For the second year in a row the City of Plainfield has delivered a budget with a ZERO tax increase for city residents.

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Yesterday, March 31st the City of Plainfield cut the ribbon to officially open Rose Cigars - a new cigar and accessory shop located at 214 Park Avenue.

Mayor Adrian O. Mapp, Council President Steve Hockaday, Council VP Barry Goode, Councilwoman Ashley Davis, Councilwoman Stacey Welch, Councilman Charles McRae, Councilwoman Joylette Mills Ransome, Director of Economic Development Valerie Jackson and other members of the administration joined owners Yenibel Morales and John Espinal to introduce this new business to the Plainfield community.

Last week we highlighted a few of Plainfield's iconic women. This week we continue that journey as we spotlight other women who have left a deep imprint on our city.

Amelia Mapp, is the wife, and high school sweetheart, of Mayor Adrian O. Mapp. The First Lady of the City of Plainfield, is an active member of her Plainfield community.

Amelia volunteered and mentored teenage mothers at the Plainfield High School, intending to keep them enrolled in school, lending maternal support, and preparing them for life outside of school. She is a

board member of Plainfield Now. This

non-profit organization addresses social, economic, and educational inequalities in and around Plainfield.

A fervent believer in God’s mercy and grace, she served for several years as a lay Eucharistic Minister at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Plainfield.

Charity runs deep in First Lady Amelia Mapp's blood. In December of 2020, Amelia Mapp used her platform as the First Lady and Board member of Plainfield Now to give away almost 300 gift and grocery cards to needy Plainfielders.

Each year she and the Mayor open their home for an MLK Jr. Potluck Dinner, asking each attendee to bring non-perishable goods which are collected and donated to a local food pantry. She has also spearheaded the Annual Community Barbecue at their home for over 13 years. Once again asking attendees to bring donations for the food pantry. In 2019 – she hosted over 1500 attendees at the Barbecue, which is free of cost and open to all community members.

She's also very involved with advocating for her native home, Barbados. She successfully does so by being an active member of the non-profit BACONJ Inc.(Barbados American Charitable Organization of NJ). BACONJ provides scholarships, medical aid, economic aid, and disaster relief where needed. Amelia has been integral to the organization's functioning throughout the years, serving as treasurer, secretary, and assistant

secretary-treasurer.

Amelia is a practicing, licensed Real Estate Agent. She says “It’s a pleasure for me to help others find the unique homes they love in this city that is dear to my heart. I believe that each home speaks to its potential owner and I try to find the perfect place that they will love. I have always been an advocate for homeownership and taking that advocacy one step further is a natural progression. Plainfield has shaped my life in many ways and giving back in every way I can is very gratifying for me.”

Dr. Willa Cofield's activism legacy began when she was a young teacher in a segregated school in North Carolina. She took matters into her own hands to ignite change and made the brave choice to teach her students how to register to vote so they could go home and instruct their parents. She was fired for her bravery, but her actions were undeniably vital for the ending of segregation in the south.

Carolina during the late 1800s and early 1900s. Willa Cofield won numerous awards for her work and is recognized nationally for her activism. She serves as a group leader for SEED (Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity) in various states, worked as an educator at the Scribe Video Center, is an active member of POP (People's Organization for Progress), and is now retired and living in Plainfield.

Willa Cofield made sacrifices so that the voices of future generations of black and brown people could be heard and that they could live equally. Plainfield is proud to be the home of a woman with such a fearless approach to her work and mission.

Marion Lee Johnson is our very own "Hidden Figure," a real-life star who calls Plainfield her home. She was the Associate Engineer working for Boeing at NASA during the 1960s and played a critical role in safely landing the Apollo 11 and its first man on the moon by calculating the trajectory that the rockets attached to the spacecraft would land. This was during a time when segregation prevented African-Americans, especially females, from succeeding or finding opportunities as easily as their white counterparts.

