On Friday, December 2nd , a record breaking crowd gathered at the Municipal Complex to welcome Santa as he arrived to light the Christmas Tree courtesy of the Flagtown Fire Department.  Santa along with Mayor DelCore lit the tree and festivities continued for all to enjoy.

Spectators were treated to a live performance by Flair Dance Academy and Triangle Dance Studio and an appearance by Olaf and Queen Elsa from "Frozen".  Hot chocolate, cookies, popcorn and hot dogs were available while the children waited to visit with Santa. Additional festivities included a train ride, a snow machine and fire barrels to keep folks warm.

Great news..........the Hillsborough Township Building Department now accepts credit cards as a form of payment for permit applications. There is no added service charge for this convenience. This additional form of payment is only available when paid in person.

Suburban Transit is currently conducting another survey to determine the level of interest in limited weekend service. If you would use Saturday and / or Sunday bus service to New York City, please go to Suburban's website ( suburbantransit.com ), click on "Hillsborough Weekend Service Survey" and complete the brief questionnaire.

• Crew in SouthWest Section of Town
• Crew in Millstone River Rd Area
• Crew in Amwell Rd (206-Hunterdon Cty) Area
• Crew in River Road Area between Beekman and Riverside
• Crew in SouthEast Section of Town 

* Subject to change due to weather, equipment breakdown and manpower availability

Child Break Webinars Accepting Registrations

Dear Educators & Concerned Parents,

You may have previously attended a PDFNJ 15 Minute Child Break. You may have also not been able to attend that 15 Minute Child Break. Well, there is good news.  You can  register online for one of four webinars being held on December 13th and 15th focusing on the issue of talking to children about the dangers of drugs. You can participate in this webinar from the comfort of your home and be empowered and supported with the assurance that, even in today's society, parents are still the strongest influence in their children's lives. Teachers and educators can earn 1.5 professional development credits.   Event information and registration can be found here.

The 15-Minute Child Break is a FREE, interactive, thirty-minute presentation for parents, grandparents and caregivers who are concerned about children (of any age) and substance abuse.  Representatives from the Partnership will deliver this informative, engaging, and educational presentation. Participants receive age specific information and communication skills concerning substance abuse. And, once again, teachers and educators can earn 1.5 professional development credits. All participants will be able to  choose from one of four different times that they find convenient on  December 13th and 15th.

The times for this webinar are as follows:

Date                                    Time
Tuesday, 12/13/16                11:30 AM
Tuesday, 12/13/16                  1:00 PM
Thursday, 12/15/16               11:30 AM
Thursday, 12/15/16                 1:00 PM

This is a great opportunity to reach into our communities and share this powerful message.  Please forward this email invitation to other parents, educators, PTA/PTO/HSA members, and co-workers that can take advantage of this free webinar.

I hope you can join us!

Angelo Valente
Executive Director, PDFNJ  

Somerset County Freeholder Brian D. Levine invites veterans, their families, and advocates to attend a Town Hall Meeting & Claims Clinic Wednesday, Dec. 14 , at the Richard Hall Community Health Center at 500 North Bridge St. in Bridgewater, NJ 08807.

The claims clinic  will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.   The town hall meeting , hosted by Lillie Nuble, director of the Newark Regional Office, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Somerset County Veterans Services Office will take place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.   

Veterans, their families and survivors, and organizations and individuals who work with or on behalf of veterans, are invited to attend to share information, hear feedback and get answers to questions about Veterans Affairs benefits, including compensation, pension, insurance, loan guaranty, vocational rehabilitation and employment, and education-benefit programs.

This past Saturday (December 3) the crowds filing into the Hillsborough YMCA gymnasium weren't there for a basketball game, but were more than ready to give their best for a great cause. Hundreds of community members showed up to join in the annual holiday gift-packing event organized by Operation Shoebox and the Hillsborough Rotary Club.  Approximately 1199 boxes were filled with toiletries and a variety of food items in factory line precision as the line of volunteers marched along long rows of tables holding the donated items.  The assembled packages will now be shipped abroad to grateful men and women serving in our military.

 

"Partnering with Operation Shoebox and hundreds of community volunteers to ensure that our troops abroad know how much we appreciate their service is a perfect example of our mission at work," commented Abed Medawar, president of the Rotary Club of Hillsborough. "The overwhelming volunteer turnout continues to demonstrate just how important this event has become to our community."

For a full news account, click here...

Earlier this year, Literacy Volunteers of Somerset County reported that, in one year , more than 350 students received LVSC free services: 236 adults received weekly tutoring from 184 volunteer tutors; more than 100 students participated in Conversation Groups; and 20 students completed U.S. Citizenship Preparation Classes.  In all, volunteers provided more than 8,000 hours of free literacy instruction. And that's just the beginning.

"There are many adults in our community who are eager to improve their English literacy and become an integrated part of the community," said Aimee Lam, LVSC executive director. "Each has a different reason to seek literacy instruction: some want financial independence but need better literacy skills on the job, others want to read to their child or grandchild, and the vast majority want to be able to communicate confidently. We are proud to help these hard working individuals and are grateful to our volunteers who commit the time and energy to provide literacy instruction. To meet the local need, LVSC plans to train a greater number of volunteer tutors in 2017 while increasing Conversation Group and U.S. Citizenship Preparation class offerings in county libraries."

For a full news account, click here...

To view the E-Newsletter Archive, click here...