e-Newspaper Dec. 29, 2021

Wednesday, 29 December 2021

Vol. CXXXIV, No. 34

www.TheObserver.com

NEW YEAR’S EVE The Observer’s office will be closed Friday, Dec. 31, in observance of the new year. We will reopen Monday, Jan. 3, at 10 a.m.

BELLEVILLE • BLOOMFIELD • EAST NEWARK • HARRISON • KEARNY • LYNDHURST • NORTH ARLINGTON • NUTLEY

LOOKING BACK AT 2021 2021 2022 Year-end news recap begins on Page 2 & 2021 sports review starts on Page 9.

We take this moment to express our heartfelt gratitude to you.

Thank you for being our valued customers & readers.

It has been a trying year and we appreciate your support.

We wish you a safe, healthy and joyous New Year!

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Wednesday, December 29, 2021

Looking back at the stories that made 2021 a memorable year

By Kevin A. Canessa Jr. kc@theobserver.com

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hen 2021 began, there were so many high hopes.

This was going to be a much better year than 2020 was, right? After all, the Coronavirus was well

under control and things were looking up. Well, maybe not so fast, because here were are, at year’s end, and the Omicron variant of COVID-19 is rearing its ugly head — and much of that optimism we once had — gone.

With that said, however, it’s not difficult to say 2021 had

its share of some good, some bad and some downright ugly.

So, as we’ve done in the final edition of every year since 2003, we’ll take a look back at the stories that made the biggest headlines in the past year. We’re not ranking them this year, though — instead, we chose the ones that seemed to

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have the greatest impact on our readers in print, online, on social media and in our live broadcasts.

Did we miss anything? Is there a story we covered in 2021 that’s not being recapped you believe should have been part of it? (Excluding anything sports related?) Let us know — send your comments to editorial@theobserver.com — and we’ll publish what you believe we missed. At any rate, here we go.

Team Santos annihilates Team Ferreira in primary t’s a no-brainer the 2021 Democratic primary election in Kearny would be part of this story. It all started early on in the year when local realtor Sydney J. Ferreira announced he’d be challenging Mayor Alberto G. Santos for the Democratic nomination for the seat Santos has held since Jan. 1, 2000.

Santos is the longest-serving mayor in Kearny’s history as he approaches 22 years in the seat come Jan. 1.

It had been a long time since anyone — Democrat

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or Republican — challenged Santos.

Every time Santos had faced challengers, from wither party, he handily swept them all aside with little fanfare or need for serious campaigning.

But something felt different this time as Ferreira immediately took to Facebook, where a good majority of his campaign was wagered.

In fact, in Kearny’s history, this was the first time candidates had social media at their disposal.

Initially, it was just Ferreira, but he eventually chose four candidates — three of whom were actually on the June ballot to run with him — as challengers to incumbents Marytrine DeCastro in the First Ward, Richard Konopka in the Second Ward, Carol Jean Doyle in the Third Ward and Gerald Ficeto in the Fourth Ward.

Ferreira’s compadres were all political newbies — Kristin McBrinn in the First Ward, Alexis Campos in the Second Ward (she was ultimately Continued on the next page

Wednesday, December 29, 2021 Continued from previous page tossed off the ballot for being an unlawful candidate — more on that later), Kristen Grimaldi in the Third Ward and Stephanie Galarza in the Fourth Ward.

One of the first controversies of the campaign came when Santos sought, successfully, to remove Campos from the ballot because she did not possess the requisite one year of living in the Second Ward to be a candidate. She’d recently — but not for more than a year — moved from another ward.

Santos, acting as Chairman of the Kearny Democratic Party, asked for the court’s intervention to have Campos tossed based on the statute that requires anyone who runs for office be a resident of that “unit,” or ward, for at least a year.

Judge Jeff Jablonski, ruling in Hudson County Superior Court, determined Campos did not meet the requirements and, as such, she was removed from the ballot.

This, of course, didn’t sit well with Ferreira, who was vocally critical of Jablonski’s ruling.

Despite said ruling, Ferreira announced on Facebook Campos would, instead, run as a write-in candidate, even though Jablonski explicitly ruled she was not eligible to do so. Legal experts argued the likelihood that had Campos won as a write-in, she would still not have been

declared the winner. (That said, the write-in campaign only garnered a handful of votes on Election Day and in paper ballots.)

Social media was, let’s say, active about this and about several issues, too many to recap.

Before the election, the two teams of candidates debated at Kearny High School, including the disqualified Campos. The opposition did not make an issue of her appearance that night.

During the campaign, Ferreira would often log on to virtual town council meetings and challenge the mayor on a variety of issues from flooding in the Second Ward, to the reasons why it took as long as it did for the Keegan Landfill to be shuttered to the purchase of snow plows and then some.

Ferreira used histrionics in an attempt to persuade the public that Santos was not fit for office.

Ultimately, however, it didn’t work. Santos and his team all won handily. The vote tallies, generally, averaged around 70% for Santos and his team and about 30% for Ferreira and company.

Turnout, despite the noise made in the campaign, was disappointingly low.

Regardless of the setback in losing, Ferreira promised the election of 2021 would not be the last Kearny heard from him. How that will play out remains to be seen as he’s been relatively, albeit not

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totally, quiet since he lost.

He lives in the Fourth Ward, where an open Town Council seat is up for grabs in November.

Team Santos, meanwhile, went unopposed in the November and all five members were ultimately re-elected to new, four-year terms. They will be re-sworn in when the Mayor and Kearny Town Council reorganize in early January in a meeting that was originally slated to be in-person, but that has now been changed to virtual, thanks to rising COVID-19 numbers here.

Come Jan. 1, 2022, Santos will have been the town’s mayor for 22 years. Two years ago, Santos became Kearny’s longest-serving mayor ever, when he toppled a record once held by Mayor Joseph M. Healey, who served for 20 years from 1949 to 1969.

Charges levied in case of deceased baby in Kearny his is a story that first broke last year — Oct. 25, 2020, to be precise. That day, a baby boy’s body was discovered in a trash bag atop a rubbish receptacle. It was a baby boy. For months, all we could ascertain was that a deceased baby was, indeed, found, but beyond that, infor-

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available, including the name of the accused.

So much else occurred during the course of 2021, including a candlelight vigil at Kearny’s Town Hall over the summer. Social media was, at times, out of control, filled with inaccurate information, innuendo and libelous comments.

Accusations of a cover-up were levied against the HCPO, the police, The Observer and many other individuals and agencies who were either tangentially or significantly involved in the case. However, there was no veracity to mostly all these claims.

Meanwhile, since the time Suarez announced the charges that were levied against the baby’s mother, overall discussion of the situation has calmed down significantly.

