Molested by her father at 15. Drug-abusing, would-be prostitute by 16.

These are the secrets township resident Debra Ann Brown-Davis says she kept hidden for more than 30 years, as her life spiraled down into an abyss of drugs, crime and sexual abuse at the hands of her manipulative father. ""I would do anything to please him (her father),'' says Brown-Davis, 51. Now sober and free of her father's influence, Brown-Davis has written a memoir recounting those dark days, "My Daddy, the Devil and Me: Out of the Darkness, into the Marvelous Light.'' The book, self-published through Xlibris, is dedicated to Brianna Lopez, a New Mexico girl who was repeatedly raped and beaten by family members before dying at 6 months old. "She couldn't run away for help, where I could have,'' said Brown-Davis, speaking during a recent interview at her home. At the age of 15, Brown-Davis says her father took her to a motel room in New Brunswick, gave her cocaine and forced himself on her. Embarrassed and ashamed, Brown-Davis says she cried the entire time. But afterward, she says her father tried to convince her that what they did was normal because "kings and queens did it back in the biblical days.'' For the next 21 years, Brown-Davis says her father would maintain a strong hold over her. Though the pair would be separated for long stretches of time, whenever her father re-entered her life, she says she would drop everything to be with him. "Wherever he was going, I was going too,'' she writes in her book. During the next two decades, Brown-Davis's life was chaotic and unstable. She took drugs, partied and bounced from man to man. She prostituted herself, sometimes at her father's encouragement. And she was often in danger, once even escaping a kidnapping in Florida. Brown-Davis claims her father eventually convinced her to help him commit fraud by opening up bank accounts, depositing stolen checks and then withdrawing the money. Through it all, she says she loved her father. ""I had hopes of marrying him,'' she said. At 36, Brown-Davis finally broke free from her father. She turned herself in to police and served 16 months in jail. During her incarceration Brown-Davis says she began to pray and turn her life around. Brown-Davis is now married, and runs her own business helping seniors and people with disabilities. With the release of her book, Brown-Davis has been speaking at womens' shelters, the county jail and local churches around the area. New Beginnings Agape Christian Center in Freehold is one of the churches she visited recently. Brown-Davis's story is "very powerful,'' says the church's pastor, the Rev. Andre McGuire. "It's almost unbelievable.'' Since Brown-Davis kept silent all these years, she says her father was never prosecuted. But she recently formed the group Voices for Our Children to encourage young victims to speak out against abuse. One day, she also hopes to open safe houses for abused women and children. People need to talk about incest, bring it out of the shadows, she says. Her purpose, she says, is to give others hope that they too can rise above their troubled situations. As for her father, Brown-Davis says the two no longer speak. She does not hate him, though. Hatred would only hurt her, she says. "I absolutely forgive him,'' Brown-Davis said. "I'm not going to let what he did ruin my life.''

The Greater Monmouth Chamber of Commerce Young Professionals Group recently presented a check for $1,376 to the Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore after a successful "Caring With Karaoke" event.

"It is great to see young professionals use their ingenuity to have such a unique event," said Linda Rieche, fund development director at the Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore. "Excitement filled the room fun was had by all from the Girl Scout cookie eating contest, to a candy kiss gift auction, billiard stunts and of coarse the main event-karaoke."

More than 70 area professionals attended the event, which was sponsored by ServePro of Freehold, Vacation Like You Stole It and Paul-Mark Printing.

"Events like this that support the Girl Scouts give girls a chance to experience things," said Rieche. "From being able to meet their sister Girl Scouts each week at a group meeting, to Robotics club or attending a watershed program on the weekend."

"This event is an example of how the Young Professionals in our business community can give back in a fun way," said Loretta Kuhnert, Greater Monmouth Chamber of Commerce president. "The evening highlights local non profits that enrich our lives."

The Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore serve more than 15,000 girls between the ages of 5 and 17 with the help of 6,000 adult volunteers. The girls are divided into age-appropriate troops and participate in many programs, activities and trips offered by the council. These activities are designed to allow girls to discover who they are, connect with their communities while taking action to make the world a better place while building courage, confidence and character as the girls grow to become the leaders of tomorrow.

For more information about the Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore, please email info@girlscoutsjs.org or call (800) 785-2090 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              (800) 785-2090      end_of_the_skype_highlighting.

