November 28, 2012 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • Page 15 Wyckoff Wanderings School hosts Coat Drive Grace Nursery School is sponsoring its Second Annual Coat Drive to benefit Oasis: A Haven for Women and Children. Gently-used coats, hats, and mittens of all sizes will be collected through Dec. 14 at the school located at 555 Russell Avenue in Wyckoff. Santa comes to Wyckoff The Wyckoff Chamber of Commerce’s Santa Comes to Wyckoff and Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony will be held Friday, Dec. 7. (Rain date: Dec. 10.) All are invited to enjoy this special visit from Santa and Mrs. Claus, and to share the magic of the tree lighting. The event will include be refreshments and holiday music. Santa and Mrs. Claus will travel through Wyckoff on a fire truck, meeting and greeting children and their families at various locations. Santa’s first stop will be at the Cedar Hill Plaza at 4 p.m. He will be at the Wyckoff Shopping Center at 5:15 p.m., Main Street at 5:45 p.m., and the Mayflower Shopping Center at 6 p.m. He will travel through the Wyckoff Square Shopping Center at 6:45 p.m., and the Rock Ledge Plaza at 7 p.m., and stop at Boulder Run Shopping Center at 7:15 p.m. Santa’s last stop of the evening will be at Wyckoff Town Hall for the tree lighting ceremony at 7:45 p.m. Please note: Santa will not be getting off the truck at Main Street, Wyckoff Square Shopping Center, or Rock Ledge Plaza stops. For more event information, contact Marie Kidd at (201) 848-4545 or www.wyckoffchamber.com. Pet licenses available Beginning Dec. 3, Wyckoff residents can obtain 2013 licenses for their dogs and cats at the municipal clerk’s office weekdays from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Tuesday evenings from 6 to 8 p.m. Residents are reminded to bring proof of the pet’s rabies vaccination and alteration papers. The license fee is $11 for an altered pet and $14 for an unaltered pet. After Feb. 1, a late fee of $10 per animal will be charged in addition to the annual licensing fee. Replacement tags may be purchased throughout the licensing year for $5. The Annual Free Rabies Prevention Program will be held Saturday, Jan. 12, 2013 from 1 to 3 p.m. at the DPW Garage located at 475 West Main Street in Wyckoff. Wyckoff Y offers trips The Wyckoff Family YMCA is offering a variety of trips to New York City’s holiday events. On Dec. 2, travel to Lincoln Center’s to see “The Nutcracker.” The bus will leave the Y at 9:30 a.m. Participants will have time for sightseeing and lunch prior to the 1 p.m. show. Seating is in the second ring. Tickets are $140 for Wyckoff YMCA members and $150 for non-members. The Y is also hosting a trip to Radio City Music Hall for its Christmas Spectacular on Tuesday, Dec. 11. The bus will leave the Y at 3:30 p.m. for the 8 p.m. show. Theatergoers will have time for sightseeing and dinner on their own before the performance. The cost is $90 for Wyckoff YMCA members and $100 for non-members. To reserve tickets, call Nancy at (201) 891-2081. The Y is located at 691 Wyckoff Avenue in Wyckoff. Rabbi offers Roundtable discussions Temple Beth Rishon invites the community to join Rabbi Ken Emert for a Rabbi’s Roundtable discussion that explores topics relating to spirituality. “Understanding, Exploring and Living a Spiritual Life” sessions will be held at 7 p.m. on Nov. 28, and Dec. 5. For more information, call the temple office at (201) 891-4466 or visit bethrishon.org. The temple is located at 585 Russell Avenue in Wyckoff. Family flu vaccine available Family members ages three and up can be vaccinated against the flu at the Wyckoff YMCA Family Flu Vaccination Program on Nov. 28. This program is being sponsored by the Northwest Bergen Regional Health Commission and will be held from 3 to 7 p.m. in Room PR4 at the Y, which is located at 691 Wyckoff Avenue in Wyckoff. Pregnant women must bring a note from their obstetrician. A parent or guardian must be present for their child to receive a flu shot. Pre-registration for children is suggested. Thimerosal, a mercury derivative used as a vaccine preservative, is not contained in the flu vaccine that will be given to children. The cost for the vaccine is $25. NWBRHC does not accept insurance; however, a receipt for health insurance company reimbursement will be provided. Those with Medicare Part B must present their card; Medicare will be billed directly. Anyone with a Medicare HMO, also known as Medicare Advantage, may choose to go to their primary care provider or pay $25 for a flu vaccination at this program. No residency restrictions apply. Those who cannot attend the program may make office appointments