Youth exchange panel member suspended Child porn charges in New York spur action in Marlboro BY VICTORIA HURLEY-SCHUBERT Staff Writer       A 39-year-old man with Marlboro connections has been suspended from the Marlboro Youth Exchange Advisory Committee after he was charged with possession of child pornography and dissemination of indecent materials in New York City. More ...       Michael Romeo of Freehold receives his diploma from Brookdale Community College President Dr. Peter Burnham during commencement ceremonies at the college's Lincroft campus May 20. More ... Sludge Busters return for environmental encore Possibility of garbage transfer station irks four feisty residents BY CLARE MARIE CELANO Staff Writer       FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP - Look out Freehold Township, the Sludge Busters are back and they are not happy. More than 10 years after fighting their first environmental battle, the group of Freehold Township residents has returned to oppose the possible opening of a waste transfer station o... More ... Kruise Night returns to streets of Freehold Borough May 31       FREEHOLD - The Kruise Night series, hosted by the Freehold Center Partnership and the Western Monmouth Chamber of Commerce, will begin a 16th season on May 31 from 6-10 p.m. in downtown Freehold Borough. Vintage car owners will show off their prized vehicles by cruising Main Street bef... More ... Millburn law firm hired to eye possible negligence Matter in Manalapan centers around town's purchase of lot in 2005 BY KATHY BARATTA Staff Writer       MANALAPAN - The township has retained an attorney to examine possible negligence in the municipality's purchase of a piece of property in 2005 - and former township attorney Stuart Moskovitz believes he is being made the scapegoat. More ... Service, parade to honor war heroes BY CLARE MARIE CELANO Staff Writer       FREEHOLD - Honoring the men and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice in war has always been the intent of the Memorial Day parade in Freehold Borough. With help from local businesses and private donations, the 133rd Memorial Day parade, the oldest parade in western Monmouth County, ... More ... New recreation director excited to be in Howell BY TOYNETT HALL Staff Writer       HOWELL - Bryan Haltigan, a 34-year-old native of Brooklyn, N.Y., is Howell's new parks and recreation director. Haltigan, who holds a master's degree in physical education and athletics administration from Springfield College, said he plans to revive the department. More ... Englishtown budget calls for stable municipal tax BY MARK ROSMAN Staff Writer       ENGLISHTOWN - A public hearing has been scheduled for 7:30 p.m. tonight (May 23) at Borough Hall, Main Street, on the $2 million municipal budget the Borough Council has proposed for 2007. The budget was introduced on April 25. More ... Symphony conductor quits in Manalapan Budget considerations lead to less funding for town's orchestra BY KATHY BARATTA Staff Writer       MANALAPAN - This year's proposed $29.5 million municipal budget has led to some unexpected occurrences, not the least of which was the resignation of the conductor of the municipal symphony and municipal engineer Len Miller. More ... June 3 event to help fund scholarship in Wines' name BY KATHY BARATTA Staff Writer       MANALAPAN - When Carlee Wines was killed by a hit-and-run driver on the University of Connecticut campus in Storrs earlier this year, the Manalapan resident left behind family and friends who are determined to make sure her memory is honored. More ... Breeders' Cup could place $60M into N.J.'s economy $20M in purses up for grabs in Oct. thoroughbred event BY JANE MEGGITT Staff Writer       Monmouth Park in Oceanport is gearing up for the richest day ever in the history of horse racing. That's what Greg Avioli, the Breeders' Cup president, called Oct. 27, when the 24th running of the thoroughbred championships will be held in New Jersey for the first time. The event i... More ... Planners approve church, seek buffer for farmland BY TOYNETT HALL Staff Writer       HOWELL - New Beginnings Christian Fellowship Inc. of Brick Township faced some criticism at the May 17 Planning Board meeting, but in the end received preliminary approval to construct a 15,000-square-foot house of worship on Lakewood-Allenwood Road. More ... Training slated for volunteers       180-Turning Lives Around will be conducting a 40-hour certification training for Domestic Violence Response Team (DVRT) volunteers. The volunteer advocates, whose identities are kept anonymous, work in conjunction with the police to provide support, information and referrals to victims ... More ... Health center will use grant to expand hours BY CLARE MARIE CELANO Staff Writer       FREEHOLD - Administrators at the Paul M. McGuire Family Health Care Center will soon be able to do something they could not do until now - expand the facility's hours of operation. More ... Zoners open hearing on day-care center Application proposes facility to be built behind funeral home BY VICTORIA HURLEY-SCHUBERT Staff Writer       MARLBORO - An application for a new day-care facility off Route 79 in the Morganville section of the township was opened before the Zoning Board of Adjustment on May 15. The Learning Experience, a franchise of child-care centers, wants to construct a building no greater than 14,960... More ... Mishkin elected to term as hospital chief of staff       FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP - Dr. Steven Mishkin has been elected to a two-year term as chief of staff by the medical-dental staff of CentraState Medical Center. Mishkin, an ophthalmologist who chaired CentraState's Ophthalmology Department from 1997 to 2006, joined the medical staff in 1988. More ... Old Bridge man convicted of assault on two officers       A state Superior Court jury has convicted an Old Bridge resident of second-degree aggravated assault by eluding and two counts of third degree possession of a controlled dangerous substance (CDS) stemming from an incident in Manalapan in which two Englishtown police officers were injured. More ... Valentin receives medal of honor at Ellis Island       Monmouth County Prosecutor Luis A. Valentin was among 100 people honored for their outstanding contributions by the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations (NECO) during a special awards ceremony on Ellis Island in New York Harbor May 12. More ... Clergy association hosts forum on death penalty       FREEHOLD - On the same day that the New Jersey Senate Judiciary Committee approved a bill to change the death penalty to life without the possibility of parole in New Jersey, the Freehold Clergy Association presented an update on New Jersey's death penalty by two men with direct experience w... More ... Howell law regulates location of sex shops BY TOYNETT HALL Staff Writer       HOWELL - Addressing an issue that has been a topic of conversation in the community for years, the Township Council has adopted an ordinance which regulates where sexually oriented businesses may locate. The ordinance was adopted in a unanimous vote at the council's May 15 meeting. More ... County association honors Freehold Twp. school nurse       FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP - Heidi Toth, district nurse for the Freehold Township schools, was recently chosen from among about 130 of her peers as the Monmouth County School Nurse of the Year by the executive board of the Monmouth County School Nurses Association (MCSNA). More ... Crowds flock to open house at McGuire Air Force Base       BY DAVE BENJAMIN Staff Writer WRIGHTSTOWN - With an audience topping 175,000 visitors this past weekend, the McGuire Air Force Base 2007 Air Expo and Open House was deemed a success. More ... Strand theater will host Festival of Senior Arts       LAKEWOOD - If you listen carefully, you can almost hear the sounds of voices raised in song, dancers tapping their toes, actors rehearsing their lines and poets reciting their verses all in preparation for the Festival of Senior Arts. The Festival of Senior Arts is a three-day event be... More ... Middlesex freeholder raps funding for MOM study       Middlesex County Freeholder Director David B. Crabiel has criticized a vote by the NJ Transit board to increase the amount spent on consulting fees for a proposed rail line that would travel from Ocean County to South Brunswick, Middlesex County. More ... New facility to provide many medical services BY CLARE MARIE CELANO Staff Writer       FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP - Centra-State Medical Center, West Main Street, will soon have a new facility to serve the community with a number of up-to-date services and programs. The CentraState Ambulatory Cam-pus is rising next to the medical center and some of the facilities are expected ... More ... Dedication to reading recognized by FRHSD Event for students features presentation by author Paul Watkins BY VICTORIA HURLEY-SCHUBERT Staff Writer       For 15-year-old Oly Khowash, reading is a longstanding tradition."There's an Indian tradition, usually around age 5, an elder makes you write something," said Oly, who is a junior at Manalapan High School. "I started to try to write before that, so at age 2 my grandfather did it for me th... More ... 'Founding father' of Freehold Beautiful looks back Bob Coutts steps down from board after 25-plus years BY CLARE MARIE CELANO Staff Writer       FREEHOLD - A first-time visitor to Freehold Borough might not know how much effort it took to bring the town to the place it is today. And Bob Coutts has been a part of it all. The 85-year-old may live in Colts Neck, but much of his time has been spent in the town of Freehold... More ... Youths raise money for ACS       MARLBORO - Almost 7 inches of rain from last month's nor'easter did not deter Allyson Weinberg from trying to make something good out of a bad thing by raising money for the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life as part of her bat mitzvah preparations. More ... In the Arts       The award-winning actress and artist Jane Seymour will bring her collection of paintings to Stone Harbor over Memorial Day weekend. "The Art of Jane Seymour" will be on display May 26-28, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. at Ocean Galleries, 9618 Third Ave., Stone Harbor. Receptions with the artist will be ... More ... In the Arts       Holmdel Community Church, 40 Main St., will hold a coffee house featuring the church's HUCC Finn band May 26 at 5 p.m. The free event will feature country, folk and rock music. For information, call (732) 946-8821 or e-mail holmdelchurch@verizon.net. More ... In the Arts       Rat Pack fans will get a blast from the past when Jerry Spathis of Old Bridge performs Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin hits during a dinner show May 27 at La Riviera Italian Restaurant and Lounge, 113 Main St., Matawan. Spathis, a former restaurant and nightclub owner, was born in Brookl... More ... Higginson, Weisman honored       The Noontime Optimists Club of Freehold held its annual Youth of the Year awards luncheon on April 25, honoring one male and one female graduating senior from each of the six schools in the Freehold Regional High School District. Each honoree gave a two-minute presentation about their a... More ... Costco deal dead in Marlboro       MARLBORO - Warehouse store shoppers will have to continue going to Old Bridge and Freehold after plans to construct a Costco in the township fell through last week. A Costco official confirmed that the deal had been terminated by the land owner. More ... Power of the 'blankie' prevails BY VICTORIA HURLEY-SCHUBERT Staff Writer       MARLBORO - Linus was onto something toting his blanket everywhere he went . "We believe in the power of the blankie, everyone can relate to the comfort" of a blanket," said Hillary Roberts, director of the New Jersey chapter of Project Linus. More ... Howell Mania puts focus on special ed achievement BY TOYANETT HALL Staff Writer       HOWELL - Mike Bruen is a third-year participant in the 21-year-old celebration of special education pupils and achievement in Howell that is known as Howell Mania. Bruen, who carries the alias "Mr. Mom," is a father of two boys. He said the Howell school district's special education ... More ... Untold stories of rock's 'British Invasion' on tap       For fans who weren't around yet, or who want to revisit a definitive chapter in rock and roll history, an insider's look at the music scene during the heyday of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones - with a tour guide who helped define that era - is yours for the price of a ticket to "Behind ... More ...