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mation was scant.

This newspaper was in regular communication with the Hudson County Prosecutors Office, the investigating agency in the case, but time after time, we were told the matter was under investigation, pending the results of an autopsy being performed by the Regional Medical Examiner.

After months of waiting — which included an open letter from Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez to the people of West Hudson on the pages of this newspaper — the office ultimately charged the baby’s mother as a juvenile with homicide and improper disposal of human remains.

The baby’s mother was, at the time the alleged crime took place, 17, so she was charged as a juvenile.

And because she is to be tried as a juvenile, no further information would be made

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Company looks to open $h!t shop in South Kearny The month of December brought with it perhaps the most controversial story of the entire year when a Franklin, Tennessee,-based company called Aries announced it would be looking to open up a plant in South Kearny that would treat human waste and turn it into biochar, a material that is eventually sold to construction companies to help thicken concrete.

Though the company was required by law to give 30 days’ notice of its intent to host a public meeting to explain its plans, Aries, instead, only offered a few days’ notice. The original meeting, scheduled for Dec. 13, at the Scots-American Club on Patterson Street, was ultimately scrubbed, with a still to-be-determined make up date.

As soon as Mayor Alberto G. Santos got word of Aries’ intent, he immediately announced he and the Town Council were vehemently opposed to Aries, before hearing word one from the company and about its plans to open the plant.

When news began to spread of the ultimately-canceled meeting, it seemed an entire town was up in arms – for far too long, Kearny has been a literal and figurative dumping ground and no one

came out in favor of Aries coming here, even if it would bring with it a good deal of high-paying jobs.

“Property is selling for $5 million an acre in South Kearny. This is two times what it was selling for just two years ago,” Santos said at the time.

“We’ve turned the corner in a location that hadn’t seen progress like this for over half a century. There were many

Wednesday, December 29, 2021

reasons why Newark fought this — and we will, too.”

Giangeruso, his team, win in ‘Clean Sweep’ in Lyndhurst earny wasn’t the only place where there was a hotly contested election in 2021 — in May, Lyndhurst Mayor Robert B. Giangeruso, three incumbent

K

commissioners and one newcomer faced what appeared, at least on paper, to be a huge challenge from town gadfly David Sivella.

On Giangeruso ticket — dubbed Team Unity — were incumbents Richard L. Jarvis Jr., John Montillo Jr. and Karen Haggerty along with new to politics Louis DeMarco, who was running in lieu of the retiring Commissioner Thomas DiMaggio.

Their opponents — ironically named the Clean Sweep team — included the aforementioned Sivella, and four others.

The “Clean Sweep” team hardly lived up to their team nickname.

Instead, they were cleanly themselves swept by the Unity Team.

In fact, the race was a complete blowout for Giangeruso and company, who were sworn-in for 4-year terms in late May. Giangeruso, as the top voter-getter, remained the township’s mayor and public-safety commissioner.

(In Lyndhurst, residents vote only for commissioners — the mayor, meanwhile, is chosen, internally, by the newly elected commissioners.)

Since the election, Sivella has Continued on the next page

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state level have been advised of this unlawful taking of private property valued in excess of $125,000. Failure to comply may subject library board trustees to both criminal and civil action. Guide yourselves accordingly,” he said.

The painting has since been loaned to Rutgers University and is no longer in Melham’s office.

Continued from previous page barely been heard from. His controversial website had also been completely shut down until recently reappearing.

Belleville’s not-so-happy little painting ob Ross would probably be in awe with what happened with a historical painting in Belleville.

The controversy began in March when Mayor Michael Melham announced the township’s plans for a celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Chinese community’s presence here.

He recorded a video message to do so from his office at Town Hall. Behind him was an enormous painting, which was donated to the Belleville Historical Society decades ago.

However, here’s where the situation got hairy. The painting was on loan, by the BHS, to the Belleville Public Library.

Melham says the Library Board, which included members he and his predecessor appointed, voted unanimously to allow him to take control of the painting on an interim basis while repairs were made at the library building.

But BHS President Michael Perrone wasn’t pleased with that one bit — and demanded the painting be returned forthwith.

Still. Melham said he took the painting to his office because he found it, lying on a floor, off the wall because of a leaky ceiling in the library.

“At first, I was asked if I just wanted to take the painting temporarily and put it in my office,” Melham said then. “I didn’t want to do it that way. I wanted to do it through the proper channels.

“So it was put up to a vote to the entire library board and the vote was unanimous.

It was fully known at the time the painting would come to my office until the leak was repaired. As soon as the repairs were complete, I’d return the painting to where it belongs. That’s always been the plan and Mr. Perrone knows that.”

Not good enough, Perrone said. The painting’s original

B

owner, he said, announced he never wanted the painting to fall into the hands of a “politician.”

“The Belleville Library Board of Trustees must make immediate arrangements for the safe return of the nearly 200 year old painting, ‘Landscape of Belleville,’ from Belleville Town Hall to a safe and secure location within the Belleville Library,” Perrone said in a prepared statement. “This historical and extremely valuable painting on loan to the library by the Belleville Historical Society was unlawfully removed from the premises, without the authorization of either the Hatch family (which donated it to the BHS in 1962) or the Belleville Historical Society.

“The library board’s unlawful resolution loaning out the private property of others must be revoked this evening.

For security reasons, both the Belleville Historical Society and the Belleville Public Library have always kept the value of the painting strictly confidential. The irresponsible act of taking the painting from the library and then announcing the value of the painting at a public meeting has made a bad situation worse by creating a major security issue. If there were ever any concerns about the physical well-being of the

painting, the obvious response would have been to immediately notify either the Hatch family or the Belleville Historical Society, not to give the painting away.”

Perrone also threatened legal action.

“The painting must be returned within seven days.

Law enforcement authorities on both the local and

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Kearny’s ‘Field of Dreams,’ a renovated Oval, re-opens After months of work, and some delays, many of which were directly attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic, Kearny’s Gunnell Oval reopened in the spring.

And to say it was worth the wait would be an understatement of epic proportions.

Mayor Alberto G. Santos and David Silva of Neglia Engineering took The Observer on a tour of the upgraded facility in early April.

We found a place where the concourses were extremely wide and easy to pass through. And quickly, Santos Continued on Page 7

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Thoughts & Views EDITORIAL

2022 could lead to a wild ride with local elections ...