throughout flu season at Northwest Bergen Regional Health Commission located at 20 West Prospect Street in Waldwick. To preregister for the Family Flu Vaccination Program, contact Dawn Snyder at (201) 445-7217, extension 203. Letters to the Editor (continued from page 14) few weeks to help those in need. As a result, the Wyckoff Office of Emergency Management was able to provide disaster relief to hundreds of families, victims of power outages, those who suffered tree damage, and those with severe home destruction. These vital services would not have been possible without the valuable contributions of all our emergency services and volunteers. A special thank you to Christian Health Care Center and Powerhouse Christian Church for opening their doors as designated shelters, providing comfort, heat, and hot meals during this disaster. Whether the disaster was a single residential home, or a large-scale neighborhood, we thank our volunteers who stood ready and provided vital relief services. We are thankful for the continuous commitment to providing warmth and support to other members of our community. Have a safe and happy holiday season, and know that all of you in your own way throughout this disaster have truly made a positive difference in Wyckoff this year. Lieutenant David V. Murphy, Coordinator Wyckoff Office of Emergency Management Department answered over 195 calls for assistance during the course of this storm. These calls consisted of routine alarms, downed trees, snapped power lines, trees on homes, utility emergencies, smoke in structures, and gas emergencies. As the storm intensified and moved into town, it quickly became evident that the danger associated with this storm was far greater than anyone could have predicted. At the height of the storm, about 10 p.m. Monday evening, our department was out running from incident to incident while trying to protect our residents and ourselves. While many people may have looked out their windows and witnessed a small portion of the storm’s wrath, those of us who were responding to emergencies during the storm got a firsthand look at the power and destructive force associated with Sandy. As a result of the deteriorating road conditions and the inability of our members to get to the firehouses quickly, our members stepped up to the plate and established overnight standby crews in each firehouse to ensure that all calls for service were answered promptly, leaving their own families and homes so that they could answer a neighbor’s call for help. In the days following the storm, our department continued to answer calls for assistance while closely working with our township officials and other branches of emergency services to ensure that every resident in Wyckoff was safe. Throughout the storm and days following the storm, the mayor, members of the township committee, and township employees spent countless hours working hard to get Wyckoff back on track, despite the lack of response from our utility companies. The coordination and communication between all involved was second to none! We would be remiss if we did not thank the families of all of our firefighters who support and allow our members to go out and serve this great community! Without the tremendous support of our families, friends, and neighbors, we could not continue to provide the township with one of the best all volunteer fire departments in New Jersey! Anyone who would like an opportunity to volunteer is invited to stop by any firehouse on Monday night after 7:30 p.m. Michael P. Rose, Chief Lou Graglia, Assistant Chief Wyckoff Volunteer Fire Department Dear Editor: As our communities get back to a sense of normalcy after the most devastating storm our area has ever suffered, we would like to take time to thank the members of the Wyckoff Volunteer Fire Department, and all of the emergency services, department of public works, office of emergency management, township employees, and our township committee. In preparation for Hurricane Sandy, the members of the Wyckoff Volunteer Fire Department went to each firehouse to prepare the trucks and equipment in anticipation of handling any emergency situation that could occur. While township officials, OEM, and members of all township departments met to prepare in advance of the storm, no one could have anticipated the level of destruction which occurred during this storm. On Oct. 29, as the winds started to increase to significant gusts, the volunteers who make up our department were called into action starting at 2 p.m. and did not stop for almost two weeks. In all, the Wyckoff Volunteer Fire Volunteers and families performed outstanding service