PARSIPPANY — The Eastlake School PTA held a very successful Tricky Tray at the Parsippany PAL Youth Center on Friday, April 21. The room was packed with parents, teachers and local residents.
The event cost $20.00 to enter. Level 1 tickets cost $5.00 a sheet and included over 200 baskets with great prizes such as Easter Baskets, Eccola Gift Cards, Single Cup Coffee Maker with K-cups, Comedy Tickets, Powerhouse Birthday Party Certificate, Lake Parsippany Property Owners Association gift certificate, Anchor Golf Gift Cards, Applebee’s Gift Cards, Perona Farms Brunch and more.
Level 2 tickets cost $2.00 per ticket or 10 tickets for $15.00 and included around 75 gift baskets with great prizes such as One night stay at Dover Downs Hotel and Casino, Randolph Gymnastics Gift Card, One night weekend stay at Hyatt House, Mary Kay Gift set and more.
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Karen Kinsey
Lauren Foli, Carol Kratt, Karen Kinsey, Jennifer Thurkauf and Colleen Turd were enjoying the evening at Eastlake School Tricky Tray
There were hundreds of wonderful baskets at the Tricky Tray
Nicolas Limanov with English teacher Mr. Winick
Level 3 gift baskets included two orchestra seats at the Philharmonic, Shark Vacuum, Xbox one and more. Eastlake Roulette baskets included front row seats to fifth grade graduation, gym teacher for a day with Miss Costa, lunch with Principal, Mr. Hershkowitz, Pizza Party with Mrs. Breiten and more.
Grand Prize Tricky Tray prizes included Big Screen TV, four Disney Hopper Passes, three Giants tickets with parking pass, IPad or adult one year membership to the YMCA.
PARSIPPANY — The Kiwanis Club of Greater Parsippany prepares dinner at Morris County’s Homeless Solutions on the fourth Saturday of every month. President-elect Frank Cahill started his Saturday morning by shopping for food, which is paid for by Kiwanis Club of Greater Parsippany.
The group of volunteers meet at Homeless Solutions to start preparing dinner for the residents in the transitional housing program. The group prepared a fresh fruit salad, tossed salad with numerous dressings, baked ziti with meatballs and rolls and served chocolate cake for dessert. They also served iced tea and coffee. Other volunteer groups such as St. Ann’s Church prepares dinner for the shelter on other days of the month. Kiwanis Club of Greater Parsippany has been providing meals to Homeless Solutions for the past eleven years.
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Tossed Salad
Fresh Fruit Cup
Meatballs
Baked Ziti (8 pounds of pasta, gravy and mozzarella cheese)
Chocolate Cake
Next month, on May 27 Vice President Karen DeChristopher, Joyce Garrow, Carol Tiesi, Frank Cahill volunteered to prepare dinner at Homeless Solutions.
The mission of Homeless Solutions is to offer shelter, services, and supportive housing to homeless and low-income people. For the homeless and working poor in our community, hope begins at Homeless Solutions, Inc. Homeless Solutions is a private, non-profit organization, helping those in need for past 30 years. Homeless Solutions provides shelter for 25 homeless men, 10 homeless women, 10 families and 20 Safe Haven guests. Our guests receive services including case management, transportation to work and necessary appointments, money management and employment assistance, housing search assistance and daily living skills training. Referral services for counseling, substance abuse intervention, and prevention are also provided.
Homeless Solutions, Inc. employs 49 staff, 36 full time and 13 part time. Homeless Solutions, Inc. is governed by a Board of Trustees and is incorporated as a non-profit organization in the State of New Jersey.
By supporting HSI through financial donations or volunteering, they are making a tangible difference in the lives of those most in need in our community. For more information on Homeless Solutions, click here.
Three Reason to Donate to Homeless Solutions:
When you donate to Homeless Solutions, you make a tangible difference in the life of someone in need in our community. Your donations –
Buy milk for children living in shelter.
Pay for childcare so a single parent can work.
Pay for gas for our shelter vans that take guests to public transportation to get to work and to medical appointments.
Click here to make a donation to Homeless Solutions.
