There are 17,000 individuals living below the poverty line in Somerset County. That’s a fact. Basking Ridge resident Widette Fox has been working since 2021 to help support food-insecure families among this population.
The Somerset County Foodbank’s Backpack Program offers additional groceries for weekends and school breaks to families in need. Fox heads up an effort to assemble healthy, easy-to-prepare meals for kids that are discreetly distributed by school nurses to those who sign up. Today, more than 1,600 bags are distributed to 25 elementary schools in the county. Along with her team of volunteers, three schools for students with disabilities help to pack bags on a weekly basis.
Backpack Program volunteers do everything from managing inventory for items to be distributed, to staging bag assemblies, supervising private schools and coordinating philanthropic events provided by corporate donors.
For more information about the Backpack Program and the Somerset County Food Bank, please visit: https://www.somersetfoodbank.org
Each month, The BTDC Beat will feature community members doing various good works. Please feel free to share your efforts, big and small, with us via email.
From left to right, Widette’s team also includes Bernards residents Lynda Tomaru, (Fox), Gina Capizzi, Sunitha D’Silva, Joanna Bartlett, and Bernardsvile’s Lynn Johnston (not pictured).
Susan Okin Goldsmith is a gem within Basking Ridge’s burgeoning blue community. A resident since 1991, she has raised her two children here and is a strong Democratic advocate, making her mark in many unique and important ways.
Susan grew up in West Orange and is a third-generation attorney. Her father and grandfather practiced law at their firm (Okin & Okin) in Newark. They worked on the reelection of NJ Congressman Peter Rodino in the early 1970s, when Susan was a young teenager. Rodino was the Chair of the House Judiciary Committee during the Nixon impeachment hearings. The Nixon hearings served as Susan’s political awakening.
She went on to attend the Wharton School (University of Pennsylvania) as an undergrad, then followed in her father and grandfather’s footsteps as a lawyer, attending Rutgers Law School. Susan has a deep interest in helping businesses thrive. She is now a partner at McCarter & English and is also a member of Golden Seeds, an investment group which focuses on women-owned and managed businesses.
Susan points to her participation in the 2017 Women’s March (following Trump’s first election) as her second political awakening. “We all woke up then and need to stay awake today!” she says. At that time, Susan was among a group of local women who had joined and then ran a township-focused political Facebook group. The group led her to become a key member of the revitalized BTDC, helping to create the group’s bylaws and mission statement, and she serves as one of two District 3 reps today. Susan believes, “It’s important to elect and appoint people with our values at every level.”
“When I moved here, it was single party Republican rule with no other voices. That has changed for the better. We’re not yet at parity, but we are slowly getting there. My goal for the BTDC is to continue to assist in ensuring there’s a multitude of voices and a presence that remains strong within the town.”
“It amazes me that people think Democrats aren’t capitalists. I am a capitalist. For Bernards, it’s important to keep businesses here. Unfortunately, after managing local government well, our Township Committee went in the wrong direction with development and refused to let Democrats sit on committees. That’s wrong. And I am very concerned about the new MAGA Republican party, especially their social values, or lack thereof.”
In addition to her other work, Susan has been a pillar of the local Jewish community via her involvement with Congregation B’Nai Israel, which recently closed its doors. About CBI, she said, “I’m very sorry to see its demise. Jewish values are very important to me and have traditionally been best expressed through the Democratic Party.”
– Jen Aaron
Hello!
Happy New Year to all!
2025 marks the 265th Anniversary of Bernards Township and the following year our Nation’s semiquincentennial or 250th. The Township Committee passed a resolution on December 23rd to make Bernards Township a Rev250 community. This will enable the Township to coordinate with County and State planning focused on highlighting historic sites, leveraging related social platforms, and be eligible for grant funding. I appreciate those of you who have volunteered to serve on the Anniversary Committee, including Nancy D’Andrea and Nancy Cook. There will be upcoming ways to get involved, so stay tuned!
On January 2nd the Township Committee had its recognition meeting. Committeeman Gary Baumann resigned effective January 1, so four members voted for our incoming Mayor and Deputy Mayor. The vote was 3 votes in favor for Janice Fields as Mayor, and the same for Andrew McNally as Deputy Mayor. Committeewomen and outgoing Mayor Jennifer Asay did not support the nominations. In light of the opening created with Mr. Baumann’s resignation, the Bernards Township Republican Municipal Committee, pursuant to the Municipal Vacancy Law, NJSA 40A:16-1 et seq, provided the submission of three names to fill the seat, including Kirsten Light, Daniel McCabe, and David Tancredi. Mr. Tancredi was subsequently unanimously voted to fill the seat at the January 28th Township Committee meeting. I look forward to working collaboratively with him to serve our residents.
