Message from the Mayor of Mantua for June 27

Dear friends of the community,

The young people of our community are the future leaders, innovators and change-makers of tomorrow. This will obviously be the case for Andrew Glaser, Julian Koza, Lydia Connell-Breen and Haylee Cain, who all hit major milestones in their young lives in the past week.

On Friday, June 21, long-time resident Andrew Glaser (24) graduated from the 64th Basic Class of the Gloucester County Police Academy. Officer Glaser graduated from the grueling 22-week police academy as the recipient of the Academic Award, which is an honor given to the recruit with the highest academic average in the class.

This is a historic and monumental event for the MTPD and our community, as Andrew follows in the footsteps of his father, retired Corporal Jay Glaser, and his grandfather, retired Lieutenant John Glaser, both of whom had long and rewarding careers as police officers with the MTPD. The Glaser trio of Andrew, Jay and John are the first ever to have three generations of family serving our police department.

The Township Committee and I would like to congratulate Officer Glaser on graduating at the top of his class. Let’s be clear. Our department has a rigorous selection process and our MTPD leadership team selects the best. Andrew may be the third generation to serve, however, it’s also evident that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree with Glaser’s eldest star – all of whom reside in Mantua.

On Saturday, June 22, Deputy Mayor Pete Scirrotto and I attended the Eagle Scout Court of Honor for 19-year-old resident Julian Koza at Mantua VFW Post 7679. We presented Julian with a proclamation of canton on behalf of the canton committee.

Julian, who attended Center City and JMT schools, began his scouting journey with Troop 7083 after leaving Webelos in 2015. He rose through the ranks and successfully achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, earning numerous badges of merit along the way. Julian has also served in various leadership positions in scouting and has dedicated his Eagle Scout project to building funeral flag cases for families of deceased veterans.

Only four percent reach the rank of Eagle Scout – the highest rank. We would like to congratulate Julian and the entire Koza family on this very important achievement.

On Saturday, June 22, I also had the great pleasure of meeting two charming young residents of Mantua Township, Lydia Connell-Breen and Haylee Cain, both 10 years old. The girls are best friends and attend JMT school together. These two future entrepreneurs recently launched a “Make and Create” pen stand and find themselves setting up shop in the Bellemeade neighborhood. You can stop by their fun little craft stand on the main drag of Hollybrook Drive and build your own pen while enjoying some fresh lemonade for a small fee.

I was honored as Lydia and Haylee each made me a special personalized “Mayor’s Pen.” Both pens are red, white and blue and are created with unique patriotic designs. Of course, I was excited to contribute pens to help inspire this small neighborhood business. I plan to use the pens at meetings and sign township legislative documents, etc.

Lidia’s mother, Dawn, explained: “We hope this is the start of their journey to becoming successful entrepreneurs. Learning the value of a dollar through hard work is very important.

On Wednesday, June 26, the Gloucester County Mayors Association held its monthly meeting in Harrison Township at Heritage Winery. Our special guests were our public works superintendents. It was an honor to attend with our public works leader, Glenn DeMers. He is truly the best and I can’t thank him enough for all his hard work and dedication to our residents.

I wish everyone a very safe and enjoyable Independence Day. As a reminder, July 4, 1776 is the historic date when the Declaration of Independence was approved by the Continental Congress, cutting political ties between the thirteen North American colonies and Great Britain. While enjoying barbecues, the beach, fireworks, etc., remember that this holiday commemorates the freedom of our great country.

Upcoming township meetings and events:

• From Monday July 1st to Friday July 5th (Bulk Waste Week: except July 4th)
• Thursday July 4 (Bank holiday, municipal offices closed)
• Saturday July 6 (10 a.m. to 2 p.m.): Convenience store
• Historical museum and library of the municipality of Mantua. Open Saturday July 6 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

On behalf of Deputy Mayor Pete Scirrotto, myself and the entire Township Committee, we look forward to continuing our service with honesty, integrity and confident leadership.

Respectfully,

Mayor Robert T. Zimmerman, MAS