ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — The world can be a scary place. But it’s also filled with humor, inspiration and beauty. Let’s focus on that second part. Take a look at some recent good news stories in Essex County below. (Click the headlines to read).
ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — The world can be a scary place. But it’s also filled with humor, inspiration and beauty. Let’s focus on that second part. Take a look at some recent good news stories in Essex County below. (Click the headlines to read).
UPDATE: TikTok pushes back after reports of viral school threat caused added security in N.J.
Education and police officials across New Jersey said a nationwide TikTok threat about a claim of school shootings planned for Friday was not credible, but authorities are planning to take precautions.
The threat being spread on social media was not specific to a school, according to accounts from law enforcement agencies. Still, the false threat prompted officials to alert parents and in some cases boost police presence at schools.
The TikTok threat has also been reported in California, Illinois and Texas, among other areas of the nation.
Gov. Phil Murphy said he spoke with Acting Attorney General Andrew Bruck, New Jersey State Police Colonel Patrick Callahan and state Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness Acting Director Laurie Doran about the viral threat.
“While there are no known specific threats against New Jersey schools, the safety of our children is our highest priority and we will work closely with law enforcement to monitor the situation and remain prepared,” Murphy said on his Twitter account.
Local officials around the state took steps to reassure parents and students as news of the social media threat was shared Wednesday.
“At this time, the NJ ROIC (New Jersey Regional Operations Intelligence Center) is unaware of any specific, credible threats concerning this video relating to New Jersey schools,” the City of Burlington police said on Twitter, referring to a State Police information sharing center.
Similar statements were released by police and school officials in several communities around the state, including Hazlet, Neptune and Camden County.
“Please know that although this particular social media warning is generic and deemed not credible, we will continue to closely monitor any and every situation in the interest of safety and security,” Barnegat Township School District Superintendent Brian Latwis said on Twitter.
In a post on her Facebook page, State Sen. Holly Schepisi, R-Bergen, urged parents to talk with their children about possible threats.
“I am not aware of any direct threats against any local schools but in an abundance of caution there may be increased police presence in your local schools tomorrow,” Schepisi said.
“Please talk with your children if they have seen any of these type of videos and ensure that they keep open communication with you if they hear of anyone expressing a desire to commit violence in our schools. Make them understand that is not ‘snitching’ on a friend in a situation such as this,” she wrote.
A threat was also reported on Snapchat, according to Eastern Camden County Regional School District Superintendent of Schools Robert Cloutier.
“It can be expected these posts may migrate to other social media platforms or surface in messaging between students. Messages such as this current one, circulating in numerous states, typically cause confusion and heightened anxiety among the school community,” Cloutier said in an email.
“While such generalized messages are often intended only to achieve this goal, we do not discount the possibility they may motivate students who are contemplating an act of school violence to attempt to carry out their plan,” he said.
Voorhees Township police plan to boost presence at their local school, he added. Other districts also said more police would be on hand as a precaution.
The social media scare came as schools grapple with lockdowns and increased police presence prompted by threats in the weeks since a Michigan teen was charged with killing four students at Oxford High School.
In some of the threats, authorities have announced arrests of students and been forced to close schools.
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Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com.
ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — The world can be a scary place. But it’s also filled with humor, inspiration and beauty. Let’s focus on that second part. Take a look at some recent good news stories in Essex County below. (Click the headlines to read).
It’s not at all unusual to run into local celebrities at the Shore.
Bruce Springsteen is known to randomly roll into Asbury Park to check out the music scene quite often.
In fact, a lot of celebs have been hanging in the area lately.
As recently as a couple of weeks ago, Kelsey Grammer was spotted at the Irish Pub in Atlantic City.
Not only was he in the house, but he was also tending the bar. That’s right, Frasier Crane himself.
Jon Bon Jovi is often in Monmouth County doing his thing and checking in on JBJ Soul Kitchen in Red Bank.
Jon Stewart and his wife have a beautiful farm in Colts Neck that has become an animal sanctuary.
Jon is often spotted at the Shore and at landmarks like the Basie Center for the Arts.
At this point, seeing any member of Jersey Shore is so common that it doesn’t really turn heads.
Snooki likes it that way.
She said in an interview that she just wants to go to Shoprite to pick up groceries like everyone else.
Imagine for a second that you are running into PetSmart to pick your animal’s food and maybe some accessories.
You make the turn into aisle three to be met by the star of one of the biggest Netflix series of all time.
That’s exactly what happened to young Sophia when she was at the PetSmart in Manahawkin.
This was quite the ‘strange’ encounter.
That, of course, is Gaten Matarazzo of ‘Stranger Things’ fame.
You may have seen him recently on his new Netflix prank series ‘Prank Encounters’ too.
