Community Corner
Stories From 2013 to Feel Good About in Basking Ridge
Let us know if there's something that will be a good memory for you from 2013.
We won.
You didn't have to be a student at Ridge High School, or even much of a football fan, to get a charge out of the Ridge Red Devils football team logging an undefeated season that led to a state championship title this month.
For those of you who know the players — or have watched their progress over the last few seasons — you know that this year's team, when younger, struggled on the field and suffered injuries a few seasons back. Then, last year, when the Red Devils were on another undefeated roll, Hurricane Sandy forced them to forgo practices and delay a state game that became their first defeat last season.
But this year, the loyalty of the players, many together on the field since middle school, paid off with a cohesive team that made history. The fans also showed consistent support, many traveling to away games. We have a feeling that Head Coach Bill Tracy he got his best gift early this year.
Of course, there were other events, or efforts by local residents, that made local residents feel good about this year.
If you missed it, the ribbon was cut on the nation's first brand-new housing facility to provide permanent homes for previously homeless veterans at the Lyons Veterans Administration campus.
Here are just some of the other highlights.
If you have something else to mention, please let us know in the comments section.
Ridge Football's Perfect Season Complete With Final State Victory
The Ridge football team won the North Jersey Section 2, Group 5 title Sunday, Dec. 8, at Rutgers University. The Red Devils put a wrap on the team’s first undefeated season, going 12-0 and saving their best performance for last in a convincing 48-13 victory in the championship game again Union. Ridge Head Coach Bill Tracy said he believed the team may have played their best game ever.
Previously Homeless Veterans Get to Come Home to Lyons VA
The nation's first brand-new housing facility to provide permanent homes for previously homeless veterans opened in Octoberthe Lyons VA N.J. Health Care Campus. The grand opening and ribbon-cutting for the 63 apartments in the new Valley Brook Village development was called the "culmination of a dream," said Michael Armstrong, Chief Executive Officer for Parsippany-based Community Hope, one of the project's development partners and a social service provider.Bedminster Woman Collects Warm Gifts for Lyons Veterans
After the permanent housing for veterans was open at the Lyons VA, Stacia McDonough of Bedminster, widow of a Vietnam veteran, extended her campaign to collect warm gloves and other gifts for the veterans who already had been living in transitional housing at the Veterans Administration to include the new residents who had just moved into just-completed Valley Brook Village. She was heading over to deliver the gifts on the morning of Christmas Eve.Basking Ridge Man Finishes First in Triathlon in Asbury Park
Student athletes weren't the only ones to shine this year. Basking Ridge's Steve Cozine, 44, competed and finished first overall at One More Tri, a triathlon/duathlon/aquavelo fundraiser for Special Olympics New Jersey held last September in Asbury Park. Cozine was the only finisher to come in under one hour in the full triathlon, which consisted of a 0.25-mile ocean swim, followed by a 12-mile bike and then a three-mile run. His finish time was 59:09.0, according to an announcement from Special Olympics. Funds raised at One More Tri benefit Special Olympics New Jersey, which provides year-round sports training and athletic competition in 24 Olympic-type sports for more than 22,000 children and adults.
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Want Gelt? Visit the Giant Dreidel at Chabad in Basking Ridge
Each year, for at least six years, this reporter has run a story with the claim that the giant wooded dreidel at the Chabad Jewish Center in Basking Ridge, which can be entered through a door, is the largest dreidel in the world. We've never heard otherwise. This year, the invitation to visit the local landmark was made even sweeter by the offer of chocolate Gelt and a toy dreidel (more typically sized than the 18-foot-high replica) for visitors.William Annin Students Collect More Than 700 Items for Food Bank
Basking Ridge organizations, individuals and students each year raise funds and pitch in for many in need, or for causes on a local or larger scale. This year, the William Annin Middle School students (and faculty and families) outdid themselves with a collection of items in September and October later donated to the Food Bank Network of Somerset County.Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