W

Wednesday, December 29, 2021

hat a year 2021 has been. In many ways, it was an utter disaster, one to forget. In other ways, it was one to treasure forever. Yet, as the calendar prepares to turn to 2022 — get ready to write and delete 2021 often — there’s certainly a lot to look back on and to look forward to in the coming months. We’ve recapped 2021 in this edition — so now a little looking ahead. n We’re already preparing for the fight of a lifetime (or second fight of a lifetime, see Keegan Landfill) with Aries and Kearny. We’re already envisioning the top story of 2022, perhaps, depending on how things go with the Franklin, Tennessee,-based company. n Four more council seats are up for grabs in Kearny in 2022 and it will be intriguing to see whether the incumbents — Albino Cardoso in the First Ward, Peter Santana in the Second Ward, Eileen Eckel in the Third Ward and Susan McCurrie in the Fourth Ward — face challengers the way this year’s incumbents did. Will the opposition come from Sydney Ferreira and his followers? Will the rumors of a third party come to fruition? We will soon see. And we can only hope the campaign isn’t as wild as it was in 2021 — or do we hope for that? n Belleville’s Mayor Michael Melham’s seat and two council seats are up for grabs this year, too. n North Arlington Mayor Daniel H. Pronti, who won a resounding victory last go-round, after he replaced the late Mayor Joseph Bianchi on the ballot just weeks before the election, is up for re-election in 2022 as are a few council seats. No one faced a challenger in the 2021 election, so it should be interesting to see whether the once-in-control NA Democrats are able to come up with a viable ticket to challenge Pronti et al. Based on what we’ve seen the last few years, those chances appear slim at best. n In Harrison, the mayor’s seat is up for grabs, as are four council seats. Mayor James A. Fife said last year he intends to run for re-election. There’s also been some chatter about former Councilman Anselmo Millan giving it one more try after two bruising losses four years ago in a primary against Fife and three years ago for his old Second Ward town council seat.

We’ll know, for sure, sometime in April when partisan-based primary ballots are due.

Is there any question 2022 should be a busy one in the area? We can only hope.

Rose: Is Menendez serious? $550K salary means you’re not rich?

To the Editor: If you are trying to make sense of all of the different Democrat proposals on how to address the federal tax deduction for state and local taxes — which was limited to $10,000 under the Trump tax bill — you are not alone.

First, though, you should realize that under the Trump bill, the SALT provision was meant to make the wealthy pay their fare share — that the rich could now only deduct $10K in property taxes, whereas before, there was no limit to the amount they could deduct. To ease whatever pain SALT would have on the true middle class, the standard deduction, for those married filing jointly

T

LETTER TO THE EDITOR was raised to $24,800, and in some cases $27,400. Also, tax rates were lowered so a family with $75,000 in taxable income would pay $2,500 less in federal taxes than they did under President Obama. Look it up.

These changes resulted in less than 14% of taxpayers itemizing their tax returns in 2019.

Current Democrat proposals, if you can keep up with them, either take us back to no limits on what the rich may deduct, or another $80,000 limit on those

making $475,000.

Less confusing, and something most of us could understand and relate to would be to raise the deduction to $15,000.

Doing so would address the concerns of the true middle class and ensure the wealthy pay their fare share.

The absurdity in all this is that Sen. Robert Menendez wants those who make $550,000 to be allowed to claim a deduction. His evidence being “If you’re making $550,000 in New Jersey, you are not rich and those families should be taken care of.”

Really?

Armand Rose North Arlington

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help, especially for situations where lethal force might have otherwise been the last possible resort for a police officer.

King said initially, 10 superior officers would be outfitted with the weapons, and one would be responsible for training other officers once they’re ultimately outfitted with them.

When he was asked whether they were more or less beneficial for the department, King’s answer came without hesitation.

“They can be used at a distance of 20 feet,” he said, noting they are not the same as stun guns, which require a weapon to body contact to be useful. “This is a much safer option before escalating to a deadly-force scenario.”

King also announced 2020 was a very good year for his department — overall, crime in Kearny dropped an incredible 27.5%.

Whilst the pandemic was partly to credit for the dip, it

Continued from Page 5 said this was intentional.

“We wanted everything to be ADA compliant,” the mayor said at the time. “There’s plenty of room for passing from one point to another.”

The walkways lead to a completely ADA-compliant set of outdoor exercise equipment, stairs for stepping and tension-built bars for working on arms and legs.

One side of each is designed for anyone to simply sit down and get to work – but the other side has a spot where someone in a wheelchair may simply drive up and get to work without having to transfer to the bench.

We saw the location of the new snack bar and then headed to the new playground. Here, we found swings, sliding ponds, climbing bars and wheels on which to spin the kids. It is all accompanied by a foamlike flooring which will lead to much greater safety when the children fall or have any other kind of accident.

Think of all those cuts and bruises from dirt and pebbles on older-style playgrounds.

This will be no more because the entire playground area is extremely safe and modern.

All of the fields are modern turf. There’s also a professional size volleyball court, a request made my several residents who otherwise

were forced to play on grass at West Hudson Park.

Security cameras feed directly to the police department headquarters so the place should be kept quite safe, on and off hours.

The entire facility was engineered to keep flooding away — and it was put to the test in September when Hurricane Ida hit North Jersey.

It worked.

While there was significant storm damage to Harvey Field a bit to the south, the Oval escaped unharmed and undamaged.

The year 2021 was certainly a good one from the Kearny Police Department. Two significant developments this year.

The company that makes the Tasers, Axon, says the word “taser” is not a verb.

Keep that in mind in case anyone ever asks you about it.

The weapons are designed to work in conjunction with Axon’s body-warn cameras (hope we’re allowed to call them that) so since the cameras were mandated by the state Attorney General’s Office, Chief George King felt the time was right to buy the less-than-lethal items to

Continued on the next page

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Continued from previous page wasn’t the only reason.

Consider that the drop wasn’t the biggest in the last five years.

“Did the pandemic play a role? Sure, there’s a correlation,” King said.

“But it’s much more than that. We had a tumultuous summer in 2020 following the death of George Floyd.

Tempers were flaring. There were protests. But our department didn’t hide —

they did everything that was expected of them and more.

We are ecstatic with these numbers.”

Each of the seven crimes indexed by the FBI saw a dip except one — robbery — where the was 14 in 2020 as opposed to 13 the year prior.

There were no homicides in Kearny in 2020, King noted. nnn While we wish we could recap every story of the

Wednesday, December 29, 2021

year, space dictates that we cannot. Some of the other major stories of the year included: Jacho found guilty in DWI trial Belleville Board of Education trustee Erika Jacho was found guilty of DWI, among other charges, in a four-hour trial that was moved from Belleville to Verona.

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her incident depicted a belligerent Jacho.

She also clearly perjured herself on the stand when she erroneously testified as to the timing of the coverage this newspaper had of her arrest.

Though we contacted the Verona prosecutor following the trial to inform him of Jacho’s perjury, he never returned our phone calls and is instead allowing the perjury to go unchecked.