Authorities believe Brandon Montes, 29, of Manhattan, shot and killed 39-year-old Rodney Keys and shot and injured Keys' friend, Tyrone Ellis, 38, both of Asbury Park, on May 3, 2008 outside the club. Montes made his first court appearance today on the charges he is facing: murder, attempted murder and weapons offenses. Assistant Monmouth County Prosecutor Jennifer Lipp read the charges against Montes, as he sat shackled at the wrists and ankles, dressed in a yellow jumpsuit, in the courtroom of state Superior Court Judge Thomas F. Scully. Scully ordered Montes would continue to be held on the $2.5 million bail set in the case earlier this month. Earlier this month, prosecutors charged Montes and Terrell Ryans, 23, of Trenton, in the shooting death, which authorities have labeled as gang-related. Ryans is also being held on $2.5 million bail. Authorities have released few details about the shooting. At the time of his death, Keys' family members said they believed the killing was linked to an earlier dispute at the Elks lodge.

"A lot of people don't know anything about the (borough) committees," said Councilman John Newman, who introduced the ordinance setting out the procedures.

But with these new rules in place, Newman hopes people will be more aware of the opportunities they have to participate in local government.

The ordinance, passed Monday, calls for the creation of an application form for people who want to serve in an appointed municipal position.

The form must be reviewed before the office can be filled. Applicants must also be notified when a position becomes vacant and when a new appointee is picked.

The ordinance also calls for a registry of the appointed posts in the borough, and a list of any existing vacancies. This information is already available, Borough Administrator Joseph Bellina said.

The new regulations expand on state legislation known as the Citizen Service Act, which was passed last year. The act requires municipalities to maintain a directory of local authorities, boards and commissions. It also mandates that anyone who wants to serve on those groups has to fill out an application form, and defines when a position can be considered vacant.

Police responded to a possible mountain lion sighting Tuesday, but no animal or paw prints were found.

A Duchess Court resident called police to say a brown animal with a long tail had been spotted near a tree line some 25 to 30 yards away. Officers responded, but did not find any animals or paw prints in the mud, said Detective Sgt. Jerry Kiwit. He said police also notified workers at nearby Durand Park, off Randolph Road, and those workers checked the area, but nothing was found. Last week, a driver reported seeing an animal that may have been a mountain lion in the area where Taylors Mills Road in Manalapan turns into Lafayette Road in Marlboro. Later that day, Marlboro's animal control officer also saw a large cat with a long tail near Milford Brook. On Sunday, another driver reported a possible mountain lion sighting near Carchesio Farms on Tennent Road, said Manalapan Capt. Christopher Marsala. Last week, police notified state officials. They also brought a road-kill deer into the woods as bait and set up a motion detection camera. Today, Manalapan police said the only images of animals captured on the camera were that of a red fox. Officials from the state Division of Fish and Wildlife said the animal seen by the local animal control officer and the drivers may have been a coyote suffering from mange. Police also talked to some Marlboro residents who live near Routes 9 and 520 and who said they lost a Savannah cat about four or five years ago. They speculated that the lean animal, which weighs about 20 pounds and has a long tail, could still be in the area and mistaken for a mountain lion. The bottom line, police said, is they still do not know exactly what kind of animal those drivers and the animal control officers saw.

Robert Mason, 19, of Sodahouse Court, and Mark Chilton, 18, of Andrews Court, were arrested Friday. Police said Mason and the victim, a 32-year-old township man, got into a tussle in the a parking lot of a condominium complex on Sodahouse Court around 11 a.m. Friday. Mason slashed the tires and smashed a window on the man's car, said Detective Sgt. Jerry Kiwit. Both Mason and Chilton were arrested on an attempted robbery charge. Mason was also charged with weapons offenses, terroristic threats and criminal mischief. Bail for Mason was set at $295,000, and bail for Chilton was set at $102,500.

The girls event will tap off at 6 p.m. The boys game will begin at 8 p.m.

North Girls All-Stars: Colts Neck's Lauren Clarke, Middletown North's Kim Ridolfi, Colts Neck's Tiffany DeTulio, Colts Neck's Brooke Hampton, Freehold Township's Stephanie Cardamone, Marlboro's Brianna Nicholls, Matawan Regional's Alyssa Johnson, Mater Dei's Danielle Locicero, Manalapan's Amanda McBride, Raritan's Nicole Lentini, Shore Regional's Julia Duffy, Ocean Township's Andrea Farrow, Holmdel's Alex Diekmann, Rumson-Fair Haven Regional's Amanda Yaccarino, Colts Neck's Emily Laurence. Coaches: Raritan's Ron Poll, Colts Neck's Jeanene Healy, Wall's Bob Ward.

