Central Jersey Bank to collect donations for Haiti

By Zach Levine

People in the local community who are looking to help the earthquake victims of Haiti are now able to make donations at any one of Central Jersey Bank’s 13 branch offices in Monmouth and Ocean counties, including the bank’s Belmar office at 611 Main St.

Central Jersey Bank has established an account for donations through the American Red Cross, and all bank offices will be accepting donations through Friday, Feb. 12.

Belmar’s branch manager of Central Jersey Bank, John J. Gambardella, said the day following the earthquake in Haiti, all of Central Jersey Bank’s offices began their fundraising efforts.

“Right after the quake, we put up signs in the branch telling people that we will start taking monetary donations,” he said.

As of right now, the bank is solely collecting monetary donations, which will then be combined with the 12 other local Central Jersey Bank offices and subsequently donated to the American Red Cross.

“In lieu of the tough economic conditions, any monetary donations would be appreciated,” he said.

Jill Cramer, head teller at Belmar’s Central Jersey Bank, will be spearheading the fundraising drive at the Belmar location.

Mr. Gambardella, who is also Belmar’s Chamber of Commerce president, added he was glad his bank and its customers have the opportunity to help out with the Haiti relief effort.

“We’re excited about this fundraising drive,” he said, adding the employees at the bank were also looking forward to helping those who suffered through the catastrophic earthquake.

“When you look at the scope of this natural disaster; the country is devastated. To see the pictures of people in the rubble is heart wrenching,” added Nancy Malinconico, senior vice-president of Central Jersey Bank.

Customers may donate cash or by check in any of the bank’s branch offices and all checks should be made payable to the American Red Cross Haiti Relief Fund.

Central Jersey Bank has offices in Belmar, Bradley Beach, Little Silver, Long Branch [at 444 Ocean Blvd. North and 627 Second Ave.], Manasquan, Neptune City, Ocean Grove, Ocean Township, Point Pleasant, Sea Girt, Spring Lake Heights and Wall Township.

A complete listing of bank office addresses can be found under “Hours and Locations,” on the bank’s Web site, www.cjbna.com.

“Even though Haiti is not our community, we are all human beings and our hearts go out to these poor souls. Our customers have been very charitable when it comes to things like this,” Ms. Malinconico said.

Monetary donations collected during the fundraiser will be used to purchase food, water and medical supplies.

More Belmar news, plus full coverage of southern Monmouth and northern Ocean counties, can be found at starnewsgroup.com.

Tourism Commission announces ‘Buy in Belmar’ contest winners

By Zach Levine

During last Wednesday’s Belmar Borough Council meeting, the borough’s tourism commission director, Mary Brabazon, gave a special presentation honoring the winners of the 2009 “Buy in Belmar” contest.

For the contest, local residents were asked to shop in as many of the borough’s stores and restaurants as possible.

Participants were then asked to save their receipts, and the people who were found to have shopped in the most stores during the holiday season would win four, full-season 2010 beach badges for Belmar beaches.

This was the second year the contest took place throughout the borough. Receipts could be used from any local place of business — not including alcohol, tobacco or fuel.

The overall event took place from the Friday following Thanksgiving until Thursday, Dec. 31. Participants then had until Wednesday, Jan. 6 to compile all of their receipts and bring them to the tourism commission office located at borough hall.

Coming in first place in the contest were Wendy and Steve Baker of Belmar. Together, they shopped at a whopping 94 stores throughout the local area, and presented their receipts in a neatly crafted color coated binder. The Bakers received four beach badges for the 2010 beach season to honor their victory.

In second place were Christine and Dennis Coughlin, of Belmar, who also placed in the top three during last year’s contest. The Coughlins shopped at 86 different Belmar locations, and received three 2010 beach badges.

Janis Blackburn and Harry Ashcroff, of Belmar, placed in third after shopping at 48 stores, and they received two 2010 season beach badges. Jean Roddy, another repeat winner from Belmar, placed fourth with 41 different stores visited, and Maria Biocca of Belmar placed fifth with purchases from 36 different stores. Ms. Roddy and Ms. Biocca each received one season beach badge for the 2010 year.