Calls for Jacho to resign — from this newspaper and from members of the public — went unheeded.

Instead, the Belleville Board of Education just last week voted to authorize paying to send her to conferences out of the area.

POTUS visits Kearny It was impossible to figured out when it last happened, but President Joseph R. Biden Jr. was in Kearny to tout his “Build Back Better” plan. he visited a South Kearny NJ Transit repair center.

Among the few who got to see him in person was Mayor Alberto G. Santos.

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Kearny Firefighter Francis ‘Frankie’ McAllister dies In late August, word come down Kearny Fighter Frankie McAllister died.

The five-year veteran of Kearny’s bravest valiantly fought cancer for several years.

Not too long before he died, he learned he was to become a father.

He was just 39.

Massive fight breaks out at ‘friendly’ soccer match What started out as a

friendly soccer match at Red Bull Arena between two clubs from Honduras Sunday, Aug. 1, ended more like an MMA match, as wild brawls broke out, police from all over the area were called in and used riot gear and at least three people were stabbed, one critically.

Despite eyewitnesses describing having seen the stabbings and the ensuing results thereof, the Harrison Police Department went on record saying there were no stabbings during the brouhaha.

Videos on social media revealed a chaotic scene, with some police clad in helmets and riot shields as they worked to push the out-of-control crowd away from the stadium and out of the area. Game attendees, some draped in the flags of Honduras and Colombia, could be seen giving police the middle finger while some threw rocks and bottles at them.

Reports indicate the four clubs paid the Red Bulls to rent the stadium for the soccer exhibition. The single-admission matches were sold out.

Police officers from Kearny, East Newark, Jersey City and every other Hudson County municipality, plus Newark, the New Jersey State Police, NJ Transit, the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey and elsewhere provided mutual aid to the Harrison PD. Observer Editor Kevin A. Canessa Jr. may be reached at kc@theobserver. com. Follow him on Facebook & Twitter @kevincanessa.

Wednesday, December 29, 2021

The Observer | www.theobserver.com

Sports & Recreation

9

Kearny boys’ soccer team tops Year in Sports Top 10 stories

By Jim Hague ogsmar@aol.com A familiar position for a local soccer power. The passing of several notables, but none larger than the beloved football coach. The idea of hosting a usual indoor sport outdoors.

These are some of the sports stories that grabbed the headlines of the Observer’s sports pages in 2021. Here’s our list of the Top 10 – and some others that were placed in a just missed list.

left a huge void in the hearts of all involved with the Nutley football program. He is still sorely missed.

3-A change of pace with Nutley wrestling outdoors

The coronavirus COVID-19 did not do anything worthwhile anywhere, but it did have a silver lining for the Nutley High School wrestling team.

When some of the sports that generally occupy the 1-Kearny wins NJSIAA winter months were put on a Group IV state title, backburner due to the pancapping a brilliant demic, the sport of wrestling just moved its season from a one-loss campaign winter sport to a once-in-alifetime hybrid that crossed For all intents and purposes, over from the winter months Kearny High School’s run to to early spring. an NJSIAA state championWith that, the powers-thatship ended at the hands of be at Nutley High School Elizabeth in the overall Group Photo by Jim Hague decided to do a brilliant thing IV semifinals. The Kardinals Kearny soccer standout Nico Gomez moves his way up field during the Kardinals’ 6-2 win over Freehold Township in April by moving the match trailed the Minutemen, a in the NJSIAA Group IV state championship game at Kean University in November, a story that earns the top spot against rival Bloomfield to usual foe in the old Watchung in The Observer’s Top 10 Sports Stories for 2021. outdoors on the field at the Conference days, by two goals newly refurbished Nutley with under 10 minutes to play, ing in New Jersey. ous return to the sidelines 2-Nutley grid coach Oval. It was an absolute perbut somehow managed to It marked the 33rd time datfor DiGregorio, who enjoyed DiGregorio passes fect setting for a high school score twice in the final stages two stints as the head football wrestling match, with the ing back to 1923 that Kearny to tie, then won the game via coach at his alma mater, but won its respective state chamIt was one of the more school buildings surrounding penalty kicks (after trailing in pionship and the first time valiant cancer battles in recent none sweeter than the undethe Oval, in itself one of the that portion of overtime, 2-0) feated championship season since 2017. Prior to 2017, the time. Beloved Nutley head most unique and historic spots to send the Kardinals into the Kardinals also won state titles football coach Steve DiGrego- of 2020. The Maroon Raiders for all of high school sports in overall Group IV state title won all six of their contests in 1999, 2002 and 2004. rio battled pancreatic canNew Jersey. game against Freehold Townin the COVID-19 truncated It was also the second state cer unlike any other person Although Bloomfield came ship. title for current head coach inflicted with the hideous and schedule and managed to away with the victory, everyOnce there at the overall capture the championship of Bill Galka. frightful disease. DiGregorio one involved was the winner, state title game at Kean Unithe Super Essex Conference’s because years from now, those The Kardinals also won the did not step aside when he versity in Union, the Kardinals mid-sized school division. It Hudson County Interschowas first diagnosed in 2019, kids who wrestled outdoors unleashed their typical scoring was Nutley’s first undefeated lastic Athletic League regular keeping hope upon hope that crisp April day will always explosion, tallying six goals season since 1939. season championship and that he would be able to beat remember the day they had a for incredibly the ninth time However, the cancer, which chance to compete outdoors in the Hudson County Tournathe disease. While everyone in 24 matches this season. Led was in remission, returned ment championship, defeataround and about the Nutley the sport they love. by the team’s leading scorer, with full vengeance in January ing neighboring archnemesis athletic department believed Juan Rojas, who scored two of 2021, forcing DiGregorio Harrison, 3-2 in overtime in that the diagnosis of pancregoals and added two assists, 4-Locals O’Neill, Mcto step down as head football a match played at Red Bull atic cancer was a death knell, the Kards (22-1-1) rolled to the Clelland lead Rutgers’ Arena. Needless to say, it was a DiGregorio didn’t want to be- coach, turning the reins over state title with a 6-2 victory in year to remember. women’s soccer team to lieve it and managed to some- to DiGregorio’s long-time front of 6,000 avid soccer fans assistant J.D. Vick.

In October And the Kards’ ascension how, some way keep cancer NCAA Final Four at Kean. of 2021, DiGregorio lost his back to state soccer promiat bay while returning to the The scoring explosion enanence earns The Observer’s sidelines to coach his beloved battle with cancer. He was 60 Mike O’Neill, the head bled the Kards to capture the years old.

No. 1 sports story for 2021.

Maroon Raiders in 2020.