South Girls All-Stars: Jackson Memorial's Dana Costello, Toms River North's Asia Taylor, Jackson Memorial's Caitlyn Testa, Barnegat's Catherine Keough, Lakewood's Nysheera Butler, Point Pleasant Beach's Madison Gourley, Toms River East's Holly Luciano, St. Rose's Alex Hall, Neptune's Sehmonyeh Allen, Wall's Kathryn Campbell, Southern Regional's Avery Hodgson, St. Rose's Alison Sweeney, Brick Memorial's Nikki Petrosino, Lacey's Liz Lawler, Southern's Kristen Sharkey. Coaches: St. Rose's Joe Roman, Jackson Memorial's Rachel Goodale, Wall's Tom Westen.

North Boys All-Stars: Middletown South's Kyle Cancillieri, Colts Neck's Chris Cassidy, Red Bank Regional's Stephen Frost, Rumson-Fair Haven Regional's Lucas Glass, Marlboro's Andrew Goldstein, Howell's Rob Handy, Mater Dei's Glenn Holck, Mater Dei's Chris Jetter, Keyport's Tony Lopez, Christian Brothers Academy's Roy Mabrey, Colts Neck's Kyle Mobbs, Middletown South's Pat O'Connell, Holmdel's Mike Perillo, St. John Vianney's Ishaq Pitt, Matawan's Mike Smith. Coach: Mater Dei's Bob Klatt.

South Boys All-Stars: Freehold's Christian Garcia, Pinelands Regional's Jeremy Hartman, Point Pleasant Boro's Will Hawthorne, Manchester's Jermaine Jackson, St. Rose's Jeff Kurtz, Monmouth Regional's Cameron Lee, Long Branch's Karahn Morris, Jackson Memorial's James McDonnell, Freehold's Lance McKenzie, Ocean Township's Logan Singleton, Toms River East's Richard Suhr, Monmouth Regional's Neil Thompson, Manasquan's Matt Vadas, Southern Regional's Matt Vereb, Point Pleasant Beach's Jordan Wejnert. Coach: Pinelands Regional's John Tierney.

"What do you want to be when you grow up?"

How many times did we hear that as children or young adults? My answer was the same every time. I wanted to be a doctor. It was simple. I could help people, teach people, make people happy. Oh, how I wanted to do that.

My life and several careers later have brought me no closer to that goal. But I have reached a milestone, the place where I love what I do. There's no glass ceiling here. There's no ceiling at all. My limit is only the sky and my desire to do more.

Let me back up a little. Every job and every career has prepared me for what I do now. I worked for a finance company, a casket maker, on an assembly line for an electronics company and as a psychiatric technician then a registered nurse for a state hospital for 10 years. I moved to another state and worked in the auto industry, handling claims.

I worked for a small nonprofit who published a magazine, then for a major university in the dean's office. I moved again to another state. I worked for the county government then a school district for 10 years.

So what am I doing now? Nothing whatever to do with any of that, and I'm certainly not a doctor. I spent 10 years in the insurance industry, in many departments, with the bulk of that time in claims.

What do claims have to do with helping people? Absolutely everything. Apparently I was good at it, winning many awards and bonuses. The best part was knowing that I was walking someone through one of the worst times of their lives, wading through medical bills, car repair bills and rental bills, and hotel bills and even the attorney correspondence. Helping people. That's what I was doing.

I decided to retire due to family circumstances and time constraints, but my path changed again.

Retirement didn't suit me. My daughter moved to another state and suggested I buy her insurance brokerage, consisting of two full offices of clients. I thought about it, and thought about it and thought about it. Finally it seemed like a good idea. I brought it all home. I set up an office at home. It took a while to sort it all out.

Today it is the best of worlds. I can work when I want, and not work when I need to be somewhere else. I take care of my clients when they need me. The hours are whatever they need to be. I have time for volunteer activities and time to spend an afternoon at the movies with my husband. I can play with my grandchildren and still take care of my clients.

Years of experience taught me how to manage time, how to be scheduled, how to be productive and when to let it go. Yes, I'm not a doctor. But perhaps I'm a doctor of everyday problems for those people who need my help.

No glass ceiling. I have reached the sky.