Ms. Brabazon said after tallying the final receipt totals, she thought it was remarkable the Bakers were able to shop in 94 unique locations throughout Belmar in order to win the contest.

“It’s incredible,” she said. “Really it’s surprising for some local residents to see we have that many stores in the borough.”

Ms. Brabazon added though the Bakers still shopped at a majority of the stores throughout the borough, she still found the couple missed a few stores in town. She said after speaking with numerous business owners throughout the community, they thought the contest was a huge success.

“I’ve spoken to a couple of business owners who said they had a few people come to their stores just for the contest, unaware that they even existed,” she said.

Ms. Brabazon said in regard to local eateries, many of the people who took part in the contest bought gift cards to the respective restaurants, thereby allowing others outside the borough to come to the Shore area and sample some of Belmar’s fine dining.

“The restaurants and retail stores really appreciated what we did,” she said. “In this current economic climate, anything we can do really helps them out.”

She said she was quite pleased to see so many people participate this year, as well, adding the tourism commission will hold the contest again in 2010.

“We had significantly more people participate this year than last year,” she said. “It really gets you excited about shopping in the borough.”

More Belmar news, plus full coverage of southern Monmouth and northern Ocean counties, can be found at starnewsgroup.com.

Belmar Recreation to offer lacrosse classes starting Sun.

By Zach Levine

Starting this Sunday, Jan. 31, children in grades 2 through 4 are encouraged to come out to the Belmar Municipal Gym, at 601 Main St. in Belmar, to work on their lacrosse skills in specialized classes.

Each skills program will be broken down into three parts: passing/catching, stick-work and shooting, and all participants only need lacrosse sticks in order to take part in the clinic.

Girls will have time to practice their lacrosse skills from 2-3 p.m., and boys will then take their turn from 3-4 p.m.

All participants must bring a $5 check per class made payable to the Borough of Belmar.

For more information on the program, please contact program director Tom Reilly at thomas.reilly@citi.com.

Belmar Recreation Director Michael Campbell said Mr. Reilly, as well as his brother, Brian Reilly, run numerous lacrosse classes throughout the Shore area, and he was glad to be able to get Tom Reilly to help out with Belmar’s lacrosse program.

“He was nice enough last year to help us out,” Mr. Campbell said, adding he is also glad to be able to keep the program at such a low cost for families who are looking for new sports for their children to learn.

Mr. Campbell said Brian Reilly holds a similar lacrosse program for pre-teenagers, adding Brian’s program has turned into a feeder program of sorts for high school lacrosse teams around the Shore area.

“Tom’s program goes right into Brian’s, and Brian’s goes right into high school,” Mr. Campbell said. “This lacrosse program is essentially what Pop Warner football has become for high school football.”

Mr. Campbell said in recent years, lacrosse has seen a boom in popularity and it has become one of the more popular sports, on par with baseball and football.

“More and more people are beginning to play lacrosse,” he said. “It’s becoming hugely popular.”

He added the sport has also become increasingly popular with those who play football, as well, as many who play that sport in the fall take to playing lacrosse in the spring.

“A very large portion of football players do lacrosse as well,” Mr. Campbell said. “Both sports have the discipline element, they’re both contact sports, and both focus on hitting the gym.”

Mr. Campbell said all skills clinics offered at the municipal gym will be non-contact, but when the weather gets warmer and the classes move outside, participants in the program will play the sport with helmets, gloves, shoulder pads and goggles.

“There will be less contact, but there will be a lot of running and skill,” he said.

Mr. Campbell said the classes will be held inside the Belmar Municipal Gym until the end of March, and once it is warmer outside, actual lacrosse games will be held at the 12th Avenue Field in Belmar.

He added the sport has become quite popular for girls as well, and it is something which colleges and universities have looked to promote in recent years.

“Colleges are beginning to look at girl’s lacrosse now, and they are very much promoting it,” he said. “It’s good for conditioning, running and a lot of great things.”

Mr. Campbell said one of his favorite parts about the sport is that it keeps all participants involved at all times.

“You’re constantly on the move, going in and out,” he said. “Most of the game is played at full speed, and it keeps up the attention level of both the parents and children.”

