Denville Life July 2019

Vol. 2 • No. 7 • July 2019

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Baseball Disneyland Denville Dragons 12U Ready to Make Their Mark at Cooperstown

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Denville BSA Scoutmaster Marks 60 Years of Leadership with Troop

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By Anya Bochman t’s fair to say that Albert Green, of Denville, has a long history in the township’s Boy Scouts of America Troop 17. The lifelong Denville resident first joined the troop as a scout when he was 12 – in 1947. In more than seven decades with the troop – six of them spent as Scoutmaster – Green has educated and inspired generations of young boys. His 60th anniversary as Scoutmaster of Troop 17 was commemorated on April 11 at the Denville Good Scout Awards Dinner.

The Denville that Green remembers from his boyhood is strikingly different from the township as it exists today, with special committees dedicated to modernizing its downtown business district. At the time that Green joined Troop 17, Denville was largely rural, with sprawling wooded areas that made hiking and camping natural for him and his friends before they ever considered scouting.

“There are many ways in which the country has changed since the day I joined [Troop 17]; most families had only one vehicle in the home and there was a lot less driving,” Green said. “Hiking was much more common, and as you made your way through the town only a few cars would pass you by.”

Green first considered joining the Boy Scouts by following in the footsteps of his older friends; he jokes that at the time, Troop 17 was “the only game in town.” Still, it wasn’t just lack of other options that held his interest; the troop was a learning experience that shaped his entire life.

In 1952, Green graduated from the Scouts with the rank of Eagle Scout; by 1954, he had enlisted in the U.S. military, serving for two years.

“Former scouts from Troop 17 go into many different professions,” Green said. “A number have gone into the military; the stuff I learned as a scout sure helped me when I was in the army.”

Green, who has been retired for 15 years, has two adult children and three grandchildren. He lives in Denville with Marilyn, his wife of over 60 years; he

Albert Green

has been dabbling in what he calls “a little retail business” since his retirement. Prior to that, he worked for the family construction business, A.F. Green & Son Builders of Denville, which he had incorporated in 1980.

After he got out of military service, Green ran into his old scoutmaster, who suggested he volunteer as Assistant Scoutmaster for Troop 17. Thinking he would put in an average of three years in the position, as did a number of his friends, Green was surprised when at the end of his tenure his

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scoutmaster suggested they switch positions.

That was in 1959, and Green has been scoutmaster ever since.

“Through the years, there has been a great bunch of boys coming into the Troop, and leaving as men,” Green said of his time with the BSA. “They really mature by the time they leave at 18.”

Troop 17 itself is just as storied and entrenched in Denville’s history as Green; on June 8th, the Troop celebrated its 90th anniversary with a formal evening dinner.

With a stated mission of developing the youth of Denville into productive citizens, Troop 17 strives to instill the values expressed by the Boy Scout Oath and Law. These entail respect for and service toward others, the local community and the world in general. To accomplish these admirable goals, the troop leaders work towards providing a stimulating and supportive scouting program that enhances growth through intellectual and physical activities.

Like other BSA troops, Denville’s chapter strives to develop leadership capabilities by providing training and opportunities to

lead within the troop. Its outdoor program is designed to enhance self-reliance and respect for the environment with contests, aquatic sports, hiking and other outdoor events.

During its first year of existence, in 1927, troop meetings were held in the old Denville schoolhouse in a room over the library. According to Denville PTA records, the room was kept exclusively for troop use and was heated by a pot-bellied stove; at first, each boy would bring wood to the meetings. Later, wood was hauled in and stacked in the basement for the winter.

With the razing of the schoolhouse in 1933, Troop 17 relocated its headquarters to the Denville Community Church, where it has been housed ever since. The church also became Troop 17’s new sponsoring organization.

Since its inception, Troop 17 has been following the general code of the BSA; at the center of this is the “patrol method.” An educational system used to train scouts to have moral character and a goal of helping others, the patrol method helps

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boys to work together and succeed at accomplishing various tasks. In the process, the scouts earn merit badges, acquire cooking skills and participate in outdoor activities and community service.

“My philosophy is the same as that of the Troop; I tell both parents and scouts that Troop 17 isn’t just there to make them Eagle Scouts,” Green said. “When they graduate the program, they are able to take care of themselves with the different skills they learned, which is our main goal.”

Some of the aforementioned skills include learning to administer first aid and wilderness survival.

Green also emphasized learning how to cook, noting that a number of former scouts have gone on to become chefs and hold other positions in the culinary industry.

“A lot of the basic skills we teach are still the same after all the years – except that before, we did all our cooking on an open fire, and now we have to use a gas stove,” Green mused.

As part of its operations, the BSA charters local organizations like churches and civic associations; volunteers are appointed by the chartering organization, who are supported by local councils using both paid professional scouts and volunteers.

In Denville, the community involvement is no different. Green cites township Mayor Tom Andes as a “real backer” of the Scouts, and a former boy scout himself. Three of his sons had been scouts under Green’s leadership. The generational participation is fairly common, as well; Green’s son became an Eagle Scout in 1977, and his wife and daughter are active in the Girl Scouts of America.

Over the years, Green has earned a number of accolades associated with scouting and Troop 17, such as the Scouter’s Key, the District Award of Merit and the Silver Beaver, which is scouting’s highest Council-level award. For 16 years, Green had worked with the Red Cross as a water safety in-

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structor, followed by 12 years on the Denville Board of Education.

