The HOWELL Times
Vol. 22 - No. 25
MICROMEDIA PUBLICATIONS
JERSEYSHOREONLINE.COM
“Adopt A Family” Program Seeks Donors This Holiday Season
In This Week’s Edition
By Alyssa Riccardi HOWELL – Help a neighbor in need this holiday season and take part in Howell Township’s annual “Adopt a Family” Holiday Giveaway program. The holiday season is an important time
BREAKING NEWS @
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Community News
of the year to help families who are less fortunate. Once again, the Township is encouraging all residents and local businesses to consider adopting a family in need within the Howell community. “These are tough times and with the
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Dr. Izzy Sound News Page 13
By Stephanie Faughnan TOMS RIVER – With palpable excitement, VA Under Secretary for Health Shereef Elnahal said it was great to be back home in New Jersey to celebrate the grand opening of the new VA Clinic on Hooper Avenue in Toms River. “I love this state and the tens of thousands of veterans who are going to benefit from this
(Family - See Page 4)
Board Members New VA Clinic Brings Care Closer To Home Discuss AI, Other Challenges
Inside The Law
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challenges of our local and national economy, more families are in need of our generosity,” officials said. Their goal is to gather as many volunteers as they can and assign them each
A Ribbon-Cutting For Heroes:
Pages 7-9
Classifieds
November 30, 2024
Photo by Stephanie Faughnan VA Under Secretary for Health Shereef Elnahal, joined by Senator Cory Booker, Senator-elect Andy Kim, Congressman Chris Smith and other dignitaries cutting the ribbon for the new Center. clinic for generations to come,” he said. At the ribbon-cutting ce re mony, El n a h a l joined a lineup of dignitaries addressing a crowd of more than 300 people gathered under a large tent outside the new clinic. The audience included veterans attending individually and as part of organized groups, alongside local, county, state, and federal officials, all united to cel-
ebrate the milestone for the veteran community. Elnahal estimated there are nearly 60,000 vetera ns bet ween Monmouth and Ocean Cou nt y alone and that other New Jersey veterans will benefit from the center. He described the opening as a major step forward, highlighting its alignment with the PACT Act, which expanded healthcare eligibility
for veterans. This bipartisan legislation, signed by President Joe Biden, has significantly improved access to care for veterans exposed to toxic substances, including Agent Orange and burn pits. The new 68,000-squarefoot facility, located on Hooper Avenue, doubles the capacity of the James J. Howard Outpatient Clinic in Brick and features expand-
ed services, including primary care, mental health, cardiology, dental care, and a women’s health clinic. It offers telehealth, an infusion center for chemotherapy, and specialty care such as urology and audiology. There is also ample parking with 480 spaces. The Brick facility closed down when the Toms River one opened.
(VA Clinic - See Page 3)
By Liz Ciocher HOWELL – The Howell Township Board of Education had their monthly meeting, mostly discussing new information learned from various educator workshops and recapping previous meetings. MaryRose Malley and Alexandria Langenberger, two board members, presented information they learned in their workshops that they plan to implement into the district from their positions. Malley discussed three workshops, titled ‘New Jersey For Us,’‘Pay It Forward 911’ and ‘AI In The Classroom.’ According to her, each workshop contained information regarding children’s safety and community. ‘New Jersey For Us’ discussed controlling labels that can be negatively placed on children, how they are created and how to combat them. ‘Pay It Forward 911’ drew on experiences from survivors of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 to help create a sense of community, and ‘AI In The Classroom’ addressed concerns Malley had previously established to the Board. In the workshop, an artificial intelligence presentation was given depicting what appeared to be a podcast of people talking, but was completely AI generated. “[AI] is already here in Google Classroom,” she said. “[The presentation] was a little disturbing in my opinion. It was exciting to see, but it was also disturbing. It’s really something I stress again that we really need (Board - See Page 4)
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