Not surprised!

By: centraljersey.com
As a former Hopewell Valley Regional Board of Education member whose tenure on the board coincided with that of Jim Wulf and Judy Lindenberger, I am disappointed, but not surprised by their decision to appoint NJEA member and former HVRSD employee Stephen Keen to chair the Personnel Committee. This is but one example of the type of practice I objected to when I resigned from the board a year and a half ago.
The broadcast of the Aug. 16 school board meeting reveals that school board member Roy Dollard had longstanding objections to Mr. Keen’s serving on the Personnel Committee. Feeling so strongly that there was a conflict of interest, Mr. Dollard felt compelled to resign his position as chairman of the Personnel Committee. I understand why Mr. Dollard would not feel comfortable serving on a committee under circumstances that could potentially put the district at risk. Rather than addressing Mr. Dollard’s concerns, Mr. Wulf and Mrs. Lindenberger chose to appoint Mr. Keen as chairman to replace Mr. Dollard.
Similar to Mr. Dollard, I, too, felt compelled to resign instead of being party to practices I deemed unethical and/or illegitimate. It is one thing to make a bad decision and correct it; everyone makes mistakes. Here, Mr. Wulf and Ms. Lindenberger ignored an experienced fellow board member’s objections, and then exacerbated an already bad decision by promoting Mr. Keen to chairman, effectively thumbing their noses at valid concerns. Finally, after numerous objections from more board members and a public outcry, Mr. Wulf and Ms. Lindenberger appear to stubbornly stand by their decision.
This decision is but one example of how the current school board leadership operates. The public should be vigilant about following board-level decisions since they not only impact our schools and tax dollars, but also may result in the risk of losing additional well-qualified board members who do not want to be party to such questionable actions.
First and foremost, Board of Education members serve to act in the best interest of all children. Exposing the district unnecessarily is certainly not a service to our children. This board’s leadership should get back to doing what’s right: listen to all board member and public concerns, respond in a respectful and timely manner, offer better transparency to the public and most importantly, remember why they are there and act accordingly.
Armelle Daniels Hopewell Township
Explanations needed
To the editor:
We concur with John Tredrea’s opinion, as expressed on the Hopewell Valley News’ Town Forum page of Sept. 2, that Stephen Keen’s presence on the school board’s Personnel Committee inevitably creates a perception of a conflict of interest.
Objections to Mr. Keen’s service on the Personnel Committee were first reported in a front-page article in the Hopewell Valley News on Aug. 19. The Aug. 26 edition contained several letters to the editor expressing public concern and dismay over Jim Wulf’s actions in appointing Mr. Keen and Mr. Keen’s acceptance of the position.
The Aug. 19 article also reported that fellow school board member Ray Dollard had voiced his objections to Mr. Wulf months before, but received scant reply. Mr. Wulf reportedly stated at a board meeting that he had obtained a legal opinion on the appointment of Mr. Keen to the Personnel Committee. We would welcome the opportunity to view this legal opinion to understand the basis on which the opinion was made.
There needs to a public response to the objections raised by board members, the public and now the press. Although we wish all the school board members well, and thank them for their service, it is disappointing that school board members, President Wulf and Vice President Judy Lindenberger, have continued to support this decision without a public justification of why this appointment is appropriate with such a questionable appearance of propriety.
The public needs a response from the board president to address the question of what is right, not just what may be legal given the upcoming teacher contract negotiations.
Wyatt Pratt Vivian Pratt Hopewell Borough
Koeppel gets response
To the editor:
Regarding his letter of Sept. 2 and his comments at the Aug. 24 meeting of the Historic Preservation Task Force, I regret that Jack Koeppel has chosen to frame his opinions in angry personal accusations. My management team and I have been deluged with calls and e-mails thanking us for participating in the discussion. So it is quite clear that many others share my opinion. I pray that Mr. Koeppel won’t try to scandalize each and every one of them. We should really just debate the issues and leave out the ridiculous subterfuge.
Mr. Koeppel seems to feel that the business community, of which I am a part, is unworthy of a voice in the debate. I don’t agree. Businesses are one of the community’s most important stakeholders. They might also be its most fragile. And as strange as it may seem to Mr. Koeppel, not all of them are owned by people who live within the tiny borough.
Businesses will be harmed by this ordinance for the same reasons that homeowners will be. And businesses are truly in the crosshairs because so many of them are concentrated within the proposed historic district.
I think this ordinance would be ruinous over the long haul, and I feel that way even though I really like historic buildings. It’s great that Mr. Koeppel can show his children where their great-grandparents once lived. I have done that very same thing with my kids. In fact, one of George and Marion Ackerman’s former Pennington homes is located within the proposed historic district. If they were alive today I am certain my grandparents, just like the large majority of the people who spoke up at the task force’s Aug. 24 meeting, would agree that Pennington does not need a historic preservation ordinance.
