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BEACHWOOD • ISLAND HEIGHTS • OCEAN GATE • PINE BEACH • SOUTH TOMS RIVER • TOMS RIVER

FREE May 20th ~ June 2nd, 2011

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TOMS RIVER – It’s not ev-ery day that a new account sheds light on the Civil War, particu-larly Ocean County’s connection to it, and so it was that such a discovery by Ocean County his-torian Patricia H. Burke was met with surprise and excitement.

Ms. Burke, working toward a research article to be published in the June edition of the Ocean County Culture and Heritage Commission’s publication, Out and About, followed a handful of references from an older county publication that led her to view 1861 editions of the Ocean Em-blem, an early county newspaper. 2011 marks the 150th anniversa-

ry since the start of the Civil War, and the county has begun com-memorating the occasion with regular articles on local connec-tions to that conflict since earlier this year.

“I went over to the [Ocean County] Historical Society, and the first reference in the index for Stafford Civil War veteran David A. Johnson was for the September 1861 issue of the Ocean Emblem, and so I got that issue, read it and said, ‘There’s a story here,’” she recalled. “Then I went to the next number in the index, and it was the following month, in October,

TOMS RIVER – Nearly thir-ty years ago, when prominent Toms River residents and Ocean County College trustees Richard S. Sambol and Joseph Citta estab-lished the Arboretum in order to “stimulate interest in environ-mental science and enhance the beauty of the campus,” it’s unlike-ly they foresaw a not-so-distant future where the grounds, which contain many plants and trees indigenous to Ocean County and New Jersey, would be overgrown and virtually abandoned.

That’s where Alex Thesing came in.

Mr. Thesing, a prospective Eagle Scout with Toms River Boy Scout Troop 1 and junior class member of Toms River High School North, recalled seeking out an Eagle Scout project to dig into late last year that led him to the nearly forgotten area of the county college campus.

“About six months ago, I came into contact with [Michael] Put-nam at Ocean County College, and he told me about this project he had in mind about redoing the complete Arboretum,” he said. “He gave me the initial idea of what he wanted to be done about

TOMS RIVER – Out of trag-edy, charitable efforts sometimes spring to fill the void felt by those affected as a way to help others who have experienced a similar event, and such was the case a little over a year ago in northern Toms River when Mrs. Maureen Hirtes, nurse and loving wife and mother to eleven children, including three members of the Toms River High School North Boys Lacrosse team, passed away five months after receiving a di-agnosis of cancer.

In the months that followed, TRN Boys Lacrosse Head Coach Brett Smith, along with his coach-ing staff, began an initiative to turn the tragic loss felt by her sons and team members into a positive, annual event to develop current and future student-ath-letes “into responsible young men with a sense of familial responsi-bility and civic pride,” recalled Gino R. Sciorilli, a member of the Toms River High School North Boys Lacrosse Boosters.

And so began the “Hirtes Hike,” an annual fundraiser con-ducted by the high school team to benefit different local and na-tional charities.

“The proceeds of the inaugural

event went directly to the Hirtes family to help offset the financial demands a family of eleven en-counters,” said Mr. Sciorilli. “Two of the Hirtes children are pres-ently pursuing college educations and working jobs to help support their family.”

The first event was able to raise $47,000 for Mrs. Hirtes family, and this year the second annual Hirtes Hike, taking place on Sat-urday, June 4th, is set to benefit four families in need from all three township high schools.

According to event literature, these families include:

The Donovan Family – Kathy Donovan has been fighting her battle with cancer for four years. Her husband, Tom, and children, Megan and Tom Jr., have been by her side each step of the way. With Kathy unable to work and Tom recently being released from a managerial position, the medi-cal bills and financial burdens are mounting.

The Fetzer Family – In January 2011, Mary Fetzer lost her battle with brain cancer. She is sur-vived by her husband, David; son, Jonathan; daughters, Kimberly, Samantha and Ashley. Mr. Fetzer missed numerous days of work

to care for his wife and family, adding to the family’s financial burdens. Additionally, the family has incurred significant medical expenses that medical insurance did not cover.

The Nolze Family – Chris Nol-ze is a sophomore at Toms River High School South. Chris has re-

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CONNECT TO THE RIVERSIDE SIGNAL

Veterans ShareWar Memories Inside

By Patricia H. Burke

cont. on page 14

cont. on page 9

cont. on page 8

Burke Rediscovers 1861 Account of Ocean County Civil War Soldiers

Prospective Eagle Scout Restores, Beauti-fies OCC Arboretum Entrance

Once-lost details allow greater understanding of local connection to nation’s conflict

Hirtes Hike a Growing Community Tradition

By Erik Weber

By Erik Weber

ERIK WEBER, the Riverside SignalThe Toms River High School North Boys Lacrosse Team.

ERIK WEBER, the Riverside SignalOcean County Culture and Heritage Commisioner Tim Hart confers with the circa 1880s photo to get the courthouse just right.

ISLAND HEIGHTS – On Sun-day, May 29th, Ocean County will see its newest museum open here when the John F. Peto Stu-dio Museum makes its public de-but during a gala celebration. It is located at 102 Cedar Avenue.

Over the past two years, pri-vate donations supported the completion of an exterior trans-formation by Historic Building Architects that has turned back the hands of time to reintroduce area residents to the original structure, design and architec-ture of this 115-year-old house. In 2010, the Trenton-based firm was awarded the 2010 New Jersey Historic Preservation Award for its work.

The mission of the studio mu-seum is the preservation of art-ist Mr. Peto’s legacy through the maintenance of his house and studio as a working facility, by fostering educational opportuni-ties in the arts and by serving as a community partner.

The gala opening will include

Peto Studio Museum

Opening Gala

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BEACHWOOD - Immediately following this week’s borough council meeting, here, when gov-erning body members were pre-paring to go into executive ses-sion, Mayor Ronald W. Jones, Jr. made a startling announcement: he is homeless.

Following a question of his resi-dence initially posed by Halliard Avenue resident and Mayor Jones’ former campaign manager, Rob-ert DiBella, during open public session, Council President Ron-ald Roma directly asked Mayor Jones if he still resided in Beach-wood Borough.

Before answering Mr. Roma’s question, the mayor referred to a current court case in Burlington County involving a councilwom-an and her residence with regard to a financial hardship, then de-scribed an e-mail exchange he said he had with Beachwood Bor-ough Clerk Bette Mastropasqua as to the eligibiliy of Joel Balazin-ski to run in the 2011 Democratic primary, which the clerk and

others have questions as to even living in Beachwood.Mr. Bala-zinski himself has previously de-clared himself as homeless, and during a council meeting earlier this year, when asked for his ad-dress during open public session, declared it to be that of borough hall, where he was standing.

According to the e-mailed response Mr. Jones said he re-ceived from Ms. Mastropasqua, the clerk stated the question as to Mr. Balazinski’s eligibility was brought before the county elec-tion board, who then left the question of whether to allow Mr. Balazinski to enter the primary up to her.

The mayor then stated Ms. Mastropasqua pointed out that the eligibility question could go before the superior courts, who she said “bend over backwards to allow someone to vote or run for office,” and that keeping in mind the “nearly $10 million in tort claims” the borough has faced in recent years, she felt allowing the

Mayor Jones: I’m HomelessBy Philipp Schmidt

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PAGE 2 May 20th - June 2nd, 2011The RIVERSIDE SIGNAL

My wonderful editor is a vi-sionary. He created this newspa-per for the purpose of continu-ing the printed historical record of these communities along the river, both on the north side, and on the south side, where my heart is. He has standards, ideals and is a hardworking and passion-ate historian. He understands my disdain for “big” that we on the south side of the river feel from the dominant presence of Toms River institutions. He un-derstands why we feel that Island Heights is a sister community across the river, a wealthy relative we still love.

Last week, we had a founder’s day celebration in South Toms River. The event was well-attend-ed, and in typical “STR” fashion, everyone knew everyone. The event was a huge success, and the new energy to do things here in STR and points south is palpable. The old gas station that was our local eyesore has been razed. It was one of the few places where

I’d actually seen pigeons. City people will re-member these animals: grey, sort of dirty, but pretty in their own right. On a recent over-priced bus trip to the city, I no-ticed about four pigeon families who had packed all their worldly belongings and were heading

back. A spokesman for the families expressed his outrage at the demise of their only perch. The geese, on the other hand were looking forward to the grass growing back, and vowed to do their part to keep it fertilized. Of course, the pigeons cried “Fowl!”…

… Sorry. Af-ter weeks of be-ing good, I just couldn’t resist.

With this civ-ic-minded com-munity pride we looked across the river as the annual Toms River Founder’s Day transformed into something called a “Food Fest” before our very eyes, with the focus of the day moving from celebrating civic and volunteer organizations to lionizing the vir-

tues of fried food. Because of the switch, the sponsoring organiza-tion, a combination of the town-ship government and the Toms River-Ocean County Chamber of Commerce, charged any in-terested nonprofit organization

the outrageous fee of $200 to put up an information table, $300 to sell something non-food ori-ented, or $500 for the privilege of being a regular vendor. And so it was without surprise that these groups, which in past years would inform residents as to our area’s history, show how HAM radios can save us in the apoca-lypse or sell used books to benefit the children in our school system were not heavily represented. It’s OK. Kids shouldn’t be eating so many fried foods anyway. Even the Arts and Crafts Festival in Huddy Park, sponsored by Down-town Toms River charged a $50 fee for artists… just across the wa-ter, in Mathis Plaza, South Toms River, the entire park could have been rented for $75.

It’s clear. Main Street Toms River is drifting away, like a Volk-swagen on Flint Road after a rain-storm. The demise of the popular and wonderful Java Joint is proof positive that a town that plays by the book simply can’t sustain storefront businesses, especially in a region which is not used to paying for parking. Festivals, like the Fry Fest, which, in its incarna-tion as Founder’s Day, may have been a way to attract consumers downtown, but is now the only large-scale commercial game in town. Besides the most wonderful library in the country, there are few attractions downtown, except Capone’s, and so the traditional small storefront businesses there thrive despite their location, not because of it. Noteworthy among these are those small but rock-solid hangers-on like the Cookie Cab, Anthony’s Café, White Lo-tus Tattoo & Fine Art, Harris, Purpuri Shoes, the Village Flo-rist, Seaport Coins, the afore-mentioned Capone’s and Jimmy C’s, Itza Bagel, Bistro 44, and the River Market. These businesses, through good business practices, integrity, and quality of product, manage to survive.

Meanwhile, the new Wells Fargo sign on the intersection of Main and Washington adds to a surreal scene: it seems to be a cross between an old Soviet Flag and the marquis for a bad West-ern movie, The Great Bailout Robbery. “Wells Fargo - we stole the taxpayers’ bailout money and bought out Wachovia!”

Otherwise, organizations like Downtown Toms River and the Chamber of Commerce seem, to this outsider, to be groups that exist now simply to propagate their own existence through fees charged at large-scale events as storefronts sit empty or convert to bank and office space.

That’s why Founder’s Day had to become Fat Day. In fact, without the support of the down-town crowd at Toms River High School South and the existence of a wonderful library, we’d see tumbleweeds blowing past the boarded-up windows on Main and Washington streets while the ghostly strains of a player piano echo in the distance. In other words, downtown Toms River would become Long Branch.

Admittedly, my South Toms River snobbery makes me tend to ignore problems north of the Eternal Stoplight at the corner of South Main and the bridge. I walk down to visit the library and patronize the 7-11, but that’s about it. My downtown is further south, where parking is free. I

SOUTH TOMS RIVER

South Toms RiverCommunity Calendar

Memorial Day ServiceA Memorial Day ceremony

will be held at the Submarine Veterans Memorial in Mathis Plaza, located alongside At-lantic City Boulevard, at 11 am on Monday, May 30th. Joining borough officials will be the United States Subma-rine Veterans, Jersey Shore Base members.