More Belmar news, plus full coverage of southern Monmouth and northern Ocean counties, can be found at starnewsgroup.com.

Historical Council to honor Fishing Club’s centennial

By Zach Levine

Those who have visited Belmar Borough Hall may notice two large glass displays in front of the building’s courtroom. Each of these cases features a wide array of borough-related memorabilia, strategically and carefully put together by the Belmar Historical Preservation Council [BHPC].

Upon further inspection, visitors will notice these displays vary every month, and in the upcoming weeks, the displays will feature historical items from one of Belmar’s oldest and most recognized organizations.

Over the course of the next few weeks, the BHPC will be showing off items from its collaboration with members of the Belmar Fishing Club, offering displays that will feature memorabilia to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the formation of the organization.

Inside the cases will include a copy of the newspaper article heralding the dedication of the new Fishing Club building on May 30, 1930; a photo of the building that was the original Fishing Club on that site; a photo of the old building being moved to make room for the new building to be built; the Belmar Fishing Club’s Centennial book and other historic photos.

Naomi Reissner, co-chairperson of the BHPC, explained as the group does not have a home for all of its memorabilia, the BHPC constantly utilizes the displays in the front of borough hall as their own personal museum. She added, however, she was pleased to have an area at borough hall to showcase the history of the Belmar Fishing Club.

She said the displays are situated in a great location, as they can be easily viewed by people entering and leaving borough hall.

“You always have the people coming in and out of borough hall viewing the displays,” she said.

Mrs. Reissner said last year, the Belmar Fishing Club held a gala event for its centennial, and members of the BHPC were able to collect numerous pictures and writings from that event, which are used for the displays in borough hall.

“People had some really nice photos and commemorative CD’s and DVD’s made up, so we took the pictures, made some photo copies, and put them in the nice display case,” she said.

Also on display at borough hall is a book about the history of the Belmar Fishing Club, which was put together by the organization’s members.

“We wanted to bring attention to the nice, hardcover book to local residents,” she said. “Then we threw in some fishing rods and a tackle box into the display case just to give it some character.”

Mrs. Reissner added for those individuals who may have their own personal items relating to the Belmar Fishing Club and want to add those pieces to the display, contact information for the BHPC is available right in the front of the display cases.

“Or if people just want to contact borough hall [732-681-3700], they will forward us the information,” she said.

A similar display was crafted last year by the BHPC to commemorate the upcoming centennial anniversary of the Belmar Elementary School, which was first built in 1910.

Mrs. Reissner said she loves helping out with these projects, as the displays continually provide a way to inform local residents about the history of Belmar.

“We try to promote the history of the town, and certainly a centennial is a big deal,” she said. “Our main goal is to promote history to educate residents.”

More Belmar news, plus full coverage of southern Monmouth and northern Ocean counties, can be found at starnewsgroup.com.

Arts Council announces events

The Belmar Arts Council [BAC] is gearing up for another successful year, and has announced a wide variety of events for the public to enjoy during the first month of 2010.

Unless noted otherwise, all events will take place at the Belmar Arts Council headquarters, 608 River Road, in Belmar.

• To help residents keep track of the BAC’s upcoming events, 2010 calendars are now in stock at the arts council headquarters. Calendars are $10 and are in limited supply.

• Drawing and Beyond: New Session Forming, will take place every Thursday throughout the duration of the month. Contact Lizzie at 732-929-9732 for more information regarding the event.

• The BAC has recently received a grant from the Belmar Tourism Committee to begin the long-awaited Belmar Mural Project. Currently a database of BAC muralists is being put together.

Any muralist interested in taking part in the project should send a resume, samples of work, and any other information to Brenda at Brenda@belmararts.org.

• Children’s painting classes will be taking place every Wednesday throughout February from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

The cost for the program is $125 and painting supplies will be provided. To register, contact the BAC at 732-749-3360.

• The BAC will be continuing their popular monthly movie nights this year as well. A science fiction movie will be shown on Jan. 28.

All movies are free and begin at 7 p.m.

More Belmar news, plus full coverage of southern Monmouth and northern Ocean counties, can be found at starnewsgroup.com.

