82 year-old Resident Arrested over Handicapped Parking Spot

PARSIPPANY — Multiple Officers responded to a parking lot on Rutgers Lane for a disturbance involving a handgun at 11:54 p.m. on February 28.

Upon arrival of responding Officers, spoke to the 23 year old male victim. The victim advised that the suspect, identified as Vittorio Dipinto, 82, Parsippany, was upset that his vehicle was partially parked in a handicap parking area.

The victim further advised that during their verbal argument, Mr. Dipinto pointed a handgun at him. After further investigation, Mr. Dipinto was placed under arrest and transported back to Police Headquarters. Patrol Officer P. Parisi processed and charged Mr. Dipinto with one count of Aggravated Assault in the Fourth Degree, one count of Terroristic Threats in the Third Degree, one count of Possession of a Weapon for Unlawful Purposes in the Second Degree and one count of Unlawful Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree.

He was released on his own recognizance pending his court date.

Editors Note: A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. Despite this accusation, the defendant is presumed innocent until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Katie Cassidy to seek Township Council seat

Katie Cassidy

PARSIPPANY — Lifelong resident Katie Cassidy has announced she will be seeking a seat on Township Council in the upcoming election. Katie is a registered democrat.

Council President Louis Valori and Council Vice President Robert Peluso current term ends December 31. Valori, Republican, is seeking re-election and is running on the ticket with Mayor James Barberio and former Councilman Vincent Ferrara. Peluso, also Republican, is challenging to unseat Mayor Barberio.

Township of Hanover Police Officer Chris Martino and Former Parsippany Planning Board Chairman Casey Parikh, are seeking a seat on the Council.

It is expected that former Councilman Brian Stanton will be entering the race.

Monday, April 3 is the filing deadline to submit a petition to run in Primary Election.

In early February, Democrat Michael Soriano announced he will be seeking the office of the Mayor.

It is expected that Democrats Janice McCarthy and Emily Peterson will announce shortly and will be running with Michael Soriano.

Cassidy is a lifelong resident of Parsippany-Troy Hills. She is a member of the Environmental Advisory Committee and Municipal Alliance Committee. Her goal is to rejuvenate the community spirit in town. In her mind, the key components of success are responsible spending, transparency while planning for the future as well as togetherness in the community.

Katie has dedicated a great deal of time to attending township meetings. Along with the Environmental and Municipal Alliance Committee meetings, she has also attended countless Council, Planning and Zoning Board meetings. In just the last year, Katie’s notable successes include initiating the passage of a support resolution and applying pressure to increase the transparency of the Township.

The primary will be held on Tuesday, June 6. Polls will be open from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

You are eligible to vote if you are a citizen of the United States, are a Morris County resident 30 days before the election. You can register is you are at least 17 years of age, but cannot vote until the age of 18. You can not be incarcerated, on parole or on probation due to a felony conviction.

If you don’t know if you are a registered voter, you can click here to find out.

If you are not a registered voter, you can fill out the application form (click here), and mail a completed form to Morris County Board of Elections, Post Office Box 9000, Morristown, New Jersey 07960. You must register 21 days prior to the election which you wish to vote. Your registration will remain valid, as long as you do not move out of Morris County.

Once you are registered you will receive a ballot in the mail. If you need to find out where you go to vote, click here.

Parsippany Focus has reached out to all candidates that have filed their registrations, asking when and where they are announcing. Parsippany Focus will give equal coverage to all candidate running for office. Candidates can contact us by sending an email by clicking here.

Parsippany Hills McDonald signs letter of intent

PARSIPPANY — Dylan Joseph McDonald signed a letter of intent today and committed to Ave Maria University. Dylan’s will be majoring in Exercise Science.

Dylan will be graduating Parsippany Hills High School in June where he was a three-year starter. McDonald was part of the team which made the 2016 NJSIAA North 2 Group III final, and beat Cranford for the North 2 Group III championship in 2014, the first and only sectional title in school history.