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Drive Carefully!With the warmer weather,

residents and visitors of all ages will be out enjoying the outdoor amenities that our area has to offer. Please slow down, obey all local speed limits and be alert when driv-ing near playgrounds and on residential streets.

~

Recreation CommissionThe next meeting of the

South Toms River Recreation Commission will take place on Thursday, June 2nd at 7 pm in the Recreation Center on Drake Lane.

~

Senior Meet & Greet The South Toms River Rec-

reation Commission will host its next senior meet and greet on Sunday, June 5th from 3 pm to 5 pm in the Recreation Center on Drake Lane. Re-freshments will be served.

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Sewerage Authority Meeting

The South Toms River Sew-erage Authority will hold its next meeting on Tuesday, June 7th at 7 pm in the Sew-erage Authority Building on Mill Street.

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Municipal Alliance Meeting

The next meeting of the South Toms River Munici-pal Alliance will take place on Wednesday, June 8th at 7 pm in borough hall on Mill Street.

cont. on next page

Frank Domenico Cipriani

TITLEBy Frank Domenico Cipriani

May 20th - June 2nd, 2011 PAGE 3The RIVERSIDE SIGNAL

delight to see that the commer-cial potential and viability of the Beachwood downtown has sur-passed that of Toms River. That’s because we have one thing they don’t, and lack one thing they do: We have bars, but we have no parking meters.

I’m not a big drinker, maybe a twelve-pack a year, but I like the fact that I can walk to High Ve-locity for a night of karaoke and ping-pong (I always have a beer after I sing, because in the 1970s the Fonz said “never drink for courage,” and somehow that’s al-ways stuck with me). Afterwards, I can pull myself together enough to cross the street for ice cream at Mrs. Walker’s, or if I am in the mood for a longer walk, I can trek down to Sundae’s. I can get

my hair cut, eat a pizza, get a tat-too, or buy a cigar. I can have my teeth cleaned, eyes checked, back realigned, and palm read. I could drive through an odd glass and steel building where the Beach-wood Fire Company once stood and get milk and quick grocer-ies without anyone noticing I’m driving barefoot. For the most part, the downtown feel of Toms River has migrated south, where rents are cheaper and the park-ing’s ample and free. In fact, if they put a movie theater in that enormous expanse of parking lot that used to be a strip mall where today the Wunder Wiener dutifully holds court and serves thousands of fast lunches daily, they’d literally have to arrest me to get me across into Toms River,

except to attend my kids’ func-tions at the high school or enjoy the atmosphere at the library. Even though the economic down-turn has been felt in this corridor, notably in downtown Beachwood, choice locations like Carpetland could easily be converted to a good eatery/hangout like it once was for past generations, before carpet samples lined the walls. I think it would attract plenty of customers.

What Beachwood, South Toms River, and Pine Beach may not realize is that Route 166 is the better downtown. Once we wake up to the possibility, we can coop-erate to throw a festival the likes of which are logistically impos-sible in downtown Toms River. We could allow nonprofits to set

up for free in Mathis Plaza, along with paying vendors, and encour-age more displays along other stretches to create a festival that ranges down the old Atlantic City Expressway from Mathis Plaza in the north to Pine Beach in the south. It would be a coming-out party for commercial establish-ments along that stretch, and we wouldn’t even have to close the road for traffic. It could coincide with regional garage sale days and riverfront 5K runs. Since we have several marinas, we could coordinate with our dear sister, Island Heights, and run water shuttles back and forth to events there. The festival could coincide with the Beachwood July 4th cel-ebration, or we could have a “boat parade” on Memorial Day, creat-

ing literal “floats” for all the local organizations. The possibilities are endless.

Bottom line: Volunteer organi-zations and nonprofits, if you’re feeling snubbed because you couldn’t afford to squeeze your table between the funnel cakes and the cell phone sales displays at the Ghost Town Founder’s Day Food Fest, don’t worry. We here on this side of the river are empa-thetic to the needs of those who serve the community. We rely on you all. Help us put together something big. The fact is, down-town Ocean County hasn’t died. It has simply moved a half-mile south. We are the founders of something brand new. It’s time we celebrated.

SOUTH TOMS RIVER

Frank, continued from previous page

PAGE 4 May 20th - June 2nd, 2011The RIVERSIDE SIGNAL

BEACHWOOD – Earlier this season, the Riverside Signal re-quested stories and memories by area veterans and their families about their war experiences and their veteran family members. Last month, we received the fol-lowing account by Beachwood native and current Texas resident Edward Jerue of his uncle, Joseph Jerue, who served in three wars, built a number of prominent lo-cal buildings and served for ten years as borough mayor before passing away in September 1959.

~

Memories of My Uncle JoeLooking back over the 51 years

since his death, I have a few memories of my Uncle Joe which I would like to share with you. He was born in 1896 as Joseph Edward Jerue, the eldest of four sons and one daughter.

He served in the 69th Infan-try Regiment (“The Fighting 69th) with the New York National Guard during 1916 and 1917 in the “Great Chase” after Poncho Villa in Mexico and Texas. When the United States entered World War I, the National Guard was federalized, my Uncle served with Company M of the redesig-nated 165th Infantry Regiment of the 42nd (Rainbow) Infantry Division. During the war he was wounded during a German gas attack, and suffered from its ef-fects for the rest of his life.

After the war he attended City

College of New York, and gradu-ated as a civil engineer. Later in his life he formed a New York City based construction company, and built ship to shore stations for the American Telephone and Telegraph Company (AT&T). He built the stations at Ocean Gate, NJ, Forked River, NJ, and several stations in California.

Apparently, the depression ended his New York City construc-tion company, and he formed a smaller company in New Jersey. His construction company built the Community Theater in Toms

Spring Has Sprung Photo Contest!

Calling all amateur pho-tographers! Park staff invites you to celebrate the beauty of spring at Jakes Branch Coun-ty Park by capturing it in a photo – anything from birds and flowers to butterflies and landscapes. All photos must be taken within park bound-aries between April 1st, 2011 and May 31st, 2011. Photog-raphers must be 18 years and older and submit your photo (1 per person) on 8.5” x 11” photo paper to the Nature Center by 4 pm on May 31st.

First, second and third place winners will receive prizes in the form of gift cer-tificates good toward Ocean County Parks and Recreation programs, and all photos will remain on display in the nature center through June 30th. For more information, please call 732-281-2750.

~Sprouting Seeds

A “Sprouting Seeds” drop-in program will be held at Jakes Branch Park on Satur-day, May 21st between noon and 3 pm. No registration is required, all ages. Make a craft, tell a story or take part in a quick experiment when you have the time. Partici-pants will bring home their own seed and watch it grow.

~Frogs by Flashlight

Frogs are easily heard but often difficult to spot. On Fri-day, May 21st from 7:45 pm to 8:45 pm, hike the trails and sandy roads of Jakes Branch. Bring a flashlight. Afterward, the nature center’s observa-tion tower will be open for nighttime viewing. Please reg-ister. Cost is $6 per person, all ages, maximum 25 partici-pants.

BEACHWOOD

By Erik Weber

By Erik Weber

cont. on page X

cont. on page X

Beachwood Community Calendar

Senior Health FairThe Beachwood Senior

Health Fair will take place on Friday, May 20th from 11 am to 3 pm at the Beachwood Community Center on Com-pass Avenue. All seniors are encouraged to register.

~Book and Bake Sale

Come one, come all to the Friends of the Beachwood Library’s Book and Bake Sale on Saturday, May 21st from 9 am to 12:30 pm at the Beach-wood Library, Beachwood Boulevard, rain or shine. Enjoy great deals on books, music and DVDs plus a va-riety of fresh-baked goodies! Participants can also take a chance on a drawing for a “Spring into Summer” bas-ket. All proceeds raised will be donated to the Beachwood Library for educational chil-dren’s programs. The draw-ing will be held at the end of the book sale.

~Heart Disease InformationAn informational program

on heart disease will be held at the Beachwood Library, Beachwood Boulevard on Monday, May 23rd at 7 pm presented by Jenny Shubert, a Rutgers graduate interning with Sodexo-Allentown who will soon be a registered di-etician. Please register, 732-244-4573.

~Land Use Board Meeting

The Beachwood Land Use Board will hold its next meet-ing on Monday, May 23rd at 7 pm in borough hall on Pinewald Road.

~Senior Men

The Beachwood Senior Men meet at the Beachwood Com-munity Center on Tuesdays from 11 am to 4 pm. New members welcome.

~Learn Spanish!

On Tuesday, May 24th & 31st, Pastor Pete of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church will be on hand at the Beachwood Li-brary, Beachwood Boulevard at 11:30 am to teach inter-ested residents basic conver-sational Spanish. Please reg-ister, 732-244-4573.

~ Join Boy Scouts

Troop 114, ages 11 through 17. If you enjoy learning life skills, camping, adventure and helping to improve your community, call Barry Wieck at 732-341-6565.

Jakes BranchPark Programs

BEACHWOOD – This week, the governing body, here, voted to adopt a $9.3 million budget for 2011, which accounts for a 6.41 percent increase over the previ-ous year’s budget of $9 million.

Prior to introduction on Thurs-day, April 7th, Beachwood Chief Financial Officer John Mauder gave a rundown of expenditures and increases that faced the bor-ough during the formation of the budget, noting that it was able to stay below the state mandated tax levy cap increase of two percent while keeping all services and not

enacting any furloughs or layoffs. Increases reflected above the two percent cap amounted for certain municipal costs that are permit-ted to be raised outside the cap.

The overall increase in the tax rate would be 3.85 cents per $100 of assessed value, resulting in an increase of approximately $8.24 per month, or $98.88 per year for the homeowner with the aver-age residential home assessed at $260,200.

“Presently, we are $308,735 under the appropriations cap for the year 2011, and we are also $117,862 under the state mandated tax levy cap,” said Mr. Mauder, who added that the amount of the 2011 municipal budget to be raised by taxes was $6,344,243.06, an increase of $373,996.56 from the previous

year. Discussing the areas where the

budget is broken down into, he stated that “public safety repre-sents 22 percent of the budget, which is a little over $2 million; general governing functions, such as finance, vehicle, engi-neering, tax collection, and tax assessment represents 21 per-cent of the budget, which is $1.9 million; public works, which is streets, roads, snow and solid waste represents 13 percent, which is $1.2 million; debt service represents 10 percent of the bud-get, which is $962,000; reserve for uncollected taxes represents 10 percent, or $938,000; statuto-ry expenditures such as pension and social security represents six percent of the budget, which

Joseph E. Jerue, War Veteran and Beachwood Mayor

Beachwood Adopts 2011 Budget

PHOTO COURTESY OF Edward Jerue Mayor Joseph E. Jerue and wife at Beachwood Beach, undated.

This postcard depicts Beachwood Beach and its patrons shortly before the outset of World War II. Seen here is the original boardwalk walkway, today a concrete sidewalk, beach shelter, still standing, and pier and diving board. While the pier remains, the diving board was removed in the 1950s or 1960s, and sand has since filled in much of the area seen underwater up to the end of the pier, moving the shoreline farther away from the walkway area.

May 20th - June 2nd, 2011 PAGE 5The RIVERSIDE SIGNAL

BEACHWOOD

By Philipp Schmidt

Senior WomenThe Beachwood Senior

Women meet at the Beach-wood Community Center on Wednesdays from 11 am to 4 pm. New members welcome. For more information, please call Geri Mancini at 732-818-0912.

~Fire Company & First Aid

Coin TossThe Beachwood Fire Com-

pany and First Aid Squad will hold its annual Memorial Day weekend coin toss fundraiser at the intersection of Routes 9 and 166 on May 28th, 29th and 30th. Come out and sup-port the men and women who daily volunteer to protect and preserve our community and our families from fire and physical danger.