The Kiwanis Club of Greater Parsippany meets at Empire Diner, Route 46, Parsippany on Thursday at 7:15 a.m. For more information, click here.
PARSIPPANY – Approximately 11:00 a.m. Parsippany-Troy Hills Police Department received a call regarding heavy smoke coming from the roof of 222 New Road. Earlier reports stated there were workers on top of the roof, but what type or work they were performing or who hired them were unknown.
Rainbow Lakes Fire Department 2, Lake Parsippany Fire District 3, Lake Hiawatha Volunteer Fire District 4, Parsippany Volunteer Fire Department 5 and Parsippany Volunteer Fire District 6, along with Boonton RIC, Montville and Cedar Knolls were on the scene shortly after 11:00 a.m.
Parsippany Volunteer Ambulance Squad and Par-Troy Emergency Services were on the scene. Parsippany Rescue and Recovery is on the scene.
According to the sign posted at the building contains the companies Catbridge, Veggie Land, Inssinc and Paraflex is a 80,000 square foot industrial building. According to employees at the scene, all the employees inside the building were safe and left the building immediately.
Currently Parsippany Arson Investigation and Morris County Sheriff’s Crime Investigative Scene (CIS) were called to the scene and the Construction official and Health Department were also requested to the scene.
Parsippany Office of Emergency Management (OEM) was requested to the scene to help with traffic.
Report from the scene indicate owners or managers from Veggie Land were present. The property owner arrived at the scene approximately 1:15 p.m.
At 1:45 p.m. it was announced that the fire has been knocked down, and they were in the process of ventilating the building.
Parsippany Focus will update article as official information is released.
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The firemen on the roof of the building
T-6 in the air
T-6 in the air
Smoke coming from the front of the building
Smoke coming from the side of the building
Firetrucks at the scene
Running hoses down New Road
Depty Chief Matthew Palmieri and Fireman Andres Felipe Giraldo on the roof of the building
PARSIPPANY — Matty Rzucidlo was honored on Thursday, April 21 at the Par-Troy West Little League Opening Night.
Matty Rzucidlo, Mayor James Barberio and Frank Neglia. Mayor Barberio gave Matty a Proclamation
Matt Rzucidlo was born in Hoboken, the birthplace of baseball. It was during his early childhood that he first found his passion for the game, playing with the Hoboken Little League. Some of his earliest memories go back to when he would play ball on the streets of the city with the other neighborhood kids. The Yankees shaped his childhood, going to Yankee Stadium with his uncles to watch players like Mickey Mantle and Yogi Berra. He grew up in a family of baseball players. He was inspired by his uncles who he always looked up to.
In 1959, his family moved to Parsippany and began his playing career with the Par-Troy West Little League, Kiwanis Club, as a pitcher and infielder. He continued playing through middle school where he was a proud Central Cougar.
For Matt, high school is where “it all started.” Not only was he on the baseball team, but he also played football all 4 years, 3 of which he was the varsity quarterback.
Baseball though, was his ultimate passion. And the man who fostered and mentored his talents was the late Jack Mott. A man who Matt respects and honors to this day.
For his freshman year, Matt went straight to JV. At JV he played short stop and also practiced with the varsity team who saw great potential in the young but extremely talented rookie.
Sophomore year Matt made varsity debut and was the starting left fielder. By the 7th game, he was moved over to short stop.
That season was off to a great start for Rzucidlo, until he unfortunately had his first knee injury. This injury had him out for the rest of the season. Despite his cast, he was still sitting on the sideline of every game, supporting and cheering on his team. Matt’s dedication and devotion to the game never waive red. The Red Skins suffered a devastating loss to the team. That year Parsippany High School varsity baseball team went on to play in the Greater Newark tournament, which they unfortunately lost.
He recalls the team pitching in and buying him a brand new glove as a gift. Junior year Matt started as the Varsity second baseman and as a relief pitcher – letting the teammate who took over his position the previous year finish his senior year as short stop.
That year, the Parsippany High School team finished second in the Jersey Hills Conference. Parsippany High School baseball knew next year was going to be an impactful year – especially for Rzucidlo.
