Metromix Hits Moore’s in Freehold Township

The APP's party mavens, MetroMix, hit Moore's Tavern in the Township last Wednesday for one of the biggest bar nights of the year.

Click on over to check out a slideshow of the night's shots.

Christmas Giving at the Local Lib

Your friendly neighborhood librarians have a Christmas gift for you, Freehold: free books!

We dropped in to the Borough library today to check up on the ever-changing art displays there (more on that in coming weeks), and found our favorite library proprietresses offering up dozens of free titles on their free stoop for the taking.

"It's our Christmas gift to everyone!" Kathy Mulholland told us.

Reader Essay: Open the Door to a New World and Give the First Step

Our friends at Periodico Nosotros sent us this reader-submitted essay, which we reprint unedited below. In the coming months, Nostoros and Freehold.InJersey will occasionally cross-publish content in Spanish and English, respectively, in order to broaden dialogue and communication across language barriers in Freehold.

JUAN VAZQUEZ
October 3, 2009

How hard is it when you cannot speak the same language, the English language? When I came to America 12 years ago, I never thought how hard life would be in this country when you are not an English speaker, and you have to depend on somebody else. When I arrived in the United States, the only language I spoke was Spanish, my native language. I did not have a job or money.

Finally, I had a job as a groundskeeper in a day camp. Every time my manager or my boss would need something, we would speak sort of sign language, moving our hands up and down, pointing at the place where they wanted me to go. I never understood what my manager was telling me when he was asking me for something.

With all the complications about the language, I made a lot of mistakes, and I had  many problems because I was not an English speaker. I remember one time when my boss called a person to put up a "zip lane," a big rock-climbing tower.

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Time for a Tune Up!

It's nice to see Freehold EMS supporting local business, swinging through Mr. Good Lube midday Monday for a quick tune-up:

Supermarket Sweep in the Borough?

Is Freehold poised to become the supermarket empire of Monmouth County? Two new supermarkets are set to open in the near future in the Borough, in addition to a recent opening in Broad Street Plaza and the proposed relocation/expansion of Munoz Grocery, which will get a vetting at a special Planning Board meeting tonight.

Grand National Supermarket, left, which has a location in Long Branch as well, will be opening up shop soon on Throckmorton Street next to the Freehold Center Cleaners laundromat.

Around the corner on Main Street, signs have appeared in a storefront window announcing the New City Super Food Market-Opening Soon, pictured right. A quick peek in the ajar door reveals a huge interior with bright white walls and a few workers finishing up paint jobs.

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Tree Lighting Tomorrow Night

It's time to deck the Hall of Records again in Freehold tomorrow night, as the Board of Freeholders and the Freehold Center Partnership light the Christmas Tree on Main Street.

Today, we caught the crew doing some pre-cleaning around the tree, which was set up over the weekend in preparation for tomorrow's festivities.

The tree lighting kicks off at 5PM tomorrow; on December 15, the town will light the Menorah in a similar ceremony.

Freehold school gets grant for doors

Posted via APP.com:

The borough school district's Board of Education has received a $3,654 safety grant from the New Jersey School Boards Association Insurance Group.

The money will be used to defray the costs of buying safety doors at the Freehold Learning Center, district Business Administrator Patric DeGeorge said.
The grants are meant to reward districts for their commitment to risk management and are for safety and security-related improvements, a release stated.

Freehold woman files civil suit against cops

Posted via APP.com:

Freehold Borough Police will be under investigation once again by a Freehold Township woman claiming police brutality, according to the APP. Migdalia Irizzary and her son have filed a federal civil suit against Sgt. Christopher Colaner, Patrolman Shaun Hobbs, and other Borough police officers.

The Irizzary suit comes nearly two years after the original incident in January, 2008, and a year of internal investigations in the police department that led the charges to be dropped.

Last week, we reported another accusation of police brutality that was settled out of court over the summer.

From the report:

Migdalia Irizarry and her teenage son have filed suit against Freehold, the borough's police chief Mitchell Roth, now-Sgt. Christopher Colaner, Patrolman Shaun Hobbs and various "John Doe" borough police officers and personnel, some of whom serve in a supervisory capacity.

The suit -- which calls for the officers and personnel to be banned from patrol duty and from making or assisting with arrests -- was filed in U.S. District Court in Trenton.

"The officers involved clearly violated the rights of my client by using excessive force," said Irizarry's attorney, Thomas J. Mallon of Freehold.

