Times Talk
Councilman Bill Kehner Sr., Mayor Leonard Desiderio and Councilman Frank Edwardi Jr. pose at the reorganization meeting in July.
TEAM SEA ISLE SWORN IN
The members of Team Sea Isle, consisting of Mayor Leonard Desiderio and Councilmen Bill Kehner Sr. and Frank Edwardi Jr., were officially sworn in for another four-year term during the city’s reorganization meeting July 1. Held at Excursion Park, many residents, business owners, city employees and officials from surrounding communities attended the meeting to show their support for the reelected officials. The three ran unopposed in the municipal election on May 14.
Desiderio, the mayor since 1993, originally served under the city’s commission form of government before it switched to the mayor-council form in 2007. Kehner and Edwardi have each served three terms on council and are looking forward to serving their fourth.
All City Council meetings are held at 10am on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month in the Council Meeting Room on the third floor of City Hall, 233 JFK Blvd., unless otherwise noted.
Among those posing at the SICBP 100th anniversary celebration are (from left): Chuck Gehman, Tim Quinn, Dan Stearne, Captain John Temme, Chief Renny Steele, Andy Sannino (seated), Mayor Desiderio, Mike McHale and Bill Gallagher.
SEA ISLE CELEBRATES ITS BEACH PATROL’S 100TH ANNIVERSARY
Lifeguard boats from Ventnor City, Avalon, Ocean City, Wildwood and Cape May lined the Sea Isle Promenade the morning of July 11 in support and celebration of Sea Isle City Beach Patrol’s 100th anniversary.
Founded on July 11, 1919, the SICBP and its centennial committee chose to celebrate on this special day along with the Sea Isle City administration, beach patrol and members of the SICBP Alumni Association for a full day of commemorative events.
The day started solemnly with a special mass at St. Joseph Church for all deceased Sea Isle City lifeguards.
Then the town joined forces with other local lifeguard patrols and associations for the Centennial Parade, to show joint support for the Sea Isle City Beach Patrol. Hundreds of people lined the Promenade from 29th to 44th Street as neighboring lifeguard boats and cars with SICBP veterans traveled to the beach patrol headquarters.
The parade’s grand marshal was 100-year-old Andy Sannino, the oldest living SICBP alumnus.
Immediately following the parade was the 100th Anniversary Ceremony. Tom Fluid, the grandnephew of the first Sea Isle City Beach Patrol captain John Coleman and the former director of the Wildwood Beach Patrol, led the ceremony. He introduced Mayor Leonard Desiderio, immediate past City Council President Jack Gibson, and Police Chief Thomas McQuillen for their speeches.
Desiderio, Gibson and McQuillen all thanked the beach patrol and alumni association for their continued dedication to serving Sea Isle, and the general public for so heavily supporting the patrol.
“It goes without saying the dedication and commitment has kept this organization thriving,” Desiderio said. “And, they have done so with honor and integrity.”
The ceremony was followed by a Paddle-Out Wreath Ceremony. Three boats rowed past the breakers and left flowers adrift in honor of Sea Isle City’s departed veterans and lifeguards, and all departed South Jersey lifeguards.
The celebration is not over, though, as the Sea Isle Historical Museum has created a special display of beach patrol memorabilia, artifacts and photos that will be available for viewing through October 2019.
Ryan Meyer, John Lose and Dan McCann during the 10th anniversary celebration of Rock the Boat for Autism at the Sea Isle Historical Museum.
‘ROCK THE BOAT FOR AUTISM’ CREW ROCKIN’ THE CAUSE
Ten years ago, five former Cape May County lifeguards took two old rowboats and a trailer to Boca Raton, Fla., to embark on a 1,500-mile rowing journey to raise awareness and money for autism. After enduring dehydration, heat exhaustion, dangerous storms and alligator encounters on the water, the Rock The Boat For Autism crew, consisting of John Lose, Larry Maher, Dan McCann, Ryan Meyer and James O’Donoghue, landed in Sea Isle City 54 days later.
Today, the team members are just as dedicated to raising awareness for autism as they were when they set out to sea, having recently pledged to continue to share their story and support local autism events. A special 10-year commemorative ceremony was hosted at the Sea Isle Historical Museum on June 29, and Lose, McCann and Meyer were on hand to further share their story. During the ceremony, Rock The Boat For Autism dedicated one of the rowboats used in the journey to the museum, along with other notable items.
“What we decided to do to have a greater impact is bring the boat to autism events all over the state and all over the East Coast, further sharing our story and further supporting individuals and organizations hosting events to raise money and awareness for autism,” McCann said at the 10th anniversary ceremony.
The collection of memorabilia is now on display at the Historical Museum, and the boat itself will continue to travel across the state, supporting autism-awareness events.
Work is nearing completion on the Townsends Inlet Bridge.
TOWNSENDS INLET BRIDGE UPDATE
Cape May County officials hope that the Townsends Inlet Bridge is reopened by the time you read this.
“As it currently stands right now, we anticipate that the bridge will be open by July 30,” County Engineer Robert Church wrote in an email on July 16. “However, there is still work remaining and unanticipated construction issues and/or weather could impact that date. However, the July 30 date seems reasonable.”
Less than two weeks before the target date, Agate Construction had completed the superstructure of the bridge, poured the bridge deck, poured the bridge sidewalks and poured the approach slabs. In addition, the new bridge railing has been installed through span 2 entering new span 3.
Remaining work included pouring concrete pylons for railing attachment, pouring the approach transition slab overlay, setting the remaining railing, saw cutting the bridge deck, striping the roadway/new spans, and cleanup of the site including the removal of the shielding/scaffolding.
Further updates from the county will be available on avalonboro.net and seaislecitynj.us.
Dr. Joseph LaRosa Jr. poses with his first book among artifacts of the March 1962 storm at the Sea Isle Historical Museum.
LAROSA REVISITS MARCH 1962 STORM WITH ORAL HISTORY
Dr. Joseph LaRosa Jr. is releasing his second book, “Storm Stories: An Oral History of the March 1962 Storm That Devastated Sea Isle City.” It is a companion to his 2010 book, “Our Perfect Storm: A History of the March 1962 Storm That Devastated Sea Isle City.” While the first book is a documented and annotated history of the storm, the second book features a collection of oral remembrances.
“For the latest book I have collected over 32 oral histories,” says LaRosa, a retired educator. “I tried to get as many varied perspectives as possible, including business owners, people who lost their houses, residents who did or saw extraordinary things, state troopers who were sent to deter looters, Coast Guardsmen from the Townsends Inlet Station, and even the New Jersey state climatologist.
“I hope that the book will paint a complete picture of the hardships that everyone overcame. The common thread that everyone spoke about throughout the interviews was how everyone came together as a community.”
LaRosa grew up in Sea Isle City and attended St. Joseph School and Ocean City High School. He earned his doctorate in education at Rutgers University. He and his wife, Barbara, have been married 40 years. They have two grown children who are also educators, and two grandchildren. He has been collecting stories since March 1962, but when the 2010 book was published, he had a lot of undocumented information that could not be used in the formal history. Following the loss of a childhood friend and fellow storm survivor, LaRosa was prompted to re-interview people and collect as many oral histories as possible with the goal of publishing a second book.
“Storm Stories” will become available in August at Dalrymple’s Card & Gift Shoppe, Sands Department Store, and the Sea Isle City Historical Museum. It can also be purchased directly from LaRosa via email at march1962storm@comcast.net. The cost of the book is $25.
