9-year-old student to donate $1,000
Anyone who has attended Jersey City Council meetings in recent months is familiar with 9-year-old Paul Valleau and his impassioned pleas to keep funding intact for the local public libraries.
Now, apparently the budding activist has taken his cause to the next level: fundraising. Valleau has already donated $2,000 to the Jersey City Public Libraries, and has requested that half of the money be earmarked for the 2011 Summer Reading Program.
This Tuesday, June 21, at 2 p.m., Valleau will deliver his Summer Reading Program contribution and will, no doubt, make one of his signature speeches about the importance of reading and libraries. If you haven’t seen Valleau in action before, try to attend.
The presentation will take place in the Grundy Room of the Main library, at 472 Jersey Ave. The Main Library is located at the corner of Jersey Avenue and Montgomery Street.
Hudson Cradle to close its doors next month
After 20 years in operation serving the needs of nearly 500 at-risk babies, Hudson Cradle has announced that it will close its doors. The closure goes into effect Friday, July 8.
Hudson Cradle was opened in 1991 to alleviate what was known at the time as the “border baby” crisis in Hudson County.
Boarder babies are infants who are born with special health needs. Typically they are infants who were exposed to drugs or alcohol during pregnancy, or who were born prematurely, or with low birth weight. Some were also prenatally exposed to HIV. Many of these babies had no safe home to go to once they were discharged from the hospital after their births. Since the foster care system couldn’t accommodate their complicated health needs, Hudson Cradle was launched to give these infants a place to go after they left the hospital.
Changes in the child welfare system over the last decade, however, has made Hudson Cradle obsolete. Due to changes in state public policy, an increasing number of babies with acute medical needs are now able to be placed in foster homes, leaving fewer children being sent to Hudson Cradle.
“In Many ways, this is a victory for all those who dedicated their time and resources to Hudson Cradle,” said Daniel E. Horgan, chairman of the program. “Hudson Cradle was a community response to a troubling crisis facing our most vulnerable children. With the changes in priorities and policies at the Division of Youth and Family Services, our services are not needed at this time. Hopefully, they will never be needed again.”
In the two decades the program was in operation, Hudson Cradle was recognized for its work with at risk infants, including awards from the Points of Light Foundation and Jersey Cares.
Environmentalists push Cunningham on pesticide bill
Environmental activists have made State Sen. Sandy Cunningham the target of a statewide lobbying effort today to pressure her to support the Safe Child Playing Field Act (S-2610).
If passed and signed into law, the measure would ban the use of most pesticides from school playgrounds, municipal parks, and daycare centers. The measure would affect both public and private facilities. Similar pieces of legislation have passed in other states, including New York.
Garden State environmentalists support the current version of S-2610, which was introduced by state senators Shirley K. Turner and Sen. Robert M. Gordon.
Companies from the pesticide industry, however, have complained that the bill’s language was crafted without their input. They also argue that reducing pesticide use will lead to parks and playgrounds that will be overrun with weeds and bugs. The industry wants amendments added to the legislation that would make it less restrictive than does the current draft.
The Senate Environment Committee passed the legislation in February, but the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, of which Cunningham is a member, must still vote on it. Environmental activists say that Cunningham missed the vote on the Safe Child Playing Field Act the last time it came up before the Budget and Appropriations Committee. They are now trying to pressure her to vote the bill out of committee in its current draft, without industry-backed amendments.
There is a companion bill under consideration in the state Assembly, A-3782, which has been referred to the Environment and Solid Waste Committee.
Doing business in Hudson County
On Monday, June 27, the Hudson County Office of Minority and Women Business Enterprise will host the seminar “How to Do Business in Hudson County” from 9 a.m. to noon in Lincoln Park’s the Hank Gallo Center.
Presenters will include experts in engineering, law, finance, and purchasing. The experts will share information related to procurement, services, and construction. There will also be representatives from the state who will discuss certification and business registration. Finally, Hudson County staff will outline and detail the bidding process for doing business in the county.
The seminar is free, but registration is required. To register, or for more information, call Patricia Fulks at (201) 395-6267, or e-mail her at pfulks@hcnj.us.