He remains humble about his achievements, even as he was honored in April by the BSA Patriots’ Path Council at the third annual Denville Good Scout Awards Dinner, along with six other Denville residents. Green received a special recognition award as a “60 Year Veteran” of scouting. Still, he maintains that he would have preferred having his celebration held together with that of the Troop’s 90th anniversary on June 8th.

Troop 17 boasts 121 Eagle Scouts to date; to reach this top rank, scouts engage in various community outreach projects. For example, Denville’s troop set up hundreds of tents in New York City for the Annual Avon Breast Cancer Walk for walkers to spend the night.

There is lore repeated in Troop 17 by the older boys about Green’s alleged toughness during the Eagle Scout ceremony. According to Green, each year Eagle Scouts are surprised by what his actual questions to them turn out to be.

“There are three things I ask: ‘Did you learn anything? Do you remember what you learned?’ And lastly, ‘Did you have fun?’,” Green said. “That’s the most important part, having fun while you’re learning.”

For Green, the most fun and “vivid” memory of his experience in scouting was the National Jamboree that he attended in Valley Forge, Penn. in 1950. Held every four years, the Jamboree is an opportunity for Scouts from all over the nation and world to get together, and is considered one of several unique experiences

offered by the BSA. A jamboree is held for approximately a week and a half and offers many activities for its thousands of youth participants.

Though Green acknowledges the changes brought about by the development of Denville throughout the years and the increasing reliance on driving, he also sees it as an opportunity for scouts to broaden their experiences with long distance trips. Some recent trips Troop 17 took were camping in Gettysburg and Valley Forge, as well as several state parks in Pennsylvania.

“Taking some of the young men on trips, you can see their eyes opening as they experience things they have never done before,” Green said.

During a recent trip for indoor wall climbing in Wind Gap, Penn., Green noticed that some of the boys were initially hesitant to engage in the activity.

“By the next morning, they were climbing up and down like monkeys,” Green joked. “In the Troop, they learn a lot of different skills for life – I know I have.”

At the 90th anniversary celebration, Green encountered former scouts who have gone on into a wide range of professions; present at the dinner were doctors, lawyers and businessmen. Perhaps not surprisingly, given the Troop tradition of educating younger generations, there were also a number of teachers present.

“The Boy Scouts has always been a learning experience of encountering new people and situations,” Green said. “The adults learn just as much as the kids do.”

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Denville Life • July 2019 • Page 11

Baseball Disneyland — Denville Dragons 12U Ready to Make Their Mark at Cooperstown

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By Jillian Risberg

hey’ve been preparing for this for some time and with the trip just weeks away, the Denville Dragons 12U team is heading to Cooperstown for a traveling baseball tournament and they couldn’t be more excited.

Head coach, Patrick Fitzsimmons says that going to the celebrated sport shrine is like a camp out, where they stay in a log cabin all week (July 20 to 25) and get to do baseball.

“I’ve never been inside the cabins but from everybody I’ve talked to it’s exhausting, it’s exciting, it’s sad and it’s a whole mixed bag of emotions ‘cause it’s really the last week where a lot of the kids will be together,” the coach says.

The 13 boys are geared up about getting away and playing in the legendary

home of baseball.

“I went with my older son a few years ago as a spectator and the place is incredible.” Fitzsimmons says. “It really is a Disneyland for baseball.”

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Board shortly before his son got into high school.

Once his youngest was at the age where Fitzsimmons could get a travel team together — he gathered a bunch of the head coaches and tried to determine who they could recruit to play on the team.

Sean Cashman, coach for last year’s (2018) 12U handed down the charter to Fitzsimmons.

Then he will pass it on to the next all-star team that’s going.

“It’s only the Denville kids,” Fitzsimmons says. “So it’s really not a Denville baseball thing; more of a private thing, like a gentleman’s agreement. Next year after we go I’ll hand it down to Kevin Perry, the 11U coach. He’ll hand it down and so on and so on.”

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Matthew Bodnarchuk’s friends who attended last year shared with him about the escapade and said it’s a great time.

“I’m really excited about going to Cooperstown,” says the left-fielder, pitcher, catcher and corner end fielder. “The best part about it for me is just getting out there and playing baseball with my teammates that I’ve had for five years one last time.”

According to Bodnarchuk, for the boys who made the team — it all started when they were seven and eight years old. Then they had to break in a coach officially.

“Coach Fitz is a great guy; he helps us out with the trials with the team a lot. We hardly knew each other and now

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we’re like a family,” says the Valleyview middle schooler, whose long-term goal is to play college baseball.

A few other of the boys have older brothers who’ve gone to Cooperstown.

“They’re all talking about the experience — how they took a team trip to the Hall of Fame and what they (the boys) can look forward to,” the coach says. “So the anticipation — my youngest was like seven when he went with us and he’s been waiting for five years to actually have his own team there.”

Fitzsimmons says they were never trying to exclude anybody, rather make it feel like family.

“So they could get that sense of camaraderie, just to have friendship and sportsmanship.”

What makes it special — and he doesn’t think they’ll understand it until after it’s over — that Cooperstown is the saying goodbye weekend.

“If we win this weekend we go to the championship,” Fitzsimmons says. “We play the Montville Travel League and that’s just geared for town travel

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teams. There’s so many teams now that are club teams and super town teams. This is geared for kids who are all from the same town — a true all-star team.”

Then they have a game scheduled against a club team from Australia touring America playing in different venues, and have a planned stop in Denville for August 9, at Gardner Field.

According to Fitzsimmons, when it comes to their stats — the Dragons are up and down.

“We have a lot of talented kids on our team; our fielding is a little suspect but we’re having a good year,” he says.

