Clinton Township Newsletter

3 s e p t e m b e r 2 0 2 0 OUR ADVERTISERS SUPPORT US. PLEASE HELP US BY SUPPORTING THEM. Carol Beder's SHADES | MOTORIZED SHADES | BLINDS | DRAPES | PLANTATION SHUTTERS You Deserve Them! 908.236.2688 14 Lebanon Plaza n WindowExpressionsNJ.com – Julie Fl�nn www.MSIPlumbingAndRemodeling.com 1109 Rte. 31 S. Lebanon, NJ 08833 New Jersey Licensed Master Plumber #8722 Your Remodeling Experts! 908.735.4438 Dear Ms. Flynn. I am a 65 year old RN and 32-year resident of Clinton Township. I have read and enjoyed the Newsletter since the day we arrived in 1987. I commend you for providing a professional, yet personal publication that truly informs our Township residents. I always look forward to the Editor's Column. It generally offers thoughtful and often witty opinions on a wide range of interesting topics. Unfortunately, in the most recent (August 2020) edition, this was not the case. The details of Ms. Flynn's family vacation to North Carolina and subsequent, week long hosting of 3 of her son's college friends was simply irresponsible and shocking. I realize that keeping up to date on all of NJ's Covid-19 restrictions is a bit complicated. Since you don't give actual dates of your travel to NC it is impossible to know if you violated the quarantine requirement for out-of-state travel. Irrespective of that, your circle of family and friends as described, is a case tracer's nightmare of overlapping and ever widening circles that are dangerous to you and your neighbors. You correctly point out that we live in an area with relatively low virus load. We have no high density housing and no large socially disadvantaged population. What you seem to have overlooked is we are in close proximity to two correctional centers and one large residential facility for the developmentally disabled. These are absolute magnets for the virus and could easily spark an outbreak that would spread quickly throughout the community. In the absence of a comprehensive and widely accepted national Covid19 containment strategy, much of the country has been left to its own devices. This is why we have the most cases and deaths of any other country. It also places individual decision making front and center during this pandemic. No decision is without some risk, however, common sense dictates that we are obliged to mitigate this risk by eliminating all nonessential travel. In your role as a community leader, I find your decisions regarding out-of-state travel with multiple family and friends and inviting virtual strangers into your home for an extended period of time, wholly irresponsible. It shows a stunning lack of concern and or understanding of the nature of the threat we are facing. Either way, I suggest you rethink both your recent column and more importantly your personal decisions that put us all at risk. I have seven grandchildren that I have not seen since January. No one has been in my home except my husband. We conduct contactless transactions for essential supplies and allow no one on our three-acre property. We limit our time outside and wear masks if we are anywhere near our property line. We have MD visits utilizing teleconferencing. All of our decisions are based upon one simple question, "Is it worth risking our life and those of our friends and family?" No it is not! If we are to survive this pandemic, and I believe we can, we have to stop trying to live the "new normal" lifestyle that attempts to base public health decisions on various political, economic and other irrelevant factors. There is no way to live with this virus. Either we buckle down and follow the science which shows that we must avoid giving the virus access to our population or we continue to try and move into this burning building and are destroyed. