Livingston Tribune

At the end of the first regular meeting of the Livingston Township Council in 2019, mayor Al Anthony announced the threecandidates chosen by the Livingston Democratic Committee to replace Michael Silverman, who resigned from his position on the Council at the start of the new year.The three nominees are Michael Vieira, Laurie Kahn, and Scott Goldman. Kahn and Goldman were both in the audience at Monday’s meeting when the announcement was made.

The Township Council must now select one of those three candidates before the end of the month, otherwise the decision will fall to the county. The Council may conduct interviews with the three candidates and deliberate before they make their selection. Anthony said the Council hopes to have a decision by the January 28 regular meeting.

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Former Livingston resident Dorothy May Young Laughlan died January 4 in Victoria, British Columbia. She was 81 years old.

Predeceased by her husband of 48 years, Edward Laughlan, she was the mother of Jennifer (John Quish) of Toronto, Ontario; Kevin (Sandra) of Leesburg, Florida; Owen (Shannon) of Arnprior, Ontario; and Sheila (Steve Ramsey) of Victoria; the sister of Kathleen Murphy (late Robert) of Vernon Hills, Illinois; Patricia Ambio (Raymond) of Roseland; and Theresa Foley (late Robert) of Lake Hopatcong. She is also survived by three grandchildren.

Mrs. Laughlan was born at home in Union and grew up in Livingston. In June 1964, she married and lived for several years in Oxford. In 1969, she moved with her family to Lakefield, Ontario, where they lived for 23 years. She and her husband moved to Victoria after retiring in the early 1990s.

Livingston’s veterans organizations will honor two Livingston residents, Don Schwartz and Nick Santinelli, with the Chapel of the Four Chaplains Legion of Honor Award.

First Baby Contest Winner:

Matthew James Semplenski, born January 3, is Livingston’s First Baby of 2019 and the winner of the Tribune’s annual First Baby Contest. The baby was born at Saint Barnabas Medical Center to Frank and Marissa Semplenski of 174 East Cedar Street. He weighed seven pounds, 13 ounces at birth, and was 20¾ inches long. He joins two sisters, Emma, 7½, and Mia, 21 months. David and Donna Semplenski are the baby’s paternal grandparents, and the maternal grandparents are Marian Perna and Anthony and Donna Aulisi.

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Pam Chirls and Ronnie Konner were sworn in at the Board of Education’s re-organization meeting on Monday, January 7 in front of a packed audience.

However, the conflict surrounding the contested campaign and election has not ended.

Buddy August, who had served as vice president the previous year, was unanimously elected Board president. “I do very quick meetings,” August said to good-natured chuckles from the audience.

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SOUTH MOUNTAIN BASKETBALL CLASSIC: The Livingston High School varsity, junior varsity, and freshman boys’ basketball teams played against Millburn in the South Mountain Reservation Basketball Classic. The “triple header” was held at Millburn High School on Saturday, January 5. The varsity Lancers won, 51-42, while the J.V. and the freshman teams lost, 41-30 and 53-49, respectively. Lancer freshman forward Brandon Kenney, #14, scores on a fast break against the Millburn defense.

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Following the formal resignation of councilman Michael Silverman on January 1, the Livingston Democratic Committee must, within 15 days of that resignation, select three nominees to fill the vacant seat. We are inching closer to that first hurdle; with a Township Council meeting scheduled for next Monday, January 14, we expect to hear more about those nominees at that time. The seat must then be filled by January 30, and the newlyselected Council member will hold the position through 2019. A selection of a candidate to fill the remainder of the term, one year, will be determined through an election this coming November.

MUTUAL AID CALL IN EAST HANOVER: Members of the Livingston Fire Department (LFD) went on a mutual aid call to East Han over on January 4, from 7:30 to 11 p.m., shown here. LFD personnel assisted East Hanover firefighters with fire suppression and overhaul at a major fire on Kimble Avenue in that community, which resulted in the death of two people. Earlier that evening, Livingston firefighters had responded to a general alarm at Care One Assisted Living, 76 Passaic Avenue, set off by a smoke condition and burning odor in the facility’s kitchen area. It was determined that the odor and smoke had been caused by an electrical short in the oven hood system. There was no fire, although fire officials had to vent the kitchen area. Rob Munson Photo

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With profound sadness, we mourn the loss of our sister, Rosemarie, 79, our family hero.

Although she was born with spina bifida, an experimental newborn spine fusion surgery in 1940 miraculously extended her life span and quality.

Rosemarie was a Mount Saint Dominic Academy Scholar who, in the face of continued medical needs, completed her GED at home. Rosemarie was hired in the male-dominated electronics field, in a wheelchair, in the late 1950s at Chatham Electronics.

She courageously pursued her quest for independence in a wheelchairable world. Her legal pursuit of public transportation, and for businesses to accept her wheelchairable legs as readily as they accepted those of the non-disabled person, made her a foundational activist for the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) in 1973.

The Livingston High School boys’ varsity track and field team was back on the track at the Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex in Staten Island on January 2 to compete against the fastest teams in Essex County. The Lancers came home with two medals and a new school record, and the Lancers, noted coach Nancy Petryna, “continued to show improvement in their speed, strength and endurance as they entered the championship portion of the season.”