Mayor Richard LaBarbiera has a lifelong history in Paramus. He graduated Paramus High School Class of '85 and then went on to attend US Military Academy in 1986 and graduated NJIT with a degree in engineering and is a licensed PE. The Mayor was never an official Rotarian but as a child he was on many projects with the Rotary. Even today, he is supportive of many projects and attends as many as his schedule will allow him.
"Community is like a cloth and Rotary is a Big Thread for the Community" the Mayor said about our Club during his talk.
The Mayor and his wife MaryAnn have 3 children. Richard 21, Vincent 20 and Nicholas 16. Prior to being elected Mayor in 2011, and re-elected for a second term in 2014, he was a member of the Paramus Council for 6 years. He has chaired or been a member on literally every Borough committee (too many to mention at this time). The Mayor also just served on Governor Murphy’s Housing Transition Team. The Mayor’s support for Paramus athletics and particularly Paramus High School football spans 6 decades and 3 generations of the LaBarbiera family. Mayor LaBarbiera prides himself on the inclusion of youth of the community in programs, projects and humanitarian endeavors. He has worked to improve the overall appearance of the Borough and improve and make available more resident programs. He is proud of his efforts over the past 7 years of his administration for “Putting Paramus First”… and improving the “Quality of Life” for all Paramus residents.
He stated that the community is great because politics are put aside and people come together. He stated that Paramus is a big town with a small town feel. Paramus has received AAA bond rating which puts Paramus in a great place. The finances of Paramus keep growing because of the many different programs available. There are over 60 shared services with the county in order to bring more revenue to cover changes in the budget. The Paramus Police force has grown from 65 officers to 91 patrolling our community and making sure everyone is safe. As a result, last year Paramus was one of the towns with the lowest crime rates. This year is also the first year that Paramus will have a Junior Police Academy! Many of the programs in Paramus try to utilize our Veterans first and make sure that everyone in the community is taken care of. The Department of Public Works is always going around town making sure that everything is taken care of!
Mayor Richard LaBarbiera has been a great asset to this community and he continues to work hard to make it a better place to live!
ANNOUNCEMENTS
~ Diane Vasile-Falcone also reminds us that Greeters are needed for our weekly meetings so make sure you sign up!
~ Kevin Behnke reminds us that the Pancake Breakfast is on March 11th 8:30 am - 12:30 pm.
~ Doris Spano would like to remind everyone that the next Bingo Monday at the Veteran's Home has been scheduled for April 30th so make sure you sign up!
~ Lois Horowitz reminds us that Bowling Night is scheduled for March 3rd at Humdingers and a sign-up sheet will be passed around so please make sure you sign up!
~ Fred Rohdieck reminds us that Friday March 2nd the Harlem Wizards will be playing against the Paramus All-Stars as part of a Fundraiser!
~ Emil Geering also reminds us:
District Conference
Exciting destination . . . Hard Rock Casino & Resort in Punt Cana, DR!
Please join us on May 3 - 6 for a joint conference with Dist. 7255 (Long Island)
for the annual District Conference at a beach resort in Dominican Republic.
Among the business of our district, a joint community service project is planned and there's plenty of free time at this casual resort on the beach. Emil and Jim M have brochures available and it's always fun when there are many from the club who attend. So, give it some thought and consider signing up at: rotarydistrict 7490.org\
~ Len Manis reminds us:
RELAY FOR LIFE – American Cancer Society is scheduled for June 15, 2018 6 PM to June 16, 2018 6 AM at the Paramus High School
Join and/or donate to our Rotary team at
Paramus Noon Rotary Club
(Ideas for new team name are welcomed)
Len Manis, Rotary Team Captain
LManis2323@gmail.com