P P Hamilton ton ost Hamilton ost FEBRUARY 2024
Community Educa�on and Be�er Health Programs located on page 2
COMMUNITYNEWS.ORG
Nature’s Duet: art of the natural world
FREE
Calling all units
Hamilton Police step up recruitment efforts as applicant numbers drop
By micheLe aLPeriN
In the “Nature’s Duet—A Fine Art Exhibit” at Tulpehaking Nature Center, 157 Westcott Ave., in Hamilton, artists Laura Beard and Abigail Ella Johnson offer artwork that expresses their own deep connections to the natural world, from different but complementary vantage points. Both share a desire to draw viewers of their art into stronger connections with the natural world. On her website, laurabeardart.com, Beard captures her connection to the natural world, in particular animals and their habitats: “There is nothing that inspires me more than the natural world and the rich complexities of the lives that inhabit it. I strive, with every piece, to convey the uniqueness of the subject and the unflinching beauty of our temporary existence.” Johnson also describes her “profound appreciation for and interest in the natural world” on her website, artbyaella.com. “I’m driven by a deep desire to understand humanity’s everevolving place in nature, and See DUET, Page 10
By JOe EMANsKi
YouTuber Joe Franta’s face reflected in the plaque he received for reaching 100,000 subscribers. Franta makes videos about life as a Merchant Mariner. (Instagram photo.)
Merchant mariner makes popular videos on YouTube By SUe FerrArA
Call this a love story. There’s the guy-gone-to-sea. He loves traveling. He loves adventure. There are landlubbers who love following the guy’s experiences via social media. It’s a love story for those in Hamilton who miss the guy, like he misses them; because, as he said in an interview, “life is meant to be
shared.” Meet Joe Franta, Hamiltonian by birth and education; Hamiltonian during respites on land. And, since 2016, a Hamiltonian who has been working as a union seafarer, a job he transitioned to at the age of 31. He’s also a widely-viewed vlogger on YouTube with thousands of subscribers to his channel called: “Joe Franta. Ship.”
No one plans for heart disease. But everyone should have a plan for it.
Franta attended Our Lady of Sorrows school in Hamilton; he’s a 2003 graduate from Notre Dame High School in Lawrence. He went on to Mercer County Community College where he took classes, including one in videography. For those unfamiliar with the term vlog, and the social media platform, YouTube, here’s a See FRaNTa, Page 12
It’s a challenging time to do a challenging job in the United States: the occupation of police officer, long seen as a position of honor in any community, has come under scrutiny in recent years. That scrutiny has had a measurable effect on the number of people who apply each year to become officers. This effect has been felt across the country, including in Hamilton. “In the past, we never really had to do too much recruitment,” says David Schultz, a lieutenant with the Hamilton Township Police. “The numbers (of applicants) were generally high. They have decreased recently, so we are trying to reach out ahead of time, trying to make social media campaigns, release videos between now and the end of March.” The push for March is because the Hamilton Police Department is a civil service agency, meaning that applicants See POLICE, Page 14
Academy Dental CHILDREN & ADULTS Complete Dentistry for the Whole Family
AcademyDentalNJ.com
Currently Open for Emergency Dental Care rwjbh.org/heart
See our ad on page 11
PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID SPRINGFIELD,1179 MA NEWARK, NJ PERMIT NO. 142