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6th Annual ACA SUMMER CAMP FAIR

Saturday, January 23, 2010

Sixth Annual ACA-NJ Camp Fairs

Noon-3 p.m.

…connecting great kids with great camps…

FREE ADMISSION

The Excelsior, 355 Route 9 South, Manalapan 07726

Camps of All Kinds: Day, Overnight, Adventure, Computer, Special

Interest, Special Needs, Travel and more

Meet Camp Directors, get door prizes, Free giveaways from camps,

Free Snacks, Free DVDs of camps, Free brochures, Jobs available,

Bring the family, Free Parking

For a list of participating camps and directions:

www.acanjsummercampfairs.org or call 877-488-2267

Masons Collecting Toys This Weekend

Members of Freehold's Free and Accepted Masons lodge will be collecting new, unwrapped toys this weekend in preparation for their second annual toy drive.

Collections will be set up between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at the Freehold Township Shop Rite, located at South Street and Route 9.

Can't make it this weekend? Toys and financial donations can also be given either by sending them directly to the lodge at 2 Dutch Lane or by calling 732-431-2234.

Last year's drive was a huge success, according to organizers. More than 700 gifts were distributed to local children and to area groups like the Ronald McDonald House of Long Branch.

CentraState Offers H1N1 Vaccine

We missed the first scheduled clinic this a.m., but don't worry: residents still have two more opportunities to receive the live, intranasal vaccine for the H1N1 influenza.

The vaccine will be administered on a walk-in basis from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Dec. 1 and 8 at the Star and Barry Tobias Health Awareness Center, 901 W. Main Street (Route 537) in Freehold Township.

Cost for the vaccine is $23. Medicare or any other insurance will not be accepted.

Residents should know that the vaccine is only given to people between the ages of two and 24. It is not for pregnant women or for people with the following health conditions:

• Heart disease
• Lung disease
• Asthma
• Kidney or liver diseases
• Metabolic disease such as diabetes
• Anemia or other blood disorders
• Certain nerve or muscle disorders
• Weakened immune system

Need more info? Call the Health Awareness Center at 732-308-0570.

Reader: White House Chefs, Take Two

We received this submission from reader (and FRHSD info officer) James Quirk regarding the White House Chefs Cooking Demo at the High School last week. We'd already published another report from a citizen-journo, but we're happy to add another angle to this complex story. Or, more humbly, we just like community contributions. Email your submissions to colleen@injersey.com.

Ever wonder what it would be like to work as a chef for the President of the United States? As the students of Freehold High School’s Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management Academy learned on Nov. 18, it runs the gamut from traveling the world and rubbing elbows with emperors to finding a way to make a BLT for George W. Bush in the middle of nowhere with only 30 minutes to prepare.

These were among the stories told by chefs Guy Mitchell, Sam Morgante and Michael Huber, who have all worked in various capacities for the White House. The chefs conducted a special two-hour demonstration at the Five Star Café for the students as part of the National Student Organization Skills USA Club.

The demonstration was led by Chef Mitchell, who has worked closely with the White House to host numerous special engagements with the Presidents’ chefs, and is the well-known host of the Atlantic City Food and Wine Show. Chef Mitchell sits on the Board of Directors for the New York City Culinary Academy, and has served as Executive Chef for the Philadelphia Eagles and as Executive Chef for David Rockefeller in his distinguished Montauk Yacht Club.

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Manalapan Home Robbed

Police are investigating another house robbery in Manalapan, according to the APP. The break-in occurred early Tuesday morning on Heather Drive in Manalapan.

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The APP reports that yesterday's burglary happened between midnight and 6AM at the Heath Drive home, during which jewelry was stolen from a bedroom.

In October, Manalapan police had announced they had caught a suspect believed to be involved in the October 19 burglary of a Belaire Lane home, wherein a resident was home and called 911 during the daytime burglary.

Freeholders were Born to Run– On Friday

We reported yesterday that Bruce Springsteen finished up his latest (and possibly last) tour in Buffalo this week. And we think that means he has more time to pop in on his old hometown--like, say, Friday?

The annual Born to Run race through the Borough is set for 11AM the day after Thanksgiving, celebrating its 25th year as the most Springsteenest-race in the country (we think). The Freehold Area Running Club presents the race and the prizes: $100 for first place, $75 for second place, and $50 for third place in the men's and women's categories.

The club will drop an extra Benjamin on any runner than can break the course records: 24:45 for the men and 27:59 for the women.

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The Turkey Rush: Thanksgiving at Freehold Food Stores