HOWELL – Monmouth County officials have found a way to deliver services directly to residents with the new Mobile County Connection. The traveling county office recently made its first stop in Howell.
While visiting the Mobile County Connection, Howell residents were offered the opportunity to apply for youth and Ident- Adult identification cards, apply or renew passports with the guidance of a passport agent, receive information about the proper installation of child safety seats, obtain advice about writing wills from Monmouth County Surrogate Rosemarie Peters and gather information about adoptions and foster care from Scott Hall of the Division of Child Protection and Permanency.
“The concept was to bring government to the people. We are going to be going to different towns … and we are looking to schedule more so we can come and provide our services to local residents,” Monmouth County Clerk Christine Hanlon said.
“One of the main things that made me think about doing this was our passport services. Many people do not know how to get help in getting their passport renewed or getting a new passport.
“There is going be a lot of activity with passports very shortly because when the law changed (after Sept. 11, 2001) and people were required to get a passport if they were going to Mexico and Canada, all those people who got their passports back then are up for renewals.
“Generally, in the summer, too, we have a lot of travelers who are looking to renew their passport,” Hanlon said.
“Everybody has a busy schedule and it is hard for people to get simple things done like passports, so to be able to bring that from (the county seat of) Freehold to Howell is a huge advantage for our residents,” Howell Mayor Bill Gotto said.
The Mobile County Connection will visit municipal centers, libraries and senior centers, according to county officials.
“When we get to senior centers we will have a program for that demographic as well. We have an Ident-Adult identification program for seniors, which is their emergency ID card, which has all their medical information on it so that if there is a medical call at their residence they just present it to the first responder,” Monmouth County Sheriff Shaun Golden said.
For parents of young children, the American Academy of Pediatrics is asking for toddlers under the age of 2 to be placed in a rear-facing car seat. Parents will be shown and taught proper seating techniques when they visit the Mobile County Connection, according to county officials.
— Jennifer Ortiz