July 11, 2018 • www.theobserver.com • Vol. CXXXI, No. 9
HIGHLIGHTS The Observer’s series on addiction continues with ‘The Alcoholic Next Door.’ Page 2
COVERING: BELLEVILLE • BLOOMFIELD • EAST NEWARK • HARRISON • KEARNY • LYNDHURST • NORTH ARLINGTON • NUTLEY
Firefighter hurt after dump truck collides with tiller
NEW JR. HIGH READY TO GO By Ron Leir Special to The Observer
L
ooks like all systems are go for Lyndhurst’s new junior high school. The township Board of Commissioners voted June 28 to award the construction job to Dobco Inc. of Wayne for a total cost of $51,125,500. Dobco was determined to be “the lowest responsible bidder” among the nine contractors that submitted bids on the project. It was Dobco that the Kearny Board of Education initially awarded the contract for façade and structural improvements to Kearny High School several years ago, but that award was ultimately overturned by the courts in June 2011 on technical issues and, instead, the job went to a rival bidder that was, also, later replaced. Other bids on the Lyndhurst project came in between $52
By Kevin Canessa kc@theobserver.com A Harrison firefighter was taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries Friday, July 6, when he was injured after a dump truck struck the tiller truck he was sitting in near the PSE&G property on Frank E. Rodgers Boulevard South, Lt. David Doyle told The Observer. Here’s how it all went down, according to Doyle: The Harrison Fire Department responded to an “odor of gas” call with its ladder truck at approximately 2:30 p.m., Friday, July 6, at the PSE&G property. They stopped in the southbound lane with emergency lights flashing. While clearing the scene and returning to the truck, a dump truck with a partial load was traveling south and struck the rear of the fire truck, causing damage to both vehicles.
See HFD, Page 23
A planner’s rendering of what the new junior high school in Lyndhurst will look like once it’s finished.
See JR HIGH, Page 23
NJ DOE says Title 1 money misspent By Ron Leir Special to The Observer
that claim, according to Director of Personnel & Compliance James Doran and Business Administrator Daniel Choffo. A 15-page, June 18 letter signed by Robert J. Cicchiono, director of DOE’s Office of Fiscal Accountability and Compliance (OFAC), details the findings of an
T
he N.J. Department of Education wants the Harrison Board of Education to pay back $60,335.95 in federal Title 1 funds the DOE says may have been misspent. But the HBOE will be challenging
audit of Title 1 funding to Harrison for the 2015-2016 school year. The district received a total of $1,276,798 in Title 1 monies for that period, according to OFAC. Title 1 money is earmarked for programs designed to enhance educational programs to help children succeed and its allocation
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is keyed to the percentage of free and reduced-price lunches served in a local school district. Program funds can be used for everything from textbooks to payroll expenses. The DOE wants these monies returned: • $39,136.57 in employee salaries
See NJDOE, Page 23
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THE OBSERVER | WEDNESDAY, JULY 11, 2018
THE GUY LIVING NEXT DOOR By Kevin Canessa kc@theobserver.com
W
HEN PEOPLE think of the term “alcoholic,” there’s often a mental image that forms. Scrawny. Unkempt. Not always clean shaven. Sometimes stinky. It’s not, as they say, the look of the average “Joe Next Door.” And yet, the reality is this — the person you might least expect to be the alcoholic could be the very well-dressed guy next door. It could be the bank executive you dealt with when you went in for a loan. It could be the guy who sold you something at a store or from a remote business. Enter Andrew Michinard. Michinard grew up in the well-to-do Jersey suburb of Basking Ridge. He went to Ridge High School. He rarely had a need in his life.
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When Andrew Michinard drank in excess, he’d often find himself in a hospital bed or passed out on the ground somewhere.
And yet somehow, when he was a freshman in high school, despite having what some would call good, All-
American looks — and a pretty decent life — he never quite had a good sense of selfworth.