When the coach started the team, at that time they didn’t have any travel teams.

“After a couple of years of having it Denville Baseball decided that all the travel teams were gonna fall under them (as the Denville Dragons),” Fitzsimmons says. “But we were kind of like the outliers so we did our own thing.”

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He kept all the kids that wanted to play on this team on the team, from 8U ’til now.

“Last year they had a tryout for the team, but then that was it,” the coach says. “Kids have quit and other kids have joined us but about 10 kids have pretty much been together from 8U ’til now.”

They’ve gone to Ripkin Baseball in Maryland and played in a few tournaments.

“It’s been interesting to watch them grow, get better and develop as baseball players,” Fitzsimmons says.

The age difference, they don’t go by grades; actually have some six and seventh-graders on their team.

“Once this year is over they’re going to be eighth-graders, the field gets bigger and they start preparing for high school, whereas the younger kids are kind of in limbo so they start playing on travel teams. It’s very difficult to get the team together for another year after they’re 12U,” the coach says.

The boys attend Valleyview Middle School, private school (two of them), Morristown–Beard (one of them) and Delbarton (one). They all went to Denville grammar schools.

According to Fitzsimmons, the immediate goal for the majority of the boys is playing baseball in high school.

“And at least five of them are thinking higher expectations like college and the pros I’m guessing,” the coach says. “There’s at least three kids that live baseball.”

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Baseball is close to Fitzsimmons heart, and he has also coached basketball, soccer and football, not always as a head coach.

In terms of teams, Fitzsimmons says the Dragons are definitely competitive but try to be fair in everything they do.

“It’s a little different than the club teams where we can’t really compete on that level but it’s more competitive where we can show them what they’re going to get to prepare them for high school.”

The coach says the expectation at Cooperstown is that they do the best they can and win one game because it would be nice to have a good record and he doesn’t want them to come away defeated either.

“If we’re competitive, the kids are all involved, enjoying each other’s company and we don’t have any activity quarrels — and the parents are satisfied, that’s all I really want,” Fitzsimmons says. “I hope it’s an experience that they’re going to remember for the rest of their lives.”

Brodie Freker has been with the team since little league and getting to go to Cooperstown is the icing on the cake for the catcher, pitcher, outfielder and first baseman.

“I’m really excited ‘cause I’ve never experienced anything like this before,” Freker says. “All my friends have gone before and they say it’s really fun so I’m just waiting for that.”

Freker calls his time with the Dragons a great ride.

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Denville Life • July 2019 • Page 15

“We had the good times and the bad times; and we’re doing pretty good this year,” he says. “I’m looking forward to having fun with my teammates and hope we bring it to Cooperstown.”

Next stop: play baseball at Delbarton, try to get a (college) scholarship and ultimately strive to get drafted to Major League Baseball (MLB).

Chase Napeloni wanted to play baseball and after some time with his local recreational league he decided on a travel team.

“I tried out and thankfully got selected to be on the team,” Napeloni says. “Over the years different kids start to come in until what we have today.”

When it comes to Cooperstown, the second baseman thinks it’s going to be a lot of fun and he’s really happy they are going there.

“Just being able to play baseball with my teammates and friends,” Napeloni says. “Being able to connect with them

more.”

After all these years in baseball, he loves how inclusive the sport is.

“You can’t play baseball without one person on the team,” Napeloni says. “It’s a whole team sport where if one guys missing then the whole team crumbles.”

The 12-year-old’s long-term goals?

“Obviously when you play in the 12U you always start to get better, which of course is what I want to be — I want to be better in the sport,” Napeloni says.

The second baseman plans to play high school baseball and even though he knows it’s tough to reach the Majors, Napeloni says it’s worth a try.

At the end of the day, the boys know they are the lucky few who get to embrace the magic of Cooperstown, and wherever their baseball careers take them — they can fondly recall where their big dreams all started.

Page 16 • July 2019 • Denville Life

Denville in Good Hands with Office of Emergency Management and Community Emergency Response Team

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By Jillian Risberg

hey are a group of volunteers trained to respond to disasters and emergencies when police, fire and EMS resources are overwhelmed.

Denville’s Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) is there for just about every town event, you’ll see them in their green shirts or jackets at parades, festivals, street fairs and more ensuring the health and safety of all involved.

If something happens — somebody falls and cuts themselves, they’ll notify first aid.

John Bartolotta, OEM deputy coordinator/CERT team coordinator and a couple of others are able to render immediate aid because they took an EMR (Emergency Medical Responder) course.

“They’re not a complete EMT but they put in 90 hours — and they can administer oxygen and some other things that

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Denville Life • July 2019 • Page 17

they don’t teach you in basic first aid,” Bartolotta says. “I have four people registered; one EMT. So we usually deploy and we can pretty much handle most stuff until the squad arrives.”

In 2009, the director of OEM at that time decided to start this ‘Community Emergency Response (CERT) team. It became prevalent across the United States and all these teams started popping up everywhere.

According to Bartolotta, the CERT concept began in 1985 when the Los Angeles Fire Department recognized that in the early stages of a disaster (wildfires) basic training in disaster survival and rescue skills for local emergency responders would improve the ability of community members to survive until responders or other assistance arrived.

“We’re not trained fire fighters or police officers, we’re just trained in basic first aid, basic fire fighting — all we teach our people is how to use a basic fire extinguisher,” says the deputy. “Anything bigger than that, you leave it to the professionals.”

As far as police work, when they deploy to these events — they

are just an extra set of eyes and ears.

