Chris Kelly Jacqueline Van Wagner, 9, Eatontown, rehearses the role of Alice for the Eatontown Playhouse’s presentation of Looking Glass Land, which will be presented July 20 and 21.
The Long Branch Police Department will be swearing in nine officers to higher positions on Aug. 9. A formal ceremony will be held at the Ocean Place Resort and Conference Center at 11 a.m.
Those who will be promoted are Lt. Richard Bryson to captain; Sgts. Alphonse Muolo, Fred Dorner, Robert Sama and Bruce Johantgen to lieutenant and detectives Michael McGlennon, Fernando Sanders, Stanley Mooney and Craid Spencer to sergeant. Congratulations to all the officers.
The department is also in the process of hiring 11 new officers to the ranks of the police division.
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LINDSEY SIEGLE The paving work on Whalepond Road in Ocean Township started and finished in a matter of days, starting last week and finishing on Monday. The road had to be repaved after new utility lines were laid in the winter.
The Long Branch Public Safety Department has said there have been a rash of thefts of air conditioners that have been stolen right out of windows in the last couple of weeks. All the incidents are under investigation but police advise that the side panels of air conditioner units be screwed into the window frame and a bar be put in place to prevent the window from being opened.
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Long Branch Councilman David G. Brown, who retired from the post office, is back to work. This time, however, he has joined the staff of the Monmouth Community Bank on Second Avenue as a courier. He said the new position gives him just enough time to get back into the workforce and yet enjoy time with his granddaughter.
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Elks Lodge No. 742 and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2140, both of Long Branch, will be holding a luau that will include Hawaiian dancers on Aug. 19 from 1-6 p.m. at the Elks club at 150 Garfield Ave.
The event will also offer horseshoes, volleyball, a kissing booth, a Hawaiian photo booth and horse racing games. The cost per person is $20. Kids ages 8-16 get in for $10; kids under age 8 enter free. For information and to buy tickets, call (732) 870-2224 or (732) 222-9742.
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Long Branch Boy Scout Troop 148 will be holding its annual car wash at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church, at the corner of Washington Avenue and Broadway, Aug. 17 from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m.
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During the week of July 16, the New Era anchor, which rests in the yard of Long Branch firefighter Joseph Hornick in West Long Branch, will be transported to its final resting ground in Allenhurst at St. Andrew’s Church By the Sea. The anchor was recovered off the shore of Asbury Park from an 1854 shipwreck. Over 300 German immigrants died when the ship went down. That shipwreck inspired the formation of the U.S. Coast Guard. Abner Allen was a lighthouse keeper at the time and was the first on the scene. The town of Allenhurst was named after him and members of the Allenhurst Historic Preservation Society, along with the Nova Ceasaria Maritime Preservation society and trustees of the church, decided to give the anchor its final resting ground at the church. A short ceremony will be held on July 21 at 11 a.m. on the church lawn.
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Mayor Adam Schneider, on behalf of the city of Long Branch, is inviting residents to participate in Two Books, One City. For the event, residents are encouraged to read the same book at the same time. The two books that have been chosen are To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and Holes by Louis Sachar. On July 18 at 4 p.m. the library will hold storytime for ages 3 to 7.
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The Long Branch Elks fish fry, scheduled for July 5, has been rescheduled for Aug. 2 to be held at the Elks Lodge, 150 Garfield Ave., from 6-8 p.m. The meal is $6.50 per person for a choice of fish or chicken. The money will go toward the Elks parade in Wildwood in which the Long Branch High School marching band will perform.
For more information, call George Hussey, parade chairman, at 222-9742.
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The Long Branch Youth Soccer Club is seeking players for an U10 boys’ team. For further information, call Coach Dominick at (732) 728-0169, or the recreation department at (732) 571-6534.
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The Trinity Rosary Altar Society, Long Branch, will be taking a break for the summer but will resume its meetings on Sept. 16 in St. Joseph’s church hall at 7:30 p.m. under the guidance of President Mary Stout.
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A bus pilgrimage to Mount St. Mary’s seminary and the Motherhouse of the Daughters of Charity in Emmitsburg, Md., is being sponsored by the Trinity Rosary Altar Society, Long Branch, and Father Dan Swift. The trip will leave at 8 a.m. Oct. 17 and return at approximately 9 p.m. The cost is $40. Pilgrims will enjoy a buffet lunch and have time to visit the basilica of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton at the Motherhouse of the Daughters of Charity as well as the Grotto of Lourdes. Call Blondie for more information, (732) 935-0992.
