MORRIS COUNTY — The Morris County Board of County Commissioners marked the first anniversary of the countywide expansion of the ARRIVE Together program during a special presentation by the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office and the Mental Health Association.

ARRIVE stands for “Alternative Responses to Reduce Instances of Violence and Escalation.” Supported by the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General, the Morris County program was established in November 2023 through a partnership between the Prosecutor’s Office and the Mental Health Association.

The program pairs law enforcement officers with licensed Mental Health Association clinicians to help de-escalate situations when police respond to emergency calls involving people experiencing mental or behavioral health crises. Clinicians respond alongside or shortly after officers to assess the situation and connect individuals and their families with appropriate services. Follow-up outreach is also coordinated when an on-scene response isn’t possible.

As of August 5, more than 20,000 ARRIVE interactions have been recorded statewide, with Morris County accounting for 3,669 of them, the most of any county in New Jersey.

“ARRIVE Together has become an important partnership between law enforcement and mental health professionals, helping residents experiencing mental and behavioral health crises connect with appropriate care and services,” said Morris County Commissioner Director Stephen Shaw.

Morris County Prosecutor Robert Carroll said the partnership allows police responses to draw on clinicians who can offer counseling or mental health support as an alternative to relying solely on criminal justice measures. He credited Chief Assistant Prosecutor Meg Rodriguez and Mental Health Association ARRIVE Director Deanna Ackerman for leading the program locally, along with Mental Health Association CEO Bob Davison, Nadine Venezia and the organization’s clinicians. He also thanked Morris County Sheriff James Gannon and Morris County Police Chiefs Association President and Madison Police Chief John Miscia for welcoming the program into local departments.

From Pilot to Countywide

The program began in March 2024 with pilot efforts in eight municipalities: Morristown, Morris Plains, Morris Township, Madison, Montville, Denville, Parsippany-Troy Hills and Roxbury. Hanover and Randolph were added later that year, and the program expanded to most of Morris County by July 2025.

Rodriguez described one recent incident in which a clinician and two officers responded to a call involving a person threatening self-harm from a parking garage ledge, and were able to talk the individual down safely. In another case, a clinician helped a police stop involving an autistic driver end peacefully by helping the driver process the situation, avoiding the need for officers to forcibly remove him from his vehicle. Clinicians have also provided support following traumatic incidents, including counseling for a group of young lifeguards who were unable to save a swimmer, and have assisted with cases involving substance use, family issues, domestic violence, grief counseling and connecting residents with community resources.

Miscia said use of force during mental health calls has declined significantly since the program’s implementation, and thanked the clinicians and participating agencies for their collaboration.

Davison said the Mental Health Association and law enforcement partners respond together and evaluate each case individually to connect people with the services and support they need. Gannon called the program an example of effective public-private partnership, noting that officers and emergency room staff once had few resources to draw on when responding to people affected by mental health crises.

The Prosecutor’s Office and Mental Health Association also support the ARRIVE Critical Incident Model, which provides access to a qualified mental health professional around the clock for certain high-risk incidents requiring medical or mental health intervention.

Following the presentation, Director Shaw presented two framed Resolutions of Honor to members of the Prosecutor’s Office and Mental Health Association on behalf of the Board of County Commissioners in recognition of the program’s first year of countywide operation.

MORRIS COUNTY — The Morris Choral Society is calling for singers to join the ensemble ahead of its upcoming holiday program.

The group performs all forms of choral music, including works by composers such as Handel, Orff, Verdi, Poulenc, Brahms and Vaughan Williams. Its next program, titled “Home for the Holidays Goes to the Movies,” will be held at two locations over a weekend in December: 7:00 p.m. on Friday, December 11, at Assumption Church in Morristown, and 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, December 13, at Trinity Lutheran Church in Morris Plains.

