1. What is your educational and volunteer background?
I graduated from Parsippany Hills High School and County College of Morris with a degree in Business Administration. For my entire life I have volunteered for Parsippany recreation. I have coached youth football and basketball, and volunteered at the PAL concession stand. I have also done volunteer electrical work at the PAL building. Additionally, I have built homes for Habitat for Humanity and officiated basketball games for Layups4Life which raises money for cancer research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

2. Why did you choose to run for council?
I chose to run for council because I have served my community my entire life and I want to continue to serve at a higher level.

3. What do you feel is the biggest issue facing Parsippany today?
The single biggest issue that I see facing Parsippany today is that the council is ignoring their promises. Instead they play politics. A great example of this is the cricket field that was promised and budgeted for has not been built. Instead, the budget  to maintain it was cut.

4. Why did you decide to run now?
I decided to run now because I think it is time for Democratic leadership on the council. I believe that my running mates and I would be a positive addition to the council. It is time that the three of us bring modern ideas and real solutions to Parsippany’s problems. Cori, Judy and I are focused on Parsippany, not politics.

5. What specific skills will you bring to the table if elected?
As a union electrician and volunteer coach, I strongly value teamwork. That is not limited to just my colleagues on the council if I am elected. It also includes the residents of Parsippany. We need to consider everyone’s interests regardless of party affiliation to get smart things accomplished in Parsippany.

6. What new programs or initiatives would you like to start if elected?
I want to build a cricket field in Parsippany. With my background in recreation, I want to use this cricket field to build a stronger foundation between Town Hall and the Indian community in Parsippany than the one that already exists.

7. What are you passionate about?
I am passionate about my family and my community. They are two of the things that I love most. I have dedicated my life to serving both.

8. What is the best thing about Parsippany?
The best thing about Parsippany is its charm and diversity. We are one of the greatest towns in New Jersey and our schools are among the best in the state.

9. What are your hobbies/interests?
My hobbies center around spending time outdoors, specifically fishing in Lake Parsippany, boating on Lake Hopatcong and golfing at the Knoll Country Club. During the winter I referee youth and high school basketball.

10. What is your professional background?
I have been an electrician for 35 years and am proud to have been a member of organized labor for much of that time as well. Currently I sit on the Executive Board of IBEW Local 102, which is based in the heart of Parsippany. I plan on retiring in June 2020 which will enable me to focus my time on community service.

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1. What is your educational and volunteer background?
I have a law degree and certificate in Environmental Law from Pace Law School and was the Managing Editor of the Pace Law Review. I graduated with high honors from Rutgers University with a degree in Philosophy and certificate in Criminology.

2. Why did you choose to run for council?
I chose to run for council because as a gun safety advocate, I am tired of seeing our leaders at all levels of government play political games when it comes to the important issues. I have worked tirelessly to ensure that our communities are safe from gun violence and that our children are safe in their schools. I want to be part of that solution, and I want to leave a lasting legacy by working with local law enforcement, school administrators, mental health experts, and the Board of Education to make sure that proper steps are taken to keep Parsippany’s schools safe.

3. What do you feel the biggest issue facing Parsippany today?
The biggest issue I see facing Parsippany today is that the current council members aren’t thinking about or listening to the people who live here. They aren’t asking the people who live here what they think about important issues like balancing development with the protection of natural resources, taxes, and school safety. And, they certainly aren’t listening to the community.

4. Why did you decide to run now?
I’ve watched from afar since moving to Parsippany in 2013 as our town council members fail to act in the best interest of Parsippany families time and time again. I’ve watched them squander taxpayer dollars on vendetta-driven lawsuits, work to divide our community instead of bringing us together, and throw blame at others instead of doing what they can and should do to move Parsippany forward. It’s time for new ideas and perspectives that will help bring Parsippany into the future in a way that unites us. I am committed to doing that.