They roam through the crowds and if they see something suspicious — or if something gets out of hand; they’ll notify their command post and the police department and have them respond.

“We’re not to take any actions or anything like that,” Bartolotta says.

The Deputy’s background as a former sergeant with the Essex County Sheriff ’s Office for 26 years came in handy when he took over the CERT program.

“I just wanted to give back (to the town) and that seemed to fit,” Bartolotta says. “I was still on the job in 2009 when I joined CERT; didn’t retire ’til 2011. I brought my experience with me and I’m really into it. When Wes (Wesley Sharples) became the OEM director, he asked me to be the CERT coordinator and trainer; that’s what I’ve been doing ever since.”

With his love of volunteering Bartolotta is also on the fire department, where he drives the ambulance.

The CERT members don’t all live in Denville, but must

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Page 18 • July 2019 • Denville Life

live within a reasonable distance There are a couple of people from Rockaway borough because they don’t have a CERT team.

“We’ll address anyone who doesn’t have a CERT team, any town — otherwise we don’t like to step on toes and take from a town such as Parsippany, which is right next store to us,” Bartolotta says. “They have their own CERT team so if they talk to me, I’ll recommend them to Parsippany to join their team.”

“We will train them in what we call cribbing; light search and rescue; basic first aid, terrorism,” Bartolotta says.

They were deployed when Denville got slammed by flooding from Hurricane Irene (the costliest disaster in New Jersey’s history), mainly operating the command post as people were brought in on different vehicles.

They got them set up in shelters, and also operated a shelter at the Lakeview School.

And they were on scene when Hurricane Sandy struck.

“We set up a shelter at Morris Knolls High School and we had people staying over for a couple of days,” Bartolotta says. “That’s a big thing that we do — operate a shelter for a disaster such as that, people that had to evacuate their homes.”

They set up big cots, food brought in from either the American Red Cross or Salvation Army — they work in close proximity to them.

And when all the gas pumps were down they set up at what’s now the BP gas station assisting the town and the police department managing the lines.

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Denville Life • July 2019 • Page 19

“When the second storm hit, we didn’t actually get flooded but we had a lot of wind damage, trees down, power lines, power out. I deployed my men to a sandpile where we were allowing people to get sandbags,” Bartolotta says. “We were helping people fill sandbags and thank God nothing happened during that.”

When it comes to sheltering - Bartolotta says a lot of their people took the sheltering certification course from the Red Cross and are certified shelter operators.

According to the deputy, they frequently do damage assessment.

“We’ll go out and in an area that’s damaged we’ll assess the damage for FEMA,” Bartolotta says. “Irene, Sandy, those odd blizzards we had at two Halloweens in a row; we were out in that — those are really the biggest disasters since we’ve been around 10 years and that we’ve participated in.”

They are averaging about 30 events a year: food truck festivals, parades, street fairs, anything where their assistance can be an asset to the town.

“We are asked to help and we deploy our people along the way,” the deputy says.

“I really like Denville, I’ve been here 20 years,” he says. “I enjoy the challenge of doing things with the team. We just did an active shooter reunification drill with the PD; it was really exciting.”

He says his people have learned a lot about what to do and what not to do.

The CERT currently has 29 members and only two have a background in law enforcement, one is a retired police officer from

Newark and the other is Bartolotta.

“We have people from all different backgrounds,” he says. “It’s not a necessity that you have a law enforcement or fire background. We give you the basic training that we want you to know and then we drill and keep training on all those things.”

According to the deputy, the age to join CERT is limitless.

“We never put anybody in harm’s way. If we have a deployment and I say I want you to go out and check these buildings and you say, John I’m not too happy with that — we’ll never make anybody do anything they don’t feel comfortable with. That’s how CERT works — and why we can have an 18-year-old or we can have an 80-year-old,” Bartolotta says.

There are some older people on the squad and some who do have some physical disabilities but they are still a help to the command post.

“They can answer phones, they can do paperwork, they can run paperwork,” the deputy says.

When it comes to recruitment, Bartolotta says a lot of people don’t know about the CERT. “We’re starting to get a little bit more out there because of all these events we’re at,” he says. “We now set this big green tent up with the word ‘Community Emergency Response Team’ at the street fair and we have all kind of literature.”

Over the past three years where people saw the tent, they’ve gotten two or three recruits each time who’ve gone on to attend the class, so little by little they are building up.

“We only had about 18 people three years ago,” Bar-

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tolotta says. “We’ve picked up 11 people in those three years just by word of mouth and people coming and seeing us and asking what CERT is about. We’ll explain it to them.”

According to the deputy, people will even approach CERT members as they make their way through the event crowds to find out more about the organization.

“And they’ll tell ‘em — you think you might be interested in something like that,” he says.

If the person says they are, they take their name and contact information and when the next class comes up, Bartolotta usually reaches out to them.

“We joined up with Parsippany over the past few years, Eric Hubner is the director there, him and I have become good friends and we run the class together — the basic CERT training class, so we both get a lot of recruits out of that,” the deputy says.

And they help each other with events.

“They have a lot of big events where they need extra help. He (Hubner) will call on us,” Bartolotta says. “And we do the same with him. Matter of fact, he sent a group of his people to this (active shooter) reunification drill.”

Mountain Lakes is also now on board, according to the deputy.

“They have a small team, but again when they need help they’ll call us and Parsippany. If we need help we call them,” Bartolotta says.

The best part for Bartolotta is giving back and making a difference “It’s a brotherhood, where one hand washes the other and we’re all under the Office of Emergency Management of the local town,” he says. “Then we report to the county OEM and also the state OEM (run by the New Jersey State Police).”

