Columns/Opinions

With less than three weeks to go until Election Day, and with two contested local elections on this year’s ballot – five candidates are vying for three seats on the Township Council and four candidates are in the running for two Board of Education positions – we want to remind residents to pay attention to the candidates and issues.

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We are currently halfway through National Newspaper Week, which runs from October 7 through 13, and we wanted to say “thank you” to all who read our paper. Of course, great journalism is found both in print and online (and the Tribune is available in both formats), but we are happy we live in a town that largely values the tactile feel of holding a physical paper in their hands as they consume the weekly news. To us, and to many others, there is nothing quite like it.

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On Tuesday evening, representatives of Essex County presented preliminary plans for the improvements of Livingston’s Riker Hill Art Park, located off Beaufort Avenue. The 42-acre complex was purchased from the federal government for one dollar in 1974. The buildings, which once housed army facilities, have been transformed into 38 artist studios which are greatly in need of refurbishing. Last January, the county held a forum to seek residents’ input for the site, and this week’s meeting was a result of the suggestions made in January.

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The Livingston Fire Department will once again celebrate the beginning of National Fire Prevention Week with its annual Open House at its South Livingston Avenue headquarters on Sunday, October 7, from 1 to 5 p.m. We encourage all residents to attend and learn more about the people who keep them safe and how to better keep themselves out of harm’s way.

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It is that time of year again. The leaves are beginning to change, the air is a bit crisper, and everything from coffee to hand soap has the faint smell of pumpkin spice. We are talking, of course, about flu season.

While seasonal influenza viruses are detected year-round, they are most common in the fall and winter. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, everyone older than six months should get a flu vaccine every “flu season” to help prevent the contraction and spread of the virus.

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It's election season again. In these turbulent times, with everyone seeming to have an intense feeling about politics and politicians, we all seem to be more fixated on candidates and issues than ever before. Livingston is fortunate to have contested elections this year for both the Township Council – five candidates for three seats – and the Board of Education, which has four hopefuls for two openings.

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Next Monday, September 24, is National Family Eat Together Day, when loved ones are asked to celebrate by sitting down and sharing a meal. Something that used to seemingly be so simple, having dinner together as a family, gets harder to organize with each passing year, as the demands we put on ourselves continue to mount. From sports practices to religious groups for children, to late nights at work for the adults, finding an hour to spend together each day can be challenging. This day asks us all to put our busy lives on the back burner for a short period of time and take a seat at the table, together.

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As highlighted by the Township Council earlier this month, September is National Preparedness Month and we encourage residents to be prepared for potential emergencies.

This is the time of year when Mother Nature sometimes decides to take summer out with a bang by way of hurricanes, or even, in recent years, a freak autumn snowstorm. Aside from some rain, we just avoided the worst of Hurricane Florence; though many further south were not so lucky. In recent years New Jersey has faced its share of catastrophic storms, from Hurricane Irene to superstorm Sandy, and with more than two months left in the Atlantic hurricane season, we are not out of the woods just yet this year.

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The Livingston First Aid Squad (LFAS), which is opening its annual fund drive, is in need of support. It is important for residents and business owners to realize that the township’s First Aid Squad is an all-volunteer organization. Its 26 active members are not paid. They are our neighbors and friends, who donate countless hours to be there for us during emergency medical situations, as well as provide many other supports and services to the community. The organization recently sent out its 2018-19 donation request letter. Residents should look for it in their mailboxes this week and seriously consider helping to support this priceless asset to our town.

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This coming week, we mark the 17th anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. With the fall of the World Trade Center, the crash of Flight 93, and the attack on the Pentagon, our nation was changed forever. Overnight, our country’s confidence in the security of its citizens and its institutions was shaken to its core, and nothing has been the same since.

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