Livingston news

Ruth Namer died on January 8, 2021 at the age of 96.

She was born in Brooklyn, New York, on September 24, 1924. In 1985, she moved to Coconut Creek, Florida, and lived at Wynmoore. She moved to Livingston five years ago to be with her family.

Ruth was the beloved wife of the late Isaac Namer; loving mother to Jeffrey and Brandi Namer and Helene and Lenny Kesselman; adoring Nana of Martin Kesselman, Jennifer and Joe Godsy, Amanda and Joe Ballance; and loving Great-Nana to Ellie and Brayden Kesselman, Bryce and Brielle Ballance, and Whitney and Talia Godsy.

She will be forever in our hearts and memories.

Herbert Allen Overbaugh, 87, of Livingston, passed away on Thursday, January 14, 2021.

Born in Newark, Herbert resided in Livingston for the past 40 years. He was a graduate of Irvington High School, Class of 1952, and later enlisted and served proudly in the U.S. Army from 1954 to 1957. After his honorable discharge, he was employed by the Bergen County Department ofHealth, where he worked as a Health Officer, until his retirement in 1998.

Herbert was predeceased by his beloved wife, Agnes. He is survived by his loving sons, Christopher (Sue) and David, as well as his sister Nancy Klinghoffer, and his nephews, William and Daniel Shumsky.

Due to COVID-19, all services were private, with a possible memorial service to be held in the future. Arrangements have been entrusted to Quinn-Hopping Funeral Home, Livingston.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to charity of your choice.

We also wish to remind residents that the world is not their trash can, specifically when it comes to discarded masks and gloves. The amount of PPE we have seen on the ground in the past year is disgusting and disheartening. We cannot imagine that so many residents would carelessly throw these items to the ground, for someone else to clean or simply remain as litter for years. As neighbors of ShopRite, we see it firsthand every day, and as the months have gone on, the masks and gloves have continued to be discarded pretty much everywhere but in the garbage.

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Last Thursday, Livingston Township officials hosted a vaccine forum, an online discussion that allowed residents to ask questions about the vaccination process. It was informative and conducted efficiently. Credit is due to all who spoke during the more than hour-long panel for answering many of the queries that concerned residents had about the COVID-19 vaccines, and the pandemic at large. In a time where misinformation about vaccines is running rampant, having our community leaders directly answer questions is a terrific way to combat distrust and confusion.

Livingston Philanthropies, Inc. (LPI) founder and director Jeff Friedman has noted that the non-profit organization’s “Personal Shopping/Shipping for the Homeless” initiative is continuing to thrive.
As an example, he notes that, after learning about the “Personal Shopping/Shipping for the Homeless” program, Robert Waldron, operations manager at Gilbane Building Company in Newark, decided to get involved.
“I know of LPI, as I lived in Living-ston for my entire life before moving to Roseland a few years ago,” Waldron said. “So every week I read the LPI articles in the West Essex Tribune.”
Waldron recounted, “The company I work for has been in Newark for about a year and half, and earlier this year we did something directly with St. John’s Soup Kitchen and Food Pantry in Newark (a long-time LPI distribution partner). When a few of us sat down a couple of weeks ago to review what we would do next, I suggested LPI.” 

As of Wednesday morning, January 13, the Livingston Health Department has reported that a total of 1,288 Livingston residents have tested positive for COVID-19 since the first case was recorded in mid-March. 82 of those residents have died as a result of the virus. Compared to the same time last week, there are 76 new cases, with no additional deaths. In the past month, there have been 274 cases.

More than 219,000 New Jersey residents have received their first vaccination dose, while more than 24,000 of those individuals have received their second dose as of Wednesday morning.

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The West Essex YMCA, currently located at 321 South Livingston Avenue, may move to a nearby location — right across the street — where it could build a new, larger facility. Currently, the property is the site of Grace Lutheran Church, which is expected to move if a deal is completed.

The general concept for the proposed new YMCA, as well as the location of the church property at 304 South Livingston Avenue, was expected to be presented to the neighboring properties during an informal community Zoom meeting this week after the press deadline. The YMCA was also discussed by the Township Council and township attorneys in closed session at Monday’s regular meeting.

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Julian Daren Steinberg, who was born to Jennifer and Ricky Steinberg of 315 Cider Mill Court, is the winner of the Tribune’s 63rd annual First Baby Contest.

The little boy was born on January 4 at 9 p.m. at New York Presbyterian Alexandra Cohen Hospital in Manhattan, weighing seven pounds, 13 ounces.

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The Township Council held its first regular meeting of 2021 on Monday, January 11, during which the Essex County clerk was issued a proclamation and the first resolutions of the New Year were passed. The meeting was livestreamed and may be viewed on the Livingston Township, NJ Facebook page.

At the start of the Council meeting, Mayor Shawn Klein made a statement condemning the “hateful and seditious act at the Capitol,” and held a moment of silence for the officer, a New Jersey native, “who died protecting the Capitol from insurrection.” An additional statement was later issued by the entire Council and may be seen elsewhere in this edition of the Tribune.

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As the district completes two weeks of all-remote learning following the winter break, the Livingston Board ofEducation meeting on January 11 focused on the resumption of hybrid school, with students learning some days from home and some days in the classroom, in the face of a significant drop of in-person students since Thanksgiving. The meeting was held on Zoom and is posted on the school district’s Facebook page.

The meeting was held specifically to elicit feedback prior to a final draft of the district plan, Board president Sam Messer said. “I’m thrilled to see the level of engagement that we have tonight,” she said. “The purpose of the meeting is so we can engage in some creative, collaborative problem solving.”

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