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LITTLE SILVER: RBR BOARD MEMBER INJURED

John Venino at the RBR board meeting on September 11. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

Red Bank Regional High School board of ed member John Venino wound up with a black eye following a student altercation last week at a middle school where he works in Asbury Park, according to a TV news report Monday.

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RED BANK: BASIE BOOSTS PARKER CENTER

The Parker facility on Shrewsbury Avenue is in the midst of an expansion. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

red bank, nj, done good,Red Bank’s Parker Family Health Center is the latest beneficiary of the Count Basie Center for the Arts‘ “Giving Year” program, which donates $1 from every event ticket sold during a specified month to a different charitable organization.

The designation will put up to $15,000 into the health center’s coffers, according to a Basie announcement last week.

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RED BANK: LIBRARY TO GET $15K FROM BASIE

The funding will be used to boost the library’s Hispanic community outreach efforts. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

red bank, nj, done good,One Red Bank nonprofit will help another next week when the Red Bank Public Library receives a check for up to $15,000 from the Count Basie Center for the Arts.

The West Front Street library’s support foundation is the latest beneficiary of the Basie’s “Giving Year” program, which donates $1 from every event ticket sold during a specified month to a different charitable organization.

The funding will be used to boost Hispanic community outreach efforts, the two organizations said Thursday.

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RED BANK: HISPANIC HERITAGE CELEBRATED

Dreamers Club executive committee members Selena Martinez-Santiago, Madelyn Sanchez-Berra and Bethzy Vera Varela looked on as president Edith Lozano Zane addressed the RBR board on September 11. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

UPDATE: Because of rain in the forecast, this Saturday’s Hispanic Heritage Celebration in Riverside Gardens Park has been rescheduled for September 30.

By JOHN T. WARD

hot topicKicking off Hispanic Heritage Month, Red Bank’s mayor and council trained a spotlight on four young Latina students at Red Bank Regional High School last week.

The self-styled “Dream 4” were fresh off an emotional revival of a school club that advocates for Hispanic and Latinx students.

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LITTLE SILVER: RBR DREAMERS REGAIN STATUS

Dreamers Club executive committee member Selena Martinez-Santiago delivers a petition in support of the group to RBR board president Patrick Noble. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

hot topicReversing an action that sparked a civil rights complaint and community outrage, Red Bank Regional High School’s board of ed restored funding for an immigrants’ advocacy student group Monday night.

At special session in the Little Silver school’s cafeteria that drew a large crowd – including Red Bank’s entire governing body – speakers voiced support for the Dreamers Club while denouncing a lone board member’s vote that they said imperiled years of progress.

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LITTLE SILVER: DREAMERS FILE BIAS CLAIM

Three of the four members of the Dreamers Club executive committee volunteering at Dog Days on Saturday: from left, Madelyn Sanchez-Berra, Selena Martinez-Santiago and Bethzy Vera-Varela. Below, club president Edith Lozano Zane. (Top photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

The Dreamers Club at Red Bank Regional High School has filed a complaint with the New Jersey Division of Civil Rights alleging it has been “singled out for nine years” of discrimination, the group announced Friday.

The allegations of bias are expected to be in the spotlight when the RBR board of education meets in a special session Monday night. Meantime, Superintendent Lou Moore said he’s “hopeful” the board will reinstate the club by reappointing its advisor.

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RED BANK: 800 ENJOY LUNCH BREAK PICNIC

Gwen Love, center, with the Defined Logic team the Lunch Break picnic. Below, nearly 600 children received backpacks and school supplies. (Photos by Millie Jeter/Lunch Break. Click to enlarge.)

Press release from Lunch Break

More than 800 people came to enjoy a perfect summer day, delicious food, fun and games, receive much-needed school supplies and cheered for the winning softball team at the Lunch Break Annual Community Picnic, Softball Classic Tournament & Backpack Giveaway on August 19 at Count Basie Field.

Joining Lunch Break for the Community Picnic were our cancer survivor warriors Millie Jeter and Judith Pandi, who ushered in the softball tournament by throwing the ceremonial first pitch in honor of their heroic achievements. More →

RED BANK: ‘FORTUNE TELLERS’ GET READY

Students in the program learn the history of the Black Press in America. (Photo by T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center. Click to enlarge.)

Press release from the T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center

The T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center will open a new exhibit, “The Black Press: Stewards of Democracy,” on October 7, 2023. The opening of the new exhibit will coincide with the 167th birthday celebration of T. Thomas Fortune on October 3.

In conjunction with the exhibit, the Cultural Center has created the Fortune Tellers Docent Training Program and is currently working with a select group of high school and college students who will become tour guides for the upcoming exhibit.

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RED BANK: FOREST LEAVES SCHOOL BOARD

Ben Forest addressing the board of education Tuesday night. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

Red Bank’s school district said goodbye to a longtime board of education member Tuesday night – and welcomed a new one.

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RED BANK: AFTER RBMS, HIGH SCHOOL SUCCESS

The Red Bank Middle School class of 2019 was well represented in the RBR class of 2023. (Click to enlarge.)