NJSIAA Group IV state title Steve DiGregorio’s passing It turned out to be a gloriSee TOP TEN, Page 10 and earn the final No. 3 rank-

10

The Observer | www.theobserver.com

Wednesday, December 29, 2021 seasons right as NJSIAA playoffs began

TOP TEN

Continued from Page 9

The coronavirus pandemic has reared its ugly head in the women’s soccer coach at Rutlocal sports world for almost gers University in Piscataway, two years now, but perhaps has never been one to turn his the saddest local moment back on his hometown, namely took place in October when Kearny. The same can be said both the Nutley High School for O’Neill’s prized goalkeeper football and girls’ soccer teams Meagan McClelland, who also had to forfeit out of their hails from Kearny. The two respective NJSIAA state tourlocal soccer fixtures were able nament brackets on the very to lead the Scarlet Knights to same day due to an outbreak of the NCAA Final Four in Santa COVID-19. The football team Clara, California, Rutgers’ first was all set to face Old Tappan appearance in the Final Four in the first round of the North in six years. It was a glorious Jersey Section 1, Group IV year for the Scarlet Knights, bracket, while the Nutley girls especially the two proud were set to tangle with Cranlocals, one of whom was The ford in the second round of the Observer’s Female Athlete North Jersey Section 2, Group of the Year in 2019 (can we III playoffs. It was a very guess which one earned that disheartening and disappointaward?). But it was a momenPhoto by Jim Hague ing day for the entire Nutley tous contribution from two Long-time Nutley head football coach Steve DiGregorio, shown here leading his team to pre-game warmups at athletic department. locals who managed to gain MetLife Stadium before the Group III state sectional championship game in 2009, lost his battle with pancreatic national attention and to plop cancer in October, 2021. themselves in the middle of 7-Local pitchers the Top 10 local sports stories for sure. But it was believed team. Led by head coach Mike County Tournament Todzuman, Stoeckel of the year for 2021. that the stranglehold that the Sylvia and a crew of hardchampionship enjoy incredible Kearny High girls’ soccer team working defensive wizards, softball seasons had on the Hudson County the Kardinals won their 12th 5-Kearny girls’ When it was almost like a straight Hudson County Girls’ Soccer Tournament soccer team wins passing fad, like perhaps four While there weren’t any tourney title, which is now would eventually come to an 12th straight Hudson in a row or even five or six state championships to be won at 12 in a row and counting. end. But the streak has not straight, it was impressive, by the local teams in sports ended and it’s now to the point Ironically, the Kards defeated like softball, two local pitchers North Bergen in the title game of resembling the old NCAA had All-State caliber camin the beginning of November. men’s basketball streak that paigns and created seasons to North Bergen’s nickname? was held by the UCLA men. remember.

Everyone figured that the The Bruins, of course. There’s Lyndhurst junior Ella Bruins’ impressive run would some symmetry there, don’t Todzuman had a breathtaking eventually come to compleyou think? season for the Golden Bears, tion, but sure enough, John Dr. Prakash Dr. Hector allowing just one earned run Wooden managed to collect J. Doshi Aguilar 6-COVID outbreak in 121 innings, striking out yet another banner. shuts down Nutley CAN YOU TAKE TOO MUCH VITAMIN C? The same can be said now Vitamin C is often thought of as non-heme iron and stores it in a form Continued on the next page football, girls’ soccer for the Kearny girls’ soccer

Premier Care TALKS

a miracle supplement because it can have positive effects on so many things, from hair and skin to the immune system. It helps us absorb iron and other nutrients from food, heal wounds and broken bones, and strengthen cartilage. However, too much can be rough on the kidneys since it is their job to filter the excess vitamin C from the body to be washed out during urination. If the kidneys are not functioning properly due to disease, or if you consistently take more than the recommended dose of vitamin C, you may be seriously increasing your risk of forming kidney stones and potentially renal cell carcinoma (kidney cancer).

Vitamin C has been shown to enhance iron absorption. It captures

that’s more easily absorbed by your body. There is no known vitamin or mineral that inhibits vitamin C absorption; however, substances that do interfere with vitamin C include aspirin, antibiotics, barbiturates, cortisone, estrogen, oral contraceptives, alcohol, and antihistamines. Please call PREMIER CARE ASSOCIATES OF WEST HUDSON at 201-998-7474 to schedule an appointment. Our office is located at 512 Kearny Ave., Suite B. We treat hypertension, arthritis, and acute and chronic injuries.

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Wednesday, December 29, 2021 142 batters in the process.

She also had a fine year at the plate, collecting 34 hits and 26 RBI. She returns as one of the players to watch in all of northern New Jersey in 2022.

The same can be said for Nutley junior Fallyn Stoeckel, who struck out 174 batters in 154 innings, allowing just 25 earned runs. Stoeckel is also a terror at the plate, registering 33 hits and 29 RBI. No question, Todzuman and Stoeckel are among the top softball players in New Jersey.

Stoeckel has already signed her national letter of intent to attend Rider University come fall of 2022. Before then, the area should embrace the fact that two superstars are right here for us to enjoy for one more season.

8-Belleville’s Zach Perez breaks the transgender barrier In a past life, Zach Perez had a different gender that he was born with. But the Belleville High School junior was never really comfortable being a girl (in fact, Perez’s birth name isn’t even discussed any

C ELEBRATING

11

The Observer | www.theobserver.com as a member of the Belleville softball squad. He’s a trailblazing athlete who shared his brave story with The Observer back in June. He really had an impact on a lot of people, both in the field of athletics and beyond. He’s an incredible young man who we only hope is accepted freely by students and non-students equally.

the top goal scoring total in all of New Jersey. Yet, Mutsoli was left off of practically every single postseason All-State list.

In any case, it’s not an achievement that has been overlooked in local circles. Mutsoli had a season to remember.

9-Lyndhurst’s Mutsoli leads all of New Jersey in soccer scoring

Photo by Jim Hague

Former North Arlington High School standout football player Michael Cammett, known in local wrestling “The Golden Boy” because of his long flowing blond hair, drowned in an accident on the Delaware River in July.

longer).