The group is open by audition and attracts members of all ages and backgrounds. Interested singers should attend a rehearsal on September 14, 21, or 28, at 7:30 p.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church, 131 Mountain Way in Morris Plains. For questions or to arrange an audition, call (973) 723-6424.

MORRIS COUNTY — The Morris County Clerk’s Office is continuing to process vote-by-mail ballots in accordance with New Jersey state law, according to county officials. Ballots will begin mailing on September 19.

The state remains involved in litigation with the federal government concerning vote-by-mail procedures, and the outcome of that litigation remains pending.

Morris County voters who do not wish to receive a vote-by-mail ballot at this time may opt out by completing the Vote-by-Mail Voter Opt-Out Form, available on the Morris County Clerk’s website. Opt-out requests must be submitted no later than Monday, August 31.

In-Person Voting

Once an opt-out request has been received and processed, voters may cast ballots during the state’s early voting period, at one of eight early voting locations, or at their assigned polling location on Election Day, Tuesday, November 3.

Morris County’s eight early voting locations will be open from October 24 through November 1, with hours of 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Sunday:

• Boonton Township — 155 Powerville Road, Boonton Township
• Central Park of Morris County — 2 Executive Drive, Morris Plains
• Denville — 1 Saint Mary’s Place, Denville
• Hanover — 15 North Jefferson Road, Whippany
• Madison — 50 Kings Road, Madison
• Morristown — 200 South Street, Morristown
• Mount Arlington — 18 North Glen Avenue, Mount Arlington
• Mount Olive — 204 Flanders-Drakestown Road, Mount Olive

Voters who opt out of receiving a vote-by-mail ballot may resume receiving ballots in future elections by submitting a new vote-by-mail application through the Morris County Clerk’s website.

Voters who continue to receive vote-by-mail ballots are strongly encouraged to return their completed ballots by mail at least seven days before Election Day, or deposit them in a secure ballot drop box, such as the one located at Parsippany Town Hall, 1001 Parsippany Boulevard.

For more information or assistance, contact the Morris County Clerk’s Elections Division at [email protected] or (973) 285-6066.

FREEHOLD — Governor Mikie Sherrill signed legislation this week making permanent a pandemic-era policy that allows New Jersey restaurants, bars and other eligible businesses to sell and deliver alcoholic beverages for off-premises consumption. The rules, first put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, had been set to expire September 1.

The new law, Senate Bill 4384, allows retail consumption licensees such as restaurants, hotels and bars to continue selling mixed cocktails in closed, tamper-evident containers for takeout, as well as delivering sealed cocktails and malt beverages such as beer and hard seltzer either directly or through licensed third-party services. Craft distillery licensees are also granted added flexibility to sell and deliver their own products under certain conditions.

“Cocktails to-go worked, customers liked it, and small businesses told us it was another way to bring in revenue,” Sherrill said in a statement announcing the signing.

State officials pointed to National Restaurant Association research showing that in states where alcohol-to-go is allowed, a large majority of wine, beer and cocktail drinkers said they were more likely to choose a restaurant for delivery based on the option, underscoring the potential revenue boost for New Jersey’s hospitality industry.

State Senator Vin Gopal, a sponsor of the bill, said the change gives hospitality businesses a lasting way to generate revenue while keeping safeguards in place for alcohol sales and delivery. State Senator Declan O’Scanlon, who also backed the measure, called it a commonsense extension of a policy that helped restaurants survive during the pandemic. Assemblywoman Luanne Peterpaul said making the rules permanent gives small businesses added tools to grow without being slowed by unnecessary red tape.

Matthew Borowski, owner of 618 Restaurant and The Death of Hospitality Group in Freehold, where Sherrill signed the bill, said the option to send a piece of his business home with guests matters for a family-owned operation. Daniel Klim, president and chief executive officer of the New Jersey Restaurant & Hospitality Association, said the law preserves a popular option for customers while giving restaurants and bars an added revenue stream.