Signed Clijsters racket up for auction

By Zach Levine

The Belmar Fishing Club will be holding an auction to benefit the St. Vincent DePaul Society on Saturday, Feb. 6, and one of the items up for bid will be an autographed Kim Clijsters tennis racket, which she used while playing — and coming out victorious — in last year’s U.S. Open women’s tournament.

The auction, which will take place at 7 p.m., will be held at the Belmar Fishing Club, 100 Ocean Ave. in Belmar.

One of the event organizers, Bob Grainey, said he was thrilled to get the racket for the auction, and he plans on making it the featured item up for bid.

Mr. Grainey explained he received the racket as he is good friends with the Lynch family of Belmar and Lake Como. Kim Clijsters is married to Belmar native Brian Lynch.

Though the event is currently sold out, Mr. Grainey said those interested are able to make absentee bids on the tennis racket by calling 732-681-0512, ext. 415.

Other items up for bid during the auction will include the Barnes and Nobles Nook; a Super Bowl submarine sandwich from Jersey Mike’s; a crock pot with chili and different types of salsa; an Irish-themed gift basket; an Italian-themed gift basket and a gift basket with items from celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse.

More Belmar news, plus full coverage of southern Monmouth and northern Ocean counties, can be found at starnewsgroup.com.

St. Rose Grammar open houses set for Jan. 31, Feb. 1

St. Rose Grammar School will be hosting an open house on Sunday, Jan. 31, from 9 to 11:30 a.m. and Monday, Feb. 1, from 10 to 11:30 a.m.

Both open houses will be held at the St. Rose Grammar School, located at 605 6th Avenue, in Belmar.

New families who register during the open house will receive a $100 discount. Interested families can visit during the school day to see classrooms from Pre-K to eighth-grade in action.

The open houses will kick off the school’s Catholic Schools Week, which runs from Jan. 31 to Feb. 5. Other events throughout the week will include a red, white and blue day, a basketball exhibition, a “spelldown,” and pep rally.

St. Rose Grammar School was established in 1921. The Catholic school averages 400 girls and boys enrolled in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade, including students from Belmar and 25 sending school districts.

More Belmar news, plus full coverage of southern Monmouth and northern Ocean counties, can be found at starnewsgroup.com.

Belmar Elks Charity Ball set for Feb. 6

The annual Belmar Elks Charity Ball will be held on Saturday, Feb. 6 from 7 to 11 p.m. at the Elks Lodge, located at 708 7th Ave. in Belmar.

The band performing at the event will be Mike and Alvis.

The ball will feature a gift auction, dinner and wine at every table. The cost for the event is $25 per person for members and guests.

All proceeds from the event will go the Children with Special Needs Fund.

For further information, reservations, or to donate an item for the gift auction, please contact Gloria at 732-775-2516 or Kris at 732-774-7804.

More Belmar news, plus full coverage of southern Monmouth and northern Ocean counties, can be found at starnewsgroup.com.

Young botanists bloom at Belmar Public Library

By Zach Levine

For some children, there may be no greater pleasure than sitting in the grass and getting their hands filthy as they play with soil and plants.

Employees at the Belmar Public Library, along with local environmental commission member and Magic Garden co-coordinator Carol Davies, were more than happy to oblige the children in this small pleasure. They taught the youths about planting and gave them the opportunity to take home their own plants on Tuesday afternoon.

The event was put together by Mrs. Davies, who personally provided all of the plants and soil to those in attendance.

The numerous children at the event, along with their parents and other members of the community, sat around a large table in the library’s media room and gave their full attention to everything Mrs. Davies told them about the wide world of planting.

She began the event by explaining to the participants that plants need to be at a proper temperature and have a proper amount of moisture in order to grow.

Mrs. Davies also mentioned the children had to keep an eye on humidity in regard to the plants as well. She then asked if the children knew what humidity exactly was.

“Humidity is in the summer when it gets hot out,” one eager participant replied.

Mrs. Davies chuckled at the answer and then took time to explain each type of plant she brought to the library. The plants included bromeliads, spider plants, Christmas Cactuses and aloe vera.

She explained the aloe vera plant is used to help heal wounds and burns.

