Mason’s campaigners seek paychecks
On Wednesday, roughly 20 campaign workers showed up at Councilwoman Beth Mason’s headquarters on Washington Street looking for a paycheck, according to several sources.
Mason’s campaign manager Ryan Yacco said the people looking for the payouts were not told by the campaign that they would be paid that night.
“The office was closed,” he said. “Nobody was there. Nobody was supposed to be there.”
“People came looking for checks,” he said. “It’s a fairly regular occurrence, people showing up looking for checks whether they worked on the campaign or not.”
Yacco said most paychecks for campaign work would be distributed to the workers by the weekend. “Beth Mason pays her workers,” he said.
Mayoral candidate announces terminal illness
Mayoral candidate Everton Wilson, a 45-year-old Jamaican graduate student at Stevens Institute of Technology who lost his bid for Hoboken mayor Tuesday night, announced Thursday that his doctors have told him he may have only four or five years to live, although they have yet to diagnose his condition. Wilson said doctors found a growth in his stomach, although they have not yet pinpointed the exact ailment he is suffering from.
Wilson obtained just a handful of votes Tuesday as one of six candidates facing Acting Mayor Dawn Zimmer for the chance to lead the mile-square city for the next three and a half years.
Wilson said Thursday that he has been suffering from weight loss and exhaustion, and doctors told him he may not last another five years.
Wilson said he will try to see another gastrointestinal specialist before he departs for his native Jamaica on Sunday, Nov. 8. Wilson said he wants to be in his homeland, if these are his final years.
“I’ve never been sick,” he said. “I’m not the sick type. This is something devastating to me.”
He planned to hold a going away party on Friday night.
“The funny thing is, my spirits are still up,” he said. “They were down, but nothing keeps me down. Even impending death.”
Taste of Hoboken
The 22nd annual “Taste of Hoboken” fundraiser for the Hoboken/North Hudson YMCA will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 10 a the Schaffer Center, Stevens Institute of Technology campus. See the booklet inside this edition of the Reporter.
A large contingent of local eateries will be participating, including the Elysian Café, Oddfellows, Amanda’s, India on the Hudson, Anthony David’s, Dino & Harry’s, and Vito’s Deli.
Tickets are $60 for general admission and $80 for a special one-hour “champagne preview” at 6 p.m.
There will be light music to accompany the event, and a silent auction for goods and services.
Parking is available off-site at a discount, and there is also shuttle bus service.
For more information on the YMCA or the event, check out the booklet inside this paper, or call (201) 963-4100 or go to www.hobokenymca.org.
Police meet-and-greet for business owners
O n Tuesday, Nov. 10, the Hoboken’s Community Policing Bureau will be conducting its fourth meet-and-greet with Police Chief Anthony Falco. The event will be held from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Hoboken City Council Chambers in City Hall, 94 Washington St.
The event is being co-hosted by the Hoboken Chamber of Commerce and is open to any business owner in Hoboken and their employees.
The topics of discussion will include shoplifting, street vendors, parking, the holiday season, homelessness, and burglaries. There will also be a police community survey conducted.
Newly-elected Mayor Dawn Zimmer will also be in attendance.
The next meet-and-greet for southwest Hoboken is scheduled for the first week in December.
QOLC Thanksgiving Awards
On Thursday, Nov. 12 at 7:30 p.m., the Hoboken Quality of Life Coalition will present its fifth annual Hoboken Thanksgiving Awards to five citizens who have used their time and talent pro bono for the betterment of the city of Hoboken.
The ceremony will be held at Hoboken Historical Museum, Hudson at 13th Street. A reception will follow the event.
Recipients of the awards are as follows: Community Awareness Award to Lawrence Henriques, former president of the Historical Museum and chairman of the board of the Jubilee Center; Civic Award to Toni Tomarazzo leading member of Hoboken Tax Reform Coalition and Hoboken Heritage; The Renee Steinhagen Public Advocacy Award to Ron Hine, first and only Executive Director of Fund for a Better Waterfront; Community Service Award In Memoriam to John DePalma, former Historical Museum president, member of the Hoboken Historic Preservation Commission and president of the 6th Ward Block Association; Citizen Activist Award to Dan Tumpson, the longtime observer and outspoken critic of government procedure and legislation.
A donation of $5 is requested at the door, or $2 for seniors or students. There will be refreshments and a cash bar.
For more information, call (201) 963-3511 or visit www.QLCHoboken.org.
Theatre mixer
The Hudson County Theatre Alliance is hosting the “Fall into the Arts” reception at 7 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 16, at the Stevens Institute of Technology. The event is at the Wesley J. Howe Center in the Bissinger Room, fourth floor.
“Fall into the Arts” is designed as a mixer and business card exchange for members of the arts and theater communities to come together, encouraging collaborations and development of performing arts programs in Hudson County. The 10 member theaters of the HCTA will be represented, along with various other arts and support organizations in Hudson County. Participants are encouraged to bring business cards to exchange along with materials to share about organizations and programs.
For more information, please contact president@hudsonall.org or call (201) 216-5111.
Community leadership forum
The Citizens’ Campaign is hosting a free “Call to Service” forum on Tuesday, Nov. 17 at Our Lady of Grace School Hall, Fifth Street and Willow Avenue, at 7 p.m. to increase awareness of leadership and service opportunities in the city of Hoboken.
This effort is part of a statewide “Jersey Call to Service,” a public service initiative of the Citizens’ Campaign to inspire citizens to participate in the leadership of their communities and reverse the tide of government waste and corruption.
The forum will primarily focus on the Hoboken appointments process, including inside tips for seeking and gaining appointment and information about the current service opportunities available.
Next week, residents will be releasing the findings of a “Citizens’ Rights & Responsibilities” survey conducted by Citizens’ Campaign members and Hoboken residents. The survey is designed to provide an overall sense of the city’s civic strengths and weaknesses. Its main purpose is to give the community a road map for how to increase citizen participation and empowerment by discovering what laws and policies of a healthy civic community are currently absent or need to be improved.
The forum is free and open to the public. If you are interested in attending, please respond to John Branciforte at johnbranciforte@aol.com, or Lauren at (732) 548-9798 x2.
For more information on the Jersey Call to Service, visit www.JoinTheCampaign.com.
Veterans’ homefront issues forum
The city, Projected Images, ShrinkWrap Productions, the Board of Education, and American Legion Post 107 are sponsoring a Veterans Day Town Meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 11 beginning at 7:30 p.m. (doors open at 7 p.m.) at Hoboken High School, 800 Clinton St. Admission is free.
The meeting includes a showing of “Leave No Soldier,” an award-winning documentary about veterans helping one another deal with troubling war memories. The film is by Donna Bassin.
The meeting will also include a staged reading from a new play, “Flashback,” based on the 2006 book by Penny Coleman, which explores issues of post-traumatic stress injuries from the point of view of widows of Vietnam veterans who committed suicide. It will be presented by actress Anne O’Sullivan.
There will also be a panel discussion with the audience, focusing on ideas and programs for helping veterans and their families handle war-related problems.
Boathouse fundraiser
The Hoboken Cove Community Boathouse is sponsoring their first annual boathouse fundraiser on Sunday, Nov. 22 from 4 to 7 p.m. at Lua. The all-volunteer organization depends on community support for the free programs they offer.
For more information, contact Sandy Sobanski by phone at (201) 388-7668 or e-mail at dragonsandy1@yahoo.com.