George Ackerman Hopewell Township
Flag adoption program
To the editor:
The Pennington Parks and Recreation Commission thanks the following donors for their recent purchases of flags for Pennington Borough: Ryan and Sonja Karp; Jim and Betty Benton; Sam and Jack Dunn (to acknowledge David Dunn); Toll Gate Grammar School fifth-grade grade class of 2010 (in memory of Donald E. Kamerzel); Gillian, DJ and Carly Rice (in honor of Carl Rice); the Rice Family (in honor of Dr. Charles Rice); the Rice Family (in honor of Mrs. Lee White); the Rice Family (in honor of Kingdon Van Norstrand); Francie and Kevin McManimon (to acknowledge the Haines Family); Rob and Penny Hoffman (flags in memory of Thurston Brask and Thomas R. Daggett).
Flag donations were also made in memory of Dr. Milton Marion on behalf of Marilyn and Stan Butcavage, Weed and Bev Tucker, Richard and Dorothy Schenk and Thomas and Patricia Timperman.
To Adopt a Flag, fill out a form at Pennington Borough Hall with a tax-deductible check of $42. All donors will be acknowledged in the newspaper. Questions? Call Dina Dunn at 818-0381.
Pennington Parks and Recreation Commission
Grandparents’ obligations
To the editor:
Grandparents Day is Sept. 12. Although a new holiday, it has special significance because you as a grandparent have work to do. You just can’t sit back and have love and respect showered on you. You need to continue to earn that love and respect and I’m going to share with you how to do that. In earning that love and respect you will be fostering, encouraging and building fond meaningful memories.
What have you done recently with your grandchild that he/she will remember with "specifics"? Have you done it more than once so as to reinforce the memory and special kinship? Are these activities active or passive? What will the grandchild remember about the activities?
Here are some suggestions for you to consider. Let your grandchild set up a notebook of "Adventures with Pop" or whatever you are called by your grandchild. Take advantage of the many park programs with firefly catching, digging in the banks of the Delaware, the Howell Living Farm, the Watershed facility and butterfly programs and going to the NJ State Museum Planetarium with a side visit to the dinosaurs. Take a walk along the canal to "study and collect" insects. Ask your grandchild to write up something in his/her adventure notebook. Fortunately, I am able to participate in the Fathers Day 5 K Race in Mercer County Park, with my sons and grandsons. Each year we go deep-sea fishing and each year the entire family gathers at a local orchard to pick apples.
Fly a kite, swim together, do something that will link the generations together. Tell stories about the "old days" when there were no computers, but how much you enjoy using them to communicate and stay in touch. After each family gathering, take your grandchild out for ice cream. It is not the single isolated event that builds relationships; it is the ongoing special time you spend with your grandchild.
In order to have this special relationship built on "Adventures with Pop," you must make every effort you can to stay healthy and strong to keep up with your grandchild. You want your grandchildren to remember you as much as possible as a vital engaged individual.
"Adventures with Pop" are a great way to start the linked memory and relationship, and Grandparents Day is a day to begin.
Burton Sutker Pennington Chairman, Mercer Council on Aging
State’s EMT gems!
To the editor:
On Sept. 11, New Jersey volunteer EMS squads dispatched more than 400 ambulances to New York City and North Jersey, all while continuing to staff ambulances and answer calls in their own communities. In the months following, volunteer EMS squads throughout the state noted generous donations, and increased support, respect and acknowledgment for their daily efforts.
Less than a decade later, much appears changed for New Jersey’s EMS volunteers, and not for the better. For example:
– Former Gov. Jon Corzine took $4 million from the EMT Training Fund to help offset a budget shortfall. The fund now pays only part of the volunteer EMT’s educational requirements. Sources of reimbursable continuing education units (CEUs) also are scaled back. With few exceptions, the fund no longer reimburses elective CEUs, and renewing EMTs are reimbursed only if money remains after training for first-time EMTs is covered. That leaves some individuals paying to maintain their EMT certification and volunteer status.
– Early this year, Mt. Olive’s mayor unsuccessfully waged a months-long campaign to replace the area’s long-serving EMS volunteers with paid EMTs.
– Bills S818-A2095 in the New Jersey Legislature propose a major overhaul of the EMS system, which, if approved in their current forms, could result in a significant decrease in the number of volunteer squads, and dramatic cost increases for patients, communities and taxpayers.
Hopefully it won’t take another mass casualty incident for New Jersey to realize the gems it has in its EMS volunteers.
For information on becoming an EMS volunteer, visit www.njsfac.org or call 1-800-390-8991.
Barbara Aras president, NJ State First Aid Council Little Silver