~Memorial Day Events

On Monday, May 30th, Beachwood’s annual Me-morial Day events will take place, including the fire company memorial service at the firehouse, located on the 700 block of Beachwood Boulevard, at 10 am; the bike decorating contest on the fire company grounds at 10:45 am; the parade from the fire company grounds north to Neilson Park at 11 am with war memorial services to fol-low; and the town-wide picnic at Mayo Park at noon.

~Beach Badges & Parking

StickersBeachwood Beach badges

and parking stickers are available for purchase at borough hall on Pinewald Road during normal busi-ness hours for $10 and $5 residents/$10 non-residents, respectively. Beaches will open June 18th and badges are required by anyone over the age of 12. Children under the age of 12 must be accom-panied by an adult wearing a badge. Parking permits are required year-round.

BEACHWOOD - On Memorial Day weekend 96 years ago, the resort of Beachwood, Berkeley Township, created out of a news-paper subscription promotion by Bertram Chapman Mayo at the New York Tribune and designed by his friend and former MIT classmate, Addison Doane Nick-erson, formally opened to its first property owners and visitors for a weekend-long inaugural celebra-tion. Less than two years later, in March 1917, its first residents voted for independence from the township and incorporated as a borough, marking what the mu-nicipal government observes as its official beginning.

Beachwood kicked off the first of what would become the almost complete loss of riverfront gov-ernance by Berkeley Township before the end of the following decade through the incorpora-tion of the boroughs of Ocean Gate, 1918; Pine Beach, 1925; and South Toms River; 1927.

This Memorial Day, as in de-cades past, borough residents here will have the opportunity to remember those who gave their lives for their country as well as mark the start of their borough with Beachwood Volunteer Fire Company Memorial Services at the firehouse on the 700 block of Beachwood Boulevard at 10 am, a bike decorating contest at the firehouse at 10:45 am, the annual Memorial Day parade beginning at 11 am on the fire company grounds and running north to Neilson Monument Park at the corner of Beachwood and Barnegat boulevards for war me-morial services, and a town-wide picnic at Mayo Park between Clubhouse Road and Beacon Av-enue beginning at noon.

Beachwood’s 96th AnniversaryA Memorial Day

Traditionborough residents to vote on his candidacy was a way to prevent tort action against the borough, speculated to be in the amount of $20 to $50 million, which Mayor Jones said she felt would “result in some sort of real settlement.”

The mayor then admitted that he is homeless as a result of legal fees incurred defending himself over his governing body tenure, which he claimed have reached as high as $155,000.

Mayor Jones has been em-broiled in a series of conflicts and lawsuits between current and for-mer council members and resi-dents since taking office in what was seen as an upset victory that bumped Republican incumbents Mayor Hal Morris and Council-man Gerald W. LaCrosse from office in November 2007. Mr. La-Crosse earned back his seat dur-ing last November’s election on a ticket he shared with longtime borough volunteer but first-time councilman Edward A. Zakar.

Mayor Jones then stated that if the borough council attempted to prevent him from continuing to serve in the capacity of mayor, following the decision to let Mr. Balazinski run in the Democrat-ic primary, the governing body “can be sure a tort claim from me will exceed $50 million.”

Mr. LaCrosse immediately asked for Borough Attorney Wil-liam T. Hiering’s opinion as those present looked on.

Mr. Hiering read from state statute that if the mayor no lon-ger resided within the municipal-ity, then the office of mayor can be considered vacant.

“It’s a simple question - where are you residing,” asked Mr. Roma.

“I stay with people in Beach-wood that allow me to stay there,”

Mayor Jones replied. “Your fi-nances are stressed - that some-times happens. I’m a resident of Beachwood, I’m staying with people and it’s very embarassing to admit - I don’t have a good county job or something where I can pay my bills.”

Mr. Roma asked Mr. Hiering what it said in the statute regard-ing Mayor Jones’ statements.

He replied that the decision was up to the governing body as to whether they felt Mayor Jones was living within the borough.

Mr. LaCrosse asked Mayor Jones if he could provide a per-manent borough address within 30 or 60 days.

Mayor Jones replied that he would confer with his attorney “if that requirement is one that you can make.”

No formal action was taken by the governing body and Mayor Jones left borough hall prior to the start of executive session. No formal action was taken by the borough council on any mat-ter following executive session, though Mr. Roma stated for the record that Mayor Jones was not in attendance during the execu-tive session.

Following the meeting, Mr. DiBella e-mailed the Riverside Signal, stating that he had knowl-edge the mayor was not residing within the borough and is instead living with his son in the Silver Bay section of Toms River Town-ship, on Myrtle Lane.

“I was told this by several resi-dents and have on several occa-sions personally witnessed his ve-hicle in the driveway at all hours of the day and night,” he wrote. “The council should immediately authorize an investigation and have a borough police detective speak with the neighbors [to] es-

tablish residency at that address.”Inquiries sent to Mayor Jones

with this information were not returned at press time.

Mr. DiBella, a former coun-cilman, also speculated that the borough council was not taking action “because it benefits the council president, Ron Roma, the Republican candidate for mayor, to have Jones as the mayor rather than his Democratic opponent, Bonnie Verga, who would almost certainly be appointed to the po-sition by the council.”

Messages sent to Mr. Roma and left on his home answering ma-chine were not responded to at press time.

Mrs. Verga, who was present at the borough council meeting, re-sponded that, “I’m thinking the only thing I can say, because I’m not taking any sides on this, is that any official candidate should not serve nor run if they’re not a Beachwood resident. I’m staying neutral on this.”

On Mayor Jones announce-ment during the borough council meeting that he no longer has a permanent resident, she said, “I honestly did not know that was going to happen.”

Mr. DiBella also wrote, among other things generally stating Mayor Jones statements that he should remain mayor and would sue the borough for upwards of $50 million if challenged as be-ing “ridiculous,” that the argu-ment he should remain in office based on Mr. Balazinski’s Demo-cratic primary run to be a “moot point.”

“Election laws are governed by Title 19 of the New Jersey State statutes while serving as mayor is governed by Title 40, which clearly states that residency is a requirement,” he wrote.

Mayor Jones: I’m Homeless, continued from front

PAGE 6 May 20th - June 2nd, 2011The RIVERSIDE SIGNAL

ISLAND HEIGHTS

Island Heights Community Calendar

Pajama TalesAll ages are invited to wear

your PJs for great stories at the Island Heights Library, Central Avenue, on Monday, May 23rd at 7 pm.

~

Friends of Library Meeting

The next meeting of the Friends of the Island Heights Library will be held on Mon-day, May 23rd at 7 pm in the Island Heights Library, Cen-tral Avenue. The Friends of the Island Heights Library are an important link be-tween the library and the public. The group plans pro-grams and fundraisers for specific library needs.

~

Recreation Committee Meeting

The Island Heights Recre-ation Committee will hold its next meeting on Monday, May 23rd at 7:30 pm in bor-ough hall at the Wanamaker Complex on East End and Van Sant avenues.

~

Council Meeting

The next meeting of the Island Heights Council will take place on Tuesday, May 24th at 7 pm in borough hall at the Wanamaker Complex on East End and Van Sant av-enues.

~

Central Alumni Golf Luncheon

The Central Regional Alum-ni Association will hold its 4th Annual Golf Outing Lun-cheon for alumni on Tues-day, May 24th at Yesterday’s Restaurant, 938 Atlantic City Boulevard, Bayville, at 2 pm. Cost is $30 per person, which includes luncheon, beer and wine. For more information, e-mail cenreg76@aol.com, call Cheryl Altieri at 732-269-4700 or visit crhs.info and click the Alumni tab.

Pajama Party. Dine on break-fast or lunch in your pajamas at Shut Up and Eat off Water Street, or have the staff wait on you in theirs. They serve a delicious and hearty breakfast where you never run out of things to look at. Fab-ulous... Speaking of breakfast, check out the new kids on the block, The Boys Bagel & Deli in South Toms River. On the edge of the waterfront and marinas, they are dishing out tasty bagels, sandwiches and more… When in Rome, or Bayville perhaps, the other new act in town is Senza. Fabuloso Italiano! The menu is unique and varied, the dining room is inviting, and the home-made gelato is to die for.

Bravo. Jack Baker has re-vamped and reopened the for-mer Lobster Shanty, which is now the Water Street Grill. This place is a winner and is sure to breathe some new life into the aged Toms River waterfront. The must catch band that lit up the stage there this past week? Katfish Lucy. They are a group of incredibly talented young men. And speak-ing of young talent, The Music Man Singing Ice Cream Shoppe up in Lavallette opens on Friday May 27th. What’s better than an ice cream sundae with all the top-pings and some Broadway tunes?

Insider Tradingby Liz CochraneBy Philipp Schmidt

Photo Courtesy of SUSAN HORN Robert Eaglesham is shown in this photo giving a lesson on how to fish on Sat. May 14th. The free program is sponsored by the Island Heights Methodist Church and a second lesson will be offered this Sat. May 21st at the Summit Avenue Beach from 9am to noon. For more information log onto www.ihumc.org or call 732-929-0444.

Teach A Child To Fish

ISLAND HEIGHTS – Last week, Island Heights residents returned incumbent council members John Bendel and Brian Taboada to their posts and de-nied newcomer Robert Wilber a seat following a tight non-parti-san May election that saw each man coming within less than 15 votes of one another.

With 375 registered voters com-ing to the polls, amounting to 28.17 percent of the overall regis-tered borough voters, Mr. Bendel received 214 votes, Mr. Taboada earned 204 and Mr. Wilber 199. Eight votes were write-ins.

Each candidate was asked for their reaction to the close race.

“It was a very close and sur-prising election for me,” said Mr. Taboada. “It was tough because there were three good candidates who have a proven record of do-ing good for the town, [and] it is a shame the residents of Island Heights could only chose two candidates. I am happy to be re-elected and want to also congrat-ulate John Bendel in his win.”

Mr. Bendel echoed his fellow re-elected councilman’s state-ments.

“It was a clean campaign on the part of three very good can-didates,” he said. “I’m very

grateful to the voters of Island Heights.”

Mr. Wilber was disturbed by the low vote count among reg-istered borough voters but felt the re-elected councilmen would do well for the borough. He re-sponded in the form of a letter, describing consternation for the future of young families within the borough, which has been re-printed below.

“I wish to congratulate Brian Taboada and John Bendel on be-ing re-elected. While I have no personal issues with either in-cumbent, I ran because I strongly believe our mayor and council lack accountability on spending measures and proper bid and bid award practices and selection of

providers of professional services. “After seeing the results of the

election, I am perplexed that many more people did not come out to vote in light of significant water and sewer increases and surcharges to go along with con-tinued tax increases. Only about 375 people, out of over 1,300 registered voters actually voted. This year alone a family will see a minimum of $400 - $500 dol-lars in additional tax burden, if not more. I find it difficult to un-derstand how that is acceptable to the majority.

“I consider my wife and fam-ily to be a young family in town. I have to tell you that it is be-coming increasingly difficult to be able to afford to live in this town as a young family. In time, this problem, if not addressed through sound fiscal manage-ment, will have a negative impact on our school and community. Several young families have al-ready moved away from Island Heights and that concerns me greatly. The tax burden is not getting any better and I believe our government is not addressing key financial issues.

“As much as anyone else, I want Island Heights’ identity to remain as it is and was. However certain shared service arrangements and contracts with other municipali-ties could easily be implemented without risking our identity or our future as a small town.

My thoughts and ideas on how to curtail our government’s wasteful spending are sound and proven as was evidenced by the Board of Education of Island Heights on which I served for the past six years. We held the line on burdening the residents with year after year of tax increases, and quite honestly, I am surprised that more people did not see that and allow me the opportunity to implement these important prac-tices in our municipal govern-ment.

“I would like to encourage

more residents to attend council meetings as it is very important to keep a watchful eye on our government and the ordinances they propose. As an example dur-ing the very same council meet-ing where the mayor and council explained the water and sewer surcharges, there was a proposed ordinance on the agenda which if approved would create an an-nual alarm registration fee for all residents and commercial estab-lishments who have fire and/or burglar alarm systems. If it were not for several residents question-ing this it could have been easily approved. As one resident put it, “this is nothing more than a hid-den tax.” Most people had left the meeting before this topic was presented.