Sophia’s Mom Amy told me that Sophia was in the store and noticed a couple of people taking pictures with someone. That someone ended up being Dustin Henderson.
Mom Amy added that Gaten was extremely friendly to all of his fans and took pictures with all of them.
This isn’t surprising. Gaten has a reputation for being a very nice guy.
Gaten has been spotted in southern Ocean County a few times.
His family has a home on Long Beach Island. Gaten is a graduate of Pinelands Regional and grew up in Little Egg Harbor.
Fans of the Stranger Things series have waited a long time for season four.
A mid-2022 release is expected and Gaten says that this season will be the scariest yet.
On the list, there’s a robust mix of offerings from great schools and nightlife to high walkability and public parks. Some areas have enjoyed rapid growth thanks to new businesses moving to the area, while others offer glimpses into area history with well-preserved architecture and museums. Keep reading to see if your hometown made the list.
Federal authorities say four people who participated in a scheme to defraud New Jersey state health benefits programs and other insurers have been sentenced to prison.
43-year-old Michael Pilate of Williamstown, who was a guidance counselor with the Pleasantville public school district, and 47-year-old Tara LaMonaca of Linwood, who was a pharmaceutical sales representative, were sentenced on Wednesday to 18 months and eight months in prison, respectively.
40-year-old George Gavras of Moorestown and 43-year-old Andrew Gerstel of Galloway, who were also both pharmaceutical sales reps, will be spending the next 13 months and 12 months plus one day in prison, respectively.
All four had previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael Honig says,
From January 2015 through April 2016, Pilate, LaMonaca, Gavras and Gerstel, and others, served as recruiters in the conspiracy and persuaded individuals in New Jersey to obtain very expensive and medically unnecessary compounded medications from an out-of-state pharmacy. . . . The conspirators also learned that some New Jersey state and local government and education employees … had insurance coverage for these particular compound medications. . . . The conspirators recruited public employees and other individuals covered by Pharmacy Benefits Administrator to fraudulently obtain compounded medications from Compounding Pharmacy without any evaluation by a medical professional that they were medically necessary. In return, the pharmacy paid the conspirators a percentage of each prescription filled and paid by the Pharmacy Benefits Administrator, which was then distributed to other members of the conspiracy.
According to authorities, the pharmacy benefits administrator paid the compounding pharmacy that was identified in this case over $50 million for compounded medications mailed to people in New Jersey.
As part of their plea agreements, Pilate must forfeit $392,684 in criminal proceeds and pay nearly $3.5 million in restitution, LaMonaca must forfeit almost $90,000 and pay over $523,000 in restitution, Gavras must forfeit $204,000 and pay $677,000 in restitution, and Gerstel must forfeit $184,389 in criminal proceeds and pay restitution of $483,946.
Over the past few years, state lawmakers have taken on the challenge of dealing with accused child predators among the ranks of teachers and educators.
The follow individuals were arrested over the past several years. Some have been convicted and sentenced to prison, while others have accepted plea deals for probation.
Others cases are still pending, including some court delays amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Some things are just worth the drive…
There’s a very special house you MUST see this holiday season. My family and I walk there every year for the grand lighting ceremony (they actually had fireworks one year), yeah it’s like that. I call it the Holiday Hero House because what Mr. Pazzini gives the community is so much more than lights.
Marino Pazzini and family have made their front lawn a Christmas wonderland for the community over the past 18 years. Everyone is invited to gather around for the lighting and to come walk through his yard throughout the season! Of course the display is free to see but if your heart feels moved to donate, there is a St. Jude’s donation area. The Pazzini family is responsible for thousands and thousands of dollars going to the kids of St. Judes Hospital.
The Pazzini Illumination is located at 28 Deerfield Drive in Florham Park, New Jersey. You’ll want to go this year because sadly the lights go out forever after this season. The family is going to retire so this is your big chance to meet the man behind the lights. One question I asked Mr. Pazzini was how do your neighbors compete with this? His answer was to chuckle and point to the neighbor to his right that had a picture of the Grinch and an arrow pointing to his house. LOL! Way to go Mr. Pazzini, we are all so grateful for the community contribution. Our kids will have better childhood memories because of you!
More details and locations will be added as the holiday season progresses, so please check back often for updates. Malls are listed in alphabetical order.
On the list, there’s a robust mix of offerings from great schools and nightlife to high walkability and public parks. Some areas have enjoyed rapid growth thanks to new businesses moving to the area, while others offer glimpses into area history with well-preserved architecture and museums. Keep reading to see if your hometown made the list.
Essex County reported this morning that there has been another death in Verona related to the COVID-19 pandemic. That brings Verona’s total to 19 since the county began releasing statistics on the virus in March 2020. The county does not identify the deceased or provide information on the COVID variant implicated in the person’s death or the person’s vaccination status. Verona’s previous COVID death was reported on May 5.