Press release by the Red Bank Borough Public Schools

Red Bank Regional High School celebrated its Senior Awards recognition ceremony on June 7, and the Red Bank Middle School Class of 2019 received numerous awards and scholarships.

This group of students truly represented our “Best in America” mentality by achieving recognition in various award categories, including academic, athletics, arts, and community service.

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RED BANK: RUMAGE NAMED SUPER OF THE YEAR

Superintendent Jared Rumage, second from left, with board members. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

Press release by the Red Bank Borough Public Schools Board of Education

The Red Bank Borough Public Schools Board of Education is proud to announce that Dr. Jared J. Rumage, Superintendent of Schools, has been selected as the 2023 Monmouth County Superintendent of the Year.

Annually, superintendents from each of the nearly 60 school districts in Monmouth County nominate a superintendent who embodies the spirit of district leadership. This year, Dr. Rumage was recognized with this distinction by his colleagues during the monthly Monmouth County Superintendents’ Roundtable on Friday, March 24, 2023.

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RED BANK: BASIE ADDS TO FOOTPRINT

The Basie acquired this onetime residence in the professional office zone. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

Less than two years after completing a $25 million expansion, the Count Basie Center for the Arts has added to its Red Bank real estate holdings.

But the nonprofit theater has no plans to seek an exemption from property taxes on the newly acquired site, a spokesman told redbankgreen.

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RED BANK: CARL COLMORGEN DIES AT 81

Carl Colmorgen, a Red Bank school crossing guard who for many years delighted kids and motorists with colorful holiday headwear, died Tuesday. He was 81 years old.

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RED BANK: HORGAN LOOKS BACK, AND AHEAD

Former Councilwoman Kathy Horgan at home in December, above, and on the night of her first council win, in 2007, below. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

What’s a 77-year-old former Red Bank councilwoman to do when her political career ends and she’s suddenly got loads more free time?

Go back to college, maybe. That’s one item on Kathy Horgan‘s bucket list, she told redbankgreen.

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RED BANK: BASIE KICKS OFF ‘GIVING YEAR’

Each month, a different charitable organization will benefit from the Basie’s ticket sales under the yearlong program. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

The Count Basie Center for the Arts in Red Bank has named Long Branch-based Shore House as the beneficiary of its first “Giving Year” giveaway.

The idea: to donate $1 from every event ticket sold during a specified month to a different charitable organization.

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RED BANK: DISTRICT TEACHERS HONORED

Press release from Red Bank Borough Schools Superintendent Jared Rumage

The Red Bank Borough Public Schools are a proud participant of the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) Governor’s Educator of the Year Program. Each year, the NJDOE recognizes Teachers and Educational Services Professionals throughout the State and honors educators based on the following criteria.

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RED BANK: CHURCH HOSTS TOY GIVEAWAY

Toys and gifts for all ages were available at the event. (Photos by Millie Jeter/Lunch Break. Click to enlarge.)

Press release from Lunch Break

It was beginning to look a lot like the North Pole as dozens of elves turned Tower Hill First Presbyterian Church in Red Bank into Santa’s workshop on December 10.

The halls were filled with toys, stuffed animals, musical instruments and holiday presents, welcoming hundreds of financially insecure families as they browsed for gifts for their children during the Lunch Break annual Holiday Toy & Gift Card Giveaway.

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LITTLE SILVER: NO FORCE USED, SAYS CHIEF

An incident concerning a disruptive Red Bank Regional High School student Friday did not involve the use of a taser or any other force by police, contrary to rumor, Little Silver Chief Paul Halpin said Saturday.

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RED BANK: SOCCER TEAMS HONORED

Members of two Red Bank soccer teams, both of which went undefeated in the fall season, were recognized by Mayor Pasquale Menna and the borough council Wednesday night,

Parks and Rec director Oscar Salinas said the boys’ fifth- and sixth-grade team and the seventh-and-eighth-grade coed team won their respective divisions in the Northern Monmouth Soccer Association League. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

LINCROFT: SHEEHAN TAKES BRONZE AT CBA

Tim Sheehan, at podium, with his brother, George III, and the new statue of their late father.  (Photo by Larry Levanti/CBA. Click to enlarge)

Christian Brothers Academy press release

Over 60 years ago, Dr. George Sheehan Jr. believed in a vision for an all-boys, Catholic preparatory school in Monmouth County.

Together with Peter Fleming and John Henderson, he founded Christian Brothers
Academy in Lincroft, with help from the Brothers of the Christian Schools. A nationally-competitive running program soon followed thanks to Sheehan, and on December 4, his impact on CBA and the running tradition was symbolized with a larger-than-life statue on campus. More →

RED BANK: FORMER COUNCILMAN DIES

Tom Hintelmann speaks with Father Alberto Tamayo at the Red Bank Mayor’s Ball in 2015. (Photo above by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

Tom Hintelmann, a lifelong Red Bank resident and teacher who served on the borough council for three decades, died Friday, according to an obituary published Saturday.

He was 85 years old.

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