Page 6 THE VILLADOM TIMES IV • November 6, 2013 Area Community invited to tour Skylands Manor Skylands Manor (Photo courtesy of NJBG.) Wyckoff wins top AAA safety award Wyckoff has won the highest possible award for traffic safety from the Automobile Association of America’s North Jersey Chapter for the eighth time in the past 10 years. The township was one of only 10 municipalities in Bergen, Hudson, and Passaic counties to receive the Award of Excellence this autumn, according to Wyckoff Police Chief Benjamin Fox. Chief Fox said Wyckoff truly believes in the “three Es” of traffic safety: education, enforcement, and engineering. The township’s safety programs include police offi- cers talking to school children and to senior citizens about pedestrian safety, and demonstrations by bicycle patrol officers at the schools. The police host an annual Safety Town at each school and introduce the children to AAA’s Otto the Auto, which dispenses advice in a memorable way. The police also e-mail a letter to the parents of school chil- dren reminding them that they must yield to pedestrians. J. KOSTER Guided tours of the ground floor of historic Skylands Manor at the New Jersey State Botanical Garden will be available on Sunday, Nov. 10 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sky- lands Manor and the NJBG are located off Morris Road in Ringwood. The 45-minute guided tours will be led by NJBG docents and will include information concerning the manor’s his- tory and architecture. The tours are being sponsored by the NJBG/Skylands Association, the non-profit member sup- port organization that works with the state to preserve the gardens. From Dec. 5 through 8, NJBG will hold its 25 th Annual Holiday Open House. This event will include tours of the manor brimming with holiday decorations. This Silver Jubilee promises to be an extraordinary extravaganza of holiday spirit. Open House hours will be 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day of the Silver Jubilee. Skylands Manor, a Tudor Revival mansion, was con- structed in the early 20th century for Clarence McKenzie Lewis by renowned architect John Russell Pope. Pope also designed many outstanding private buildings, including the Jefferson Memorial and National Gallery of Art, both of which are located in Washington, D.C. Among Skylands Manor’s many attractions are a remarkable collection of antique stained glass medallions set in leaded windows, including pieces from 16th century Bavarian and Swiss sites. The lanterns, electrical fixtures, lamps, spiral stair- case rail, and gate were fashioned by Samuel Yellin, who led the American revival of the use of iron as decorative art. The suggested donations for house tours are $7 for adults, $5 for seniors and students ages 13 through 18, $3 for children ages six through 12, and free for children under age six. Since 1976, The NJBG/Skylands Association, an incor- porated, member-supported non-profit organization of vol- unteers, has been working with the state to preserve and protect NJBG/Skylands and its historic structures. The New Jersey State Botanical Garden at Skylands, which appears on both the State and National Registers of Historic Places, is open from 8 to 8 every day of the year. Admission to the garden is always free. Summer parking is free on weekdays, and $5 per car on summer weekends and holidays (Memorial Day through Labor Day). For an event schedule, membership brochure, direc- tions, or more information, call (973) 962-9534 or visit www.njbg.org.