Township should celebrate the band
To the editor:
Here in South Brunswick we often celebrate our wonderful sport teams. Throughout this year I have enjoyed reading about the success that all our teams have accomplished, but have noticed that the South Brunswick Marching Band and Winterguard, both recognized as sports throughout the nation, have received no recognition from our home town.
This past week the South Brunswick Marching Band participated in Disney’s Magic Music Days in Orlando Florida. 190 of our young musicians marched down Main Street in MGM leading the Mulan parade and a group of our choir members filled the air of the Disney Marketplace with song. These students showed the tourists in Disney not only their talent, but also the dedication and pride that they showed everyone during the fall season.
The South Brunswick Visual Ensemble, which recently finished its season, is another great sports team of which we should be so proud. Throughout the season they brought smiles to thousands of spectators while amazing us with their skill, grace, confidence, and of course beauty. The devotion they showed to the sport, their performance, and most of all each other was commendable beyond words.
Congrats to all members of the South Brunswick Marching Band and Visual Ensemble for bringing great pride to our town. We are so proud of all you have achieved throughout this year and can not wait to see what you dazzle us with in the future. And to all the seniors- best of luck in all you do! You know the home team will always be cheering for you!
Save lives with platelet drive
To the editor:
I would like to share this with my fellow South Brunswick residents. A very special event has been taking place at Crossroads School. South Brunswick residents have been saving lives. They donate platelets for those in need.
Sixty percent of platelet recipients are cancer patients and 40 percent of them are children. Platelets are needed to make our blood clot, without them we could bleed to death. They are very important to the recovery of cancer patients.
Theses special donors give very unselfishly of themselves. After working all day when they could be home with their families or doing something for themselves they drive over to the school and devote two hours of their time in order to give a stranger a chance at life. As a blood donor recruiter, I am very grateful for these special individuals. On behalf of the many patients who have received their generous gift of life thank you, thank you, thank you.
If you would like more information on becoming a platelet donor please call me at (732) 220-7037. Donors are needed now more than every before. As the summer months approach our blood supply drops severely. You can donate blood every 56 days and platelets every three days. You need to be at least 17 years old (with parent consent) to 76 old with a doctor’s note. Weigh at least 110 pounds, provide a Social Security number and ID. Most people who think they can’t donate can just call me for more information. We want to make donating blood as convenient as possible for the residents of South Brunswick. On Wednesday, May 31, 3:45 to 9 p.m. we will be hosting a platelet and whole blood drive at Crossroads School cafeteria. All donors will receive a movie ticket as a thank you gift for taking the time to save a life. To make an appointment please call (800) 933-2566. For those of you who donated at the township drive on April 15 you can donate on Sunday, June 11, at St. Cecelia’s R.C. Church Blood Drive from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
I would like to also express my gratitude to the students of South Brunswick High School, they had their student Blood Drive Friday, May 12, and the students were wonderful, they truly gave of themselves. Seventy-two pints collected.
Thank you to all who donate, those who tried to and those who helped out. Special Thanks to Roberta Mitchell who took on this project and made it happen. Thanks to Ms Massey and the Red Cross club who hosted the December drive which collect 79 pints, and volunteered their time at this May drive. Thanks to the SBHS nurse Carol who was involved as well. Good luck to the graduating class of 2000 you all truly have made a difference.
To the editor:
As parents of the seventh- and eighth-grade Crossroads girl’s softball team, we are concerned with the lack of responsibility for the transportation to the away softball games. For the past two away games the Laidlaw Bus Transportation Company got these girls to their games between 30 minutes to 45 minutes late. This doesn’t give the girls the sufficient time to warm up before the games.
The first game was in East Brunswick. The girls were ready to leave for the game at 3 p.m. Unfortunately they were waiting outside for the bus until 3:45 p.m. in 90 degree heat. The game time was set for 3:45 p.m.; however, the girls didn’t show up at the field until 4:15 p.m. The second game was in Piscataway. Again game time was set for 3:45 p.m. The team didn’t show up in Piscataway until 4:35 p.m. On this day, it was cold and rainy. (Parents were at the field wondering where they were and if they were safe). When these girls got to the game, they were quickly rushed off the bus and onto the field. They were only permitted to warm up for five to 10 minutes before the start of the game.
We know that the school sends the schedules to the Board of Education’s Transportation Department, who schedules the busing through outside companies during the winter months. The schedule for the busing is approved prior to the season’s start.
The lateness of these buses not only affects the softball games but the nighttime activities that most of these girls participate in whether it is other sporting events or religious classes.
Parents expect the team to arrive back at Crossroads School at a reasonable time after the game is finished. When there is a game delay because of transportation to the game, the parents are often left waiting and wondering. Are they ok? When will they be back?
Bus companies should be responsible for picking up the students at the time that is arranged by the school. We would like the Transportation Department and bus company to find a solution to this busing problem. These are our children and we want the best for them.
Time to take on state on rail, Rt. 92
To the editor:
Apparently, we, the citizens of South Brunswick, need to prepare for several long protracted battles with affiliates of our own state government.
It goes without saying that even though we have secured a minor victory on the Route 92 front the battle is far from over. Sorry to sound so war-like but in many ways we are under attack. Route 92 would destroy the historical village of Kingston, increase traffic on already congested Route 1, destroy pristine wetlands and harm our aquifer and absolutely serve no meaningful purpose. The federal Environmental Protection Agency agreed with us and offered the N.J. Turnpike Authority a much better and more cost efficient alternative and yet the governor refused to stop the Turnpike’s pursuit of the unnecessary Turnpike spur on Route 92. She has the power to end this yet we are still left in the amazing position to have to continue to fight this.
Route 92 is now being reviewed by yet another federal agency, the Army Corps of Engineers they have wisely decided to have an Environmental Impact Study done of proposed Route 92. Hearings on the scope of the EIS should be within a month or so, hopefully in South Brunswick. Again, we will need to turn out to these hearing to ensure that the EIS covers all of our concerns. Again we have to continue to fight to protect our quality of life.
Similarly, again we must as a community stand against the MOM rail line. The MOM rail line will start either in Lakewood or Lakehurst, go through our town without stopping and eventually the riders from the southern part of the state can end up in New York. This plan is supposed to alleviate the congestion on Route 9. I have nothing against our neighbors in South Jersey who want to alleviate their traffic problems there, certainly we desire to do the same here. The problem here is that once again it is the most costly, least efficient route and has been proven so by New Jersey Transit’s own studies. This rail line would literally run through resident’s backyards, would again take land because they need to build another track, send 40 trains a day through yes another village in town, Dayton. The safety and quality of life issues here are obvious. What is truly bothersome is that there are ways to address the Route 9 problem without wasting all of our tax dollars that would not detrimentally effect us. A recent Senate committee insisted that all the options be examined in the best interests of the State before they made a recommendation, a recent Assembly committee did just the opposite.
MOM is a problem we must take seriously; I do not think it is just political, I think people in Southern Jersey want this and are prepared to have us sacrificed to get. This to me is not an option. I suggest we again write, call, email, and/or fax the Governor and out state legislators and them know just how unhappy we are with both of these situations. Please contact the manager’s office at (732) 329-4000, ext. 301, for names, numbers and addresses of our state elected officials, this information should also be on channel 3. Also please feel free to contact me, (732) 274-0032.
In addition, we the township council will continue to meet with citizens to keep them updated on what is occurring and what the town plans to do. Those who want to intimidate and bully us do not realize we are fighting for our way of life, the quality of life for ourselves and our families, we will not give in, because we cannot.