School board race is on
Ten candidates have filed for three seats in the November election for the school board. Incumbents Carol Harrison-Arnold and Gerald Lyons are seeking reelection, and are being challenged by Monica Kress, Dominique D. Lee, Bertram C. Okpokwasili, Michael Reilly, Lorenzo Richardson, Joel Torres and Gina Verdibello. The three seats are for three-year terms.
Dabney named as new DPW director
In a move that is also designed to consolidate the Jersey City Incinerator Authority (JCIA) and the Department of Public Works, Mayor Steven M. Fulop has named JCIA Executive Director Oren K. Dabney as director of the DPW as well.
“This selection is part of the changes we are implementing following our Year One review so we can continue to streamline services, provide greater efficiency, enhance quality of life concerns and execute the mandate on which we were elected,” said Mayor Fulop.
Dabney’s appointment will be presented to the City Council for confirmation at their next meeting on Aug. 20.
Shakespeare in the park
The Hudson Shakespeare Company’s production of “Pericles, Prince of Tyre” by William Shakespeare and George Wilkens will be the final installment in their 23rd season of traveling Shakespeare in the parks program directed by Noelle Fair.
The event will be held Saturday, Aug. 16 at 7 p.m. in Historic Jersey City and Harismus Cemetery, 435 Newark Avenue. Rain location will be at a tent on site.
This performance has a $10 suggested donation as part of a fundraiser for the upkeep of the cemetery. For more information, visit hudsonshakespeare.homestead.com or call (973) 449-7443.
Flea market in the Heights
Trinity United Methodist Church will hold a flea market on Aug. 9 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 987 Summit Ave. For more information call (201)-653-6662.
National Night Out is Tuesday, Aug. 5
Neighbors throughout the country are invited to join forces for the 31st annual National Night Out crime prevention event on Tuesday, Aug. 5. From 6 to 10 p.m. residents in neighborhoods across the nation are asked to lock their doors, turn on their outside lights, and spend the evening outside with neighbors and the police.
Some local towns are hosting various community fairs and celebrations. Check out your city’s website to find out what’s happening in your neighborhood!
National Night Out is designed to heighten crime prevention awareness; generate support for, and participation in, local anticrime efforts; strengthen neighborhood spirit and police-community partnerships; and send a message to criminals letting them know that neighborhoods are organized and have a heightened sense of awareness.
Hoboken emergency workers smash car window to save…a doll
The tragic phenomenon of parents accidentally leaving their children in cars during the summer – causing their child to die of heatstroke in a short time – has gotten a lot of publicity this year. Cars can heat up very quickly, even with open windows, so law enforcement is trying to get the word out that parents have to remember not to leave their kids in the car seat when they go to work, and they should not leave their children in the car to go shopping or for any other reason.
As of mid-July, more than 16 kids in the U.S. had already died this summer from heatstroke because they were left inside hot cars, according to a release from Jersey City Medical Center. It’s not only negligent parents who do this; parents of all types – sometimes overtired, sometimes just with a lot on their mind – have forgotten their infant in a rear-facing car seat on the way to work.
An average of 38 children die per year from being left in hot cars, and any bystanders are encouraged to alert police if they see a child in a car.
Apparently, the Hoboken police are following a similar policy. A worker in town got an unexpected surprise on Wednesday when she found out that emergency workers had smashed her car window to save what they thought was a child. It was actually a life-sized doll.
According to the woman’s boss, who owns a small business in the mile-square city, the woman was working when a friend called her to tell her that her car had been broken into. When she called the police, they explained the situation.
The doll had been sitting in a seat.
“All they had to do was look in the window,” the woman’s boss, who wanted to stay anonymous, told the Hoboken Reporter on Thursday morning. “It was broad daylight. I can understand if it was the middle of the night, but it wasn’t.”
The boss said that police told the woman to contact City Hall about reimbursement.
The city said on Thursday that they stand by the actions of the Hoboken Volunteer Ambulance Squad, who actually smashed the window. City Hall said that emergency services had gotten several calls from concerned residents about the supposed child trapped in the car.
Tropical Storm Bertha forms in Atlantic Ocean
The National Weather Service said on Thursday that a stormy area in the Atlantic Ocean had formed into Tropical Storm Bertha. It was expected to impact Bermuda, but stay off-shore when it veers northeast. To track the storm, watch breaking news at the top of hudsonreporter.com or see http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/.