Coach Dave Albano said “Dylan was  a three-year starter us. He has the size and speed to do great things in college.”
“Ave Maria is lucky to get Dylan! He is not only a great player with a motor that never quits, he is more importantly a great young man! Dylan epitomized what we looked for in a player for Team USA. His parents have done a great job raising him and Dylan will go on to represent his family and community well” said Matt Hennesy, Head Football Coach North American Championships.

Gail McDonald, Matt Hennesy with Dylan

“I am very proud of Dylan’s accomplishments, he has worked very hard and will be very successful in life and on the football field at Ava Maria, said Gail McDonald.

This past January Dylan played against Canada in the first USA Football North American Championship in Orlando, Fla.

The event featured under-18 national teams from each country and was played at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex.

This was the sixth time McDonald has suited up for the United States.  As an eighth grader, he attended a combine in south Jersey and performed well enough that he was invited to a camp for football players his age in College Station, Texas. He also spent a month in Harbin, China, last summer.

McDonald was one of 44 players selected to make the journey to China, and represented the United States in a seven-nation tournament, the Under 19 International Federation of American Football World Championship.

For McDonald it was a honor to sport the red, white and blue uniform, with “USA” across his chest.

Dylan signing the letter of intent as his family looks on

Ave Maria University is a vibrant University located in beautiful Southwest Florida. It is an academic institution that pledges faithfulness to the teachings of the Catholic Church and is committed to offering one of the finest classical liberal arts curricula available, as well as opportunities for specialized study in all of the sciences and humanities.

Ave Maria is known for its exceptional academics, faithfulness to the magisterium of the Catholic Church, dedicated faculty and caring staff, and a unique educational philosophy that strives to develop the whole person.

The university’s superb faculty, challenging curriculum, professional staff, and a student community where it is easy to form lasting friendships, provide graduates with a training that empowers them to step out into the working world as future leaders and wealth-creators, with a solid understanding of contemporary challenges, and a strong confidence in their own intellectual training and foundation.

For more information about Ave Maria University click here.

Ave Maria University

 

Standing room only at Sons of Italy fundraiser for Par-Troy Wrestling

PARSIPPANY — Sons of Italy Chapter 2561 sponsored a fundraiser for Par-Troy Wrestling Club.  The fundraiser was held at Parsippany Volunteer Fire District 5, 180 Old Bloomfield Road on Saturday, February 25.

Included with the pasta dinner, cooked by the Sons of Italy members, are homemade meatballs, bread, salad and dessert.

The Sons of Italy and Par-Troy Wrestling Team would like to thank the following for contributing to the door prizes and raffles: Vincent Ferrara, Italian American Police Society of NJ, Sons of Italy Lodge #2561, Longhorn Steakhouse, Outback Steakhouse, Eccola Italian Bistro, Verde Ristorante, IHOP, Tabor Pizzeria, Gourmet Café, Churrasco Grill, Houlihan’s, TGIF, Modell’s, Home Depot, Smashburger, Pinnacle Athletic Development, Coach John-Drumline Live tickets and Towne Tavern. A special thanks to Parsippany Volunteer District 5 for donating the facilities for the event.

Board Member, June Madia, Par-Troy Wrestling Team presented Joe Jannarone, Jr., President of the Sons of Italy 2561 with a plaque thanking the Sons of Italy for all their hard work in preparing the food for the fundraiser.

Par-Troy Wrestling board members are June Madia, Linda Gohn, Ralph Rocco, Kim Doktor,
Cris Parente, Pat Rocco, Gabe Nazziola  and Dan Ilic.

Parsippany is such a large town that its children’s wrestling programs are traditionally split into two teams – the Parsippany Redhawks and the Parsippany Hills Vikings. Both had long-established histories, successes, and victories. As strong as both teams functioned separately, coaches, wrestlers, and parents knew that if they joined forces to create one team Parsippany Wrestling would become a major squad.

This became a reality in the spring of 2010. The Par-Troy Wrestling Club was formed with the motto, “One Town. One Team.”