Perez is growing more and more comfortable every day, competing in cross country in the fall and now indoor track and field. In the spring, Perez will go back to his role

EYE

25

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In July, the local sports community suffered a tremendous The Lyndhurst boys’ soccer loss when Michael Cammett, team enjoyed a highly success- the former North Arlington ful season in 2021, thanks in High School football player, part to the brilliance of senior drowned in a innertube raftforward Enrique (pronounced ing accident on the Delaware N-REEK) Mutsoli, who had River. Cammett was just 25 his name butchered in voice years old. and printed word more than In recent years, Camany other high school athmett had spent a lot of his lete in northern New Jersey. time crafting his skills as a Mutsoli scored an astounding 39 goals, which represented See TOP TEN, Page 12

HEALTH&WELLNESS & &WELLNESS

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SLOW IT DOWN sure to light and to a greater Cases of myopia (nearvariety of visual stimuli and sightedness) are rapidly distance-vision activities. growing throughout the Controlling myopia has global population, and the condition is expected to af- come to be viewed as more fect the vision of nearly half of a medical necessity rather the planet’s population in the than an elective luxury by eye care professionals, next 30 or so years. Since educators, and parents. For myopia generally begins to over 25 years, we have been develop during early childhood, and becomes worse as a Leader in New York/New we age, it is helpful to know Jersey Ophthalmology, treating all eye conditions. We are what practices may reduce located at 20 Park Avenue, your child’s risk. To begin with, limiting screen time is Lyndhurst. To reach our optiimportant for a multitude of cal shop, call 201-896-0007. reasons including healthy eye We accept most insurance.

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10-Passing of IWF wrestling champion Cammett of North Arlington

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TOP TEN

Continued from Page 11 professional wrestler in the organization the International Wrestling Federation, headed

by Nutley native Kevin Knight.

Cammett was fulfilling his dream to become a pro wrestler and had become a very popular competitor as his nickname proudly proclaimed, “The Golden Boy.” Cammett was popular with the local kids’ shows that Knight and the IWF would put on, but he was also widely familiar with the oldschool wrestling fans that just loved Cammett’s flair and personality in and out of the ring.

Whenever someone dies so young, it’s a tragedy, but when it came to Cammett’s passing, it left a void in local circles that won’t soon be filled. He’s so sorely missed.

Just missed list Just thinking of a few stories that jumped off the sports

pages, but didn’t make the top 10 stories.

In September, Ray Lucas decided to return to his high school alma mater, namely Harrison High, and become the head coach of the Blue Tide.

Lucas, probably the greatest athlete in the history of Harrison, decided to take over the program when the former coach resigned with less than one month before the season was set to start. Lucas won his first game of the season.

Throughout the high school football season, the name of Jacob Rodriguez became a household word, thanks to his All-State exploits at Hudson Catholic High School. But Rodriguez is a native of Kearny and still resides in Kearny. His prowess does not get lost locally.

In November, Kearny lost a dear friend and soccer stalwart in Tommy Briscoe, who was a soccer coach and was also a fine soccer official. Briscoe was a true Scottish and Irish gentleman who was so truly admired and loved.

Wednesday, December 29, 2021

Reach your new year’s resolutions on a budget (StatePoint) Whether your New Year’s Resolutions include eating healthier, exercising more, or devoting more time to self-care, having a plan can help you reach your goals on a budget.

This new year, consider the following tips from the experts at Dollar General:

Healthier Eating

Preparing food that is healthier, tasty and affordable is easier when sticking to recipes and a budget. To help customers make healthier decisions, Dollar General partnered with a registered dietician and nutritionist to create “Better For You” recipes from ingredients available at every Dollar General store.

The complete collection can be found at dollargeneral.com, and includes simple, budget-

friendly recipes, such as loaded egg muffins, roasted broccoli almondine and secret ingredient brownies, making it easy to whip up something delicious and nutritious at each meal.

Self-Care

A healthy dose of self-care can make you happier and healthier. Self-care may include adopting a new hair care routine, experimenting with skin care products, or learning a new recipe. It may also mean taking time to meditate, read new books or spend less time on electronics and more time with friends and family.

Be sure to dedicate time on the calendar every day to self-care.

Smart Saver

To begin 2022 with a fresh perspective on finances, make a budget that includes house-

hold essentials. While food is one budget line item that can fluctuate, you can be sure to save by taking advantage of retailers’ apps that help you shop savvy. For example, the Dollar General app includes digital coupons, a Shopping List feature so you can take note of needed items and calculate the estimated total before going to the store, and a Cart Calculator feature, which keeps a running total of purchases while you’re in the store. Understanding budgets, sale items and available digital coupons before shopping can help keep you from overspending and hopefully support your financial stability goals.

Regardless of your plans for the new year, adopting a few smart strategies can help ensure you meet your goals affordably.

The Observer

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Wednesday, December 29, 2021

13

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Nutley man admits to extortion: US Attorney

By Kevin A. Canessa Jr. kc@theobserver.com

A

Nutley man admitted to conspiring to extort multiple general contractors of approximately $14,000 by using his brother’s position as a compliance safety and health officer (CSHO) with the U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.

Paul Idrovo, aka “Jose Diaz” and “Paul Mejia,” 48, of Nutley, pleaded guilty by videoconference before U.S. District Judge Katharine S. Hayden to an information charging him with one count of conspiring to defraud the United States and to commit an offense against the United States, specifically to commit an act of extortion under color of his brother’s office or employment with OSHA. Paul Idrovo was previously charged by complaint in September 2020, together with his brother, Alvaro Idrovo, with one count of conspiring to commit an offense against the United States based on the extortion of a single contractor.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court: Alvaro Idrovo misrepresented to contractors

engaged in construction sites in New Jersey that they were facing significant OSHA fines, penalties and possibly jail, if they did not get OSHA safety training from a specific individual.

He would provide the contractors with the phone number for the required trainer, allegedly called “Jose Diaz” or “Paul Mejia.”

The phone number actually belonged to Paul Idrovo, posing under these names to conceal their brotherly relationship.

Paul Idrovo was an authorized trainer for certain OSHA Outreach Training Programs, but was not an employee of OSHA. Although initially demanding higher sums, the two men eventually charged contractors $4,000 to $6,000 each for the alleged safety training, which was required to be paid in cash. Paul Idrovo collected the cash and provided the contractors with fraudulent computer-generated safety and health certificates for their individual employees, which falsely stated that the employees had received various type of OSHA certified safety training from “Jose Diaz” and “Paul Mejia,” when no training had actually been provided.

As part of the charged fee, Paul ldrovo and Alvaro Idrovo also furnished the

LAW & ORDER contractors with alleged necessary safety and health plans, which were prepared from a template rather than created or modified in any substantial way for the contractor. Paul Idrovo shared with Alvaro Idrovo approximately $5,000 of the cash collected as part of the extortion conspiracy.

When OSHA officials learned of the attempt to extort one of the contractors, the OSHA officials referred the matter to federal law enforcement, who arranged for that contractor to make consensual recordings with both Idrovos. During an April 2020 meeting, surveilled by law enforcement, the contractor paid Paul Idrovo $6,000 in cash in exchange for ladder- and safety-awareness training certificates and a safety and health plan.