“I spoke with Brian and John after the election and stressed my points and feel confident they have the town’s interest at heart.

“Again, I wish both Council-men Taboada and Bendel the best of luck in their new 3 year terms on council.”

The next meeting of the Is-land Heights council will be held on Tuesday, May 24th at 7 pm in borough hall at the Wanamaker Complex on East End and Van Sant avenues.

Incumbent Councilmen Bendel & Taboada ReturnedWilber: “Confident they have the town’s best interest at heart”

a ribbon cutting with Freeholder Director Joseph H. Vicari, the museum board’s honorary chair-man, as well as a house tour, si-lent auction, raffle, select hors d’oeuvers, wind and entertain-ment with black tie optional at $100 per guest. Items included in the silent auction include a sunset dinner cruise for six, a cocktail party for 16 on a private yacht, a week in a Vermont vaca-tion home, original artwork by a renowned contemporary artist and more.

A special exhibition of origi-

nal Peto paintings will be on loan for the gala opening only. Guests will also see the original studio, artifacts and furnishing used by Mr. Peto, who lived and worked in Island Heights from 1890 until 1907. Today, his work is recognized as one of America’s most important still life painters and can be found throughout the world’s finest museums, includ-ing the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City and the National Gallery of Art in Wash-ington, D.C. Dominated by rich colors and enhanced lighting, his artwork often utilized the “fool the eye” technique known as tromp l’oeil.

For more information on the gala opening, please call Joanna G. Moy at 732-929-4949 or e-mail petomuseum@comcast.net.

Peto Studio Museum

Opening Gala, continued from front

May 20th - June 2nd, 2011 PAGE 7The RIVERSIDE SIGNAL

PAGE 8 May 20th - June 2nd, 2011The RIVERSIDE SIGNAL

Cattus Island Park Programs

Tour Cattus Island by Bike

Cattus Island Park now has adult bicycles and helmets of various sizes to loan out for use within the park. The bi-cycles are free to use with a driver’s license held until their return, and may be borrowed for two hours, seven days a week, between 8 am and 2 pm. They must not be taken out of the park.

~Step Into Spring

It’s amazing what you can find just a few small steps from the Cooper Environmental Center at Cattus Island Park. Spring Azures are spreading their wings. Buds are burst-ing out leaves and flowers. Fiddleheads of ferns are push-ing their way out of the musty loam. Spring is, well… spring-ing at Cattus Island Park. Let a naturalist open your eyes to the wonder on Sunday, May 15th & 22nd from 10 am to 11 am. There is no cost or regis-tration required. All ages.

~ Scales and Tales

Snakes are frequently sub-ject to many myths. Join a nat-uralist as they uncover the real truths about snakes in this live animal presentation on Satur-day, May 14th & 21st and Sun-day, May 22nd & 29th from 11 am to 11:30 am at the Cooper Environmental Center in Cat-tus Island Park. There is no cost or registration required. All ages.

~ Turtle Feeding

The Cooper Environmen-tal Center at Cattus Island Park houses a variety of na-tive turtles, including the Diamond-back Terrapin, the Box Turtle and the Painted Turtle. Naturalists and youth volunteers will be on hand to answer all of your questions while they feed and otherwise care for their native turtles on Saturday, May 21st & 28th and Sunday, 22nd & 29th from 1:30 pm to 2 pm at the Cooper Environmental Center in Cat-tus Island Park. There is no cost or registration required. All ages.

~ Discovery Backpacks

Cattus Island Park has 10 discovery backpacks. The packs, which may be borrowed for free with a driver’s license held until their return, con-tain tools to help families en-joy and learn about the park, including binoculars, several field guides, an audio guide to bird sounds, an aquatic dip net, tools for catching and holding insects, and sev-eral suggested activities and games. The packs are appro-priate for family groups with children of any age.

TOMS RIVER

Toms River Community Calendar

The Art of Chinese DanceWith dazzling costumes and

fantastic props, this multi-cultural performance on Sat-urday, May 21st at 2 pm in the Toms River Library by the Nai Chen Dance Com-pany will take you on a jour-ney to celebrate Asian Pacific Heritage Month. From the ribbon dance, which origi-nated in the Han dynasty, to the beautiful and elegant contemporary Celestial Lake dance, participants will ex-plore one of the most ancient cultures in the world. Please register, 732-349-6200.

~Author Visit

Best-selling mystery author Lawrence Block will discuss his new book, “A Drop of the Hard Stuff,” at the Toms River Library, Washington Street, on Monday, May 23rd at 7 pm. Please register, 732-349-6200.

~Council Meeting

The next meeting of the Toms River Council will be on Tuesday, May 24th at 6 pm in town hall on Washing-ton Street.

~Veteran’s Commission

The Toms River Veteran’s Commission will hold its next meeting on Thursday, May 26th at 7 pm in town hall on Washington Street.

~Memorial Day Parade

The George P. Vanderveer Post 129 will observe Memo-rial Day on Monday, May 30th with their 82nd annual parade, which will assemble at 9 am before stepping off at 9:30 am from Highland Parkway at Main Street be-fore proceeding south to Toms River Town Hall for memorial ceremonies. In case of inclement weather, the parade will be canceled and ceremonies will be held inside town hall at 11 am. All patriotic and civic organiza-tions, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, church groups and citizens of Toms River are invited to join post officials and mem-bers in a tribute to their de-parted comrades. For more information, please contact Bob Scheiderman at 732-232-7095 or knottoday@comcast.net.

Fate is a Strange Hunter

Proud Patriots

TOMS RIVER – It can be said that on the day John Gardella, Jr. was born, in May 1923, he wasn’t so much set to make history as he was to attend school along-side it, serve it out of his family’s grocery business, ride it on a PT boat in the Pacific Theater, write it, take Hollywood screen tests for it, herd it from the Mexican border to north Texas, build it, try and save it from the wrecking ball, and help protect it for future generations.

This Rumson native, today a resident of Toms River, recently sat down with the Riverside Sig-nal to recount his days attend-ing Pine Beach’s Admiral Far-ragut Academy with roommate, friend and future astronaut Alan Shepard, navigating through the war-torn South Pacific and more.

Below is an account written by Mr. Gardella recalling an event during the war that remained with him as a lesson in fate versus faith.

First, some background on his war duties leading up to this event:

“In December, 1942, I was sent to Green Bay Naval Training Sta-tion for boot camp. It was cold. When they checked my records and saw my military background both at Farragut and Lehigh [University, which he attended following one post-graduate year at Admiral Farragut Academy], they made me an apprentice chief petty officer in charge of the training of company 1937. I was a tough [drill instructor] but it paid off as we won THE ROOSTER, the top company at graduation

from boot camp. I was selected as Honor Man of my company and as a result had my choice of ser-vice schools. I chose Quartermas-ter (Navigation) School at New-port Rhode Island.

“Every day I would see, at about four in the afternoon, eight to twelve PT boats gliding down the river fro their night time train-ing sessions. They looked great. At my graduation from Quarter-master School, I volunteered for PT service. You had to be in the top five percent of your class to be eligible. I was accepted and traveled a mere eight miles to Melville, the PT training base.

“Five months later, I found myself on the Admiral Greer, a transport, on my way to the Pa-cific. The Greer had to drop out of the convoy four days out of

TOMS RIVER – The Ocean County Historical Society will be hosting a program on Thurs-day, June 2nd from 1 pm to 3 pm presented by three New Jersey veterans who served in World War II and the Vietnam War. Douglas Foulks, Paul Frisco and Barry Rosenzweig are associated with the Center for World War II Studies and Conflict Resolutions at the Brookdale Community College Speakers’ Bureau called VETS.

Share with these men their ex-periences on tours of duty in the Pacific after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, for which their units were highly decorated. Army experiences during the Vietnam era will also be featured. Under-standing the sacrifices and brav-ery of previous generations who have defended our country will warm your heart and engender patriotic pride. For reservations, call the OCHS office at 732-341-1880. There is no admission fee, and refreshments will be served.

By Erik Weber

OCC Arboretum Entrance , continued from front

cont. on page X

turning it into a newer garden and redoing the archway, so I fol-lowed through with that.”

Mr. Putnam is the manager of campus services for the college.

“I moved forward and went to the entrance, which is the arch-way, and then the [inner] circle area, and I decided that I would be able to turn it into a butterfly garden, which would hopefully spark more people [to] go farther and farther into the Arboretum,” Mr. Thesing continued, adding that with some inspiration from the types of plants present at the nearby Cattus Island butterfly garden, he went to work produc-ing a detailed map of where each plant could go. “Pretty much for the last six months, I’ve been go-ing to different nurseries, differ-ent farms and getting donations of plants, and then I went to plac-es like Lowe’s and other stores to get donations [for staining the archway entrance].”

Late last month, all the plan-ning became a reality when the Boy Scout, who has been a mem-ber of the organization since he was a Tiger Cub Scout eleven years ago, met with a smaller group of fellow scouts and friends to stain the archway on the eve of the larger garden project, which involved a full group of Boy Scouts, volunteers, parents and

scoutmasters pitching in under Mr. Thesing’s direction, clean-ing, weeding, planting, mulching and repairing sections of the Ar-boretum entrance garden to his exact plans.

Troop 1 Scoutmaster Kevin Vliet looked on at the operation, beaming at its strong leadership and planning.

“He’s been in charge of this troop, and he’s an exceptional young man, an exceptional lead-er, and one of the things I liked about his project here is that he has executed and planned it per-fectly,” he said. “I know Alex has done an excellent job because all of the questions that needed to be answered by OCC and by the boys, and any aspect of the proj-ect that needed to have a decision on, nobody needed to approach me, and he hasn’t had to ask me for anything. He has handled the project.”

“My job is much easier when I have a scout that can really take hold, take charge and take re-sponsibility of his program and run it and just comes to me for very little counsel, and that’s what Alex Thesing has done,” the scoutmaster continued. “In the end, the Eagle Scout project is ba-sically taking everything they’ve learned about scouting, and it’s really the pinnacle of require-

ments. This is the big one. This is where you go into the community and you find a need or a want from an organization that might not necessarily have any other means of doing the work. Ocean County College really didn’t have a lot of interest in taking care of the Arboretum, and it was up to somebody to come along, look at this and say this is something that the community wanted – it needed somebody to come in and champion the project. That is what Alex did.”

Mr. Thesing considered the fu-ture of the Arboretum after the completion of his project.

“For the future, I hope that it’s going to be definitely main-tained, and hopefully it’s going to get a lot of foot traffic so people start utilizing the Arboretum, because I know in the past it was used for wedding pictures and things like that, and I hope it will again,” he said. “I hope it sparks the restoration of the entire Ar-boretum, because there’s much more – it goes a lot farther back than just this initial area, so I’m hoping that it’ll spark other proj-ects to be done.

For more information about Toms River Boy Scout Troop 1, visit their website at www.tr-troop1.com.

May 20th - June 2nd, 2011 PAGE 9The RIVERSIDE SIGNAL

Cattus Island Park Programs

Winged Friends Nature Walks

The warmer days of spring bring a variety of new oppor-tunities for viewing wildlife, and the park’s two o’clock na-ture walks represent a long tradition of offering a fun, ed-ucational and interactive look at the wilds of Cattus Island County Park. Take a break from the daily grind and get back to basics with a short jaunt through one of Ocean County’s best-kept secrets with the Beginning Birdwatching Nature Walks on Saturday and Sunday, May 21st & 22nd and the In Search of Insects II Nature Walks on Saturday and Sunday, May 28th & 29th. All walks take place from 2 pm to 3 pm. There is no cost or reg-istration required. All ages.