New Jersey now joins more than 30 other states and Washington, D.C., that have made similar cocktails-to-go provisions permanent since they were widely adopted as a pandemic relief measure.

PARSIPPANY — Bina Menon, founder and director of the Kalashri School of Arts in Parsippany, helped lead hundreds of dancers from across the United States and Canada in a Guinness World Records achievement celebrating one of Kerala’s traditional classical dance forms.

The record attempt took place August 8 at the Kalahari Resorts & Convention Center in Pocono Manor, Pennsylvania, during the 2026 FOKANA International Convention. The Federation of Kerala Associations in North America, known as FOKANA, organized Guinness World Records attempts for both Mohiniyattam and Chenda as part of the four-day convention.

Menon said the Mohiniyattam event was initially planned as a large performance before becoming a Guinness World Records classroom attempt. Organizers needed one instructor to lead the dancers, and Menon was selected to teach the group.

“It was supposed to be just a dance, and all of a sudden it became like a class,” Menon said. “They needed just one teacher to teach this whole class, and they picked me to do that from the whole of America and Canada.”

According to Menon, the previous threshold the group needed to exceed was 250 participants. More than 900 dancers were present for the attempt, although Guinness officials initially verified 786 participants after individual QR codes were scanned upon entry. Menon said organizers were working to document additional dancers whose scans did not properly register.

The performance brought dancers together in the traditional white-and-gold costumes associated with Mohiniyattam, a classical dance form originating in Kerala. Menon recalled that observers watching the event described the large group as looking like an “ocean of gold.”

The achievement also had a strong Parsippany presence. Menon said approximately 175 students from Kalashri School of Arts participated in the effort. The school, located at 1259 Route 46 in Parsippany, teaches Mohiniyattam, Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi, and other forms of Indian dance.

For Menon, the event added another milestone to a career that began when she was a child. She said she has been dancing for approximately 62 years and teaching for 51 years. Kalashri School of Arts will enter its 35th year this September.

Menon said her first performance came in Chennai when she was about 3 years old. Decades later, her students have performed and competed around the world.

Kalashri students competed in Barcelona in 2013, where Menon said the school earned first place in an international dance competition. In 2023, a Kalashri team competed at the Dance Grand Prix Italia, earning first place in the folk category, Best Costume, and second place in the ethnic category. Contemporary reporting from the competition also noted special recognition for Menon’s choreography.

The school also has a connection to one of the biggest stages in entertainment. Kalashri students were selected through auditions to perform during the 2009 Academy Awards program connected to A.R. Rahman’s award-winning work on “Slumdog Millionaire,” according to the school.

Menon said accomplishments such as competitions and world records are important, but she views dance education as something broader than performances and awards.

When students first enter her classes, she said many have little familiarity with Indian classical dance beyond the Indian culture they may have encountered through popular music and Bollywood. Her goal is to preserve the discipline and structure of classical dance while making it understandable to younger generations growing up in the United States.

“It opens up something for them about their own culture and where they come from, their roots,” Menon said.

She said that discipline often stays with students long after they leave her classroom, with former students continuing to dance in college and other settings.

Menon also emphasized the work behind the record attempt. Practices were coordinated across a large geographic area, and dancers prepared for an event that ultimately brought together hundreds of performers.

“I sincerely, wholeheartedly do this,” Menon said. “I always say the process has to be good for a good result.”

The Mohiniyattam achievement was not the convention’s only record-setting effort. On the same day, hundreds of Chenda percussionists participated in a separate Guinness World Records performance. More than 500 artists took part in the synchronized Chendamelam performance, according to reports following the event.

Menon is now preparing Kalashri students for another major performance closer to home. She said the school plans to present a show featuring more than 100 dancers on October 25, with Parsippany expected to serve as the location.

The program will center on Mahakali and women’s power and will also incorporate the Mohiniyattam piece performed during the Guinness World Records event. Menon said students will take part in creating costumes and learning the cultural and artistic meaning behind the performances.