“It really is good for the skin,” she said.

Another eager participant yelled out he knew where he had seen the words aloe vera before.

“That’s the stuff in Purell!” he happily stated.

Mrs. Davies then showed off the bromeliad plant and asked the children which type of fruit it looked like. One girl responded that the plant reminded her of a pineapple.

Mrs. Davies explained the bromeliad is usually grown in tropical areas, and it was first brought to this country by Christopher Columbus.

Another plant Mrs. Davies discussed was the jade plant, which, she explained, was actually a plant that was known to have some “luck” behind it.

“For those who are into feng shui, it is said that if you have a jade in your house, you will always have money,” she said.

She also informed the children about the phenomenon of “photoperiodism,” which occurs when plants sense changes in the length of the night and therefore adjust their growing schedule accordingly.

After discussing a few more facts about the different types of plants, Mrs. Davies passed out small green pots to all in attendance.

Along with the help of the employees at the library, as well as other local gardening enthusiasts, each child was then presented with a bag of soil to begin growing their own plant.

Before the children put the soil in the pots, each participant received a spoonful of perlite to sprinkle in their bag of soil. Perlite helps prevent water loss in the soil and prevents the dirt from compacting in its pot.

Once their pots were set up with soil, the youths then had the opportunity to select which plant they wanted to grow. They could choose any one of the plants Mrs. Davies brought to the library.

Each child was able to take a piece of one of the plants. Then, they took the small piece of the plant and placed it in their own pots to begin growing their very own greenery.

To help each child maintain their individual plants and continue to grow them, each participant received a small instruction sheet which described how to properly care for the plants.

As the event concluded and the library employees and parents began cleaning up the small mess made from the project, all in attendance raved about the success of the planting event.

Krista Berry, of Belmar, brought her two children, Willem, 4, and Charlotte, 5, to the event, and said she loved having something social for them to do during the colder winter months.

“A project like this is great, especially in the middle of winter,” she said.

Charlotte, who chose to grow her own aloe vera plant, said her favorite part of the project was playing with the soil.

“I liked the soil the best. I put it into a big pile and it was really fun,” she exclaimed.

Anna Orgeron, also 5 years old, of Belmar, decided to grow the jade plant. She said she learned to be patient with the plant, as it grows slowly.

Peggy O’Connor, president of the Friends of the Belmar Library, said she was thrilled with how the project went, adding it was the first time the library had held this type of plant-growing project.

“I really had no idea what to expect, but I loved it,” she said.

Ms. O’Connor added she would like to invite Mrs. Davies back to run the project again in the spring when it is warmer outside. Then, the children may be able to take advantage of the nicer weather and participate in an outdoor planting workshop.

Mrs. Davies was equally happy with how the program ran, saying she loved seeing so many children, as well as parents, involved with the project.

“I just hope the kids take away from this project that plants can be fun,” she said.

More Belmar news, plus full coverage of southern Monmouth and northern Ocean counties, can be found at starnewsgroup.com.

Sign up now for the first Belmar’s Celtic Chase

Belmar will be hosting the first annual Belmar’s Celtic Chase, a one mile race, fun run, and walk on the beach, on March 6, 2010 to kick off the St. Patrick’s Day Parade weekend festivities.  Organized in conjunction with Jersey Shore Running Club, the race starts at 9:30 a.m. at the Taylor Pavilion.  The entry fee for adults is $15.00 before March 1, $17 March 1-5 and $20 if registering on race day.  The kid’s fee, which applies to children 12 and under, is $10 before March 1 and $15 if paid on race day.  To pick-up pre-race packets and register, visit Jake’s Crab Shack on Ocean Avenue on March 5 from 5-7 p.m.  There will be awards for the Top 10 Males and Females, a Grand Prize for the overall winner, and random prize drawings.  Racers and their supporters are invited to the race Post Party, starting at noon.

To register online, visit Jersey Runner.

Click here to download an information and registration form that can be filled out and delivered, with a check for your race fee, to the Belmar Chamber of Commerce at 1005 1/2 Main Street.

For more information email the Tourism Commission at tourism@boro.belmar.nj.us.

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