~Love Songs of Frogs and

Toads On Friday, May 27th, join

an Ocean County Park Natu-ralist and lend an ear to the enchanting calls of Ocean County’s breeding frogs and toads. Travel to a diverse ar-ray of habitats listening for the sounds made by these nighttime callers from 7 pm to 10 pm. Participants will be required to walk over uneven ground in dark conditions. Cost is $6 per person, ages 12 years to adult, maximum 12 participants.

~ Registration Information

Unless otherwise stated, all programs require registration along with payment in full at time of registration. Anyone attend-ing a program or trip, without registering in advance, must pay by check or money order (cash is unacceptable). Participants will only be permitted upon availabil-ity.

Registration for programs designated as “FREE” may be placed by calling Cattus Island County Park at 732-270-6960

TOMS RIVER

The Men of the “Ocean County Rifles”, 1861

September 18th, 1861: Ocean County Rifles Formed

Pleasant Plains Fire Co Flea Market

ERIK WEBER, the Riverside SignalEarlier this month at the Pleasant Plains Fire Company Flea Market, Don Finch displayed and sold his model sailboats and more.

TOMS RIVER – The follow-ing is an account of the formation of Ocean County’s first volunteer military company to fight for the Union in the Civil War, originally printed on September 18th, 1861, in the Ocean County Emblem, the second newspaper in existence in the recently established county. Its reintroduction to contemporary area residents’ awareness is the result of work performed by his-torian Patricia H. Burke for the county’s efforts to mark the 150th anniversary of that conflict over the next four years. It appears here uncut, with spelling and for-matting errors and differences present.

On Thursday last, in company with Cols W.I. Jame, F.J. Speer, and EH Wilks, Esq. we went to Trenton to prevail with the Gov-ernor and Military authorities to accept a company of volunteers from this county. The effort proved successful, notwithstand-ing the fact that companies were already accepting enough to fill

up the Regiments required from this state. Over one hundred of our citizens have already placed themselves in the service of our Government, scattered in differ-ent States and in various regi-ments, some in the Army and some in the Navy, and as their patriotic impulses seemed to be on the increase, leading them, in increased numbers, to enlist in squads and bands in separate companies it was thought proper, as an act of justice to our men and country, that a fully organized company from Ocean should be admitted in to one of New Jer-sey’s Regiments.

Captain Page and Lieutenant Irons are entitled to the thanks and the kind consideration of our people for the very successful la-bor which they have performed in raising so large a number of volunteers, from our rural and thinly populated county, in so short a time. The true and loyal citizens of Manahawkin, Judge Joseph Oliphant, Capt. Lofton,

Capt Randolph, Joseph Wilkins, and many other of that place, are also entitled to great credit for their efficient serves in aid-ing this noble cause. Stafford responds well to the call for sol-diers.

Below we publish a list of the names of volunteers for this com-pany called “The Ocean County Rifles”

This company is composed of as true, heardy and brave men as can be found in the service. They are, as a general thing, expert marksmen, as their subsequent services will show. The enemies of our Union will find them “sharp shooters” indeed. On Sat-urday our village was enlivened all day long with the parading, drilling, and music of some sixty of the above company, command-ed by Capt. Page. Their different movements and drill was highly gratifying, and manifested a readiness to learn, on the part of the soldiers very creditable.

On Sunday morning the Capt.

Formed his men in line and marched them to the Presby-terian Church, where listened with attention and decorum to a sermon by Rev. Mr. Todd, and in the evening they marched to the M.E. Church, and gave very marked attention to a sermon by Rev. Mr. Sharp. Both in the morning and in the evening the ministers addressed the soldiers in impressive and appropriate language. They were warmly eulogized for their patriotic de-votion to the Government under which they have been reared in Independence and Freedom such as no other people enjoy.

The Soldiers were much pleased on account of the interest manifested in their behalf, and the encouragement given by the Rev Gentlemen.

~ Subsequent accounts of our ar-

ea’s involvement in the Civil War will be reprinted in future edi-tions of the Riverside Signal.

George G. Irons,Benjamin A. Rodgers,Jesse R. Hulshart,Francis Beatty,Joshua Polhemus,Washington Rodgers,Baxton Ridgway,John C. Phillipps,Oliver P. Applegate,James E. Hartsgrove,Henry Sachat,Isaac M. Inman,Edward Wilbert,James M. Petit,Henry Camborn,Jesse L. Bennett,Levi Reeves,Edward Newman,William B. Conclin,

Joseph C. Ellem,Thomas S. Randolph,Charles Lofton,Henry Hewitt,Eugene A. Crane,William H. Lanlo,Garret V. Hyers,James Truax,John M. Clayton,Gilbert I. McKelvy,Charles Cook,William H. Hurly,Job L. Crammer,James Johnson,Exra W. Crammer,John W. Perrine,Charles Hall,John A. Applegate,

Redin Penn,George R. WorthJohseph Atterson,Joseph Johnson,William H. Phillips,Orlando Imlay,Jease B.l Jefferica,Abraham Wilbert,Joseph Butler,Jacob Tenny,Wesley B. Norcross,Theodore Rogers,Peter Johnson,Noah Jeffrey,Charles P. Cambron,David B. Johnson,Napoleon B. Fithian,Riley B. Conclin,

David A. Johnson,Ezekiel Shinn,John Steelman,Jesse M. Wilkins,Thomas Carr,Joseph Crammer,William R. Clayton,Hiram Craft,Reubin Chamberlin,David McKelvy,Charles W. Truax,Hull F. Randolph,John W. Johnson,Isiah W. Cramer,Oliver Inman,William I. Johnson,John F. Jones,Edward O. Page,

By Erik Weber

and it was an eyewitness account of how the first group of volun-teers to serve in the Civil War from Ocean County assembled in Toms River, their march to enlist in Camp Olden in Trenton, right outside the state capital, and what they encountered along the way.”

That account detailed the vol-unteers receiving dinner in New Egypt, having their horses wa-tered and being greeted by ex-cited residents on the route there.

“This was at the very begin-ning of the war, [and] there was a lot of enthusiasm for the war effort, and everybody, including Lincoln, thought it would be a short war – three months – but after the first wounded returned home without arms and legs, it became more difficult to recruit,” Ms. Burke stated. “So I’m reading this eyewitness account, and they named them the Ocean County Rifles, then in an issue in Febru-ary, they talked about the battle of Roanoke.”

She said it was at this point that she further realized nobody, not even the older county publication that had led her to the rediscov-ery of the early Civil War account or the works of New Jersey Civil War historian and author, Joe Bil-by, had ever known or recounted

the Toms River area regiment’s recruitment story.

“When I got back to the of-fice, everybody was excited,” Ms. Burke said. “Tim [Hart, Commis-sioner of the Culture and Heri-tage Commission] said, ‘this is unbelievable stuff.’”

Mr. Hart, who was already un-derway with plans to redecorate the Ocean County Courthouse with patriotic bunting and sig-nage to match a circa 1880s pho-tograph welcoming Civil War vet-erans back for a reunion and hold an official county ceremony com-memorating the sesquicentennial of the war, immediately added Ms. Burke’s found accounts to the readings of the day.

“They were great, and I think it really shows that that’s an irre-placeable resource for the county, the Emblem,” he said, adding that he hopes the near future will see an overall digital archiving of the county newspapers, which are currently accessible primarily on microfilm, “because there’s just so many topics there that I think people would find interesting.”

As for Ms. Burke and her find, she said she hopes that lo-cal school students and groups will begin utilizing the resources of the county heritage holdings

more often, and learn from the detailed accounts such as the Civil War articles that can bring a greater sense of connection to what is often mistakenly per-ceived as distant, national events.

Admitting to reading ahead in the issues of the Ocean Em-blem for future editions of Out & About, she said the outlook for the war quickly grew grim on the national and local scale.

“Lincoln realized it was going to be a long war, and he was ask-ing, rather than for a short term of three month enlistments, for three year enlistments, which was a real commitment and the horrors of the war were being brought home now,” she said. “In subsequent articles, you see that New Jersey and the area counties and towns have a problem meet-ing their quota.”

~The Riverside Signal has re-

printed the first of these found accounts, from September 18th, 1861, here for our readers, who can also look to future issues of the Signal for more republished accounts of our area’s involve-ment in the Civil War from the pages of our distant cousin, the Ocean Emblem.

Burke Rediscovers 1861 Account, continued from front

PAGE 10 The RIVERSIDE SIGNAL May 20th - June 2nd, 2011PAGE 10

SPRINGTIME ON THE RIVER

May 20th - June 2nd, 2011 PAGE 11The RIVERSIDE SIGNALMay 20th - June 2nd, 2011 PAGE 11

SPRINGTIME ON THE RIVER

PAGE 12 The RIVERSIDE SIGNAL May 20th - June 2nd, 2011PAGE 12

TOMS RIVER KIWANIS DAYBREAK 5K

FESTIVITIES

May 20th - June 2nd, 2011 PAGE 13The RIVERSIDE SIGNALMay 20th - June 2nd, 2011 PAGE 13

TOMS RIVER KIWANIS DAYBREAK 5K

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The RIVERSIDE SIGNALPAGE 14 May 20th - June 2nd, 2011

PINE BEACH

Chief Sgro Reports Boro Activity for April

Pine Beach Community Calendar

Book and Bake SaleCome one, come all to the

Friends of the Beachwood Library’s Book and Bake Sale on Saturday, May 21st from 9 am to 12:30 pm at the Beach-wood Library, Beachwood Boulevard, rain or shine. Enjoy great deals on books, music and DVDs plus a va-riety of fresh-baked goodies! Participants can also take a chance on a drawing for a “Spring into Summer” bas-ket. All proceeds raised will be donated to the Beachwood Library for educational chil-dren’s programs. The draw-ing will be held at the end of the book sale.

~Council Work Session

The next work session meet-ing of the Pine Beach Coun-cil will take place on Monday, May 23rd at 7:30 pm in bor-ough hall on Pennsylvania Avenue.

~Special Council Meeting

The Pine Beach Council will hold a special regular meet-ing on Monday, May 23rd at 8 pm in borough hall on Pennsylvania Avenue, for purposes of introducing the 2011 municipal budget and introducing Ordinance 11-03-691, calendar year 2011, to establish a cap bank, as well as any other urgent busi-ness to come before council. Formal action may be taken.

~Tip-A-Firefighter Night

The Pine Beach Volun-teer Fire Company’s Annual “Tip-A-Firefighter” Night fundraiser will be held on Thursday, May 26th at the Lamp Post Inn, Atlantic City Boulevard, from 5 pm to 9 pm. Interested parties are urged to call ahead for res-ervations, 732-240-2211. A silent auction will also take place during the event. Ques-tions? Call Rob Brown at 732-581-0689.

~Memorial Day Services

Pine Beach will hold its 60th annual Memorial Day servic-es on Monday, May 30th at 1 pm in front of the firehouse on Prospect Avenue. Berke-ley Township Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9503 will participate.

cently been diagnosed with a ger-minoma brain tumor. He is fight-ing to keep up his school work and conquer his medical issues. Chris’s family is incurring the financial strain associated with this scenario as they accumulate medical bills and travel expenses.

The Picurro Family – As a 9/11 volunteer, Joe Picurro was the embodiment of the selfless cour-age displayed by so many after the terror attack. As a result of his volunteerism at Ground Zero, Joe fell ill with vomiting and constant chest congestion. In 2004, doc-tors finally identified the cause: toxic dust he had inhaled three years earlier. Unable to work and unable to initially collect work-ers’ compensation because he had served as a volunteer, the Picurro family went deeply into debt due to the financial burdens of medications, doctors visits and household bills. In October 2010, Joe lost his life to the brave com-mitment made in 2001. He is survived by his wife Laura and daughter Allison. Although Con-gress has approved compensation

for 9/11 responders, no funds have reached the Picurro house-hold. Mrs. Picurro continues to struggle with the past and pres-ent financial burdens.

In developing the initial event, Mr. Sciorilli said “the goals were primarily to set up an organiza-tion that helped families in our own local community while offer-ing a life lesson for our student athletes on the challenges and rewards of philanthropic endeav-ors.”