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Denville Life • July 2019 • Page 21

Page 22 • July 2019 • Denville Life

Denville’s MAC Works with Community to Prevent Drug and Alcohol Abuse

Every spring, MAC plants red tulips to symbolize hope; MAC funded the make up artist at a recent mock car crash demonstration at Morris County Vocational School. Photos courtesy/Darlene Price

R

By Anya Bochman

ecently, batches of red tulips were planted near Denville schools and municipal buildings. The endeavor is undertaken each spring by the Denville Municipal Alliance Committee (MAC); it was first implemented by the late Nick Picciano, a MAC committee member and teacher at Denville’s Valleyview Middle School. And although the color red is a symbol of MAC itself, there is a more poignant message contained within the blooming flowers.

“The tulips bloom again every spring,” said Darlene Price, a purchasing agent for the township of Denville and MAC’s accountant. “It’s a reminder that there is always hope.”

The hope that Price refers to is the central mission of MAC, which is a community based non-profit organization dedicated to securing funding and coordinating township efforts to combat alcohol and drug abuse. Created about 30 years ago, the volunteer-staffed organization aims to eradicate substance abuse via prevention, intervention, education and alternative activities.

Peg McCluskey, MAC’s president and committee member for 10 years, is the principal of Denville’s St. Mary’s Prep. Both McCluskey and Price are quick to point out that the endeavor is a group effort, regardless of one’s title in the organization.

“It truly is a team effort; it would not be possible without the collaboration of various district groups, and I could not do this without Darlene,” McCluskey said.

“We’re a team,” added Price.

The collaborative aspect of MAC is crucial to its success. The members of its committee are appointed by the mayor of Denville, and include representatives from local governmental bodies, businesses, the healthcare community, law enforcement, religious leaders and the community at large. The unifying goal of these individuals is the health, welfare and quality of life in the community.

The diversity of MAC representatives allows the organization to become aware of and tackle problems that affect a broad spectrum of Denville residents.

“It is a wise group,” McCluskey said. “Each [representative] brings an understanding of their own group and can share their needs and ideas.”

MAC is funded through the Governor’s Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse (GCADA), with fines and revenue collected through drug related offenses. Additionally, the organization relies on the township matching funds, fundraisers and private donations. With a fiscal year that runs from July 1st to June 30th, MAC allocates its funds to various groups in need of aid.

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Denville Life • July 2019 • Page 23

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Page 24 • July 2019 • Denville Life

GCADA is an active and collaborative participant in the planning and coordination of New Jersey’s addiction prevention, treatment and recovery services, both through the development of a Comprehensive State Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Master Plan, and its Alliance to Prevent Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Program – which is the largest network of community-based anti-drug coalitions in the nation.

MAC recently reported that for the grant year of 2018/2019, the organization has helped fund initiatives at all Denville schools, including Morris Knolls, Morris Catholic and Morris County School of Technology. It also aided such programs as Celebrate the Children, St. Peter’s Orphanage, Denville police initiatives for children, Denville Public Assistance, The Mayor’s Council on People with Disabilities, the Denville Library and Denville Seniors. According to MAC, this is the widest range of constituents it has contributed to in years.

Some of the programs MAC has funded in the past year are the Junior Police Academy and Movie Night in Denville. For Denville police department’s LEAD graduation activities, MAC helped with customized t-shirts for the end of year celebration.

The organization also contributed to such activities as Senior Yoga and Art Programs held at Cook’s Senior Center and St. Francis, martial arts for the Mayor’s Council on People with Disabilities, anti-bullying initiatives, guest speakers in the middle and high schools, and books and wellness resources for the Denville Public Library. Additionally, the organization has partnered with other towns’ municipal alliance committees, such as that of Rockaway, to contribute to shared initiatives like the Color Run. The MAC supports initiatives that foster healthy life choices for community members of all ages, particularly Denville’s children. In the past, it has contributed funding to the Culture and Climate Study in Denville schools and ran initiatives such as “Parents Who Host Lose the Most,” with stickers bearing the slogan appearing on pizza boxes from participating restaurants.

The initiative, which targeted parents hosting parties where underage children have access to alcohol, aimed to dispel a persisting belief that if children are allowed to drink under parental supervision, they will be safer than if they went out to parties.

In fact, according to a 2013 report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), 8.7 million youths aged 12 to 20 had recently drank alcohol, and 5.4 million of them were binge drinkers. And one of the leading under-

lying causes behind underage drinking is well-meaning parents who supply their children with alcohol.

One of the obvious dangers of underage drinking is driving under the influence.

To this end, MAC has helped sponsor a recent program at Morris County Vocational School that staged a mock car crash to bring home the realities of drunk driving.

Complete with totaled cars, actual EMTs and police officers, the presentation relied on actors to stage the scene of a fatal drunk driving incident. MAC supported the initiative by paying for the make up artist to create realistic and shocking injuries.

“It’s a reality check that demonstrates the cost of driving under the influence,” McCluskey said.

This sort of collaborative effort is typical of MAC; while the committee members don’t necessarily come up with all the ideas, such as the mock car crash, themselves, they strive to provide the funds to make these initiatives possible. Listening to community groups address their underlying problems, MAC attempts to help in any way it can.

“We try to make a difference in the community – and it’s a wonderful community – and to promote its positive aspects,” McCluskey said. “Drug and alcohol abuse can happen to anyone in any town, and we help community leaders in their efforts to combat it.”

