Area February 29, 2012 THE VILLADOM TIMES II • Page 7 CERT assisted at Marine’s wake and funeral by Jennifer Crusco Ho-Ho-Kus CERT Program Manager Stanley Kober and other Ho-Ho-Kus Community Emergency Response Team members were recently hand-picked to assist the North Arlington Police Department and other local CERT organizations at the wake and funeral for Lance Corporal Osbrany Montes De Oca. The 20-year-old Marine was killed in combat operations in Afghanistan, and his wake and funeral were held last week at the Queen of Peace Roman Catholic Church in North Arlington. Kober explained that Robert Tarantula of North Arlington CERT called upon the Ho-Ho-Kus team because of its members’ experience with large-scale events. Kober was joined by Ron Bosco, Brian Wormser, Mike Limatola, Robert Merritt, and Glen Rock CERT member Keith McElwee. Their duties included acting as road guards and traffic monitors, Kober said. In addition, the Ho-Ho-Kus CERT truck was used to transport the Bergen County CERT trailer that was used as the command center for this effort. On Feb. 21, the day after the funeral, Kober told the Ho-Ho-Kus Council he and his team had logged 12 hours during the wake and six hours the day of the funeral. “The members of our CERT – your CERT – came Police in Ridgewood and in Wyckoff have reported the thefts of three expensive late-model cars. The thefts occurred in mid-February while the vehicles were parked on the owners’ properties. In Ridgewood on Feb. 14, two different residents of Elmsley Court reported their cars had been stolen overnight. A 2011 Range Rover and a 2010 Mercedes Benz were stolen. The Ridgewood Police Department is investigating both incidents, along with the theft of a GPS from another parked car overnight on Feb. 14 on Demarest Street. On Feb. 17, another village resident reported that her car had been ransacked while it was parked along Highland Avenue. Wyckoff police reported that, on Feb. 17, a Clinton Police report automobile thefts Avenue resident reported that her BMW had been stolen while parked in the driveway, unlocked, with the keys inside the vehicle. The BMW was valued at $90,000. Approximately $5,000 worth of personal items had also been stolen from inside the car. Patrolman Ryan Tenney investigated this incident. Wyckoff Police Chief Benjamin Fox and Ridgewood Police Chief John Ward urge residents to remove their keys and lock their cars even when the vehicles are parked in their own driveways. They also warn citizens never to leave valuables visible inside vehicles. A number of recent incidents have prompted renewed warnings about the menace of theft from unlocked vehicles, or the theft of the vehicles. J. KOSTER through again,” Kober told the governing body, noting that it had been an honor to serve in this capacity. In a subsequent interview, Kober, who is commander of VFW Post 192, said he was also proud to have been helping at the wake and funeral as a member of the veterans’ organization. “You’re doing it for the right reasons,” Ho-Ho-Kus Mayor Thomas Randall told Kober. “A job well done.” “The several CERT organizations there all worked extremely well together,” Kober told Villadom TIMES, noting that Lyndhurst CERT had also been present. “We felt privileged to be asked to go there, especially for this honorable and humble occasion. I thank our local members for the support on such short notice,” Kober said, explaining that the team had been called on Friday for service on Sunday and Monday. He summed up by saying that Ho-Ho-Kus had carried out the CERT motto of “Neighbor Helping Neighbor.”