“Our inaugural event was a wonderful success on both fronts. We truly feel our boys learned about how rewarding it is to give oneself to help others, [and] our community stepped up to the challenge by offering of great generosity to the cause,” he said. “Hirtes Hike is now officially a 501(c)3 certified organization, through the Toms River North Boys Lacrosse Booster organiza-tion.”

This year’s event is expanded from the initial one mile fun run to also include an officiated 5K race, a Zumba exercise event, a

game truck attraction, fish bowl and face painting sponsored by St. Joseph’s Church, a speed ra-dar throwing attraction, a dunk tank attraction including boys lacrosse coaching staff from all three high schools, principals and Toms River Township Mayor Thomas Kelaher, and a vendor and exhibitor area. Registration for the fun run and 5K races will be available by going to the Hirtes Hike Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Hirtes-Hike/336373626310, e-mailing hirteshike@gmail.com or calling 732-797-0305. Interest-ed parties may register up to the day of the event, but a deadline of May 30th has been placed to receive a t-shirt.

For their part, TRN Boys La-crosse teammates are proud to be part of the growing community tradition.

Student Sean Miller recalled the first hike as being “a great experience for our team,” add-ing that “it felt good to be able to help on of our fellow players in a time of need. Everyone on the

team worked hard to make sure the Hirtes Hike was a success, [and] the work put in was nothing compared to what we got out of the experience.”

“The team was very happy with the Hike and can’t wait for the next one,” he said.

Senior midfielder Mike Celmer agreed that the hike “took a lot of teamwork and effort,’ and said he and fellow members “made posters, raised money and found sponsors from local businesses.”

Senior attack member Nicholas Roch called the hike “a smashing success!”

“As a team we are not content with the status quo, and so this year the event will be bigger and better than ever,” he stated. “Un-like last year, I have the opportu-nity to be part of the board which has been instrumental in creat-ing the event, [and] it has been an opportunity for me to learn some lessons about responsibility, and, more importantly, to help fami-lies that are suffering through times of hardship and despair.”

PINE BEACH – The follow-ing report was submitted by Pine Beach Borough Police Chief John M. Sgro and covers a summary of borough police activity for the month of April.

~• For the month of April 2011,

the police department responded to 187 calls for service.

• On April 11th, the depart-ment participated in a Division of Motor Vehicles random safety check point. Approximately 60 summonses were issued for safety and other violations and many vehicles, which owners had failed to get emissions inspections for were given inspections on the spot. We have several more of these checkpoints scheduled throughout the year. With the dissolving of the safety portion of state vehicle inspections these random roadside checks have be-come a valuable way to help in-sure the safety of vehicles operat-ing on our roadways.

On April 30th, the department participated in Operation Take Back. This program was initi-

ated by U.S. DEA to get old un-used and unwanted prescription drugs disposed of safely. This not only helps keep these drugs out of the hands of our children but also helps the environment by in-suring that they are disposed of in a safe manner. The program has proven to be a great success and this is the third year that our department has participated in it. In the four hour period that we were open for collection, our residents turned in 60 pounds of unwanted medications.

• Throughout the month of April, the department continued our efforts to deal with quality of life issues in town. In addition to our normal duties such as traffic enforcement and routine patrol, we have also been focusing on property maintenance issues as well as some issues with trash and other debris placed at the curb-side at inappropriate times. Many residents have received notices as individual problems have been noted. While this may seem petty to some, we see it as an important issue that affects everyone. We

ask that everyone pay particular attention to the new recycling cal-endar and please remember that no trash or recycling items may be stored in front yards or put to the curb prior to the day before a

scheduled pickup. With your help and cooperation, we can all work together to keep our town a neat place to live.

Hirtes Hike a Growing Community Tradition, continued from front

Pine Beach Yacht Club Open House

Photo Courtesy BOB RUNYONPast commodores of the Pine Beach Yacht Club were on hand during their open house last weekend.

May 20th - June 2nd, 2011 The RIVERSIDE SIGNAL PAGE 15

PINE BEACH

PINE BEACH TOWN WIDE YARD SALEExposure

The annual Pine Beach Town-Wide Yard Sale kicked off early last Saturday morning, with bar-gain hunters constricting road-ways and trunk space with their vehicles and treasures. Those who fared the best tended to be in the clustered areas where mul-tiple yard sales were set up in close proximity to one another, particularly in the areas of Motor Road and Merion Avenue, much of 300 and 400 Merion Avenue blocks, Linden Avenue near Hen-ley Avenue and others.

Mayor Christopher Boyle was seen walking east along Linden Avenue, perusing books while Lynn Hargrove’s grandchildren sold water to passersby. Long-time Toms River High School South Track and Cross-Country Coach Mark O’Leary and family offered such wares as an old Mon-goose bike, gently used counter-tops with sink, books, baskets, a banana-yellow vintage “Roller Derby” skateboard (which later went gratis to a young Beach-wood child), a wooden child’s desk and more. Riverside Drive was entirely devoid of yard sales, leading a number of patrons to use it as a way of getting around the more clogged areas of towns, and only one sailboat was seen gliding along the river under an increasingly dark grey sky.

At Pine Beach Chapel, parish-ioners sold baked goods, coffee, hot dogs and more alongside do-nated items to benefit the church, while across from the fire com-pany Bill Stueber & Co. of Boy Scout Troop 70 set up tents and tables filled with baked goods and other assorted items. As was the case during last year’s event, a number of homes offered deals on used Optimist and Sunfish sailboats, presumably the result of a child graduating up a level or moving on to other interests.

While most of the homes open for business supported the Pine Beach Municipal Alliance event, paying their $15 and receiving a place on the map and a red balloon, a few displayed a store-bought balloon and were not part of the official fundraiser, the pro-ceeds from which was earmarked for yearly programs to keep bor-ough children away from drugs and alcohol. One event organizer questioned about this occasional practice declined to comment for the record.

Rain and thunderstorms pre-dicted throughout much of the day held off until enough trade was accomplished among bor-ough and area residents, and ga-rage doors and homes closed up shop for the evening.

The RIVERSIDE SIGNALPAGE 16

OCEAN GATE

cont. on page 14

Ocean Gate Community Calendar

Free Karate Classes Free karate classes are of-

fered every Friday from 6 pm to 7 pm in Adrian Hall on East Cape May Avenue to all borough residents.

~ Seniors Club Meeting

The next meeting of the Ocean Gate Seniors Club will be on Friday, May 20th at 12:30 pm in Adrian Hall on East Cape May Avenue.

~Blue Star Mothers Meeting The next meeting of the

Blue Star Mothers of the Jer-sey Shore, Chapter 4, will be on Saturday, May 21st from noon to 4 pm in Adrian Hall, East Cape May Avenue.

~Central Alumni Golf

Luncheon The Central Regional Alum-

ni Association will hold its 4th Annual Golf Outing Lun-cheon for alumni on Tues-day, May 24th at Yesterday’s Restaurant, 938 Atlantic City Boulevard, Bayville, at 2 pm. Cost is $30 per person, which includes luncheon, beer and wine. For more information, e-mail cenreg76@aol.com, call Cheryl Altieri at 732-269-4700 or visit crhs.info and click the Alumni tab.

~Star-Spangled Memorial

Day Breakfast On Sunday, May 29th, from

8 am to noon in Adrian Hall, East Cape May Avenue, the Civic Club of Ocean Gate will hold its Star-Spangled Me-morial Day Breakfast, con-sisting of French toast with ham, sausage, or scrambled eggs or ham or sausage and roll, and juice, coffee or tea. Tickets may be purchased at the door on the day of the event or in advance from Ter-ry Nieves, club president, by calling 732-269-2019 or from Maria Golda, by calling 732-237-9121.

~Veterans’ Meeting

The Ocean Gate Veteran’s Association will hold its next meeting on Thursday, May 26th at 7 pm in Adrian Hall on Ocean Gate Avenue.

Public Comment

During the open public com-ment period of the May 11th borough council meeting, Ocean Gate Avenue Katherine Ranuro requested that the borough look into repairing the broken curbing along her street, the main boule-vard in town, and asked whether residents could be notified when street cleaning trucks from the county would be coming, so they they could move their vehicles and get the fronts of their houses cleaned. Mayor Paul Kennedy said that the county doesn’t tell him when they’re coming, but of-fered the phone number for the Ocean County Road Department that she could call. He added that there was currently no formal plan to repair the curbing, but that he would include some curb-ing repair with the Community Development Block Grant money going toward installing curbing along Veterans’ Park on Ocean Gate Drive. Ms. Ranuro also questioned the mayor’s figures for how much energy the wind turbine had generated as stated in a recent letter sent to residents, asking that the turbine be looked into for cost effectiveness as she did not feel its operation had thus far produced a cost savings to the borough.

East Bayview Avenue resident Lou Purcaro commended the borough department of public works for their cleanup at the duck pond off Ocean Gate Drive, but added that he would like to see refuse receptacles placed there, and requested that public works look at removing the gar-bage left behind when the snow fences along the beachfront were removed, as it would “ just embed in the sand like last year.”

Mayor’s Report

Mayor Paul Kennedy opened his report by stating that though the council approved borough resident Claire DePalma to briefly utilize the Narragansett Avenue beachfront or, if inclem-ent weather, the Wildwood Av-enue pavilion for her wedding on July 16th, he had not heard any response from her as of yet.

Councilwoman Joella Nicastro said that she would reach out to her… Longtime resident Diana Diehl wrote a letter to the may-or and council requesting a li-cense to sell ice cream from her ice cream truck for the season, a practice she has employed for many years before. Ms. Nicastro stated that she had already seen the ice cream truck out on week-ends without a license, and the borough council unanimously approved a motion for the bor-ough to perform an annual back-ground check so that she may continue her business. Borough Clerk Ileana Vasquez-Gallipoli later reported that the license was issued… the Ocean Gate Veterans Association requested for the borough to allow the an-nual Memorial Day services on Monday, May 30th beginning at 1 pm and in case of inclement weather moving to Adrian Hall, and if they could move their an-nual prime rib dinner fundraiser from July 3rd to July 2nd. Both requests were unanimously ap-proved. Mayor Kennedy asked whether the veterans would be selling hot dogs at the Fourth of July events this year as he had not yet received a letter, and Council-man Charles Mailot added that they would also be selling water and soda between 2 pm and the early evening, and that the Recre-ation Committee would sell food products on Ocean Gate Found-ers Day. Mayor Kennedy noted that there would be no nighttime entertainment on July 4th this year and that the veterans’ or-ganization may want to “rethink their hours.”…the mayor added that a letter would soon go out to residents outlining the borough’s summer events, and added that garbage collection would change for the summer months begin-ning this week, with trash pick-up occurring on Tuesdays and Thursdays rather than Wednes-days, and recycling picked up every other Wednesday… Mayor Kennedy also wanted to remind residents of the summer beach and boardwalk regulations, which includes the restrictions that “no person shall ride any bi-cycle on any boardwalk or pier in this municipality except between

the hours of 6 am to 10 am,” no dogs are allowed on the board-walk and that beach hours of op-eration were 10 am to 5 pm daily. The borough offices will be open Fridays until June 9th between 8 am and 4:30 pm for any residents interested in purchasing summer beach badges and parking stick-ers… Mayor Kennedy received an e-mail on May 10th that Ocean Gate was not given any portion of Governor Chris Christie’s $11 million in projects funding for stormwater management systems even though, he said, “Ocean Gate’s already got a project in the ground that’s working, clean-ing out nitrogen and silt, and we get nothing – it’s amazing.” He added that he would pursue some of the low interest loans for such projects in the coming weeks and months, but added that for Ocean Gate to not receive any outright funding, “it’s quite sad, but I guess you know when you donate all that money politically, that’s what you get and I’ll say that on the record because that’s how I feel – it’s just disgusting.”…Reports were also received by the mayor that residents are stating borough tax assessor, Scott Pezar-ras, who also has responsibilities in Brick Township, has not been attending his scheduled Wednes-day night office hours. Mayor Kennedy noted that he had a conversation with Mr. Pezarras and that the assessor would now notify the office if he would not be attending his office hours so that a sign may be placed either temporarily changing his hours or stating an absence, but that “I do agree with those who do com-plain that he is paid by the bor-ough – he is an employee, wheth-er he’s a tenured employee or not, and whether he’s been here 10 or 15 years doesn’t matter – he bet-ter get here or change his day, otherwise we will be looking for a new assessor.”…the Wildwood Avenue pier replacement proj-ect and stormwater outfall pipe move is still underway, but Mayor Kennedy added that the pipe the county would be moving from beside the pier to beneath it “is a month out, so you can take it from there when that’s going to be done.”

