Motorcyclist dies from Avenue E crash
The 21-year-old driver of a motorcycle who suffered serious injuries to his head after colliding with a mini-van at a particularly narrow section of Avenue E on March 14 died a few days later.
John Santopietro was thrown from the motorcycle and rushed to Jersey City Medical Center. The shaken 67-year-old man driving the mini-van was taken to Bayonne Medical Center as a precaution, police said. While both vehicles were impounded for additional investigation, no tickets were issued.
County seeks ID for body found
Hudson County Prosecutor Ed DeFazio said his office is still seeking to find out the identity of adult male body found on the rocks at the 16th Street Park in the morning of March 17.
DeFazio said a 14-year-old girl walking her dog just before 10 a. m. reported seeing the body of the man to the Bayonne Police, at which point the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Homicide investigators took over.
DeFazio said an examination of the body by the Hudson County Medical Examiner had determined that the man had not been on the rocks long.
“A preliminary determination is that the death was accidental drowning,” DeFazio said.
There was no external trauma to the body. Also, the unidentified man had some money on him as well as a cellular telephone. The cellular phone was a red Metro PCS. There were also articles of clothing and toiletries nearby suggesting the man might be homeless, DeFazio said.
“He seemed to be Hispanic,” DeFazio said. “He was 5 foot 2 inches tall, about 150 pounds and had a tattoo on his shoulder that said ‘Lorenzo.’”
While the Medical Examiner has given a preliminary report of accidental drowning, DeFazio said there are additional medical tests being done.
DeFazio said any help from the public would be appreciated in finding a positive identification. Anyone with information should call the Prosecutor’s Homicide Unit at (201) 915-1345
Blood drive at Masonic Lodge for Cavan Perera
The Peninsula Masonic Lodge No. 99 at 888 Avenue C will be hosting an emergency blood drive for 10-year old Cavan Perera on March 24 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Perera, who has been hospitalized in St. Peters University Hospital in New Brunswick, suffers from an aggressive form of leukemia as well as many complications. His father owns Andrews Café, 737 Broadway, in Bayonne.
“Financial fundraisers have been a huge success to help offset the financial burden this has placed on the family,” said Joe Czapla, Junior Warden and member of the Peninsula Lodge Blood Dive Committee. “As Freemasons, husbands, fathers, sons, brothers, uncles, now is the time to picture that boy as your own and we are expected to band together and give him the gift of life, the gift of yet one more birthday. Once again, The Blood Center of New Jersey has opened its resources to the Peninsula Masonic Lodge. Scheduled donations will be given preferential treatment with head of the line privileges over walk ins. I expect the lodge to be at capacity.”
Czapla said Perera is in desperate need of platelets to keep his body going. It takes 5 units (pints) of whole blood product (separated mechanically at a remote facility) to make one pint of useable platelets
“So we will need more donors than ever before,” Czapla said, noting that all of the blood given goes to the boy. “The word needs to be spread, signs must go up, and sleeves must be rolled up. The committee chairman and I will need a ton of support with this drive. More so we need your blood.”
For more information call (201) 978-2114 or email Joseph.Czapla@peninsula99.org.
Cunningham legislation helps provide skills training
Legislation sponsored by state Sen. Sandra Bolden Cunningham that would allow the New Jersey Community College Consortium for Workforce and Economic Development to request additional funding from the state to provide basic skills training to help displaced and disadvantaged workers learn the skills they need to successfully return to the workforce passed the state Assembly yesterday and now heads to the governor for consideration.
“Many workers in New Jersey continue to remain unemployed because they do not possess the skills needed to enter a global job market that is based more on technology, math and sciences,” said Cunningham. “The New Jersey Community College Consortium for Workforce and Economic Development offers unique programs throughout the state to train and educate displaced and unemployed workers so they may enhance and grow their skills and find employment in today’s economy.”
Currently the Consortium receives 13 percent of all funds appropriated annually to the Supplemental Workforce Fund for Basic Skills (SWFBS) to provide basic skills programs to New Jersey’s displaced or disadvantaged workers and unemployed. The bill, S-873, would allow the Consortium to request additional funds from the SWFBS up to 25 percent of the total fund which is allocated for basic skills training grants.
Additionally, the bill would allow employers to apply for a waiver removing them from the burden of paying their employees while receiving basic skills training at the Consortium. Due to feedback from small businesses who financially could not release their employees during business hours to attend basic skills training or afford to pay employees’ hourly wage during weekend and evenings trainings, the state Department of Labor recently made a regulatory change allowing for this waiver at non-Consortium training centers.
“This partnership between New Jersey’s county colleges, the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development, New Jersey’s businesses and unemployed New Jerseyans is a nationally-pioneering collaboration,” added Senator Cunningham. “By continuing to support these programs by allowing the Consortium to apply for and receive additional funding, the state can help expand this successful model and provide more New Jerseyans with access to cutting-edge educational opportunities.”
The NJ Workforce Consortium is collaboration between New Jersey’s 19 county colleges to provide coordinated one-stop workforce training and education services for businesses and unemployed and displaced workers. The Consortium offers workforce skills programs such as time management, computer skills, remedial math, English as a second language and job safety courses.
The bill was approved by the Assembly with a vote of 78-0. It passed the full Senate last month with a vote of 39-0.