News

Summer officially arrives on Saturday, June 21, and Livingston pools are ready. Above, first year lifeguard Michael Battista is on duty during opening day at the Haines municipal pool.

The Livingston Volunteer Fire Department opened its annual fund-raising campaign this week with the mailing of solicitation letters. Although the township pays for the heavy equipment, such as the engines shown above, the volunteer firefighters bear the cost of uniforms, replacement of personal gear, education for the community and scholarships to LHS seniors as well as communication equipment and other expenses.

The Livingston High School Class of 2014 will become graduates tomorrow afternoon, Friday, June 20, at 3:30 p.m. at the high school field. An anticipated 463 students will receive their diplomas. Valedictorian Kevin Kwok and salutatorian Helen Chen will address their fellow graduates at the school’s graduation ceremony.

 

Livingston's 78th annual July 4 celebration will include activities throughout the day. The annual fireworks display will be held on Friday evening. In case of rain, the fireworks will be presented the following day, Saturday, July 5. In case of inclement weather, a decision will be made by 2 p.m. whether to resechedule. A message will be left on 973-535-7925.

The Livingston Board of Education will look very different over the next months as two members announced that they will be leaving. Dr. David Jasin and Leslie Winograd are each moving out of Livingston, Board president Barry Funt announced on June 16. Their last meeting will be July 16.

Held its annual India Fest on Sunday, June 8, on the grounds of the West Essex YMCA. This colorful cultural celebration featured Indian food and drink, handicrafts and clothes, children's games, dance and music.

The Livingston High School athletic department, in conjunction with the Super Essex Conference and the Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center, have announced that Lancer junior swimmer, Jocelyn Wang, has beenselected as the Best Teammate of the Year by the administration at LHS. This second year program has taken off within the SEC, with each member school recognizing one student athlete who exemplifies outstanding teammate qualities while competing on his or her high school athletic team. The Livingston High School athletic program has developed this program even further, by recognizing one "Best Teammate" from each of their 29 athletic programs. Each recipient received an award recognizing his or her selection at the seasonal sports awards program.

The lifeguards of the Livingston Community Pools participated in an organizational meeting on Monday, June 2, at the Mervyn V.T. Haines Community Pool. Lifeguards shown above include Anthony Vitale, manager, Mark Silvestri, Emily Verniero, Lindsay Anderson, Lauren DelTurco, John Silvestri, Kyle Dailey, Christine Werner, German Valdez, Stephen Silvestri and manager Richard Shue. The Mervyn V.T. Haines Community Pool will open on Saturday, June 14.

A closely regulated and limited sale of beer will be permitted this year at the July 4 celebration at the Livingston Oval. By a 4-1 vote, with councilwoman Deborah Shapiro dissenting, the Township Council voted on Monday evening to permit the sale as a one-time experiment. Several residents urged the Council to reconsider the plan. Livingston Municipal Alliance Committee (LMAC) chairwoman Debbie Lindner said she was disappointed that the Council had not conferred with LMAC about the plan. "I am not a prohibitionist," Lindner told the Council, "I'm a preventionist." Calling the proposal "risky," Lindner said that the organizers cannot control the drinking that might occur before the patrons arrived at the July 4 venue. "I worry about people who don't appear to be drunk leaving and going home to be abusive to their families," she added.