PTWC registers children from grades kindergarten through eighth grade and participates in a number of competitive wrestling leagues. Their function with a full Executive Board and Executive Committee Members. Their major annual fundraiser is a two-day Holiday Tournament with teams gathering from all over. Over the years PTWC boasts successes of all the kids, including:

  • New Jersey Kids State Qualifying Wrestlers, Place Winners and Champions
  • Participation and Great Success in Numerous Leagues: Grade School, Passaic County, Tri-County, Future Stars, Northwest NJ K-6, North Jersey, Northern NJ Gold and Silver Teams, and King of the Mat
  • Place Winners and Champions at Competitive Tournaments
  • Bronze Certified Coaches
  • Alumni Wrestlers who move on and are highly successful at Parsippany High School, Parsippany Hills High School, and local private programs

The full roster looks forward to more success under the club’s long list of qualified coaches. The 2016-2017 season will include participation of teams in five competitive leagues and local tournaments.

For more information on Par-Troy Wrestling, click here.

Employee steals merchandise at United Parcel Service

PARSIPPANY — Patrol Sergeant E. Conklin, along with Patrol Officers C. Dottino and C. Konysz responded to UPS for a theft. Upon arrival they spoke to the security guards who advised them they caught employee Kevin Klien, 29, East Orange, stealing approximately $4,000.00 in merchandise.

After a brief investigation Mr. Klien was placed under arrest and transported back to Police Headquarters. He was processed and charged with one count of Theft of Movable Property in the Third Degree.

Mr. Klien was released on his own recognizance pending his court date.

Editors Note: A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. Despite this accusation, the defendant is presumed innocent until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Driver arrested for Assault by Auto; Driving While Intoxicated

PARSIPPANY — Parsippany-Troy Hills Chief of Police Paul Philipps, along with multiple Officers, and Par-Troy Emergency Medical Services responded to a three car motor vehicle crash with injuries on South Beverwyck Road near Troy Meadow Road at approximately 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, March 2.

Initial investigation by Patrol Officer G. Lowe, it was determined that a 2005 Acura MDX was stopped behind a 2016 Chevy Traverse who was waiting to turn from South Beverwyck Road onto Troy Meadow Road.

The Acura was then struck by a 2016 GMC Sierra who failed to stop. The impact of the crash caused the Acura to crash into the Chevy.

The 22 year old female backseat passenger in the Acura was transported to Morristown Medical Center with neck/back pain. All other occupants in the vehicles reported that they were uninjured.

The driver of the 2011 GMC Sierra, Robert Palmer, 33, Georgetown, Texas, was placed under arrest and subsequently processed.

He was charged with the following offenses:

• 1 count of Assault by Auto in the 4th Degree
• Driving While Intoxicated in a School Zone
• Reckless Driving

Mr. Palmer was released on his own recognizance pending his court date.

Editors Note: A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. Despite this accusation, the defendant is presumed innocent until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Creating a Successful Marketing Plan for your Business

PARSIPPANY — Parsippany Area Chamber of Commerce a morning breakfast seminar “Creating a Successful Marketing Plan for your Business” on Friday, March 10.

This PACC Breakfast Presentation is given by Ilene Greene and Ted Polmar, Principals of Marketshare Communications and BizCircles Entrepreneurs Business Network. Bring plenty of business cards because there will be an opportunity to network.

A Marketing Plan offers a simple strategy or set of strategies, a marketing calendar, an evaluation system and a series of tactics that give you complete control of your marketing activities.

You will learn:

  • How to put your Marketing Plan together
  • Budgeting your plan
  • The initiatives you must take to make it happen

A good marketing plan conveys your company’s vision and mission to your target, markets, customers and employees.

You will also participate in your own SWOT Analysis and discuss your Successes, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats that goes into planning your business’ future.

Don’t miss this informative and exciting program for small business owners and entrepreneurs on Friday, March 10 at 8:00 a.m. held at IHOP, 792 Route 46. You can reserve your ticket by clicking here.

Heroin, prescription drug overdoses continue to rise in Morris County

PARSIPPANY — The audience was silent as Brad Seabury recounted the wrenching aftermath of a fatal drug overdose in Morris County. Seabury, the county’s chief assistant prosecutor, described being with grieving parents “and a dead 25 year old in the bedroom down the hallway.” “I’m standing there, I’m in the hallway, and I see the kid…

Hats Off to Dr. Seuss’s Birthday Celebration at Intervale School

PARSIPPANY — Intervale School, along with many other schools in United States, celebrated Read Across America by celebrating Dr. Seuss birthday on Tuesday, February 28. Dr. Seuss was born Theodor Seuss Geisel on March 2, 1904.