Alvaro Idrovo, thereafter, attached copies of the training certificates and the plan to his OSHA reports regarding the contractor’s violation despite knowing that the training

certificates falsely claimed training had been provided to the noted individuals in March 2020, “Jose Diaz” had provided training, and the alleged training was OSHA certified.

The conspiracy charge against Paul Idrovo carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. His sentencing is scheduled for May 22, 2022.

The complaint against

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Whatever the year has brought your way, we want you to know our family’s thoughts are with you.

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Wednesday, December 29, 2021

ECPO: Stabbing suspect arrested in Trenton

T

he man the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office had sought in connection to a stabbing in Belleville last month has been apprehended and arrested in the state capital, Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II and Belleville Police Chief Mark Minichini announced jointly.

Termaine Pines, 48, of Newark was arrested and charged in connection with the incident that occurred

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Saturday, Nov. 20, on Van Rennsselaer Street in Belleville.

According to the ECPO: Pines was apprehended Sunday, Dec. 19, between 9 and 9:30 p.m., at a homeless shelter in Trenton without incident. He was charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault, burglary, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and unlawful possession of a weapon.

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by the ECPO, the Belleville and Baltimore police departments and the US Marshal’s Service. The arrest was made

by ECPO and Belleville detectives, jointly, with assistance from the Trenton Police Department.

On Nov. 20, a local resident was stabbed when she entered her home.

The victim was able to flee from the assailant and seek help and was treated for her stab wounds at a local hospital.

The suspect fled the area after the incident. When Belleville officers responded to the residence, they also discovered an unresponsive elderly woman in a first-floor bedroom.

The woman, who was in her 80s and who resided in the residence, was pronounced dead at the scene.

The cause and manner of death of the woman is pending final deter-

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mination by the New Jersey Regional Medical Examiner.

Anyone with information about this case is urged to contact the Essex County Prosecutor’s Tips line at (877) 847-7432.

— CANESSA

Kearny’s Franklin School names honor students Yvonne Cali of Kearny’s Franklin School presents the school’s first marking period honor roll: 4th Grade Principal’s Honor roll: Daniel Cooke, Camila Dominguez, Scarlet Jaramillo, Omayra Juarez, Lucas Paz, Shannon Ryan, Jeremay Santos DeFreitas 4th Grade Honor Roll: Isabelle Almonte, Agustina Asborno Rivero, Rayyan Bourquia, Cassandra Criado, Jada DeJesus, Jean Delanoe, Megan Delgado Ortiz, Kailah Fernandez, Gabriela Goya Garcia, Mason How Chung, Jayden Jimenez, Camille Kopp, Sebastian Melendez, Joseph Montoro, Maria Peixoto Valada, Nicholas Platero, Anneliese Ramos, Kevin Reis, Isabelly Riberio De Paula, Camilla Silva, Austin Torres, Mia Torres.

5th Grade Principal’s Honor Roll: Isabella Barrantes, Christopher Fernandez, Samuel Garcia Ojeda, Ester Glanzmann Cerqueira, Pedro Grinan, Joshua Konopka, Chloe Lin, Noushin Mahmud, Harshika Pasunuri, Liza

Savytska, Jean Tasigchana.

5th Grade Honor Roll: Rodrigo Amarante, Camila Cabrera Adames, Justin Canales, Jazleen Cedeno, Michael Clark, Alexis Cohetero-Garcia, Allison Cohetero Martinez, Kate Cordova Velez, Angelina Cruz, Belen Diaz Aleman, Kal-El Espinoza, Joselyn Espinoza Morquecho, Jayden Gonzalez, Maria Emilia Gutierez Merizalde, Aditi Jani, Katherine Marrero, Kamil Marte Pineda, Josue Martinez Cerrato, Sidney O’Blenis,Isaac Ocasio, Jezabel Ordonez Diaz, Alianny Quezada Jimenez, Jessenia Reyes, Katrina Rodriguez, Steven Speranza, Paul Torres, Joe Yang.

6th Grade Principal’s Honor Roll: Barbara Calienes, Anthony Chuquirima Miranda, Katherine Chuquirima Miranda, Gennesis Juarez, Rachel Kelly, Afiha Maliha, Keyla Petrillo.

6th Grade Honor Roll: Gabriella Arrazola, Tiernan Devlin, Ryan Florek, Alyson Guillen, Maylean Muniz Hernandez, Alexander Reis, Angel St. Jean.

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Wednesday, December 29, 2021

Kearny police seek details about fatal 1&9 crash

By Capt. Timothy Wagner Kearny Police Department

O

n Dec. 19 at 7:50 p.m., several officers were dispatched to Truck Routes 1&9 near Hackensack Avenue on a report of a pedestrian struck by a vehicle. The preliminary investigation indicated a 28-year-old Jersey City woman was driving southbound on Routes 1&9 in a 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee and struck a 59-yearold Newark man who had been a pedestrian on the highway.

The pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics. No charges have been filed against the driver. The incident remains under investigation by the KPD Traffic Bureau and the Northern Regional Medical Examiner’s Office.

Anyone who may have information about the crash is asked to contact the KPD Traffic Bureau at (201) 998-1313, or by email at tips@ kearnynjpd.org.

On Dec. 10 at 11:50 a.m., Sgt. Phil Finch and Officer Jason Rodrigues responded to a private home on a report of a domestic violence restraining order violation. A 30-year-old resident there reported she has a restraining order against a 30-year-old Kearny man who allegedly sent her a text message a day earlier in violation of the order.

The day before that, the victim recorded video footage of the man’s mother at her home screaming at her through her home camera system, presumably on his behalf.

Officers charged the man with contempt. He was remanded to the Hudson County Jail in South Kearny.

On Dec. 10 at 1:56 p.m., several officers responded to a private home on a report of a domestic violence incident in progress. They arrived to find the suspect, a 41-year-old Kearny man, sitting on the front stoop.

Officers learned the man came to the home, allegedly intoxicated, to visit family. An argument began that allegedly escalated to the man throwing

a punch at a relative and then breaking a chair and two doors by striking them with his arms and legs.

Officers Cort Montanino and Christos Manolis arrested the violent visitor on charges of simple assault and criminal mischief. He was later transferred to the county jail.

On Dec. 17 at 2:23 p.m., Officer Alan Stickno was dispatched the home of the defendant from a Dec. 10 domestic violence incident. He had been released from jail at some earlier time. The defendant’s adult son reported his father punched him in the face during an argument. Officer Stickno arrested the defendant again, this time for simple assault. The defendant was re-incarcerated at the county jail.

