Category: Independent News

By KENNY WALTER Staff Writer Every year, property owners file tax appeals in droves in the hopes of lowering their assessed value and paying less in property taxes. However, doing so can be an expensive proposition, as many are compelled to hire an attorney and an appraisal company with no guarantee of victory. Patrick De…

By JENNIFER ORTIZ Staff Writer Lucy Melillo is the second-generation owner of Wig Illusions, Manalapan, which offers products to individuals who are battling diseases that result in hair loss. JENNIFER ORTIZ/STAFF A second-generation family business is marking 30 years of service to individuals who are battling diseases that result in hair loss. Wig Illusions, in…

The District of New Jersey collected more than $100 million in criminal and civil actions in Fiscal Year 2015. Of the $102,476,557 amount, $64,631,183 was collected in criminal actions and $37,845,373 was collected in civil actions, according to a statement prepared by U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman. The District of New Jersey worked with other…

By JENNIFER AMATO Staff Writer Reuse holiday items such as a festive holiday napkin used as wrapping, newsprint-wrapped gifts, burlap-wrapped gifts and gift tags cut from Christmas cards. PHOTO COURTESY OF NANCY KRAUSS Residents are encouraged to “Go Green For the Holidays.” Trash sent to the landfill increases an average of 25 percent because of…

The American Red Cross encourages eligible donors to end the year with real meaning by donating blood for hospital patients in need. Holiday activities, severe weather and seasonal illnesses, like the flu, can pull people away from their regular blood donation schedules. This creates a greater need for blood donations this time of year, especially…

Local law enforcement agencies will be cracking down on drivers impaired by alcohol or drugs as part of the annual end-of-year “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” statewide campaign. Through Jan. 1, police officers will conduct saturation patrols and sobriety checkpoints looking for motorists who may be driving while intoxicated. The national effort endeavors to…

By P.J. CANDIDO Staff Writer Volunteers who share a passion for an active lifestyle regularly dedicate their time to individuals who have a medical disability. The volunteers make up Team Kevin Strive, which was started to raise awareness and to show that people who have a medical disability can still be participants in an active…

The Monmouth County Board of Freeholders has announced that the county’s recent auction of surplus items generated $180,736, bringing the combined total of the county’s online surplus property auctions to $2,961,759. The county began conducting its surplus property auctions completely online in 2008, according to a press release. Surplus property from the county’s Division of…

RICH GRAESSLE Middletown High School head football coach Steve Antonucci gets an ice bucket shower at the end of the NJSIAA Central Jersey, Group IV championship game won by Middletown South, 35-7, over Phillipsburg. The victory on Dec. 5 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford was the Eagles’ 10th state title and completed a perfect…