|
What
do you think of Fair Lawn News? With the
increasing lack of Fair Lawn coverage by the Bergen Record and even
the Shopper Newspaper, I believe that Fair Lawn residents need
additional sources for the dissemination of information and the
exchange of ideas. Fair
Lawn News helps to fill that need and that, in my opinion makes it
worthwhile.
Who
are you supporting for President in 2004?
While
there is no elected official with whom I agree on all issues, I look
for honesty, integrity, decency, and leadership when I decide how to
vote for elected officials. Since
I believe he has demonstrated all of these traits as our President,
assuming President Bush decides to seek reelection, I will be
supporting George W. Bush for President in 2004.
Name
three people who should be in Fair Lawn’s Hall of Fame
Fair
Lawn Police Officer Mary Ann Collura together with all the uniformed
men & women and volunteers who respond to our calls on a moments
notice and who protect us, our lives, our loved ones and our
property including, but not limited to all past and present Fair
Lawn police officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians,
ambulance drivers, rescue squad and heavy rescue squad members; and,
of course all the members of the armed forces from Fair Lawn who
have
sacrificed
so much for us.
All
the Fair Lawn victims and survivors of personal and public tragedies
whether it be personal
health
difficulties or those affected by the terrorist acts of September
11, 2001.
All
the “regular” people of Fair Lawn, past and present
- people who have given or who continue to give their time
and talents as they do the so many different things, day in and day
out, year after year, and throughout their lives that need to be
done in helping to make Fair Lawn a better place in which we all can
live and work. They
have names like Mort, Martha, Nick, Vivian, Lew, Joanne, Flossie,
Mary, John, Diane and on and on.
We all know them. They
do what they do without the necessity of photo ops, expectation of
proclamations or concern for who gets credit.
They, the “givers” should be in the Fair Lawn Hall of
Fame.
|
What
do you think of Fair Lawn News? I think
Fair Lawn News is the best source of news about the community.
Who
are you supporting for President in 2004?
I’m still looking over the Democratic field.
I’m not supporting President Bush, that’s for sure.
Name
three people who should be in Fair Lawn’s Hall of Fame:
Daniel
A. Rothermel. Dan
Rothermel, who now lives in Pompton Plains, was a long-time Radburn
resident and served 31 years as the guidance counselor, Vice
Principal and Principal of Fair Lawn High School.
He was honored this summer at a joint reunion of the FLHS
classes of 1966, 1967 and 1968. He made Fair Lawn High into one of the great public schools
in New Jersey. During
the years 1965 to 1975, while he was principal, FLHS had 53 students
score perfect 800s on their SATs, a record never repeated in any
other community during any time period.
We also had a great athletic program.
During Dan Rothermel’s tenure the Fair Lawn Cutters had
numerous undefeated seasons, thanks in part to Bruce Jankowski, who
went on to play with Ohio State and the NFL.
(Gordon)
Albert
Rosen, M.D..
Dr. Rosen, it seems, was everyone’s pediatrician.
For thousands of kids in Fair Lawn, he was the doctor who
helped us (and our mothers) through the illnesses of childhood.
Visiting Dr. Rosen’s office on Fair Lawn Avenue was always
a treat. In his
backyard he had pet goats and all sorts of exotic animals.
It was like a small version of the Catskill Game Farm.
Dr. Rosen and his late wife, Shirley, were also avid hikers.
They climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in East Africa and most of the
major peaks on the East Coast. In his spare time, Dr. Rosen wrote a book on medical care for
hikers. He also was
the driving force behind the pediatrics program at Valley Hospital. (Gordon)
Florence
(Flossie) Dobrow.
Flossie was first elected to the Borough Council in 1974, and
served on Fair Lawn’s governing body until 2001.
She held elective office longer than any other woman in New
Jersey history. She had
a profound impact on the community and on all who served with her,
myself included. She
was my political mentor when I first got involved in politics.
She oversaw the creation and building of the Senior Center,
she upgraded Fair Lawn’s utilities and recreational facilities,
was the catalyst for the River Road project and the municipal
beautification effort and, as the town’s representative to the
Community Development program, brought millions of federal dollars
into the Borough. (Gordon)
|
What
do you think of Fair Lawn News? I think it is a
valuable contribution to the people of Fair Lawn and I commend and
thank all who make it possible.
Who
are you supporting for President in 2004?
I prefer to take
elections like I take my days: One at a time, thank you very much.
Ask me in 2004 and I might know who I "support" in
terms of whether or not I am going to campaign for anyone, but by
the time election day rolls around the debates may change my mind
and I might vote for someone else. Isn’t that how it is supposed
to work?
Name
three people who should be in Fair Lawn’s Hall of Fame:
Fair
Lawn has an existing hall of fame.
Unfortunately, it preserves the memory of more than just
three of Fair Lawn’s sons. Therefore, for purposes of this
question I will treat the group as one person, for they are one in
spirit and united by a common death. Its an outdoor "hall"
known commonly as "memorial" in reference to the pool,
park, and a school near a small circle of a road where their names
can be seen on humble stones mounted with brass name plates
surrounding the flag of our Nation. Their names are read out loud
every year to honor and remember their lives, their loved ones left
behind, and the sacrifices made by both. It happens in May. We
call it Memorial Day. The words that adorn the entrance to Arlington
National Cemetery tell us all that needs to be said about the
contributions these Fair Lawn residents made to our community,
State, and Nation:
"Not
for fame or reward, not for place or rank, not lured by ambition or
goaded by necessity, but in simple obedience to duty as they
understood it, these men suffered all, sacrificed all, dared all and
died."
As
for the second person I nominate for this question it is chillingly
obvious and I need not elaborate: Officer Mary Ann Collura must be
listed for going where no Fair Lawn woman dared go before - on
patrol for Fair Lawn’s finest. She too, in simple obedience to
duty, sacrificed all for the community she loved.
Third
for this list but in no way second to anyone, I nominate former
Mayor and Councilwoman Florence Dobrow. She withstood the thankless
job of serving on the Borough Council for over two decades.
If only she were still willing ... because Fair Lawn is suffering
from lack of diversity.
There
are no women serving on the Counsel now, and none on the local
political horizon. No women in Fair Lawn politics to take a
stand against what Michael More might have had in mind when he named a
book "Stupid White Men ... and Other Sorry Excuses for the
State of the Nation" [a reference not to the lack of
any individual’s intelligence, but rather a treatise on malfeasance
and mediocrity at all levels of modern American politics].
We
need Flossie in our hall of fame to encourage our sisters,
wives, and daughters to jump into the political fray with both
feet pedaling and give the "good ‘ole boyz [sic]" a run
for their money. Or should I say a run from the money? I
think Flossie deserves a place in Fair Lawn’s virtual hall of
fame. Her intellect, influence, and commanding
presence over the years kept most who served with her far far
away from those profiteers in State and County government and
political back rooms who more properly belong in a hall of shame.
|