5. What specific skills will you bring to the table if elected?
As a career legislative strategist, I know what it takes to build consensus and get things done. I understand every facet of governing, from drafting new laws to moving them through the legislative process, and I know how to build buy in in a way that leaves everyone feeling like they’ve accomplished something meaningful together.  As an advocate, I know how important it is for lawmakers to be transparent with and accountable to the people they were elected to serve.  It is time for the council to show all residents, regardless of age, gender, party affiliation, religion, or way of life, that they have an equal voice here in Parsippany.

6. What new programs or initiatives would you like to start if elected?
There are so many possibilities for programs to start if elected, that it’s hard to focus in on just one.  I think the one I’m most excited about is a program I’d like to introduce to engage our young people. So many kids don’t understand what civic engagement is, and even those that do aren’t always sure how to go about getting involved. I’d like to start a program that invites students from Parsippany’s schools to come before the council and propose an ordinance that they’d like to see the town adopt. I’m certain that we will get a ton of creative and inspiring ideas, in addition to helping to bring along the next generation of civic leaders in our town.

7. What are you passionate about?
I’m passionate about so many things – gun violence prevention, social justice, animal welfare… The list goes on. At its core though, most of my passions stem from a foundational belief in the value and importance of kindness and empathy. Too often we get caught up in the day to day and lose sight of each other’s humanity. If we keep our focus on people as individuals, and what our decisions mean to their daily lives, the rest falls into place much more easily. This is true at every level of engagement, from daily interactions with people in public places like stores and restaurants to the most heated interactions about controversial political topics. If we take a step back and see the humanity in each other, it’s much easier to see what we all have in common, rather than our differences.

8. What is the best thing about Parsippany?
The best thing about Parsippany without a doubt is the diversity and warm nature of its residents. I have met thousands of people from all walks of life around town, and I have been blown away by how kind everyone has been. If there’s one thing that knocking on so many doors has taught me, it’s that people in our town care! If you ask them what’s working and not working for them right now, they’ll tell you.

9. What are your hobbies/interests?
To be honest, I don’t have a lot of time for hobbies. I work full time, I’m running for office, and I have two young kids at home. Most of my “free” time is spent with my family at the kids’ activities. In the rare moments that I do have some personal time, I enjoy reading and catching up with childhood friends who I don’t see nearly often enough.

10. What is your professional background?
I currently work as the Director of State Government Affairs at Everytown for Gun Safety where I work every day to pass lifesaving gun violence prevention policies throughout the country. Before that, I worked at the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) for 13 years, where I advocated for animal welfare. Immediately after graduating law school, I worked for a year as a Legal Services housing attorney, fighting to keep low income families from being unlawfully evicted from their homes.

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1.  What is your educational and volunteer background?
BA in Sociology with a concentration in criminal justice from East Stroudsburg University.
Graduate of the West Point Leadership and Command Program.
Volunteered for Midget Football Program as well as Little Baseball. I volunteered at the PAL and for the Parsippany Citizens Police Academy.

2.  Why did you choose to run for council?
I chose to run for council to give back to my community. I have lived in Parsippany for over 45 years. I want to protect the quality of life for all of our residence.

3.  What do you feel the biggest issue facing Parsippany today?
The biggest issues facing Parsippany today is the constant threat of massive tax increases and our town becoming a sanctuary city which as long as I am on the town council I will be against 1000 % and will do everything I can to prevent from happening.

4.  Why did you decide to run now?
I am running for re-election. I want to Continue to work as hard as I can for all of the residence in our town.

5.  What specific skills will you bring to the table if re-elected?
I have always done my due diligence in representing the people of our town. I meet with them on a regular basis and listen to all of their concerns.

6.  What new programs or initiatives would you like to start if re-elected?
Work in conjunction with Sheriff Gannon with educating people facing opioid addiction.