As an organization that is sponsored by grants, MAC has to report back to the county with its progress, and asks that the groups it supports collect information about their events. Every five years, as part of the grant cycle, the nonprofit has to complete an assessment in applying for a new grant.

This year, MAC is hosting a survey open to all Denville residents. Available at www.surveymonkey.com/r/FG28TY5 until the end of July, the anonymous survey asks for the community’s perceptions on drug and alcohol abuse issues in the township.

With questions ranging from opinions on underage drinking to habits of safeguarding prescription medications, MAC’s survey also takes into account demographic information. Those that complete the survey are eligible for a $25 gift card drawing.

“We’re using the town website to spread word around in order to get honest feedback,” McCluskey said. “It will help us in the next grant cycle.”

Aside from community input, MAC relies on research by the Search Institute to brainstorm the best ways of reach-

1

Denville Life • July 2019 • Page 25

“Supporting the community is paramount to the success of the organization,” McCluskey said.

“When people have positive reinforcements, they are less likely to turn to drug and alcohol abuse.” ing the youth. According to the Institute, there are 40 positive supports and strengths that young people need to succeed and thrive. Half of the assets, which are “external,” focus on the relationships and opportunities children need in their families, schools and communities. The remaining “internal” assets address the social-emotional strengths, values and commitments that are nurtured within young people. All of the assets are identified in the Developmental Asset Framework compiled by the Search Institute; MAC strives to allocate funds to those programs delineated in the document in order to build the positive supports into the Denville community.

Other concerns addressed by the MAC deal with senior citizens. By working with the Morris County Division on Aging, MAC has helped set up workshops for seniors that provide education on such topics as proper medication disposal, and general information on using available resources.

MAC’s targeted community education and awareness also focuses on everything from the opioid epidemic, vaping, internet safety to suicide prevention. Ryan’s Story, a presentation on the effects of bullying with the real-life tragic story of the suicide of student Ryan Halligan, is one of the tools MAC supports. Anoth-

er is Rachel’s Challenge, a non-profit organization against school violence, started by the parents of the first student killed in the Columbine High School shooting.

Along with police/community prevention activities, senior wellness programs, climate change initiatives and family fun events, MAC tries to be as rounded as possible in addressing community concerns. By working in concert with educators, police and community members, MAC aims to ensure judicious use of all funds it allocates.

MAC’s official website is complete with a number of links to various resources, such as the New Jersey Addiction Hotline and 24-hour crisis hotlines. There are also helpful factoids for parents concerned with their children abusing drugs. For instance, one excerpt warns of the dangers of inhalants, stating that more than one in five children report having abused inhalants by the 8th grade. One bullet point addresses marijuana use, while another speaks to the dangers of cigarette smoking.

“Supporting the community is paramount to the success of the organization,” McCluskey said. “When people have positive reinforcements, they are less likely to turn to drug and alcohol abuse.”

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Page 26 • July 2019 • Denville Life

T

Morris Knolls Golden Eagles Softball Concludes Great Season

By Steve Sears

he Morris Knolls Golden Eagles Girls Softball team enjoyed a superb 2019 season.

In fact, call it a dream season. Even though the Golden Eagles were upended in the state playoffs by a stellar Mount Olive Marauder ball club by a 3 -2 score, they defeated the same club in the Morris County Tournament final in a back and forth game for the ages.

And junior Skye Eppel’s name will forever be etched in Morris Knolls sports history as “hero.”

“We won our conference and county championship,” says proud Head Coach Keith Heinemann, who is no stranger to success. His Morris Knolls teams have won 278 games and nine division crowns (including this season) while he has been at the helm, and the Golden Eagles won the Morris County Tournament by coming from behind and defeating Mount Olive (who they also defeated in conference play during the regular season), 11 – 9. “We had a great year this year.

We play in a very tough conference and to win that was special. Anytime you can win the conference you’ve got to play well every time you take the field and we did that.”

“Winning the county is always a very special accomplishment. We play in one of the toughest counties in the state in my opinion. When you can win both championships in a year, it’s really special.”

The future is bright. Heinemann loses just two seniors to graduation, meaning a majority of the team’s nucleus returns in 2020.

The Golden Eagles sported a 23-6 final record, and 10-2 league record. There were many highlights to the season.

There were big wins over Chatham, who was the Group 3 runner-up this season, and over Ramsey, Group 2 state title winner.

Heinemann cites the leadership of his two seniors as a key to the season. “My two seniors, Brielle Eike and Maddison Perna,” says Heinemann, “were great leaders for us this year on and off the field. Brielle split time at catcher and first base. Maddison was our starting shortstop. Both played very well defensively and provided many big hits throughout the year for us in key times.” Other key contributors were Kayla Turcios, who was 16-1 as a pitcher and had a batting average of .360 for the season, led the team with fifteen extra base hits, five of them homeruns. Second baseman Carley Mahan led the team with a .402 batting average and hits with 39, and Eppel covered centerfield and batted .308 on the year. “She may have had the biggest hit of the season, which was a walk off 3-run homerun in the bottom of the 7th to win the county championship,” adds Heinemann of Eppel.

The county tournament was indeed the year’s pinnacle. The Golden Eagles, who were seeded first, knocked off Mendham, the # 12 seed, 9-3, to advance to the finals.

The Morris Knolls offensive explosion commenced in the 3rd inning, as they scored three times on four hits. Mary Griffin and Eppel both doubled, Eppel’s double scoring Griffin, and Perna tripled home Eppel. A Mendham throwing error then allowed Perna to come home safely. In the 4th inning, starting pitcher Turcios delivered a leadoff homer and also singled as the Golden Eagles batted around. Eppel contributed a double, and Nicole Florey, Casey Heitmann, Mahan and Jessica Arminio all had singles.