NEA’s Read Across America is an annual reading motivation and awareness program that calls for every child in every community to celebrate reading on March 2, the birthday of beloved children’s author Dr. Seuss.

Readers included Mayor James Barberio, Council Vice President Robert Peluso, Parsippany-Troy Hills Police Officer Brian Conover, Board of Education President Frank Neglia, Board members Judy Mayer, Alison Cogan, Tim Berrios and Alison Cogan. In addition former teachers and parents read to the students.

Geisel published 46 children’s books, often characterized by imaginative characters, rhyme, and frequent use of anapestic meter.

His most-celebrated books include the bestselling Green Eggs and Ham, The Cat in the Hat, The Lorax, One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish, The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins, Fox in Socks, The King’s Stilts, Hop on Pop, Thidwick the Big-Hearted Moose, Horton Hatches the Egg, Horton Hears a Who!, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas!. His works have spawned numerous adaptations, including 49 television specials, four feature films, a Broadway musical and four television series.

He won the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award in 1958 for Horton Hatches the Egg and again in 1961 for And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street. Geisel also worked as an illustrator for advertising campaigns, most notably for Flit and Standard Oil, and as a political cartoonist for PM, a New York City newspaper. During World War II, he worked in an animation department of the United States Army, where he wrote Design for Death, a film that later won the 1947 Academy Award for Documentary Feature.

He was a perfectionist in his work and would sometimes spend up to a year on a book. It was not uncommon for him to throw out 95% of his material until he settled on a theme for his book. For a writer he was unusual in that he preferred to be paid only after he finished his work rather than in advance.

Geisel’s birthday, March 2, has been adopted as the annual date for National Read Across America Day, an initiative on reading created by the National Education Association.

Woman’s Club Members Celebrate Dr. Seuss’ Birthday as Cats in the Hat

PARSIPPANY — In celebration of Dr. Seuss’ birthday on Thursday, March 2, members of the Woman’s Club of Parsippany-Troy Hills (WCPTH) read to the children at the Parsippany Child Day Care Center.

The National Education Association’s (NEA) Read Across America Day is a nationwide reading celebration that takes place annually on Thursday, March 2, Theodore Geisel (aka Dr. Seuss) birthday.  This is the 20th anniversary of NEA’s Read Across America, the nation’s largest reading celebration, with more than 45 million students, parents, educators and others participating every year. For more information click here.

Woman’s Club of Parsippany-Troy Hills Club member Diana Freidinger reading to Pre-K students Daniel Volarich, Ainsley Cook and Henry Truglio

WCPTH members also donated a copy of One Cent, Two Cents, Old Cent, New Cent: All About Money to the Day Care Center Library and provided afternoon snacks to the children for a Dr. Seuss party!   As part of their Annual Dr. Seuss Project, three other Dr. Seuss books were donated to the Parsippany Library System.

Proceeds for this, and other educational projects were made possible by the funds raised at the club’s annual Tee Off for Education Golf Classic Fundraiser.  This year’s 36th Annual Tee Off for Education Golf Classic & Luncheon will be held on Tuesday, July 11 at the Knoll Country Club West.

The Woman’s Club of Parsippany-Troy Hills is a member of the New Jersey State Federation of Women’s Clubs of GFWC, which is the largest volunteer women’s service organization in the state, providing opportunities for education, leadership training, and community service. The next General Meeting is Monday, March 27 at 7:00 p.m. at the Lake Parsippany Rescue & Recovery Building, 100 Centerton Drive.

For more information call Cathy at (973) 984-0758, e-mail the club at womansclubofpth@gmail.com or view their website by clicking here.

Meeting schedule is subject to change. Please contact Cathy, Membership Chairman, if interested in attending a meeting or to confirm date and time.
(973) 984-0758 or womansclubofpth@gmail.com.

Stephanie LiCausi, WCPTH Dr. Seuss Reading Project Chairman, reading to students