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It was quite the opposite, actually. He recalls hearing, from family members, how “cool” it was to drink alcohol. So when freshman year came around, he’d always say to himself, “I can’t wait until it’s
my turn,” to get blitzed. “It looks cool and I want to do it,” Michinard said back then. Now before we get to his first drinking experience, remember this: Michinard was also an athlete and a self-described “egomaniac.” Still, he was overcome with serious insecurity. Can you see where this is leading? “I can recall when the buzz first hit,” Michinard said. “I had no fears. The insecurities were gone. “This was all I had ever been looking for.” With his insecurities now gone, Michinard found a new best friend — alcohol. His drinking grew and grew and grew. The Ridge quarterback and baseball team captain was slowly becoming a professional drinker. He says he likely even showed up to practices drunk. When he went off to college,
Continued on the next page
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Inside this edition ... Opinion..................................................................................6 Sports & Recreation..........................................................11 Food & Dining Directory....................................................13 Health & Wellness Directory.............................................15 Real Estate..........................................................................16 Real Estate Directory.........................................................17
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THE OBSERVER | WEDNESDAY, JULY 11, 2018
03
MAY JUST BE AN ALCOHOLIC
rendezvous. are wrong — this hideous While all this is happening, ailment that had taken over he partied all the time. Michinard thinks he’s got his life, was about to come to “It was mayhem,” everyone fooled, too. No an end. Michinard said. “Pure one knows he’s a drinker. “I can’t do this anymore,” mayhem.” Not even his family — or he said to himself nearly And then it spiraled out of girlfriend at the time. a decade ago on that crisp control to the point where And so we fast forward to late-summer day. “I had to he was drinking every day 2008. It was Sept. 16. surrender. I was 31 years old — sometimes out of a Poland He heads to the loo to get and crying because I knew Springs water bottle filled ready one morning and in my life was a mess.” with vodka. Heck, who would doing so, turns on the sink to So of course, you’d notice the difference, right? create white noise. Then he probably think Michinard’s Water and vodka look the cracks open a can of beer he sobriety date is — naturally same in one of those clear found that he had hidden in — Sept. 16, 2008, right? containers. the bathroom. Wrong. So here he was, “The “I can hear you,” his “I knew that if I was going Alcoholic Next Door,” as girlfriend at the time said. to go away, I had to have one he calls his website, where Truth is, Michinard had no more night — one more time he offers advice and help one fooled. getting completely loaded,” for others struggling with When she said that, he said. alcoholism. (We’ll get to the advertising@theobserver.com 201-991-1600 Michinard was chugging His family, which had blog later in this story.) some vodkaClient: he had also already begun preparations er: He recalls in a video blog found stashed away in the to get him to a North Miami post how he would sit in bathroom. And it was that rehab, agreed to let him the parking lot of a local moment — that instant — have his one last night of liquor store on work days that he had what is known inebriation. and do computations — how as either his “moment of Most interventionists many airplane-sized vodka clarity,” or his hitting “rock — like Jeff Van Vonderen bottles would he need to bottom.” and Ken Seeley from A&E’s make it through each day. For 17 years, disease would say Advertising: Here is the updated template with a new this photo of Jarlynn“Intervention,” Hyde: If he had meetings with — and yes, folks, you can say that was a huge mistake. And clients — he was and still is whatever it is you want about in this case, it almost was. a salesman — he’d buy one alcoholism, but it is, like all for each meeting, and guzzle addictions are, a disease, and it down before going to the if you say otherwise, you
Continued from previous page
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Andrew and his family today.
“I was so bad, they almost wouldn’t let me on that plane to Miami the next day,” Michinard said. “Fortunately, I did get on the plane — and it all changed after that.” So it was Sept. 17, 2008 — nine-plus years ago, encroaching on a decade now — that Michinard got sober. He hasn’t touched a drop of liquor since. He says he does miss drinking on rare occasions
— but for the most part, his love of sobriety, his young daughter, his wife and the life he missed out on because he was so often sauced, makes drinking a thing of the past. It’s a day-by-day process to remain sober, but Michinard says once someone in recovery stacks 24 hours on top of another 24 hours, on top of another 24 hours, on
See ANDREW, Page 22
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tos can best make sellers’ homes look like the showcases that most buyers expect to see. Even if you think a room won’t photograph well, shoot it anyway because the photo quality might surprise you and be usable. Open drapes and blinds, and turn on lights. Focus on interesting details like the condition of a wood floor, a banister, or a fireplace mantle. If you own a condo or townhome without a yard, take pictures of the clubhouse, pool, spa, or tennis courts. For more information, please call or stop by our office. “Our success has been built one satisfied customer at a time.”
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FREE SUMMER
CONCERT
North Arlington’s Free Summer Concert series kicks off
TUESDAY, JULY 17
with the first time local appearance of GARDEN STATE RADIO. This dynamic act will be performing Pop-Rock hits from the 80’s & 90’s up to today. Audiences will be thrilled by the music of Pat Benatar to Katy Perry; Michael Jackson to Journey: Paramour to Rhianna and much, much more.
THE CONCERT TAKES PLACE AT RIVERSIDE PARK BEGINNING AT 7PM. Come early as this concert is sure to draw a large crowd. Don’t forget your beach chairs or blankets and enjoy a night of fun under the stars in a beautiful park setting. There is plenty of free parking available and refreshments will be available.
The Free Concert Series will continue on July 24 and July 31. Check back for more details on those shows.