Another notable action at the January 28th meeting was passing Resolution #2025-0107, committing Bernards Township to comply with Affordable Housing obligations. As defined in the Resolution, the Township is committing to the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) Round Four present need of 24 Units, and a modification of the DCA’s Round Four Prospective Need obligation of 218 Units to 171 Units. There is a memo within the agenda’s supporting materials, from Kendra Lelie of Kyle and McManus who was contracted as our Affordable Housing Planner, that provides an explanation for the proposed reduction.
Our next obligation will be to thoughtfully consider how we will meet this requirement and adopt a binding resolution on our Housing Element and Fair Share Plan by June 20, 2025. Reflecting on Affordable Housing, there is a need. Housing experts estimate that New Jersey faces a shortage of more than 200,000 affordable housing units. Mandating Affordable housing creates a challenge for communities focused on intentional development. At the same time, we want to be able to provide housing options for those who meet the Affordable Housing eligibility criteria and wish to live and work in our community and local vicinity.
At the December 23 Township Committee meeting, there was a significant drumbeat of public comment from the families of adult children with intellectual and developmental needs about the statewide shortage of housing for this community. This will be among the factors I consider in the next few months. In addition, you’ll see within the Resolution that there is a window to explore how we shape the future of our township, including a consideration of voluntary conformance to the Highlands Regional Master Plan. The Highlands Region is a “Special Resource Area” of the State of New Jersey, designated for water and resource protection by the Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act of 2004. It provides a comprehensive “blueprint” for the future of the Highlands Region, serving as a plan to ensure protection of the vital water supply and other critical natural resources. We have an opportunity to explore this option without an obligation to voluntarily conform. Bernardsville is among our neighboring communities petitioning to conform to the Highlands Regional Master Plan.
Along with leading the Anniversary planning, I have been appointed as one of two Township Committee liaisons to our Police Department, the other being Deputy Mayor Andrew McNally, as the Township Committee liaison to the Office of Emergency Management Committee, and to the Utilities. I’ve held meetings with municipal representatives from JCP&L, PSEG, American Water and the NJ Intergovernmental Affairs department. I look forward to sharing updates from these respective partners.
On January 28th the Township Committee adopted a resolution recognizing Muslim Heritage Month. The resolution was presented to the Islamic Society of Basking Ridge (ISBR). Dr. Ali Chaudry accepted the Resolution and welcomed everyone to visit the Mosque. In Bernards Township, the vitality of the ISBR was quite evident at the Mosque this past Sunday, January 26, as the community celebrated Muslim Heritage month. ISBR’s mission of providing Islamic religious, educational, cultural and social services to Muslims living or working in Somerset Hills, and promoting interfaith and intra-faith dialogue in order to improve relations between Muslims and people of other faiths, is essential in making our community inclusive and respectful of all people.
I also had the pleasure of attending the Basking Ridge Indian Community Sankranti Festival, earlier in the month where culture was celebrated through food and a fashion show of clothing from different regions.
Lastly, the Basking Ridge Fire Company Chief hosted a New Year’s dinner and I was delighted to reunite with Chief Greg Heiner, a classmate of my daughter’s, from the Ridge High School class of 2013. It was wonderful to see Greg in this new leadership role now serving the community he grew up in.
Thank you as always to those who are attending the Township Committee meetings. Calendar detail – we have a new meeting start time of 7:30pm!
Your Voice Matters! You can contact me with township questions/thoughts/comments at (201) 306-0178, or via email at amccarthy@bernards.org. Please note that any correspondence sent to me will be visible to the full township committee and clerk.
To all Somerset County Democratic LGBTQ+ Caucus members, supporters and allies, tickets are now available for our exciting LOVE IS LOVE Valentine's Day Dinner Dance on February 14th. Be sure to get your tickets in advance for this celebration of all things LOVE.
Festivities start at 6:00 p.m.
at Alley 14 located at 13 John St., Bound Brook, NJ 08805
Prices: Student: $60 (with ID to be shown at the door) Individual: $100 Couple: $150 Table: $700 (this is a VIP reserved table for 10)
If you cannot personally attend, please consider making a donation to the Somerset County Democratic LGBTQ+ Caucus. Also, feel free to forward this message to your friends, colleagues, family and just about everyone else. Thank you!
