Essex County Sustainable Gingerbread Homes Contest: PHOTOS – Caldwells, NJ Patch

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — It’s a way to raise awareness about nature and a delicious celebration of the holiday season at the same time: the Essex County Sustainable Homes and Habitats Gingerbread Contest.

Last weekend, children and families across Essex County put their creative skills to the test, coming up with a cornucopia of intriguing, nature-friendly gingerbread houses.

This year’s contest, held at the Essex County Environmental Center in Roseland, included 35 entries, all of which displayed creativity and ingenuity, according to County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo Jr.

“This hands-on, family-oriented contest lets people of all ages learn about the environment in a fun way,” DiVincenzo said.

Entries were judged on distinctiveness, creative use of a nature theme, use of “green” building design techniques and skill in decoration. Members of the Essex County Environmental Commission served as judges for this year’s competition.

Winners included:

Group/Family Category (children 14 and younger who worked as a group or had adult assistance): First Place: JJ and Brody Rella and Brandon and Ryan Sivori from Roseland. Second Place: Joel, Jennie and Lee Goldberg from West Orange. Third Place: The Lynn family from West Orange.

Individual Child Category (children ages 14 or younger who worked independently on all aspects of their entry): First Place: Laura Stairiker from Caldwell. Second Place: Andrew Katz from East Hanover. Third Place: Anna Katz from East Hanover.

Non-Professional Adult Category (individuals or groups of people ages 15 and older who are students of the culinary arts or are not professional chefs): First Place: Essex County West Caldwell School of Technology culinary arts students Elias Jouaq, Johnathan Thomas, Andres Garcia and Claudio Panduro and their teacher Victoria Atfield. Second Place: Essex County Donald M. Payne, Sr. School of Technology culinary arts students Anjali Maragh, Nia Campbell and Ashley Zumba and their teacher Amarilys Olivo Mockabee. Third Place: Susan Tran from North Caldwell.

Adult Professional Category (individuals or groups of people ages 15 and older who are professional chefs or are working in the culinary arts):First Place: Sunrise Bakery at the West Caldwell ShopRite.

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