For Menon, those experiences remain central to why she continues teaching after more than five decades.

“You do your best,” she said. “Whatever is our best, we don’t know, so we just do our best.”

PARSIPPANY — Silver Star Acting Camp wrapped up its thirteenth year this summer, continuing a week-long theater program for individuals with special needs that has become a summer fixture in the community.

The camp was founded in 2014 by Brittani Vecchia, Jackie Pascale and Sarah Pascale as a project to complete their Girl Scout Silver Award. Through the ongoing support of the community and the Parsippany Elks Lodge #2078, the three have run the camp every summer since.

Throughout the week, campers rotate through a variety of activities, including games and acting exercises, dancing, arts and crafts, and script reading. The week builds toward a final showcase, where campers perform a dance number and a collection of short skits for family and friends.

While Silver Star touches on a range of skills, organizers say the most important ones are simpler: having fun and building a sense of community.

MORRIS COUNTY — Morris County’s Democratic Committee holds a commanding financial advantage over its Republican counterpart heading into the fall campaign season, according to new figures from the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission.

The Morris County Democratic Committee reported $88,971 in cash on hand as of June 30, compared to just $9,852 for the Morris County Republican Committee — a nearly nine-to-one edge that state analysts flagged as one of the more lopsided county-level financial gaps in New Jersey.

The money will help fund what is, locally, a modest ballot this November: just one seat on the Morris County Board of County Commissioners is up for election. Republican incumbent Tayfun Selen of Chatham is seeking another term and faces Democrat Christopher (Chris) Russo, a Morristown councilman who ran unopposed for his party’s nomination. The commissioners serve staggered three-year terms, with either one or three seats up in a given year; the other six seats are not up again until 2027 or 2028.

A Selen loss would be a watershed moment for county politics. The seven-member board has been entirely Republican since 1973, the longest single-party streak of any county governing body in New Jersey.

In the 2025 General Election, Parsippany lost three Republican seats to Democrats. Mayor Pulkit Desai defeated former Mayor James Barberio, and Council Vice President Frank Neglia and Candidate Jigar Shah, lost to Democrat Diya Patel and Matthew Kavanagh.

The two county parties are led by chairs based on opposite sides of Morris County. The Morris County Democratic Committee is chaired by Darcy Draeger, who lives in Chester Township. The Morris County Republican Committee is chaired by Laura Marie Ali, who lives in Chatham.

The disparity in committee cash places Morris among the counties where Democrats hold what analysts describe as an outside chance at competitive county elections this fall, alongside Hunterdon County. Both are considered less certain battlegrounds than Atlantic, Cumberland and Gloucester counties, which are expected to see the most competitive county races statewide.

The Morris County numbers reflect a broader statewide pattern. Democratic county organizations across New Jersey raised nearly $4.8 million during the first six months of the year, compared to $1.1 million for Republican county committees — a nearly four-to-one advantage. Democrats also outspent Republicans by a similar margin, $4.31 million to $1.15 million, and held more than three times as much cash in reserve statewide, $3.57 million to $905,659.

Fundraising accelerated sharply during the second quarter for both parties. Democratic fundraising statewide rose 138 percent over the first-quarter total, while Republican fundraising grew 88 percent. Republican organizations managed to grow their combined cash reserves by 36 percent during the period, from $665,324 to $905,659, even as Democratic reserves dipped slightly.

The statewide totals mark a substantial pullback from a year ago, when New Jersey was in the midst of what became the most expensive gubernatorial election in state history. Combined county-party fundraising is down 43 percent from the same point last year, and spending has fallen 29 percent.

The figures are drawn from campaign finance reports filed with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission through late August.

PARSIPPANY — Homecoming spirit was on full display Tuesday, August 25, as the Parsippany Hills Vikings launched their season with the annual Motorcade.