7.  What are you passionate about?
My boys and family.

8.  What is the best thing about Parsippany?
It’s diversity and everything it has to offer.

9.  What are your hobbies/interests?
Spending time with my boys, sports and working out.

10. What is your professional background?
25+ Years with the Morris County Sheriff’s Office as the Sheriff’s Emergency Response Team Commander (SERT), Head Physical Training Instructor and Range Master at the Morris County Public Safety Training Academy.

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1.  What is your educational and volunteer background?
I have an Electrical Engineering Degree. I moved to Parsippany in 1965 when I accepted a job offer from Bell Telephone Laboratories. I retired from the Bell System after 30 years of service. I then served as Manager of Telecommunications for the State of New Jersey.

My wife Dee and I raised our three children here. Our ten grandchildren have roots here because of my involvement. For the past 55 years, I have been involved with PTA’s, Boosters, Soccer, Little Leagues, Saint Ann Church, Civic Organizations, Boy Scouts, Rotary, Sons of Italy, Craftsman Farms, the Chamber of Commerce, the American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars (I served in the Air Force during the Vietnam War), and many others.

2.  Why did you choose to run for council?
Serving Parsippany has been a labor of love for me. I have served six years on the Parsippany School Board and 36 years on the Parsippany Township Council, serving as President and Vice President at various times over the years. I have served for 24 years on the Planning Board and have also served on the Open Space Committee, Traffic Committee, Municipal Alliance Committee, the Day Care Center, and many others.

3.  What do you feel the biggest issue facing Parsippany today?
There are many Challenges facing Parsippany in the future. Some of those emanate from beyond our borders such as: The Court imposed Affordable Housing mandates; The New Jersey State School Funding Formula which is extremely unfair to Parsippany; New Jersey’s designation as a “Sanctuary State”; and the State’s efforts to legalize recreational marijuana. We will deal with these with the help of our Attorneys, our Planning Experts, and with the support of our Legislators.

Within our Township, we must continue to protect our quality of life issues. By a 3-2 vote, my running mates and I prevented Parsippany from becoming a “Sanctuary City” for criminal illegals. We adopted a resolution opposing recreational marijuana in New Jersey. We are opposed to having dispensaries in Parsippany because the State plans to mandate that all dispensaries also dispense recreational marijuana. We are not opposed to medical marijuana.

Costs continue to increase but our tax base remains pretty much the same. The challenge is to utilize those tax dollars that we have so that we maximize their impact on our services. We must minimize tax increases so that our residents can afford to remain here. Safety is a high priority for our school children and for our residents. We must continue to work with our School Board and our Police Department to find cost effective ways to improve safety. Volunteer Fire, Ambulance and R&R Services are essential to the health and safety of our community. We must continue to support them in any way that we can. Our Parks and Senior Services are second to none, and we must find ways to keep it that way. We must also support our Veterans.

4.  Why did you decide to run now?
I decided to run again so that I can help to address the issues that I listed in question #3 and whatever else arises.

5.  What specific skills will you bring to the table if re-elected?
Experience still matters and I offer the people of Parsippany decades of it. I am the only Parsippany Official to be inducted into the New Jersey State League of Municipalities “Elected Officials Hall of Fame”. Combined with my running mates Paul Carifi and Loretta Gragnani, we make a great team and can accomplish much if we all win.

6.  What new programs or initiatives would you like to start if re-elected?We recently initiated the Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-and-Return program in Parsippany to address the Feral Cat problem. We are also striving to make our Shelter a “minimum kill shelter”.

Most of our traffic does not originate or terminate here, but we must continually seek improvements to our roads and traffic lights.

7.  What are you passionate about?
My number 1 passion is Family! My wife Dee, my three children, my ten grandchildren and their significant others (soon to become family) are what keeps me going. My children and grandchildren live nearby, so we are together all the time.

8.  What is the best thing about Parsippany?
Parsippany has been ranked as the number 1 place to live in New Jersey and ranked as number 17 in the nation by Money Magazine and other publications many times. This does not happen by accident. I like to think that I have been a part of the collective wisdom over the years that has made that possible.