Council Reports

Council President Richard Russell, besides bringing up the idea of a beer garden dur-ing Ocean Gate Founder’s Day, the story of which can be found elsewhere on this page, wanted residents attending the weekly free karate classes to know that Bob Holshue, with the Ocean Gate Municipal Alliance, was oc-casionally filling in for the regu-lar instructor, who is a black belt, but that Mr. Holshue was a quali-fied green belt and permitted to instruct white belt beginners. “I just want to put any kind of con-troversy to bed and support him on that – it’s a really excellent program that’s starting to grow,” said Mr. Russell, adding that “the new set of kids and people received their white belt with yel-low stripe recently, [and] it’s a lot of fun.” Mayor Kennedy pointed out that if the agreement signed with the borough stated that a black belt would be required to run the Friday night classes, that the agreement would need to be amended and approved to allow Mr. Holshue to continue filling in when needed… Mr. Russell also thanked the department of public works, stating that “I don’t think this town’s ever been clean-er – I really appreciate what the guys have been doing.”

Councilman Tony Digironimo reported that participants in the borough’s first annual one mile fun run to benefit the scholar-ship fund set up for the children of slain borough officer Jason C. “Jay” Marles would receive cer-tificates signed by the mayor, and that 37 participants had already signed up. The proposed course for the runners starts in front of borough hall on Ocean Gate Avenue, turning right onto East Cape May Avenue to Monmouth Avenue, right onto Monmouth and back to borough hall on East Arverne Avenue.

Councilman Dave Kendrick reported that the borough pub-lic safety committee did not meet this month, but there would be a community watch meeting in

Ocean Gate May 11th Council Rundown

May 20th - June 2nd, 2011 The RIVERSIDE SIGNAL

borough hall on June 2nd at 4:30 pm, then a public safety com-mittee meeting at 7 pm in bor-ough hall that day, an then the first meeting of the Jason Marles Memorial Committee at 8 pm… Mr. Kendrick also reported that the process for selecting a new borough police sergeant was cur-rently underway and that more information would be available in mid-June.

Councilman Brian DiStefano said that he was looking at the borough potentially doing one or two more beach sweeps dur-ing the summer, possibly before 4th of July weekend and again before Founders’ Day in mid-Au-gust, but that he would like to see more borough residents volun-teer and get involved… Regard-ing the borough’s Channel 22, he said that he was in contact with the company that sells the new hardware required to restart the channel notification system for residents, and that he was fairly confident he could be trained how to use it via telephone, add-ing that it would cost approxi-mately $3,500.

Councilwoman Joella Nicastro reported that she was looking into the possible installation of decorative lighting on the new Wildwood Avenue pier, but that the two she would like to pur-chase cost about $2,700 each, “and that’s not installed.” She said she would like to look into raising funding for their pur-chase, as “it’s going to be a brand new pier and I think it would look really nice with some decorative lighting on there instead of the telephone poles.” If successful, she said it could be possible to change the telephone pole light-ing present on the second pier at Angelsea Avenue with more deco-rative counterparts.

Councilman Charles Mailot re-ported that the annual town-wide yard sale would take place on Saturday, August 6th with a rain date of Sunday, August 7th, and Ocean Gate Founders’ Day would be Saturday, August 13th with a rain date of Saturday, August 20th… regarding the Recreation Committee, he said he hopes to get a good volunteer commit-ment from residents of the bor-ough in order to hold more en-tertainment programs, including occasional bingo games and pos-sible Saturday night events when the municipal alliance is not holding their own… Mr. Mailot said he did not feel his committee budget was large enough to spare $300 for the wishlist of the “Lost Boys Basketball Camp,” currently under development, but Mr. Di-gironimo asked for a copy of the wish list so that he may approach the finance committee and see what they could do about funding all or part of it… the councilman encouraged residents to pitch in and volunteer for the borough historical society’s big annual cleanup at the historical society grounds on Asbury Avenue this Saturday, May 21st beginning at 9 am…

CFO Report

Chief Financial Officer Pau-lette Konopka reported that the borough farmers’ market, cur-rently entering its second year, would begin on June 28th and

run until September 6th from 11 am until 6 pm on Tuesdays, rather than Wednesdays, at the Wildwood Avenue pier area… the water flow report from the county municipal utilities author-ity for the first quarter reflects that borough residents are using 11.1 million gallons of water less this year compared to last… after filing the paperwork, Ms. Konop-ka stated that the borough re-ceived a reimbursement of over-time, equipment and salt in the amount of $5,780.11 for the De-cember 26th storm that dropped approximately 30 inches of snow on the region… advertising was placed with the Asbury Park Press for summer 2011 lifeguard and badge checker positions, anyone interested can fill out an application at borough hall… the previous Monday, Ms. Konopka walked through borough hall with the contractor in charge of upgrading the borough hall utili-ties to energy efficient models, and she said she felt lighting im-provements could get added to the overall projects along with some upgrades to Adrian Hall and the department of public works… Beach badges will in-crease beginning June 15th – cur-rently set at $13 for non-seniors, they will increase to $17, while senior badges will remain at $10 will photo identification. Parking stickers continue to be two free per housing unit, then $10 per additional parking for residents and $15 for non-residents… Ms. Konopka asked to the possibility of holding online auctions to get rid of some of the borough prop-erty this year, including a police car and garbage truck, as a way of possibly garnering more income than is normally paid by the cur-rent bid process… she also re-minded residents that excess wa-ter bills are due by May 30th, and that if anyone has not paid their quarterly tax bill, to please pay it.

Attorney Report

Borough Attorney James A. Gluck reported to the borough council that several ordinances currently undergoing work at his

firm included a home occupation ordinance, a landlord-tenant re-sponsibility ordinance, and fur-ther ordinances covering stop sign changes and yellow curbing within the borough… Litigation of the Central Regional School District case regarding Seaside Park residents was still under-way, and he felt that the lawsuit over Toms River School District’s allowing Seaside Park students to attend their schools free of charge could be resolved in the near future due to a decision by the “reconstituted Toms River Board of Education [agreeing] to cease that practice and they will now be requiring tuition payments to the district.”…the borough employee’s alcohol and drug use police was updated and had elements added to it as a re-sult of “several actions that have happened over the past year.”…the subdivision of the former bor-ough hall property at Longport and Wildwood avenues is expect-ed to be finalized shortly as the borough is currently only waiting on signatures of the owners from the adjacent property… litigation between the borough and former payroll management firm Amer-ipay, which was shut down in mid-2009 following a federal fraud investigation, is ongoing as nego-tiations with the IRS continue in efforts for the borough to be ab-solved of liability in the lost mon-ies involved… Mr. Gluck’s firm continues to defend five workers’ compensation cases on behalf of the borough, with one of those cases being denied by the car-rier as not being work related and another currently on trial… the borough and the county are currently at a legal difference of opinion with regard to an ease-ment on the Narragansett Avenue beachfront to allow the county to relocate storm drains as part of the overall improvement proj-ect there, with the borough ex-ecuting a deed of dedication and passing a resolution allowing for such, but the county requesting an ordinance instead… the initial draft of an interlocal agreement between Berkeley Township and Ocean Gate Borough has been created that would allow Ocean Gate to place liens on properties

of homeowners who do not pay water bills on properties serviced by the borough water system.

Boro Curfew Falls to 10 pm

Following years of issues and complaints of vandalism along the waterfront and throughout popular town spots by juveniles, the borough council unanimous-ly voted to drop the borough cur-few for minors to 10 pm from 11 pm at last week’s council meeting. Following the meeting, Mayor Kennedy stated that “it seems as though kids from other local towns have been coming in from their towns later in the evening, after 10 pm, because they can’t hang out in their town because of the curfew. Hopefully this will be a stop to all or some of the is-sues that we are having with juve-niles throughout the past several years.” Last summer, it was noted by residents and officials dur-ing several council meetings that the majority of juveniles getting caught committing acts of van-dalism and mischief were from adjacent Berkeley Township, which has a curfew of 10 pm. East Bayview Avenue resident Lou Purcaro, who for years has been a strong advocate for drop-ping the curfew to halt the influx of juveniles from the adjoining community to the borough’s wa-terfront between 10 pm and 11 pm, thanked the council, stating that “it’s been a long time com-ing,” and added that “I’m hoping at some point the town will may-be have small signs placed at least in the summer posting what these [hours] are so people know, and also to aid the police in terms of [enforcement].” He also request-ed that the borough send notices of the curfew change home with children in the borough grade school, as many residents who also have older children would likely be unaware since Channel 22 is currently out of operation and the parents are often work-ing during municipal meeting hours. Ocean Gate Avenue resi-dent Katherine Ranuro request-ed a clarification to the wording of some parts of the proposed ordinance that she felt were “a little confusing,” including the

PAGE 17

OCEAN GATEMemorial Day Services

The Borough of Ocean Gate will be joined by the Ocean Gate Veterans’ Association in holding its annual Memorial Day Service at 1 pm on Mon-day, May 30th in Ocean Gate Veterans Memorial Park, lo-cated on Ocean Gate Drive. Refreshments will be served following the ceremony in Adrian Hall, East Cape May Avenue. In case of inclement weather, all programs will take place in Adrian Hall at 1 pm.

~Civic Club Meeting

The Ocean Gate Civic Club will hold its next meeting on Wednesday, June 1st at 7:30 pm in Adrian Hall on East Cape May Avenue.

~Seniors Club Meeting

The next meeting of the Ocean Gate Seniors Club will be on Friday, June 3rd at 12:30 pm in Adrian Hall on East Cape May Avenue.

~Teen Dance

The Ocean Gate Recreation Committee will hold its next teen night dance on Friday, June 3rd from 7 pm to 9 pm at Adrian Hall on East Cape May Avenue. Open to teens no older than 17, refresh-ments will be served and en-tertainment provided by DJ Walkure and DJ Robbie Robb from Lazerline Entertain-ment. Admission is free. Par-ents of teens attending from other towns must be on hand to pick up their child at the end of the evening.

The RIVERSIDE SIGNALPAGE 18 May 10th - May 24th, 2011

Business / Service Directory

Fate is a Strange Hunter, continued from page X‘Frisco with a burned out bearing and without escort. It took us 61 days to reach New Caledonia, and from there an army transport to Guadalcanal. I awaited my boat and squadron on the island of Tulagi and enjoyed my first air raid the first night. The next day I was a member of the crew of PT285, and that night had my first combat patrol off Savo Is-land, the path the Tokyo Express took to reinforce its troops on Guadalcanal. Saw action there, then at Rendova, Munda, and the “Big One,” Bougainville.

“Went into Bougainville with the invasion, which was com-prised of a couple of cruisers, several destroyers and two squad-rons of PT’s. After the landing, the big ships pulled out and left the PT’s there as the sole defense of the island. We took terrific losses.

“From there we went to Emirau (Green Island) and patrolled the coasts…”

Here we pick up Mr. Gardella’s detailed account, entitled Fate is a Strange Hunter.