On Dec. 11 at 10:23 p.m., Officers Anthony Oliveira, David Vazquez and Jose Perez-Fonseca were dispatched to a private home on a report of a domestic dispute. Officers were informed a husband and wife had an argument that escalated to the 24-yearold husband allegedly choking his wife and the wife allegedly reacting by biting him on the arm and striking him in the head. Officers arrested the husband on a charge of aggravated assault (D.V. strangulation). He was later lodged in the Hudson County Jail.

On Dec. 15, Det. Kyle Plaugic was notified the Harrison Police Department was detaining Juan E. Ramirez Jr., 25, of Kearny, who was wanted on two Kearny arrest warrants. Det. Plaugic earlier charged Ramirez as the defendant in two Nov. 13 burglaries.

One was at a Boyd Street home that was under construction, from which $2,688 worth of power tools were stolen. The other was an overnight burglary to a private school where a laptop computer and power tool were stolen. Ramirez faces two counts of burglary and two counts of theft from those incidents. Officers Rich Poplaski Jr. and Dan Maganinho took custody of Ramirez, booked him on the outstanding charges, and sent him to the county jail in South Kearny.

POLICE BEAT

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Help wanted for Busy Deli Full Time- Part Time Days and Evenings Apply in Person D&F Deli 396 Davis Ave, Kearny 33W06

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FT Mechanic position available.

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Valid NJ drivers license with CDL, class B, air brake required. https://info.csc.state.nj.us/ jobspec/02434.htm For application go to Town of Kearny Website at https://www.kearnynj.org/job-opportunities/ application Deadline 1/11/2022 32W04

Part Time Bookkeeper Small Property Management Company looking for Part Time bookkeeper for a Nutley office. Duties include but are not limited to collection of A/R, data entry of incoming rents and fees for multiple properties, preparing correspondence to homeowners and tenants, printing of A/P, production of budgets and financial reports. Must have knowledge of MS Word, MS Excel, Quickbooks and/or TOPS One. Salary is commensurate with experience.

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Hiring Full Time Pastry Chef, Pastry Assistant, Manager, Manager assistant, Front customer servicewaiters Contact / Information (973)816-0328 vicentesbread@gmail.com

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Orthopedist’s practice in Kearny looking for full-time, temporary secretary between (6-8) months (M-F) 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Must be professional, responsible, friendly and motivated. Duties include, but are not limited to answering telephones, scheduling appointments, registration of patients, handling of medical records, faxing, etc.

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Security Guards Part time positions in Recreation Depts.

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APARTMENTS FOR RENT

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N.ARLINGTON 2nd fl. in 2 family house 3 BR, 1 Bathroom. with deck Laundry hook-up in apartment. Close to schools & Transportation. 1 parking space $2,400 + 1 1/2 months security. Utilities not included. No pets. NO Smoking. Available Now. Call or text (973) 4543281 or email sammy.bella66@gmail.com 33W03

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ALL CLASSIFIED ADS MUST BE PRE-PAID Deadline for Classifieds Employment /Business Monday 12:00 PM All others Monday by 3:00 PM. E-mail Ads to classified@theobserver.com

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East Newark students learn programming at quite an early age

By Ron Leir

S

For The Observer

omeday, they might be charting a patient’s organs to diagnose an ailment, predicting the variabilities of a particular stock or plotting the schematics for a future highrise structure.

For now, though, a small group of East Newark middle school students are focused on the rudiments of computer programming – marking the first time the borough’s public school (pre-K to grade 8) has incorporated this skill as part of the learning program.

District Superintendent Richard Corbett says it’s one strategy toward “providing our older students with opportunities to explore STEM (Science/ Technology/Engineering/Mathematics) which may be the gateway to a financially rewarding and fulfilling career.”

Eight boys and four girls spread among grades 6, 7 and 8 – all of whom are student athletes – are registered for the class, currently offered as an elective on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, either during what would normally be the students’ gym period or after school.

Amazon, the giant Internet sales company, is underwriting the “Amazon Future Engineer” class to introduce computer science education to students who attend federal Title 1-eligible schools such as East Newark.

East Newark teacher John Colaiacovo III, who received an emergency certificate from the county superintendent’s office to serve as facilitator for the course, uses an Internet curriculum devised by Amazon to guide students.

Students access that curriculum on the school’s existing Chromebooks so, ultimately, there’s no cost to the district for the program, Colaiacovo noted. He, along with other teachers around the U.S., participated in a national Zoom call conducted by an Amazon facilitator to get briefed on the program.

During a recent visit to the class, a reporter found several youngsters fully engaged in the process of what their teacher described as using “Scratch and block-based coding.”

As Wikipedia explains, Scratch “is a block-based, visual programming language. Unlike traditional written commands typed using symbols on the [computer] keyboard, Scratch commands take the form of colorful blocks. Users can create programs by [dragging] blocks together, much like virtual LEGO.” In essence, Colaiacovo said, the students are writing computer programs to create original virtual products.

As part of the lesson being explored that day, for example, they were devising virtual animated cartoons.

Isabella Diaz, a 12-year-old sixthgrader who plays on the school hoops team, was learning to use “click and point” technique as she went about her task of programming a virtual scoreboard en route to formulating a pair of computer games.

Two other sixth-graders – Dilan Luna, 11, and Jhowy Picon, also 11 – were also happily glued to their Chromebook screens and keyboards, developing individual game models.

“My friends encouraged me to try this,” Dilan said. And now he’s glad he did. “It’s fun,” he added. And, at home, “my dad helps me practice,” he said.

When he’s not at the computer, Dilan plays basketball and soccer for the school teams.

Jhowy, another basketball player who also plays soccer for a club team, is also into the spirit of the course. “I like how I can make new games,” he said. “Mr. C taught me how.”

“At the end of the day, this is all about computer programming,” Colaiacovo observed, “and developing the mindset behind it – learning to write a set of directions.” And, perhaps when the students are of high school age, he noted, “it could be a predecessor to robotics.”

Wednesday, December 29, 2021

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CHRISTMAS IN PICTURES — WEST HUDSON & SOUTH BERGEN

I

Contributed photos

t was a busy Christmas season in the area, even if the Omicron variants of COVID-19 threatened to slow it down. Seen here, clockwise from top left: The home of former Harrison Councilman Anselmo Millan was decorated to the nines as it always is.

It was also the site of the next photo, where Santa visited with families as Harrisonfest Inc., gave away 500+ presents to local residents. in the next photo are the winners of the North Arlington Knights of Columbus’s ‘Keep Christ in Christmas’ poster contest.

They are, from left, Sabrina Echeverria, Victoria Blazquez, Daniel Rogel, Taylis Garcia, Gianna Faulk and Veronica Lopes. Lastly, Belleville youngsters grab a selfie with Santa at the town’s annual Christmas event & tree lighting.

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