Matt’s senior year was his best of his high school career. He was the captain of the varsity baseball team and played as short stop for the whole season. Rzucidlo pitched four games (which he was 3-1), had three homeruns, and received the “Daily Advance All-Area Baseball” recognition.
Major league scouts where looking at Rzucidlo during this exciting time including the Atlanta Braves and the Pittsburgh Pirates.
After high school, Matt attended Miami Dade County College where he continued to play ball that fall.
The transition from baseball to fast pitch softball came from his mentor and high school coach, Jack Mott. Matt Rzucidlo was far from done with his playing career.
Rzucidlo’s first softball team was with the Parsippany Athletic club sponsored by Dean Gallo. During that time, he also played with the Hub Lakes League (from ’69-’70).
From there, he played for Mario’s and in 1969 he won a softball championship with the team. In addition he played for the Parsippany slow pitch league with the Tally-Ho team who also won a championship.
Rzucidlo then continued on to play with DeMaio’s who won three straight championships for the Parsippany slow pitch league. He followed that with playing for Hilltop who won an additional two championships. From there Matt played with Primos in the Parsippany league which went on to win four more championships.
Within all those years, Rzucidlo won 12 championships in the Parsippany slow pitch league. During his time with Primo’s, Rzucidlo also played for Mt. Hope. Sponsored by Jerry Smith and coached by Tim Wyatt. Gaining the nickname ‘the captain’, Rzucidlo began an amazing eig year career with an amazing team.
Rzucidlo played with Mt. Hope from ’77-’85 and during this time the Mount Hope Inn made it’s name well known. The team went to nationals in 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982 1983, 1984, and 1985. In 1983 they were 4th in nationals and in 1985 the team took 2nd in the nationals.
During the Mount Hope era, Rzucidlo was named first team All-American utility infielder in 1982 and 1985. He recalls a lot of talented players from the area who where on that team and how it was an amazing time in his life he’ll never forget. In 1986, Matt retired from playing modified fast pitch. In 1985, Rzucidlo got married and in ’88 and ’89 welcomed 2 daughters and focused his time on raising his family. That never fully stopped him still playing ball and remembers “dragging my kids to the fields” for a Sunday morning league.
His daughters fondly remember watching him play at Smithfield, the same place he started his career in 1959.
Rzucidlo went on to play in the Parsippany senior league and won two more championships
To this day Matt continues to love the game. He can call every pitch before it leaves the glove, every error before it happens on the field and could go head to head with anyone in baseball trivia.
For someone who has had a playing career full of championships and praise, he has always remained a humble man. Never making it about himself, but always about the team. He exemplifies good sportsmanship. In addition to being a great baseball player, he is a wonderful father, husband, brother, uncle, son, friend and teammate.
PARSIPPANY — Solix, Inc., a best-in-class provider of program and process management, regulatory compliance and customer care services for businesses and government agencies throughout the United States, announced Eric Storey has been appointed senior vice president and chief sales officer reporting to Solix CEO Jack Miller. Solix is located at 30 Lanidex Plaza West.
Storey, who has an extensive sales and business development background, including experience serving several Fortune ranked organizations; will lead sales initiatives that support business growth in established markets where Solix has a record of success and in industries where the company is an emerging leader.
“We are excited to welcome Eric to the team as we look to build upon our success and expand our services and market presence,” said Miller. “His client-centric approach aligns well with our business philosophy and our strong customer relationships as well as quality of personalized service we provide are points of pride for us that we believe Eric can cultivate into even greater success for Solix.”
Prior to joining Solix, Storey served as Cognizant Technology Solutions’ Head of Sales, Americas Business Process Outsourcing. In addition, he has held executive sales, operations and consulting roles at Xerox, Deloitte Consulting, Booz Allen Hamilton and Accenture.