In 1944, I was crew chief and navigator of PT-285 attached to Squadron 23. We were stationed on Green Island (chart name

Emirau). Green stood off the northern tip of Bougainville in the Solomon Islands. The cap-ture of Green Island was part of Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s plan to leapfrog up the Pacific chain, bypassing many of the then Jap-anese-held islands. Some 150 miles to the west lay New Ireland, an island still held by the enemy.

Months earlier, our PT had been refitted with much ex-tra armament specifically for those missions no other boat could hand, ‘nor wanted!’ Japa-nese float planes, each carry-ing a 500-pound “daisy cutter,” a bomb designed to explode on the surface of the water and spray shrapnel in all directions, had been giving our patrols a rough time, particularly in the Kavieng area on New Ireland.

One dark February night, in a deliberate effort to lure out a bomber and try to knock him down, we were ordered to act as a wounded duck, as “bogey bait,” in the area of Dolomakus Bay near Kavieng.

My best friend aboard PT-285 was our “chief motor mack,” Navy jargon for the chief motor machinist, and the petty officer in charge of servicing and main-

taining our engines. My friend was a man of high religious principles who firmly believed his God would watch over him and would return him home un-scathed. He never questioned the beliefs of his faith.

Twenty minutes before our pa-trol was to leave base for Dolo-makus, my friend suffered severe abdominal pains and suspected a ruptured appendix. He was placed ashore at the base hospi-tal and a relief engineer came aboard in his place. Ironically, the replacement had been taken off our boat some months ear-lier and put on shore duty with the base force because of his un-controllable fear of being killed in action. The fear was rational but it made him unreliable and a danger to the rest of us. How-ever, this was an emergency and neither he nor we had any choice.

We made the three-hour run to Dolomakus and arrived on sta-tion at 2100 hours (9 pm). We lay to, engines idling, and, in plain language radioed for help be-cause of a supposed problem with our engines.

In no time at all, signal lights started blinking from one end of the bay to the other, a sure sign that it would not be long before the bogey (Japanese plane) would arrive. And arrive it did.

With his engines cut so we

couldn’t hear his approach, he glided in for the attack and, for a brief moment, was silhouetted against a sliver of moon, giving us an opportunity to open fire – be-latedly – with everything we had. Our radar, unreliable at best, had conked out minutes before, deny-ing us a precious few seconds of early warning.

Simultaneously, the bogey dropped his bomb and our trac-ers found their target. The bomb exploded close on our starboard side, rocking the boat and shred-ding our hull with shrapnel. The floatplane went down in flames a mile away.

Our mission completed, the skipper signaled the engine room for all engines ahead, but there was no response. Our relief engi-neer had been struck in the groin by a 7-inch piece of shrapnel and was bleeding profusely.

We pulled him up on deck, but because of the location of the wound, there was no way we could apply a tourniquet to stop the hemorrhaging. I called our base repeatedly for medical help but could get no response. Unknown to me, shrapnel had also riddled our radio transmitter and our message never got out.

The three-hour run home in rough seas must have been agony for our wounded shipmate. To make matters worse, our star-

board fuel tank had been hit and we had 900 gallons of high-octane gasoline in the bilge. We secured our generator, radar and radio to reduce the chance of an electrically caused explosion and, thundering on through the night, trusted the reliability of our compass. Our wounded engi-neer died from loss of blood 15 minutes before we reached base. Had my message gotten through, a relief boat could have met us halfway with a medic and plas-ma, and the chances are that he would have lived.

My friend of strong faith re-turned to duty shortly after and today lives in Washington State.

I have wondered for over 60 years if what happened on that night was the result of fate, or whether my friend’s faith was re-warded by the God he believed in.

It seems ironic that the one man frightened more than the rest of us – and we were all fright-ened – was killed during the only combat patrol he ever made.

Fate is a strange hunter; faith, a strong ally.

~Read more about Mr. Gardella,

his life growing up on the Jersey Shore, fighting in World War II, and adventures in the latter half of the 20th Century in upcoming editions of the Signal.

River and a duplicate in Morris-town, NJ. His company also built a store in Toms River, the Har-ris’ Department Store on Main Street. During the construction of the building they found a can-nonball in the foundation excava-tion, presumably from the British attack on the town. I believe that this was donated to the Ocean County Historical Society.

Uncle Joe served in the Navy during World War II, and be-cause of his construction back-ground he was assigned to the Civil Engineering Corps and was involved with constructing air bases for the Navy in the Carib-bean Theatre of Operations. I re-member that at his home on Ship Avenue, his study was decorated with pictures of huge wooden hangars under construction at some of these bases.

He was called back to active

duty during the Korean War. He also owned a lumber yard and mill in South Toms River, and the “Cathedral of the Birds,” was attached to the mill. I don’t remember who built it, [but] the cathedral was of all concrete con-struction with stained glass win-dows, a pipe organ and wooden pews and was dedicated to birds by the builder. The last time I passed by the old mill site, ev-erything was gone but the Ca-thedral. My uncle also developed property at Good Luck Point in Ocean Gate, adjacent to the ship-to-shore station he had built for AT&T. My dad was the builder of the houses and my first job after graduating high school was working for my dad at Good Luck Point. I enlisted in the Army that fall.

Uncle Joe’s wife was Josephine (Josie) and they had two daugh-

ters, Madeline and Joan. A son, George, who joined the marines during the war, served in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam be-fore retiring as a colonel, later dying on the golf course at Camp LeJeune, NC. Uncle Joe also took in his niece Mildred when she became an orphan in the early 1940’s.

I will always remember Uncle Joe’s sense of humor, and how he referred to my brother and me as “Butch” and “Spike.” We never did find out which one of us was which. We lived on Ensign Avenue, my grandmother and grandfather lived on Tiller Av-enue and Uncle Joe lived on Ship Avenue, all in Beachwood. Look-ing back it seems hard to believe that 51 years have passed since Uncle Joe died. His wife, my Aunt Jo, passed on in 1966.

Joseph E. Jerue, continued from page 4

May 20th - June 2nd, 2011 The RIVERSIDE SIGNAL PAGE 19May 10th - May 24th, 2011

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The following has been reproduced in exact detail from its September 18th, 1861 printing in the Ocean Emblem. Spelling errors were pres-ent in the original copy.

~From one of our Soldiers.

Camp KeystoneWashington, Sept. 11, 1861

Dear Emblem: - Last Saturday the rest of our Regiment arrived from Trenton; accompanied with Sergeant Irons, of Tom’s River, with nine more of little Ocean’s gallant sons. Old Ocean is ever found on the side of the just and right, and is always ready and willing, both with men and money, to stand by this Union, in its hour of need. I was glad to see so many familliar faces among the noble little band of shoremen. It don’t me nearly as much good as if I had been home and seen the folks for myself. All of us Ocean County boys return our heartfelt thanks to the patriotic and Union loving citizens of Tom’s River, for their thoughtful kindness in sending that box of tobacco, towels, &c&c. We stood greatly in need of them. As the old saying is, “a friend in need, is a friend indeed,” and as such do we consider the kind doners of those articles.

We expect every day to be ordered over into Virginia, for which event the whole Regiment is sincerely praying. – We are heartly tired of being cooped up here, without a chance of seeing what is going on, on the other side of the river. If we ever get into an engagement you may expect to hear that the volunteers of Ocean did their full dutywithout flinching. We will fight to the death to restore this glori-ous Union of States to its former splendor, and to re-unite the broken and scattered links into a perfect chain of peace, happiness and prosperity. With the Divine assistance of the Almighty God we will bequeath to our children, the Union as pure and unsullied as when our fathers gave it unto us, never more to be distracted by the dastard bands of Traitors. I hope, and I think I will see before many months more, the glorious stars and stripes coming forth from the fiery ordeal through which it is now passing, purged of all dishonor, and with its broad stripes and bright stars floating in triumph and peace, “O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.”

Yours affectionately,

J.F. Thibeaudeau

Editor, the Riverside Signal:

I grew up at 19 Hillside Avenue in Pine Beach, across the street from Admiral Farragut Academy. In the spring of 1961, I was in the third grade at Pine Beach Elementary School the day of the launch. The whole school went down to the gym, sat on the floor and strained our eyes to see the black and white TV set. AT the age of nine I know none of us understood the importance of that short flight. Buck Rog-ers he wasn’t; oh how age and wisdom changes thought! I remember a year or two later they dedicated Shepard Hall across the street from my home. On that morning, more people than I have ever seen in Pine Beach came to the event. Alan Shepard was to be there to dedi-cate the building. When the limo pulled up only his wife was there. We were all a little disappointed but we made the best of it. It would have been a great thrill to have a picture taken with the first Ameri-can to fly in outer space.

Barry Wieck

Pine Beach CouncilmanStation Avenue

Beachwood, July 14th, 1941 - Greetings to Lee, & Ed. Thank you for your card. I sincerely hope you have enjoyed every minute of your vacation in Canada. I am spending a few weeks down here at Beachwood. Sincerely, Walter C. Hallowell. As addressed to: Mr. & Mrs. E. Krudner, 210 6th Ave., New York City, N.Y. - Sent a few short months before the invasion of Pearl Harbor by the Japanese thrust America into the heart of World War II, this postcard elicits the peacetime atmosphere of area residents and visitors just pulling out of the remnants of the Great Depression to enjoy a stay and activities at the borough waterfront.

is $659,000; solid waste disposal cost, which is tipping fees, repre-sents six percent of the budget, at $600,000; and nine percent is other, at $850,000.”

“Going on to the water util-ity budget, there is no increase in water rates for this year, and it looks like no increase for next year,” Mr. Mauder continued, adding that those numbers would be reevaluated next year.

Council President Ronald Roma praised Mr. Mauder, Eliza-beth Sarantinoudis, the borough treasurer, and the borough de-partment heads for “really the hardest work [in] keeping the costs down.”

“Before I comment on the bud-get itself, I’d just like to make a comment in general that I believe this may be the third year in a row that the mayor failed to come for the budget, and that is an ab-solute disgrace,” he continued. “I understand that he indicated that he had family, a doctor’s appoint-ment, but you know what? We set these schedules in the beginning of the year. Every one of us knows that we have meetings twice a month and we all knew this meet-ing was moved to Thursday from the beginning of the year.”

Mr. Roma said he understood

that some situations do arise that take precedence over attending borough meetings, such as when Councilman Gerald W. LaCrosse recently had to receive emergen-cy surgery.

“I understand that, but it is ter-rible that the mayor once again has not showed up for the budget, and has a lot to say about things yet failed to come,” he continued. “Most of you can see I have my son here, and we also have things that we have to do tonight, but we made a point to come here and do the work, do the business that we’re supposed to be doing.”

Mayor Ronald W. Jones, Jr. was not present at the April meeting, but later released a statement conflicting part of Mr. Roma’s comment, saying that he had been left out of the budget pro-cess for the previous three years.

All members of the governing body present went on to thank those involved in the budget pro-cess.

“The best part is we kept it within the two percent cap, there’re no layoffs and there’s no furloughs,” said Councilman Ed-ward A. Zakar.

During the public budget hear-ing this week, Anchor Avenue resident David Lipton asked Mr.

Mauder to explain an approxi-mate $140,000 in summary ap-propriations.

“That’s other expenses and includes pension costs,” he said. “The assessed value [of an aver-age home in Beachwood] is down; last year it was about $264,000, this year it’s $260,200 so there’s a slight decrease in the average.”

“Pretty lucky for this town,” re-plied Mr. Lipton, who also asked that more detail be included in the budget handouts in the fu-ture.

Mr. Mauder pointed out that the full budget is always on file and available for viewing in bor-ough hall during normal busi-ness hours.

All council members echoed their previous praise for the fi-nance committee, Mr. Mauder and Ms. Sarantinoudis.

Following the adoption of the 2011 budget, the council ap-proved the insertion of a New Jersey Clean Communities grant in the amount of $17,652.94 to it.

The next meeting of the bor-ough council will be on Wednes-day, June 1st at 7 pm in borough hall.

Beachwood 2011 Budget, continued from page 4

The RIVERSIDE SIGNAL