Morris Knolls tallied six times to take a 9-2 lead into the 6th inning, which was enough padding for the victory.

Pitching a complete game, Turcios struck out four, walked three, and yielded seven hits, continuing her solid season.

A few days later, the Golden Eagles won their first Morris County Tournament championship in six years, defeating 6th seeded Mount Olive. “This year’s county championship I would say was one of the best games I have been part of,” states Heinemann. “I would also say that it was the best county game ever played. It had everything! Lead changes, a great comeback by Mount Olive scoring 5 runs with 2 outs in the top of the 7th to set up the unforgettable walk off homerun by Skye Eppel. It had two great teams that competed to the very end. It was a game of great emotional swings for both teams.”

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Denville Life • July 2019 • Page 27

Perhaps a lesser team would’ve folded, a letdown in emotion getting the best of them after squandering a big lead. But the Golden Eagles, who also had last season’s early first round MCT exit on their minds, exhibited battle-tested fortitude and mounted a last inning comeback.

Heinemann watched his club take a 2-0 first inning lead on an Eppel single and Arminio’s two-run homer. Mount Olive remained scoreless through the first three innings, adding just one hit in the second inning and two in the third inning. Mount Olive would eventually gain a 4-2 lead, but Morris Knolls struck back.

With a man on base in inning number five, Perna doubled, and Turcios singled and Heitmann doubled, enabling the Golden Eagles to lead, 5-4. The next inning, the lead was extended to 8 -4 when Florey, Eppel, Perna and Mahan all singled, the Golden Eagles scoring three additional runs.

The 7th inning was a heart stopper. Mount Olive, not to be denied, rallied and scored five runs to regain the lead, 9-8.

Perhaps a lesser team would’ve folded, a letdown in emotion getting the best of them after squandering a big lead. But the Golden Eagles, who also had last season’s early first round MCT exit on their minds, exhibited battle-tested fortitude and mounted a last inning comeback.

And Eppel, a junior, was about to live a dream that every

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athlete has. Her second homerun of the season was an epic one.

After Eike singled and Florey walked, Morris Knolls was down to its last out when Eppel connected solidly off of Mount Olive pitcher Anna Callahan, the ball sailing and landing beyond the outfield wall. Eike and Florey touched home plate first as Eppel raced jubilantly around the bases, her three-run homer winning the game and tourney for Morris Knolls.

Eppel was also named Most Valuable Player of the tourney.

As the Morris Knolls Golden Eagles face the future they do so as proud county champions, and hopes are very high for future success. Heinemann says, “I think we have a chance to be very competitive next year, but a lot of things have to fall into place. It all starts with how well the girls gel together. If we don’t have great team unity, we will fall short of any goals we set for ourselves. We will also have to work even harder next year and sacrifice for one another to have a chance. If those things happen, I believe it will give us a chance to compete with anyone.”

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Page 28 • July 2019 • Denville Life

NJStarz Issac Bayoh Hometown: Roxbury, NJ

M

by Elsie Walker

y life is a message to the world, telling others to be bold enough to use their voice, brave enough to listen to their hearts, and strong enough to live the life they have always imagined,” said Issac Bayoh, a graduate of Roxbury High School. Bayoh is only 22 years old, but during that time he’s experienced a great deal: losing family in Sierra Leone to Ebola, coming alone to America with only $35 in his pocket, knowing frustration and despair, and gaining empowerment as a delegate to the Junior UN assembly and founder of his own fledgling foundation: Girl Optimization.

Bayoh said he’s seen that when you come to the end of your rope, God will provide a knot so you can pull yourself up. Recently. Bayoh, who now lives in New York City, shared his story.

Bayoh was born in Freetown, Sierra Leone in West Africa. His father left the family when Bayoh was seven months old. This created a difficult situation for his mother due to how his country’s culture sees women, especially women without husbands.

A father teaches his son to be hard and tough. Women are not valued in that country, but are treated like chattel. Girls as young as 12 are given to older men in marriage. Sierra Leone is a society where men can do whatever they want with women. Bayoh was a mild-mannered, tender-hearted child. He was bullied by the local men for not having the demeanor they believed a man should have. “The culture is so full of hate,” Bayoh said. Things got very difficult, and his mother, fearing for his safety, sent Bayoh to live with his aunt. Bayoh still helped support his mother, who was taken seriously ill with typhoid and malaria. He sold his clothes to get money for medicine. Once a fine student, he stopped going to school so he could try to earn money; he even begged for money.

Ebola (a rare and deadly disease) hit the country and close to his heart; eventually, Bayoh lost most of his family to it. He remembers going to make tea for his ailing aunt one day and when returned to give it to her, seeing her lying there; she’d gone cold.

Bayoh’s legs went weak. He was sweating. However, he knew he had to get out of there, leave before the Ebola team came and took him away. He had walked about three miles when he got on a bus.

“

“With every step came a decision to take another. From an entire childhood of bullying and teenage years of misplaced trust, I learned to put up a strong facade to hide my weakness within.

It took painting a mental picture of someone I would never want to be, that unleashed my determination, to make the ultimate decision that I was going to make the rest of my life the best of my life,” said Bayoh.

Scared for his life, he dug up some money he’d saved and applied for a visa. He arrived in the United States on July 17, 2014 with a suitcase, a duffle bag, and $35. He had no idea where he would go from there. “I left everything behind, a mother I love, a sister I cherish, friends I care for, and a life unwanted as I fled to America. I was not going to limit myself to the tried-and-true.