9.  What are your hobbies/interests?
Golf is my number 2 passion for many reasons. Most of my time all week belongs to someone else. The politics, the committees, the organizations, invitations to so many activities, the family, and the honey-do lists take up all of my time … and that’s fine, I have volunteered to be active. But, come Saturday morning, I am with my friends on the golf course for five hours, away from everything else. I look forward to those five hours every week.

10. What is your professional background?
Bell Telephone Laboratories in Whippany was military R&D. Our designs were classified. The rest of my career with NJ Bell, Bell Atlantic and Verizon were all in the Engineering, Design, and Technical support areas.

While working for the State of New Jersey, I re-designed the telecommunications billing system for the State.

While in the Air Force, because of my engineering background, I became an instructor for Single Sideband Communications. Single sideband was the primary communications in Vietnam because it cannot be intercepted by the enemy. In those early years of the Vietnam War (1961-1963), all of my classes were Special Forces … Seals, Green Beret’s and NATO Special Forces.

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1.  What is your educational and volunteer background?
I grew up in New York and attended schools there. A program that is very dear to me and I would like to see continue is the Municipal Alliance Committee (MAC). This program with the cooperation of the Parsippany Police Department and the Police Athletic League (PAL) helps our young students dealing with the many day to day challenges, being it bullying, drug use, to family concerns. MAC is comprised of volunteers, and residents who have lost loved ones to drugs. I am honored to be appointed to this committee as Council Liaison. The programs presented are costly, but I believe are of great importance to the young people of our township.

2.  Why did you choose to run for council?
I have seen our township grow and prosper, become a multicultural and diverse community in the 51 years that I have lived in Parsippany. We have received an A+ rating for the quality of life that we enjoy in our township. An A+ rating is awarded with the hard work of many. Volunteers, township workers, and our Police Department all contributed to Parsippany receiving this achievement.

3.  What do you feel the biggest issue facing Parsippany today?
Taxes are a major concern of our residents. Our seniors who helped build this community after retirement would like to stay and call Parsippany home. In the past two years with the help of my fellow running mates, dePierro, and Carifi Jr. we have cut proposed township budget increases and have lowered the tax burden on our residents.

4.  Why did you decide to run now?
For many years I have been involved in the township. When our sons were students in Northvale Elementary School I served in several positions on the Parent Teacher Association, including the Presidency and as Treasurer. In the aftermath of Hurricane Irene I helped lead volunteers and citizens in a community effort to aid the residents of Lake Hiawatha. Seeing our township come together helping their neighbors inspired me then and is something I remember to this day. For our efforts we received from Governor Christie the NJ State Volunteer Award.

5.  What are you passionate about?
My husband and I have two sons, Andrew and Peter who with their families live out of state. I cherish the times we as a family are together celebrating special occasions. Being of Italian descent, food of course is always the topic of conversion before holiday dinners. My husband Adam has always given me his encouragement and is my best cheerleader. It takes teamwork and commitment to be in politics as we have learned these past years.

6.  What are your hobbies/interests?
I received the Parsippany-Troy Hills Outstanding Achievement Award and the Italian American Woman of the Year Award. I am a co-chair of Relay for Life Cancer Walk, a member of the Development Committee for the Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms, former member of the Parsippany Board of Adjustment, and a former Trustee, Advisory Board Member, and Finance Council member for my parish St. Ann R.C. Church. My husband Adam and I are currently serving as members of the Hospitality Committee. I am the Recording Secretary and a member of the Parsippany Republican Club.

7. What is your professional background?
I was the co-owner of a successful design and construction company KBI (Kitchens Baths Interiors) in Lake Hiawatha for 29 years retiring three years ago. With other prominent business owners we formed the Lake Hiawatha Business Association providing holiday decorations on North Beverwyck Road. Volunteers and business owners to this day are continuing to provide enjoyment to the children during the holiday season.

