The MANCHESTER Times Vol. 25 - No. 44
MICROMEDIA PUBLICATIONS
JERSEYSHOREONLINE.COM
Resident Receives Citizen Of The Year
In This Week’s Edition
Community News!
─Photo by Bob Vosseller
Pages 12-17
Jermain Jackson, left, joins his wife Ashley and their two children Vesphera, 2, and Ziara, 1 as he holds up his framed Citizen of the Year for 2019 proclamation that was presented to him during a Lakehurst Borough Council meeting.
BREAKING NEWS @
By Bob Vosseller LAKEHURST – Resident Jermaine Jackson recently received a very special award. Jackson was named the 2019 Citizen of the Year. Lakehurst Mayor Harry Robbins presented the award to Jackson during a Borough Council meeting. Observing the honor was his father, his wife and his two children. Municipal Clerk Maryanne Capasso said the borough’s award is a
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tradition dating back to 2004. It is given to a person who distinguished themselves by their dedication, perseverance, and service to the Borough of Lakehurst. “Jermaine demonstrated his dedication to the Borough through volunteering his service and time for many borough events. Jermaine is also the founder of Taking Back Our Communities, a program that brings drug awareness to the communities,”
Capasso said. “Every year, for the past three years, Jermaine has had a barbeque at Lake Horicon and everyone is invited at no charge. He has food, entertainment, and information of drug abuse for those going through addiction and those affected by it,” she said. Joining him for his special honor was his wife Ashley and t he i r t wo ch i ld r e n Vesphera, 2, and Ziara, 1, and his stepfa-
ther Michael Pharms. Jackson said, “I put together drug and alcohol events. A friend of mine passed. I was shocked to learn from my brother one day who called me at work that my friend had overdosed in the bathroom of a pizzeria. “That bothered and scared me. I wanted to do something because I have children and didn’t want to see anything happen. That was three years ago in 2017. My wife helped me every step of the way. We held a rally event to bring awareness of the problem at the Community Center in Lakehurst,” Jackson said. “The event drew about 125 people and we followed up in the summer with a barbeque with music and a bounce house and it was a day of fun…I think that is what it is all about for people to come together. The reason I think people do what they do (in regards to drug and alcohol abuse) is because they feel they are all alone but they aren’t,” Jackson said.
Plan Forming For Life Support Coverage
By Chris Lundy TOMS R I V ER – With MONOC endi ng Adva nce d Life Support Services to the area, leaders in law enforcement and emergency ser vices met to make sure that every town is covered. MONOC’s advanced life support program will close on April 1.
Hackensack Meridian Health and RWJBarnabas Health will assume full operational and administrative responsibility of the program according to a letter from Jeff Behm, president and CEO of the Monmouth Ocean Hospital Service Corp. Advanced life support is different than ba-
sic life support. Towns either use volunteer or police-run squads (or some combination of the t wo) for basic life support. The towns then contract with a paid provider like MONOC for advanced life support. By way of example, both crews might arrive at a car crash. Basic
life support might be for someone who got banged up and needs to be evaluated. Advanced life support might be for someone who was thrown from the vehicle. Ocean County Sheriff Michael G. Mastronardy and the Ocean County Office of Emergency Management fa-
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cilitated a recent meeting which included representatives from the new service providers. “With the announcement t hat MONOC would no longer be providing Advanced Life Support Services to Ocean County residents, it’s important that information is provided (Plan - See Page 7)
February 15, 2020
Council Looks Ahead to Solar Farm Project By Bob Vosseller MANCHESTER - Members of the Township Council looked at several forthcoming projects and programs during a recent meeting. One concerned the future of a solar farm. Among the items on their consent agenda was the naming of NextGrid as the developer of a Landfill Solar Project. Council President Sam F. Fusaro Jr. provided background on the solar field saying “it is in its earliest phases, with the town just getting approval from the State Bureau of Public Utilities (BPU) and Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) in the last couple weeks.” “Work will probably start in early spring. First, we have to cap the old township landfill before we can start the solar farm. Our estimate is at least a year before the job is completed,” Fusaro said. (Solar - See Page 4)
Seeing Test Scores As “More Than Just Numbers”
By Bob Vosseller MANCHESTER – School officials recently discussed curriculum and ways the district is using data analysis of New Jersey Student Learning Assessments (NJSLA) and other testing results to increase student success. Board members heard a presentation in December that served as a follow-up to a NJSLA Results presentation held in October. Diane Pedroza, the district’s director of curriculum, reviewed the steps that are used at the district level. Last July, administrators participated in a summer training with Dr. Tracey Severns called “The Leader’s Role in Using Data to Improve Student Outcomes.” Pedroza said it was a valuable session to help prepare them to focus on the data as a team. “What she discussed with us was ‘Let the data create a picture. Look at the data. See what’s there and then determine what the (Scores - See Page 7)
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