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FR
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March 16, 2019 – March 22, 2019
Forest Fire Service Resubmits Request to Clearcut Trees in Bass River Twp.
Photo By Douglas D. Melegari
LeRoy Wooster, owner and funeral director of LeRoy P. Wooster Funeral Home, is presented with a proclamation from 8th Legislative District Assemblyman Ryan Peters.
By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer
ACT OF COMPASSION Funeral Director Honored After Organizing Service and Showing Empathy for Veteran Who Died Alone By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer
ATCO—A local funeral director, who organized a burial service free of charge for a Vietnam War veteran upon learning that the man passed away in January without any family members or relatives, was honored last Friday by 8th District Assemblyman Ryan Peters for his “compassionate and selfless act.” LeRoy Wooster, owner and funeral director of LeRoy P. Wooster Funeral Home and Crematory in the Atco section of Waterford Township, was presented with a proclamation by Peters in the conference room of the 60-year-old
facility at 2 p.m. on March 8. The proclamation praised Wooster for organizing the Jan. 18 funeral for Peter Turnpu, 77, attended by more than 1,000 people at Brigadier General William C. Doyle Memorial Cemetery in North Hanover Township. “On behalf of all veterans, I couldn’t be more thrilled to present this to you,” said Peters, a former U.S. Navy SEAL who has served multiple combat tours overseas and is currently a commander of a SEAL reserve team, to Wooster. “You have set the bar for what we are doing for our veterans.” Wooster told the Pine Barrens Tribune
that Turnpu was found unresponsive in his home on Dec. 9, 2018, by a neighbor. After it was determined by police that Turnpu had passed away, the neighbor, according to Wooster, suggested that his body be transported to the funeral home. “I had two options, one being I could have said this is ‘not my responsibility,’ and have the medical examiner handle the situation,” Wooster told Peters as he was presented with the proclamation. “The other option was realizing this man was alone and deserved not to be buried alone.” See COMPASSION / Page 21
BASS RIVER—A site application, prepared by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s (NJDEP) New Jersey Forest Fire Service (NJFFS), to clearcut approximately 16 acres of white pine and loblolly pine trees near an 86-foot-tall fire tower in the Bass River State Forest has been resubmitted for approval to the Pinelands Commission. The view from three sides of the tower’s square observatory, located less than 500 feet off East Greenbush Road, is at least partially blocked by the 16 acres of 80-to-100-foot-tall trees. “This clearcut treatment activity is being proposed for the reduction of public health and safety hazards due to high risk visibility issues in detection and suppression of wildfires,” wrote Jeremy Webber, assistant forest firewarden of the New Jersey Forest Fire Service, in the new application. “Trees in excess of 90 feet in height are impairing the Bass River Fire Tower’s lines of sight, blocking the view of communities such as Nugentown, the Village of New Gretna, Ocean Acres, Smithville, Tuckerton and Warren Grove. Removal of these trees will restore fire tower visibility.” The Jan. 25 resubmission followed an unprecedented Aug. 10, 2018 Pinelands Commission meeting in which the initial application did not earn enough votes for passage, despite a recommendation for approval by the governing body’s Executive Director Nancy Wittenberg. Last year’s decision over the application was historic, as longtime veterans of the 39-year old commission could not recall a time in the 15-member body’s history when a staff recommendation was rejected. The rejection followed fierce opposition to the project expressed by the Bass River Board of Commissioners and Bass River Township residents. Bass River officials and residents, in their opposition as the last application was in front of the Pinelands Commission, argued that the NJFFS is planning to clearcut what is known as the “Cathedral of the Pines,” a “historic site” within “God’s Country” that consists of some of the tallest growing trees of the Pine Barrens. The fire tower, they claim, was “built to protect the very trees” slated for removal. The new content in the latest application, according to Chuck Horner, director of See FOREST/ Page 22
INDEX Community..........................9 Hobbyist............................15 Marketplace.......................19 Dental Column...................13 Jobs...................................20 Opinion................................8 Health................................13 Leo the Lion.........................4 Senior Column.....................9 Here's My Card..................16 Local News..........................3 Worship Directory..............10
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