East Hanover/Florham Park July 2022

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E a s t H a n o v e r / F l o r h a m P a r k’s H o m e t o w n N e w s p a p e r

EAST HANOVER FLORHAM PARK Vo l . 1 7 • I s s u e 4

LIFE Ju l y 2 0 2 2

Member of Mid-Atlantic Community Papers • Association of Community Publichers AUDITED BY CIRCULATION VERIFICATION COUNCIL (CVC), ST. LOUIS, MO.

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Florham Park Author Publishes Young Adult Book Series

BY STEVE SEARS STAFF WRITER

FLORHAM PARK - For Amy Meislin Pollack, it’s taken a while, over 60 years in fact. But finally, her in-her-head created character from fourth grade has finally surfaced between book covers. Pollack in the spring released her first book, The Adventures of Jelly Bean. Published by Austin Macauley Publishers, Pollack’s offering is about the adventures - or misadventures, if you will – of a cute, raven-haired, pigtailed fourth-grader whose true best friend is her dog, Roger-Over. Pollack takes the reader back to the 1960s, when she was tasked in the classroom

to keep her classmates entertained. No doubt, her teacher’s reasoning for nudging the young Amy was twofold: she also noticed a brewing creativity. “When I was in fourth grade, my teacher – and you always remember a good teacher very vividly - she would have me come up to the front of the room when I was nine years old, and tell these stories about this little girl named Jelly Bean that I would tell off the top of my head,” Pollack recalls. “Even former classmates remember Jelly Bean, and I say, ‘Really? This was 60 years ago!’ I just had fun telling these stories, and the kids seemed to

like it. It became like a regular thing in my classroom.” Pollack, who taught students from elementary school to college, wrote down the stories she told, but never did anything with them. They sat for years, occasionally revised, as Pollack went to work as a teacher and raised her family. Her mother-in-law would occasionally encourage her onwards. “She would always say, ‘Whatever happened to your children’s stories, they were so good? Can you work on them some more? Whatever happened to them?’ That was very meaningful.” Also, her sixthgrade students would offer lov-

East Hanover Community Partnership to Sponsor a Townwide Business Week

Left to right are some of the EHCP Directors:John Deep, Michael Martorelli, Vinny Bove, Artie Dorey- President, Michael Choi. Picture taken during the community wide Reusable Tote Bag distribution day in April.

EAST HANOVER -The East Hanover Community Partnership is pleased to sponsor a town wide all category Business Week from Monday, July 25 through Sunday, July 31, 2022! “East Hanover Business Week was created in effort to drive business to our local establishments in the height of summer when traffic is typically slower.” According to Artie Dorey, who is the President of the East Hanover Community

Partnership. East Hanover has a wealth of businesses including Salons, Fitness Facilities, Home Services, Health Services, Professional Services, Automotive Services, Pet Services, and of course the vibrant Restaurants and Retail Shops. Participating businesses will offer their customers something special over the course of the week like a discount, complimentary item, or free consultation for exam-

ple. “When the Partnership sponsors an event that supports our businesses and provides a benefit to the customers at the same time, it’s a win for everyone.” said Dorey. Please visit https://easthanoverpartnership.org/ for list of participating businesses and to learn more about the East Hanover Community Partnership. We look forward to a successful business week!

AREA - Check out our new mascot...Hank the Hornet. Look for him in the ads in this issue and enter (no purchase necessary) to win a $25.00 gift card to Exxon 24 Express

(4 winners). It is easy to enter. Look through the paper and read the ads and look for “Hank” in the ads. He will be located throughout the paper in 6 random ads. Then go to www.

easthanoverflorhamparklife. com scroll down and fill out the form to be entered. Winners will be notified and printed in the next issue.

Amy Meislin Pollack

ing critique, but Pollack’s Jelly Bean tales still lay aside idle for the most part. It was when the COVID-19 pandemic hit that Pollack found herself with free time and revisited her writing. “COVID was my silver lining, because by this point, my children were all married and I had grandchildren that I was babysitting for,” she says. “I became busy with that, and they (my children) all work, and they were all depending on me to be there. But along came this pandemic where it wasn’t permissible to do much of anything. So, I said to myself, it was either cleaning all my closets or finishing my book.” Pollack, who resides in Florham Park, chose the latter. After revising yet again her manuscript, she sent it out to publishers and, after getting nearly 30 rejections, she one day got an acceptance letter in the mail. “It was surreal,” she says. The author admits that Jelly Bean is a bit the Amy Pollack of her youth, an also says the girl’s beloved pet, Roger-Over, is a reliable amigo. “My dog in the story is a pretty important

The Adventures of Jelly Bean. Photos courtesy of Amy Meislin Pollack

part of it, like a comfort to her,” Pollack says. “When nobody else listens and really has time for her, that’s life. The dogs play such an important role, they’re always there.” There’s much more to come in possible future books. Jelly Bean will certainly grow and mature, and Pollack will help the young woman along as she takes on a life of her own. “She will get older, and that’s my plan,” Pollack says. And Pollack is certainly enjoying the ride. She’s finished the work she started many years ago, sent out queries, suffered the rejections until the wonderful first ever acceptance, and now has her loyal readers.

“The most exciting thing I have to say was hearing all the people, or everyone who told them to me, make their positive comments, and the ones that posted them on Amazon and with the publisher. That was really gratifying. I knew I was pretty self-critical as a writer, and I knew parts were pretty good and other parts that could be improved on, but since I taught writing for all those years and had read up on the writing process so much, there comes a point where you just can’t correct it.” The Adventures of Jelly Bean is available both online at Amazon.com and BN.com, and at Barnes & Noble bookstores.

Hanover Park High School Grad Wins #700 as Mountain Lakes Coach

Your Chance to Win a $25 Gift Card to Exxon 24 Express with the “Find Hank The Hornet Mascot” Contest

Winners From June’s “Find Hank The Hornet Mascot” Contest

AREA - The winners from June’s “Find Hank the Hornet Mascot” are Nicole Leo, Charles Atieh, Alfonso Uveenio, Jennifer Healey.

The ads that “Hank the Hornet” was in are Tracy Franco – Coldwell Banker, Rev Taco, Shook-Farmer Funeral Home, Carmello Anthony’s, Dance

with Danielle and Exxon 24 Express. Thanks to everyone who enter and congratulations to our winners!

Tim Flynn celebrates win #700 with his players (credit: Perry Troisi)

BY STEVE SEARS STAFF WRITER HANOVER - Hanover Park High School graduate and Randolph resident, Tim Flynn, won his record-setting 700th game as head coach of Mountain Lakes High School boy’s

What’s Inside...

Meet the Man Who Wrote

High School Alma Mater ............................................. Page 2 Christian Drama School ............................................... Page 4 Morris County & Arts Community .............................. Page 5 For Your Health............................................................ Page 8 Bond of Brotherhood ................................................... Page 9 Xiomaro’s Artistry ..................................................... Page 10 Blast from the Past ..................................................... Page 12

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lacrosse. The Mountain Lakes Lakers trounced Pope John by the score of 12-4 on Thursday, April 21, and Flynn joined a realm where very few reign. Mike Messere

of West Genessee, New York, is the all-time winningest boy’s lacrosse coach with 846 victories. Flynn is the fourth coach PLEASE SEE COACH WINS, PAGE 2


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