Her success is as timely and important now as ever. We are at a crucial moment when women's equality and rights are under a lens in our nation. This is a significant moment in time when our sisters and daughters are choosing career paths.

in the STEM field and cementing their roles in a previously male-dominated area. Marion Johnson not only broke down racial barriers, but gender barriers as well.

Darlene McWilliams is a licensed, full-time realtor and mentor who has been in the business for over twenty years. She is a business owner who thrives on getting young people, specifically minorities, into the door of real estate. She's had the opportunity to bring several agents into real estate who had difficulties entering the business because of their backgrounds.

"Young minority kids sometimes only know what it means to be a tenant. I have the opportunity to mentor young people not just about selling homes, but owning homes and investing," says Darlene.

Darlene McWilliams was Plainfield's first lady and wife of the late Plainfield Mayor Albert T. McWilliams, who served from 1998-2005. During her time as First Lady, she worked as a volunteer for the library, was involved in the Plainfield beautification committee, took part in the Plainfield cleanup campaign "Slam Dunk the Junk," among other activities.

These women are icons and pillars of our community, they are business owners and community leaders, activists and educators. All are leaders and role models. Each one has made an invaluable contribution to our community and our nation and has given our children fearless examples to follow. During Women’s History Month and beyond the women in our lives, deserve recognition, equality, and celebration. Their lives should be an inspiration to us all.

Final Call for Plainfield's K-12 students to participate in a Drawing Competition where they get the chance to create a work of art that shows their love for Plainfield. Each grade will have four chances to win an award: Best in grade, second place runner-up, best overall drawing & best theme depiction. The contest ends on Monday, April 5th - send your submissions to loveplainfield@plainfieldnjgov with your name and grade. Thank You!

We’re pleased to share that REPORT IT is a proud sponsor of #LovePlainfield

We have added a new Category called Love Plainfield to the App. You can send in your pictures and report when you catch people in the act of showing love to someone or to our city.

You see someone pick up litter on the street and throw it into a trashcan. Snap a pic – send a report and nominate them for a Love Plainfield award. If you see someone lending a helping hand to an elderly person – snap a pic and send a report.

There are a million ways to show and spread love around our city and now the Report It app will help us capture it because our LovePlainfield Ambassadors can’t be everywhere.

Download the Reportit App and follow the steps below to report Love in the Queen City.

Click Here to schedule an appointment or call 908.214.7107

COVID-19 Vaccine Registration is available through the County of Union.

Those eligible to receive the vaccine are:

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Union County, NJ – The Union County Board of Commissioners, in conjunction with the Department of Human Services’ Office on Behavioral Health and Substance Abuse and Department of Economic Developments’ Office on Women, invites residents to join an interactive online discussion of self-care and resiliency, through a women’s perspective.

“This program will provide women in Union County with a safe learning place to explore methods for coping with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to connect with useful resources and services available to them,” said Commissioner Chairman Alexander Mirabella.

To pre-register and receive the Zoom link, visit http://bit.ly/selfcarewhm.

For more information on Self-Care & Resiliency: Through a Woman’s Perspective contact, Jennifer Erdos, Union County Office on Women at jerdos@ucnj.org.

PASSAIC, NJ – Joined by Senate Health Committee Chair Senator Joe Vitale, Assemblywoman Yvonne Lopez, Assemblyman Gary Schaer, Congressman Bill Pascrell, Human Services Acting Commissioner Sarah Adelman, Department of Banking and Insurance Commissioner Marlene Caride, and Office of Health Care Affordability and Transparency Director Shabnam Salih, Governor Phil Murphy today visited the North Hudson Community Action Corporation to highlight the $20 million investment in the Fiscal Year 2022 (FY2022) budget proposal for Phase 1 of the Cover All Kids campaign.  