“Solix has a long history as a successful business process outsourcing firm that has commanded a specific space in supporting government programs with intense regulatory and compliance demands,” Storey said. “It is uniquely positioned to bring this experience, in addition to a powerful new proprietary platform and highly effective omni channel customer care, to other markets including the healthcare, financial services, life sciences and utility spaces.” He added, “Solix is innovative, nimble and flexible to meet evolving client needs and I am excited to be a part of its future.”
Founded in 2001, Solix helps customers run more efficient programs, qualify applicants faster with greater accuracy, and enable more responsive customer communications for an enhanced experience. For more information, please visit the resources section of our website to learn how we help our customers achieve success.
MORRIS COUNTY — Freeholder candidate Heather Darling hosted her first fundraiser at Zeris Inn, Mountain Lakes on Monday, April 17.
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Parsippany resident Jigar Shah and Freeholder Candidate Heather Darling
Heather Darling "Better with Heather"
Steve and Eileen Albanese, Roxbury
Parsippany Police Chief Paul Philipps and Parsippany resident Patrick Minutillo
Parsippany residents Councilwoman Loretta Gragnani and Jigar Shah
Lainie Sleppin, Heather Darling and Jolene Imperial
Parsippany resident Nicolas Limanov and Freeholder Candidate Heather Darling
Parsippany Focus publisher Frank Cahill and Freeholder Candidate Heather Darling
Parsippany residents Nicolas Limanov and Patrick Minutillo
The well attended function included a mix of local Republican Party leadership and members of the community supporting Darling. Darling’s message was that unchecked spending, the current practice of rewarding special interests and lack of sustainable ratables are the issues plaguing Morris County. Darling, who operates a law firm she built herself and an unrelated business she took over from her father, said she knows about building and operating a business on a shoestring budget, building relationships with customers, and hiring and managing employees who count on their jobs to provide food and shelter for their families. Darling said that her daily routine is analyzing information and making critical decisions which affect her business, her employees and her client’s futures.
Heather Darling referenced the outflow of businesses from Morris County beginning in the 1990’s and the need to utilize Morris County’s transportation system and natural resources to attract businesses that promote a healthier lifestyle for their employees including outdoor recreation. Darling spoke of Economic Development Committee summits wherein she noticed apparent and untapped opportunities for mutual economic growth among certain towns in Morris County with the existing infrastructure to support such growth. Darling raised the idea of creating alliances between businesses and the County College of Morris to develop a labor pool prepared to fill managerial and professional job openings as well as similar alliances between businesses and Morris County Vo-Tech to prepare students for jobs. She contrasted training students for jobs in a free enterprise system with the current Freeholder Board’s plan to limit bidding to union shops with apprenticeship programs which she believes stem from promises by members of the Board to organized labor in exchange for campaign funding.
Darling went on to address spending, stating her belief that special interest groups are profiting, at the expense of the taxpayers, from those in county government interested in campaign contributions for self-perpetuation. Citing statistics, Darling referenced Morris County as only one of nine counties in the nation posting average annual property taxes over $10,000, then contrasted that to Morris County’s deteriorating infrastructure, poor road conditions, and cutbacks in human services needed by seniors and veterans including consideration by the current Freeholder Board of the privatization of the County’s nursing facility, Morris View. Heather Darling projected that the heroin epidemic, sanctuary city issues, bail reform and the need to protect citizens from random acts of terrorism will create a massive financial burden on Morris County as the Sheriff’s Office adapts to respond to these needs and stated that Morris County tax payers need Freeholders who will look at the tax payers’ bottom line.
Darling referred to herself as a conservative businesswoman and not a politician. She stated that her volunteer efforts in Morris County have been rendered without any expectation of compensation including the many evenings she has spent over the last couple of years visiting Republican clubs throughout the county and getting to know the concerns of the members and their communities, indicating that she has visited each town with an organized club and attended reorganization meetings to meet the leaders in the other towns without clubs meeting regularly.
Darling closed with the indication that she intends to fight for the citizens of Morris County because it is “our home.”
PARSIPPANY — As reported in Parsippany Focus on April 7, Democratic activist and candidate for governor Bill Brennan filed a citizen’s complaint against Parsippany-Troy Hills Mayor James Barberio and Business Administrator Ellen Sandman in Parsippany Municipal Court on Friday, April 7, a move that could result in fourth degree criminal charges against the duo. (Click here to read full story: Criminal Complaints filed against Barberio).