There have been far fewer COVID deaths in Essex County since vaccines became widely available, but they are still occurring. The countywide death toll stood at 2,869 on December 1. It has risen by 10 since then.
The death comes as Verona has been leading the county in new COVID-19 infections. With six cases reported today, since Thanksgiving, Verona has had 117 new COVID cases, an increase of more than 9%. By contrast, Caldwell had a 6.1% increase and Cedar Grove had a 6.8% increase. Montclair has had a 4.3% increase and the increase in Newark has been 3.9%. Verona also had the highest rate of new COVID infections in the county in November, at 8.3%.
Free COVID-19 vaccinations for children and adults are available to Verona residents at the former Kmart store in West Orange near Whole Foods. The site also offers booster shots. You can make an appointment here, or simply walk in. According to data from the New Jersey Department of Health, 75% of Verona residents are vaccinated.
Miss Mindy’s in Bayville is dishing out their holiday flavors for three days only.
A message from Miss Mindy’s from their Facebook Page: Miss Mindy’s will be open for three days December 21st, December 22nd, and December 23rd, 2021 for select pints, quarts, sundaes, shakes, and pies just in time for the holidays. Miss Mindy’s Ice Cream is located at 1035 Atlantic City Blvd. (Rt. 9) in Bayville.
A couple of holiday flavors for your tastebuds: rainbow cookie, egg nog and ginger snaps, I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus milkshake and many more favorites.
When they open in the spring I know they’ll have all 14 of their “everyday flavors” along with, Banana and Macadamia, and White Chocolate. Their lick-able “everyday flavors” – vanilla bean, cherry vanilla, chocolate, chocolate peanut butter (my favorite), butter pecan, coffee, strawberry, black raspberry, cookies and cream, chocolate chip cookie dough, mint chocolate chunk, chocolate chip.
My all-time favorite of Miss Mindy’s is their chocolate ice cream. I can’t tell you why I love it so much, but I do. The taste of the chocolate is just incredible.
Here are some of their crazy flavors – Peeps (yellow ice cream with sprinkles and real Peeps mixed in), cotton candy, PB&J, Coconut, Bunch o Stuff (chocolate with graham cracker, caramel, and cinnamon), Mother Earth (green and blue swirl with vanilla crunch). They will also have two no sugar added flavors and dairy-free chocolate peanut butter, and soft-serve Dole Whip.
THREE days only, December 21st, December 22nd, and December 23rd. Get your holiday ice cream.
Keep reading…
On the list, there’s a robust mix of offerings from great schools and nightlife to high walkability and public parks. Some areas have enjoyed rapid growth thanks to new businesses moving to the area, while others offer glimpses into area history with well-preserved architecture and museums. Keep reading to see if your hometown made the list.
Miss Mindy’s in Bayville is dishing out their holiday flavors for three days only.
A message from Miss Mindy’s from their Facebook Page: Miss Mindy’s will be open for three days December 21st, December 22nd, and December 23rd, 2021 for select pints, quarts, sundaes, shakes, and pies just in time for the holidays. Miss Mindy’s Ice Cream is located at 1035 Atlantic City Blvd. (Rt. 9) in Bayville.
A couple of holiday flavors for your tastebuds: rainbow cookie, egg nog and ginger snaps, I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus milkshake and many more favorites.
When they open in the spring I know they’ll have all 14 of their “everyday flavors” along with, Banana and Macadamia, and White Chocolate. Their lick-able “everyday flavors” – vanilla bean, cherry vanilla, chocolate, chocolate peanut butter (my favorite), butter pecan, coffee, strawberry, black raspberry, cookies and cream, chocolate chip cookie dough, mint chocolate chunk, chocolate chip.
My all-time favorite of Miss Mindy’s is their chocolate ice cream. I can’t tell you why I love it so much, but I do. The taste of the chocolate is just incredible.
Here are some of their crazy flavors – Peeps (yellow ice cream with sprinkles and real Peeps mixed in), cotton candy, PB&J, Coconut, Bunch o Stuff (chocolate with graham cracker, caramel, and cinnamon), Mother Earth (green and blue swirl with vanilla crunch). They will also have two no sugar added flavors and dairy-free chocolate peanut butter, and soft-serve Dole Whip.
THREE days only, December 21st, December 22nd, and December 23rd. Get your holiday ice cream.
Keep reading…
On the list, there’s a robust mix of offerings from great schools and nightlife to high walkability and public parks. Some areas have enjoyed rapid growth thanks to new businesses moving to the area, while others offer glimpses into area history with well-preserved architecture and museums. Keep reading to see if your hometown made the list.