“No child in New Jersey should be left without the support and security of health care coverage,” said Governor Murphy. “The proposed investment toward Cover All Kids in our budget continues the progress we’ve made toward advancing health care accessibility, while laying the foundation to ensure that more children are able to receive access to quality health care coverage that they deserve.”  

“As a daughter of immigrants and as someone who grew up with NJ FamilyCare coverage for most of my childhood, I could not be more thankful for the Governor’s leadership here and excited about what this campaign will mean for the thousands of uninsured children in New Jersey,” said Shabnam Salih, Executive Director of the Office of Health Care Affordability and Transparency. “Through this work we will not only be ensuring better health care for these children, but removing a significant burden in their lives that will help ensure brighter and healthier futures.”  

“Governor Murphy is committed to supporting New Jerseyans through every stage of life, which is why he’s proposing a new Cover All Kids initiative to provide health care coverage for every New Jersey child,” said Human Services Acting Commissioner Sarah Adelman. “New Jersey has been leading the way on health care access for years, and with this plan we will achieve something monumental and fundamental: health care for every child. This is a compassionate and fiscally responsible plan - and it’s realistic. It’s also – most importantly – crucial for our children and our future.”  

“Under Governor Murphy’s leadership, New Jersey has made it a priority to improve access to health care, based on the principle that health care is a fundamental right. Last fall, we opened our state-based exchange, Get Covered New Jersey, where residents who do not have health insurance from an employer or other program can purchase coverage. That alone was transformational for our state,” said Department of Banking and Insurance Commissioner Marlene Caride. “Now with a plan to Cover All Kids, New Jersey will continue to chart a deliberate path forward and deliver improved health care access for residents.” 

“Governor Murphy’s Cover All Kids initiative is precisely the kind of bold government action we need right now here in Passaic and across this state,” said Congressman Bill Pascrell, Jr. “Lack of health care during the pandemic has caused tragedy. Fortunately, our state’s local and federal officials are united in our efforts to defeat this virus and strengthen your health care. Thanks to Governor Murphy’s leadership and the additional federal resources we have delivered, the state has launched the Cover All Kids initiative to invest in coverage for the 88,000 children who lack health care. This comes on the heels of President Biden’s massive American Rescue Plan we passed which makes health care more affordable, makes health services more accessible, and cuts child poverty rates in half. As we look to safely reopen schools and help families recover, we must prioritize the solutions that will keep our neighbors healthy.” 

“There’s nothing more important than having a kid have access to care. All those families that are here today understand what it means when your kids are sick," said Senator Joseph Vitale. 

"I think we can all agree that one child without insurance is too many and our benchmark for success needs to be covering all kids," said Assemblywoman Yvonne Lopez. "The legislation Senator Vitale and I introduced charts a course to address the issues barring our kids from receiving coverage. We will expand eligibility to all children who meet the income requirement, eliminate the burdensome 90-day waiting period, reestablish the New Jersey Care buy-in program, and ensure a robust outreach program that will target every child in need."

"This is the game-changer that we have all been waiting for. This is the difference between not doing and doing. This legislation will make fundamental change, not over there or over there, but right here in this wonderful city, Passaic," said Assemblyman Gary Schaer. "Whatever your background, your language, culture or religion, we make the difference with this legislation today. 

“ACNJ commends Governor Murphy and legislative leaders for their commitment to ensure that all NJ children have access health insurance,” said Cecilia Zalkind, President & Chief Executive Officer of Advocates for Children of New Jersey. “NJ has long been a leader in ensuring that children are covered. This will remove the final barriers to reach the goal of covering all kids. Access to health care is essential to child well-being. This is a great day for kids in NJ!”

“Having attainable, affordable health care is not just a health issue – it is a critical component for individuals and families to remain financially stable and for economies to thrive,” said United Way of Northern New Jersey CEO Kiran Handa Gaudioso. “We support making health care coverage accessible so that fewer ALICE households and those in poverty are uninsured or underinsured.”

For a full overview of what’s in the the plan, click here.

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