I was creating a new vision for my life; the way I wanted to see it and finding ways to achieve it. Coming to America is hard, especially for a Sierra Leonean immigrant like me.” he said.

Seeing this young person, an New Jersey Transit – MTA worker named Ana befriended him, heard his story, and said he could stay with her. She had visited Sierra Leone and knew of the conditions there. Ana lived in the Port Morris section of Landing, Roxbury Township.

Bayoh attended Roxbury High School. He sang in its choir; he excelled in his studies. His essay “Tears of My People” was published in the school publication and he got a temporary job working in the deli area of a supermarket. Bayoh earned scholarships to some prestigious schools, including Cornell University and Eastern University. He attended the latter for one semester, but the scholarship didn’t provide enough money, and because of his immigration status, he could not get student financial aid.

The school suggested he go back to Sierra Leone and work things out with immigration. However, he explained to them, “I can’t go back. If I go outside the United States, I can’t come back”.

Thus, after only one semester in college, Bayoh had to drop out. He stayed on, working in Pennsylvania and living with a friend for a year. He returned to Roxbury, when Ana became sick and needed his help. There, he felt isolated. His peers were continuing their education. He was in a small town with no car.

He was depressed.

A friend in New York invited him to visit, so Bayoh walked to the train station and went into New York. His friend wanted to introduce Bayoh to the Landmark Forum, so they

1

Denville Life • July 2019 • Page 29

attended a free introduction session on it. The Landmark Forum is a series of transformative training courses. Bayoh found what the Landmark Forum offered in the way of education to be something he wanted, but he just didn’t have the money. Sometime later, a representative of the forum called, following up on the introduction session to see if Bayoh wanted to register for a course; the representative even mentioned a payment plan. Bayoh could not afford any of it.

However, he felt something inside of him saying “be vulnerable and tell your story”. The representative listened and then told Bayoh he’d call back in 30 minutes.

When he called back, he gave Bayoh the number of a friend to call, someone Bayoh was being invited to meet: James Jay Dudley Luce.

Luce is a millionaire. He runs the James Jay Dudley Luce Foundation and is also the founder of Orphans International Worldwide. Bayoh nervously went to Luce’s office. Luce said, “I heard your story and want you to get what you deserve.” After talking with him further, Luce introduced Bayoh to an intern who showed Bayoh how to sort receipts. Later, after all the interns had left, Bayoh continued to work on the project. This impressed Luce. He asked Bayoh, “how would you like to be an intern and be a young global leader?” (a program Luce had). Bayoh took him up on that, asking another friend in New York City if he could stay there, sleeping on the floor, until he could save up enough for an air mattress. Luce even paid for Bayoh to attend the programs in the Landmark Forum.

After completing the forum program, Luce asked Bayoh about his passion. and where he would like to work. Bayoh told him that he wanted to help Sierra Leone and one place he would like to work was at the United Nations. Luce just nodded, but later gave Bayoh the number of a lady at the United Nations. That lady turned out to be “Queen Mother” Dr. Delois Blakely. “She is an institution at the UN,” said Bayoh. Blakely has been at the UN for 51 year and is Ambassador of Goodwill for many African countries. Bayoh recalled the day he met Blakely and she took him inside the UN. Almost surreally, Bayoh found himself among presidents and ambassadors. Sud-

denly, Blakeley said to Bayoh that she wanted him to get ready to give a little speech.

Bayoh couldn’t believe what she said. He wasn’t prepared, plus look where he was. He was very nervous as he heard Blakely tell those assembled that she had a young man from Sierra Leone who had something to share. Bayoh spoke from his heart and the words about what he’d seen and experienced came to him. To Bayoh’s amazement, when he was done, those assembled applauded. Later, people were asking if he was a country representative or diplomat. Someone asked if Bayoh could be registered as an official Junior UN representative. Later, Bayoh proudly received a UN badge.

Sierra Leone doesn’t have an official youth delegate, so Bayoh represents himself as a Sierra Leonean youth delegate to the youth assembly. Among his accomplishments there are that he has held an executive position on the United Nations Department of Global Communications, Non Governmental Organization division youth committee and has served on the Economic & Social Council Youth Forum.

His UN position is not a paid position, so Bayoh supports himself as a nanny. He enjoys making a difference in young children’s lives. He is also striving to make a difference for Sierra Leone.

Bayoh has started a foundation on GoFundMe, Girl Optimization (www.gofundme. com/girl-optimization) , which he also contributes to with part of his wages as a nanny.

The foundation helps girls in Sierra Leone. “I started a foundation which travels to different schools and villages, providing education to girls by awarding them scholarships, providing them academic materials needed to stay in school and all while having an effective learning experience. Discrimination has no place in the 21st century, and I believe every girl has the right to go to school, stay safe from violence, access health services, and fully participate in her community,” said Bayoh.

When asked what he’d like to do with his life, Bayoh said he’d like to become a leader in Sierra Leone, or Secretary-General of the UN. “Aimless no more, my purpose has been made clear to me; to use the experiences I’ve had as a catalyst for positive change on a global level. I am now a Young Global Leader to the United Nations and stand strong for female empowerment. I raise up my voice—not so I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard; for we cannot succeed when half of us are held back. Gender equality is not only a fundamental human right, but a necessary foundation for a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable world. My prayer is that God uses my life as an instrument for good,” said Bayoh.

Page 30 • July 2019 • Denville Life

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