According to the complaint, both defendants were to appear in Morris County Superior Court on Wednesday, April 19 at 11:30 a.m.
Before a complaint is sent to Morris County Superior Court, a probable cause hearing must be heard by a judge. Parsippany Municipal Court determined that they were in conflict and sent the case for probable cause to Morristown Municipal Court.
Bill Brennan stated “My criminal charge in Parsippany has resulted in odd behavior by the municipal court system. Before sending the case to Morristown Municipal Court for a probable cause determination, the Parsippany Municipal Court set a first appearance for the defendants in Superior Court for April 19. This caused media inquiries to the Superior Court regarding status. In response the Superior Court was perplexed because no paperwork had been received from either Parsippany or Morristown.”
Mr. Brennan then asked Parsippany Municipal Court what happened and was told that on April 7 the case was sent to Morristown Municipal Court for a Probable Cause determination.
Morristown Municipal Court is hopelessly conflicted because:
Morristown Planning Board Attorney is John Inglesino;
Morristown Township Attorney, Vij Pawar, represents Barberio (in Carifi vs. Barberio);
Morristown Prosecutor, Robert J. Rudy, III, is partnered with Barberio’s attorney,Vij Pawar (in Carifi vs. Barberio). Mr. Rudy currently serves as the Municipal Prosecutor for the Town of Morristown.
Parsippany Focus called Mr. Pawar on Wednesday, April 19, asking for comment as to why the Probable Cause hearing was scheduled for Morristown Municipal Court on Thursday, April 20, when it is clearly a conflict of interest. Mr. Pawar did not return our call.
Parsippany Focuscalled the Morristown Court Clerk on Thursday, April 20, and was advised the case has been sent back to Parsippany Municipal Clerk for further determination.
Despite these conflicts, the Morristown Municipal Court held onto the charge from April 10 until April 20 when they “discovered” these conflicts.
Mr. Brennan stated “This delay appears to be a calculated maneuver to buy time for the Mayor and Council. Both Morristown judges violated the Judicial Code of Conduct by delaying a case on behalf of the defendants under the misguided notion that somehow modifying a salary ordinance after the hiring and payment of employees would mean a crime did not occur. Under Inglesino’s reasoning two employees could be hired as Keyboarding Clerk 1 on New Year’s eve and each receive $48,000 in salary for that day – they could then work on January 2 and each receive another $48,000 in salary for that day and then be laid off. This nonsense is what passes for legal advice in Parsippany – so far the system is failing us again when it comes to Christie’s cronies.”
“On “Planet Inglesino” two keyboarding clerks can legally collect a total of $192,000 by working two days each and the salary range would not be violated. This is absurd.
We are about to see what kind of corrupt judge goes along with such an obvious fallacy,” stated Mr. Brennan in a press release.
Parsippany Focuscontacted Parsippany Municipal Court Administrator Alvaro Leal, who confirmed the case was sent to Morristown Municipal Court for probable cause and was being returned to Parsippany Municipal Court, to be reassigned to yet another Municipal Court Judge for Probable Cause. At this time it was not determined when and where this will happen.
In the meantime, Parsippany-Troy Hills Township Council scheduled an “special” meeting, on April 11, to pass an ordinance to change the White Color Salary Ordinance (Click here to read story: Cover Up Of A Crime? Salary Ordinance Revised; 3-2 Vote on First Reading). Council President Louis Valori, Councilman Michael dePierro and Councilwoman Loretta Gragnani approved the Ordinance on First Reading. Council Vice President Robert Peluso and Councilman Paul Carifi, Jr. voted no.
The Ordinance is on the agenda for the Regular Council meeting to be held on Tuesday, April 25 for final reading and approval.