The procession set out from Parsippany Hills High School and wound through Viking Country, making four stops along the way. Fans packed Tarn Drive for the first stop, greeting the motorcade as it rolled in under a safety escort from the Parsippany Police Department.

Football players, cheerleaders and the marching band all took part in the celebration, and Parsippany-Troy Hills Mayor Pulkit Desai rode along, cheering the Vikings on. Each stop brought a moment in the spotlight for the team’s senior athletes, who were introduced to cheers from the crowd.

After the senior send-offs, the cheerleaders took over with routines set to live music from the band. Once the festivities wrapped at each location, Viking Nation piled back onto the buses and pushed on to the next stop, continuing the celebration at Lake Shore Drive, Camden Road and Delbrook Road before heading back to the high school.

The motorcade may be tradition, but the real test starts Friday evening, when the Vikings hit the road to take on Paramus in their season opener.

Best of luck to the Parsippany Hills Vikings this season.

PARSIPPANY — Students across the Parsippany-Troy Hills School District will begin the 2026-2027 school year under stricter rules governing the use of cell phones and other personal electronic devices during the school day.

The change comes as New Jersey schools implement new restrictions on non-academic use of personal internet-connected devices. In Parsippany, the policy is intended to reduce distractions during the school day while establishing clearer expectations for when students may use personal technology.

At Parsippany High School, where I am a student, the policy requires students to remain device-free from 7:40 a.m. to 2:28 p.m. Cell phones are expected to be turned off and kept out of sight throughout the school day, including during lunch.

From a student perspective, the change will be most noticeable during non-instructional parts of the day. Phones have commonly been used during lunch, between classes, and other free periods for communication, music, and entertainment. Under the new rules, that access will be considerably more limited.

Students at Parsippany High School may keep their phones in their backpacks or lockers, but the devices must remain off and out of sight. Phones may still be used before and after school, and teachers may authorize their use when needed for an academic purpose.

The restrictions also extend beyond cell phones. Internet-connected watches, headphones, gaming devices, and personal laptops or tablets are among the devices covered by the school’s guidelines.

District-issued Chromebooks will continue to be available for academic work. Students may also use Chromebooks during lunch for school-related purposes.

Parsippany schools plan to enforce the new requirements throughout the school day, with staff responsible for addressing violations and repeated noncompliance.

The district has also provided alternatives for communication between students and families. Parents who need to reach their child during the school day can contact the school directly, while students will continue to have access to staff members and school email.

Exceptions may also be made for students with documented educational or health-related needs when device access is necessary.

Emergency communication has also been addressed as part of the policy. School materials note that widespread student phone use during an emergency can contribute to misinformation and interfere with communication from school officials and emergency responders.

Supporters of phone-free schools have argued that limiting devices can reduce classroom distractions and encourage more face-to-face interaction among students. Students, however, will also have to adjust to having less access to devices that have become a routine part of the school day.

As a Parsippany High School student, I will be experiencing that adjustment firsthand. The impact of the policy on classrooms, lunch periods, and everyday student life will become clearer once the school year begins.

For students at Parsippany High School, the expectation is straightforward: from 7:40 a.m. to 2:28 p.m., personal electronic devices are expected to remain off and out of sight.

PARSIPPANY — Mosquito control treatments are scheduled for early Tuesday morning in Parsippany due to an increase in adult mosquito populations, the Morris County Division of Mosquito Control said.

Crews will treat wooded areas by all-terrain vehicle on Tuesday, Sept. 1, between 4:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m., weather permitting.

Treatment is scheduled near Elm Avenue near Rockaway Neck Park, as well as Sagamore Road and Percypenny Lane.

Officials said crews will use either Anvil 2+2, which contains the active ingredient sumithrin, or Zenivex E4, which contains the active ingredient etofenprox.

Residents with questions about the mosquito control program or scheduled treatments can contact the Morris County Division of Mosquito Control at (973) 285-6450.

Additional information, including pesticide product labels, is available through the Morris County Division of Mosquito Control website.