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1. What is your educational and volunteer background?
I have a Bachelor’s of Engineering Degree in Civil Engineering from Manhattan College. I participated in the Rutgers Environmental Stewards Program and Rutgers Green Infrastructure Workshops. I currently serve on Parsippany’s Planning Board and I am the Vice Chair on the Environmental Advisory Committee. Additionally, I am on the Board of Trustees for the Parsippany Child Day Care Center. Within Glacier Hills, I am on the Neighborhood Association Civic Committee and I am a Sunday School teacher at Denville Community Church.

2. Why did you choose to run for council?
I decided to run for Town Council because I believe my election will expand and continue the positive momentum for Parsippany that we’ve seen in the last 2 years. Since then, we have made great progress in our town with initiatives such as a renewed commitment to conform with the Highlands Council and recertification with Sustainable NJ, both of which can provide our town with opportunities for grants and resources. Both of these were allowed to lapse under the previous administration. Council decisions are controlled by the council majority. The previous administration’s budget and development decisions were made without smart planning for the future and we are still paying the price.

3. What do you is feel the biggest issue facing Parsippany today?
There are two big challenges that I see facing Parsippany today. One of these challenges is the lack of civic engagement. On the local level, we all have similar goals and those goals could and should bring people together and give them a “voice”. The majority of Parsippany’s current council governs in a partisan manner which discourages residents from engaging in local politics. Another challenge for Parsippany moving into the future is meeting the pressures of development while maintaining the quality of life that we cherish in our town. This can be done by preserving our open spaces, attract businesses to existing unoccupied buildings, and engaging the community in open meetings on the Master Plan Update.

4. Why did you decide to run now?
While no one can suggest Parsippany is not developing, over the years we have been overrun by development without due consideration for the residents and resources.  In some cases it is now or never for scarce open space. Parsippany is the largest town in Morris County and we can use our resources to accomplish important things. There are opportunities to be a successful and sustainable town if we want to keep Parsippany as the “place to be”. This means attracting business and addressing local infrastructure problems with sustainable development including proactively protecting our open spaces and our natural resources.  There is also a growing awareness of the impact of humans footprint on our environment as we see the effects of long time misguided practices playing out in real time.

5. What specific skills will you bring to the table if elected?
My broad professional skills include experience in civil and environmental engineering. I have been involved for many years as an officer in local politics. Town, professional and local experience qualifies me for this office and deserving of your confidence.

6. What new programs or initiatives would you like to start if elected?
I would like to see our town participate in sustainable programs such as proven programs that can make our town more energy efficient and environmentally resilient while helping the town save tax dollars. Also, I would find ways to engage the community, especially our youth, in our town. While knocking on doors was I surprised to find good people wanting to understand how the town operates.  This summer we saw many residents energized and engaged when the Single Use Plastic Bag Ordinance was introduced. Why not utilize that enthusiasm and energy?

7. What are you passionate about?
This is a big question and I have more than one answer. My first answer is that I am passionate about the natural world, music and art.  The other part of my answer is what motivates me to be involved on the local level. I believe we all do better when we all can succeed and flourish. Like the old saying “rising waters lift all boats”, I believe I need to do my part in help making that happen.

8. What is the best thing about Parsippany?
It is a great place to live and raise a family. I moved to Parsippany 20 years ago to bring up my children in Glacier Hills. Like many neighborhoods in Parsippany it is a community that is intimate and safe. Parsippany has a fantastic school system, town recreation, historic places and parks.

9. What are your hobbies/interests?
My hobbies reflect my passions. I love to be outdoors, running, gardening, hiking, and botanical illustration. Since living in Parsippany, being involved in local government has become my biggest passion.

10. What is your professional background?
As a lead project engineer I was part of a team on major pollution control and highway & bridge projects.  Sewage treatment and roadway maintenance are major functions of the town. In addition to leadership, organization and communication, my success depended on bringing together groups with different and often competing agendas; I was successful. I was also responsible for contract preparation, construction oversight and funding applications, experience needed by Town Council members in their day-to-day responsibilities.

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