News

Livingston Boy Scout Troop 12 held its first outdoor Eagle Court of Honor on Sunday, November 15, for Eagle Scout Jayson Melhorn.

Melhorn had received his Eagle Scout rank, the highest rank attainable in Scouting, in December of 2019. His Eagle project was to raise funds for, and purchase, three defibrillators, which were presented to the Township Council for the Tevlin Fields and for the Police Department. He had worked with the Horowitz Foundation to obtain the defibrillators.

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At the Monday, November 23, meeting of the Livingston Township Council, members discussed a nearly $2 million appropriation to cover COVID-19-related deficits, and again held open a mixed-use housing ordinance, among otherbusiness. The meeting was held virtually and may be seen on the Livingston Township, NJ Facebook page.

During the public comment portion of the meeting, resident Alyse Berger Heilpern asked the Council what could be done by the Council to curb the spread of COVID-19, particularly in regard to working with the school district.

As of Tuesday morning, November 24, the Livingston Health Department has reported that a total of 842 Livingston residents have tested positive for COVID-19 since the first case was recorded in mid-March. 74 of those residents have died as a result of the virus. Compared to the same time last week, there are 63 new cases, with no additional deaths. In the past month, there have been 237 cases.

Governor Phil Murphy cautioned residents to have small holiday gatherings due to the pandemic, to prevent further spread of the virus.

“16,500 families will have empty spaces at their Thanksgiving tables this year because of COV1D-19,” he said. “The last we want is for anyone’s Thanksgiving to lead to empty spots in their homes for the celebrations to come. Plan for a small gathering. Be safe and smart.”

CAMUSO DISPLAY: A shed, loaned by the Little League to the Camuso committee for storage use for the holiday display, is moved, as Camuso “elves” prepare to soon open the display. The lights on the display will turn on beginning on the evening of Saturday, December 5, and will remain on every night (weather permitting) through January 2. Lights typically turn on at 5 p.m. and remain on until 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and until 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. On Christmas Eve, Christmas, and New Year’s Day, the lights will remain on until 11 p.m. “So far everything is going exactly as planned,” Camuso “Elf” Tom Cooney said. “The Committee turnout for set up has been absolutely tremendous, with masks worn and some unexpected help from Mother Nature. As promised, the layout is slightly different, designed to help deter large groups from meeting in the walkways.

Livingston Philanthropies Inc. (LPI) has issued an emergency appeal this week. Founder and director Jeff Friedman said, “We are reaching out for immediate help. The pandemic is causing massive and increasing homelessness, extreme poverty and deadly despair just minutes away from Livingston.”
Long food lines have popped up all over Newark, he said. “Parents living below the poverty line find themselves waiting, each day, to feed their families adequate or sometimes Spartan meals. Then, it’s on to the next food pantry for yet another queue.”
Through Livingston Philanthropies, which is now in its tenth season of operation in town, Livingston residents can reach out immediately to help.
“Here’s how to help right now,” Friedman said. “You can send a tax-deductible contribution to LPI, P.O. Box 247, Livingston, NJ 07039 or go to paypal.me/lpinj to empower LPI to purchase food, toiletries, diapers, coats, gloves, scarves, hats, masks and more.

Livingston High School theater students will present the ancient Greek tragedies Oedipus and Antigone by Sophocles next weekend. The production, director by theater teacher Scott Patteson, will feature modern adaptations of the plays by Ian Finley.

The production will take place on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, November 19, 20, and 21, at 5 p.m. each day, outdoors in front ofthe high school, Patteson explained. “The school’s main entrance is literally part of our set.”

Livingston was lit up with oil lamps, fireworks, traditional food and sweets, decorated homes and socially distanced celebrations this past weekend in observance of Diwali, the Indian festival of lights. Men, women and children donned traditional fancy Indian attire, and safe individual fireworks were set off in driveways and private roads.

“Diwali, also known as the festival of lights, is the most popular holiday in India,” explains Fal Pandya, who participated in the celebrations. “Diwali means rows of oil lamps made with clay. People from all four indigenous religions of India Hindus, Sikhs, JaMs and Buddhists — came together this past weekend to celebrate Diwali, a spiritual triumph of good over evil, light over darkness, and knowledge over ignorance.”

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Livingston Public Schools (LPS) last week launched a COVID-19 Dashboard. It displays a two-week summary of the number of school staff and students who have tested positive or have been required to quarantine as a result of recent cases. Also reported are 14-day building closures.

Information on the dashboard include both students and staff, and is broken down by school.

Matthew Block, the school district superintendent, said that the database will be updated periodically to help keep the community informed about the impact that COVID-19 is having on Livingston’s schools.

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One suspect has been arrested after an attempt to steal two vehicles out of a township driveway, Livingston Police said.

At 2:42 a.m. on Wednesday, November 11, a Ross Road resident called 9-1-1 to report that two people were in his driveway and trying to steal two SUVs, a Mercedes and a GMC. A key for each car had been left in the GMC.

Livingston Police Sergeant John Maggiulli was the first to arrive and observed both vehicles idling in the street. The sergeant pulled in front of the Mercedes, blocking its path. The GMC then reversed, made a Kturn, and fled towards South Orange Avenue.

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The COVID-19 Grinch will not steal this Christmas tradition. The Camuso Holiday Display, for years a beloved Livingston holiday tradition, will open this year, despite earlier doubt that the pandemic would put a lid on it.

“The decision to set up this year was not an easy one,” said “Chief Elf’ Tom Cooney. “There were clearly two sides to the issue. Many felt that, if ever the community needed something positive to boost spirits, this would be the time, and the Camuso Display fits the bill perfectly. Others suggested the risks to our volunteer group and visitors may warrant tak-ing a year off.”

Following a series of discussions, emails, and Zoom calls among the volunteer “Elves,” and consultations with town officials and medical experts, the Camuso Holiday Committee members decided to go ahead and set up the display.