Page 4 THE VILLADOM TIMES II • November 14, 2012 Glen Rock Incumbent trustees survive election challenge by John Koster Elizabeth Carr was the top vote-getter in her bid for an empty Glen Rock Board of Education seat, but incumbents Barbara Steuert and Gene Calderon kept their seats by a strong margin in a contest with newcomers Sean Massaro and James Chung. Carr, a school nurse in another district, received 1,800 votes. Steuert, a long-term incumbent and a credit union manager, received 1,447 ballots. Calderone, a college professor and administrator at Bergen Community College, received 1,315 votes. Massaro, an 18-year-old freshman in a nursing course at Caldwell College, received 960 votes. Chung, who operates a college counseling service in Paramus, received 940. The three winners essentially ran on a status quo policy, while Massaro touched off a flurry at a Candidates Night when he argued that top Glen Rock administrators were overpaid compared to classroom teachers and that the campus security was lax at the high school. Chung said that Glen Rock should compete in more math and science Olympiads with an eye toward Ivy League and top university admissions. Calderone praised attempts to achieve more ethnic diversity among Glen Rock staffers, while Carr and Steuert said the racial background of the teachers was less important than their individual qualifications. Massaro also advocated anti-bullying activities, while Carr and Steuert said that state programs were already in place and were adequate. All three winners have strong backgrounds in local Glen Rock Mayor John van Keuren came away from the Nov. 7 post-storm session at Glen Rock Borough Hall with a firm decision: There will be no Halloween in Glen Rock this year. The issue was the continued widespread loss of power after Hurricane Sandy. Van Keuren, sometimes known as “Darth Mayor” for his favorite Halloween costume, improvised from a Darth Vader mask and the municipal magistrate’s black robe, said that council consensus reached after last week’s meeting was that the third attempt to reschedule Halloween this year was not the charm. “I think Halloween is going to move on down the road this year,” Mayor van Keuren said with a note of sadness. Last year, van Keuren and Dr. David Verducci, who was then superintendent of schools, rescheduled a Halloween gathering on one of the first sunny days after the Oct. 29, 2011 snowstorm that knocked down trees, branches, and power lines all over Glen Rock. Several hundred children came out in costumes for a special late Halloween at the borough hall lawn as Borough school activities and Carr has served as a member and officer of the Glen Rock Ambulance Corps, while Steuert has served on a number of youth counseling groups. Borough cancels Halloween celebration Hot topic Administrator Lenora Benjamin, dressed as a black cat, gave out goodies. The meeting Glen Rock Council members had with residents on Nov. 7, amidst another early snowfall, was described as civil. Mayor van Keuren said the residents advanced some worthwhile ideas, which the council had independently devised -- notably, better communications with the utility company. “It all seemed to be PSE&G-related, to get them to identify the problem areas to us with more reliability and greater clarity” van Keuren said. He said, however, that he had no problems with the work crews who flocked to Glen Rock from all over the country (including Oklahoma) to help reconnect broken wires. He said he hoped that the Veterans Day weekend would see the last of the homes without power or land-line telephones. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen that many Oklahoma license plates in Glen Rock, but I’d delighted to see them,” the mayor said. “We can use all the help we can get.” J. KOSTER Fire Department personnel from Glen Rock, Ridgewood, and Fair Lawn responded to a report of a smoke condition at the Chase Bank in Glen Rock. The smoke is believed to have been caused by a defective roof top located heating unit. No injuries were reported. Members of the Glen Rock Volunteer Ambulance Corps were placed on standby during the incident. Also responding were officers from Glen Rock Police Department. (Photo courtesy of Boyd A. Loving.)