Happy May! After this rainy and cold spring, I am looking forward to the summer months ahead.
I know I always say that it has been a busy couple of weeks but it truly has been. I’d like to take some time to share with you what I have been up to and a few important dates to come.
Last week I, along with my fellow Freeholders, attended the 10th anniversary celebration of the opening of the Monmouth County Child Advocacy Center. The center was established with the intention to create a single “one-stop” location for abused children and their families to receive the services they need. The building was designed to be a child-focused facility in order to reduce the trauma to the victims. In 2015, the center saw an expansion with the addition of a medical suite where exams can be conducted, as well as space for art therapy and mental health counseling. Read the rest of this entry »
By Tom Arnone, Monmouth County Freeholder Director
Freeholder Director Tom Arnone
Hello, everyone! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday weekend and was able to enjoy time with family and friends!
I, along with my fellow Freeholders, am proud to announce the eighth annual Made in Monmouth event on April 13th was an absolute success!
This year, more than 5,000 shoppers supported the event, which showcased more than 260 vendors who displayed and sold their locally-made products. From furniture and jewelry to pet products and gourmet specialty foods, there was truly a wide variety of items for attendees to choose from.
Serving as liaison to the Monmouth County Division of Economic Development, I take great pride in hosting events like Made in Monmouth. When I created this program shortly after I joined the Board of Chosen Freeholders, my goal was to focus my attention on small consumer product manufacturers located within Monmouth County to help them grow their businesses. As such, I’m happy to say the County has amassed a list of nearly 700 Made in Monmouth companies and counting!
S. Thomas Gagliano, 87, of Red Bank, passed away peacefully Saturday April 13that home surrounded by his loving family.
Tom was born and raised in Long Branch, and graduated Long Branch High School in 1949, where later he would be inducted into the High School Scholastic Hall of Fame. He lived in Holmdel and Rumson before moving to Red Bank in 2001.
Tom served his country honorably in the U.S. Navy during the Korean Conflict. He was a 1954 graduate of Brown University.
In the mid 1950’s, he served as an aide to the U.S. Third District for Congressman James C. Auchincloss, while a student at Georgetown University Law School where he graduated in 1959.
I have had the honor of serving my community as a Borough Councilman for 16 years. During that period, I worked with two incredible people who held the position of Mayor of Little Silver. The first eight years (2000 to 2008) were spent working and collaborating with Suzy Castleman. The second eight years (2011 to present) joining forces with Bob Neff. Although both terms are unique, due to different issues facing our town and our society, there are incredible similarities in both leaders and how they managed Little Silver.
I want to start by clarifying, being Mayor of Little Silver is not a ceremonial job. The job entails many long hours, lots of hard work, tough decisions and difficult negotiations. Being Mayor also means doing copious amounts of research in order to make the most educated decisions for the town. These decisions are usually not the easy or popular ones. And while Suzy and Bob had a completely different approach, I never wavered in my belief that both Mayors have always had only the best interests of their constituents in mind. All decisions were for the greater good, not to win popularity contests or to post photos.
Spring Job Fair at Brookdale Community College, April 2014. file photo by Art Gallagher
Monmouth County residents looking for work or a new career have the opportunity to meet with over 150 employers looking for local talent on Friday, April 12 from 10 am till 1 pm at Brookdale Community College, thanks to the Board of Freeholders, Monmouth County Workforce Development Board, Monmouth County Division of Workforce Development, New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Monmouth-Ocean Development Council and Brookdale Community College, Deputy Freeholder Director Patrick Impreveduto announced.
“Top employers throughout the Monmouth County area will be looking to hire qualified candidates at this spring job fair,” said Deputy Director Patrick Impreveduto, liaison to the County’s Division of Workforce Development. “The job fairs at Brookdale are one of the many ways the County directly helps residents while also working to strengthen our local businesses and companies.”
Congressman Chris Smith said that the legalistic stonewalling on the part of Garden City Community College “begs the question of a cover-up” of wrong doing or negligence regarding the death of 19 year old football player Braeden Bradforth.
We have a lot of exciting events and programs in the coming weeks and months. However, I want to take the time this week to write about one of our biggest and most popular events returning this weekend – Made in Monmouth!
NJ.com is reporting that someone paid $15,000 on ebay for advance tickets to Avengers: Endgame at a theater in West Orange the movie’s “Opening Day” of April 26.
The Navy Seal who fired the shot that killed Osama bin Laden will be appearing in Monmouth County on Thursday evening, April 11 from 6 p.m. till 9 p.m. The doors open at 5.
Robert O’Neill, formerly of Seal Team 6 and author of The Operator: Firing the shots that killed Osama bin Laden and my years as a Seal Team Warrior, absorbingly relates the 2011 Navy Seal mission that sealed the fate of Osama bin Laden. O’Neill offers a highly anticipated gripping presentation that you’ll never forget, followed by a public Q&A session and professional photo-opportunity with the American Hero.
Friday, May 3
