boulevard was a strategic one.
"Schuetzen Park ended up being a good location," Sacco said. "We were able to absorb the crowd better there. We didn’t discuss canceling it. No snowstorm was going to stop this from happening. The place was rented. We were ready. It didn’t matter than there was so much snow the day before. This party was on."
Sacco was on hand to help distribute the gifts, including more than 100 bicycles that were raffled off.
Most of the money to pay for the toys and gifts came from a fund-raising golf outing, organized by Larry Gold of Gold Coast Cleaners, who raised $25,000 in the event over the summer to help purchase the toys.
As a sign of appreciation, Sacco presented Gold with an award for his generosity.
"Larry Gold did a wonderful job in raising the money for the event," Sacco said. "Every child gets at least one gift. There must have been more than 1,000 gifts there."
"Larry Gold gets all the credit for his fundraising," Pascual said. "He does it because he wants to help the kids. There’s no other reason. He’s a good man."
Sacco said that he received enjoyment out of watching the kids.
"They were jumping up and down, holding their raffle tickets, getting so excited," Sacco said. "They listened for their numbers, and if their number was called, they all screamed. It was really a nice function and just another good holiday program for our children to enjoy."