The Ordinance, #2017:05, shall be retroactive to January 1, 2017 for all employees active on the date of introduction of this ordinance. The salary in this ordinance for Keyboarding Clerk 1 will have a minimum starting salary of $17,000 annually to $55,000 annually. (Note: A copy of the Ordinance was not available to the public during the special meeting, Parsippany Focus obtained a copy through Open Public Records Act (OPRA). Click here to see the complete White Collar Salary ranges.
“I find it kind-of comical that we had to have this special meeting, at the last second, right after this gentlemen who you claim files this bogus claim,” Councilman Paul Carifi told Parsippany Focus. “Again, the mayor hired these people at a higher rate than what the salary ordinance allows. That is a fact. This is a knee-jerk reaction, as usual, by the mayor.”
“I’m voting with my conscience, no,” Council Vice President Robert Peluso said.
Bill Brennan told the Daily Record, “I am beginning a legal campaign against these lawless abusers. Inglesino is my ultimate target. I investigated the perpetrators and started with Inglesino’s cronies, and am working my way up.”
PARSIPPANY — On Thursday, April 20, a recording device was located inside an adult designated faculty bathroom at Littleton School by a school employee.
The device was removed and the Parsippany Police Department was immediately contacted.
After a brief investigation by Detective Marcin Czajka, it was determined that the recording device was capturing footage of the toilet area and was placed there for an undetermined amount of time.
Through the initial investigation, Detective Czajka was able to determine that the recording device was placed there by Christopher Esnes, 40, Gillette, who is employed as a teacher in the school, and was released on his own recognizance pending his court date.
He was placed under arrest by Detective Lieutenant Brian Dowd and Detective Marcin Czajka and processed at Parsippany Police Headquarters. He was charged on a Complaint-Summons with Invasion of Privacy, a third degree crime, and released on his own recognizance pending his court date. At the current time, no footage involving a juvenile has been found. This incident is still under investigation by Detective Marcin Czajka.
A Parsippany-Troy Hills School district spokesperson said Esnes has been suspended and has been barred from Littleton and all district properties. Esnes was receiving a salary of $77,914 at the time of his suspension, according to public records.
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.
PARSIPPANY — Congratulations to the Parsippany High School Academic Decathlon (AcDec) Team for 1st Place in the NJ State Competition! To celebrate the team’s achievements the Friends of the Parsippany Library hosted a pizza party in Teen Central on April 13. The staff and Friends of the Parsippany Library would like to wish the team the best of luck in Madison, Wisconsin to compete in the National Competition April 20-22. This is their 5th state championship. Overall, the Parsippany High School team took home more than 70 awards and honors for the regional competition.
Academic Decathalon President, Rohan Khajuria thanked the library “It means a lot to all of us when people recognize all of the hard work we put into the club. We’re also very grateful to the library for providing us with so many resources to study.”
PARSIPPANY — Members of the Morris County Multi-Organ Transplant Group held a special meeting on March 8 with guest speaker Joe Roth, New Jersey Sharing Network CEO. Mr. Roth spoke about the organization’s 2016 accomplishments.
Organ transplantation is a vital lifesaving tool. Over 118,000 men and women across the country are on the organ donor wait list according to the United Network for Organ Sharing.
Mr. Roth spoke about advancements in organ transplantation and statistics on donation, transplants performed. 2016 was a record breaking year for NJ Sharing Network as NJSN celebrates its 30th anniversary. During 2016, NJSN helped make 613 organ transplants possible, broken down into 138 liver, 24 pancreas, 299 kidney, 70 heart and 82 lung transplants. This represents a 15% increase from 2015 figures.
Members of the MCMOTG have had kidney, heart, liver, lung, pancreas and tissue/bone transplants, are on the wait list, have donated as well as family. Members live in Parsippany, Morristown, Morris Township, Boonton, Denville, Chatham and Lake Hopatcong.
The group’s next meeting is Wednesday, May 3 in the Community Room in the Parsippany Police Complex.
PARSIPPANY — Solix, Inc., a best-in-class provider of program and process management, regulatory compliance and customer care services for businesses and government agencies throughout the United States, announced Eric Storey has been appointed senior vice president and chief sales officer reporting to Solix CEO Jack Miller. Solix is located at 30 Lanidex Plaza West.