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The Greater Long Branch Chamber of Commerce’s annual golf outing will be held on Thursday, Aug. 15 at the Colts Neck Golf Club. The fee is $145 which includes greens fees, a golf cart, locker room facilities, a golf shirt, a continental breakfast, a barbecue lunch and awards. There is a limit of 100 golfers. To attend the luncheon only costs $20. For more information, call (732) 222-0400.
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In memory of firefighter Robert "Bullet Bob" Feeney, who died on Jan. 16 and left behind a wife and four kids, members of the Long Branch Fire Department have created a fund which will assist the Feeney children in paying their college tuition. If you wish to donate to the fund, send a check to: Children of Bob Feeney Educational Fund, P.O. Box 563, Long Branch, NJ 07740.
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Ocean Township voted this week to purchase property behind 777 W. Park Ave., defined on the tax map as Block 3, lots 16-C and 16-D. The land will be added to the township’s open space. Green Acres funding will be used to defray the cost of the purchase.
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The Ocean Township Council approved a resolution amending the Deal Lake Commission charter to include the borough of Deal as a voting member. All of the boroughs bordering Deal Lake are now part of the commission.
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Ocean Township will hold its 26th annual Italian Festival Aug. 7-11 at Joe Pailia Park, off of Deal and Whalepond roads. Hours vary: Aug. 7-8 from 5-11 p.m., Aug. 9 from 5-11:30 p.m., Aug. 10 from 4 p.m. to midnight, and Aug. 11 from 4-11 p.m. The festival is expected to attract more than 100,000 people and offers amusements, fireworks, games, raffles, food eating contests, and an Italian street band. Admission is free. For more information, contact Carlo Gallello at (732) 517-1040.
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The Oakhurst Methodist Church will hold a garage sale on Aug. 3 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Look for bargains on bicycles, toys, books, games and household appliances. Don’t forget to stop at the bake sale table. For more information, call (732) 531-1150.
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In Ocean Township, volunteer drivers are needed for Meals on Wheels. The program assists homebound seniors living in the township. For more information, call Bob at human services at (732) 222-7737.
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The Ocean Township Historical Museum is selling memorial bricks to raise money. The bricks will be used to construct new pathways on the grounds of the museum and the money raised will support preservation of the 200-year-old Woolley Homestead as a museum. The bricks are priced at $100 each. For information, call the museum at (732) 531-2136, or the bricks committee chairman at (732) 531-9187.
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West Long Branch voters appear destined to have a school bond issue put before them. Councilman Joseph C. Woolley said at the July 3 Borough Council caucus that he understood a $4 million proposal for renovations to the Frank Antonides School, which serves fourth through eighth grade, was in the works and suggested the council invite someone from the Board of Education to come to a council meeting to explain what is planned.
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Big Brothers-Big Sisters of Monmouth County, headquartered in Eatontown, will hold its 13th annual Golf Classic on Sept. 26 at Spring Lake Golf Club. One of only six charitable events hosted at Spring Lake, this is a great opportunity for the general public to support a very worthwhile cause while playing on a "members only" course that has a tradition of excellence in golf. The donation for this event is $300 per individual golfer and $1,650 for a corporate foursome, and includes a full day of golf, club service, lunch and cocktail hour. The money raised will help further the work of BBBS, which matches at-risk children with adult volunteers who act as friends, confidants and mentors.
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The Old First United Methodist Church in West Long Branch will be hosting "Godzwerkus Circus" vacation Bible school Aug. 12-23. Classes will be held from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. For more information or to preregister, contact the church office at (732) 222-4232, or call Karen Hagerman at (732) 229-4691.
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Monmouth University, West Long Branch, will host an information session 7:30 p.m. July 29 for prospective students interested in its graduate and adult undergraduate programs offered by the five academic schools. The session will take place in the Samuel H. Magill Commons. The programs are being offered by the School of Education, the School of Science, Technology and Engineering, the School of Nursing and Health Studies, the School of Humanities and Social Sciences, and the School of Business Administration.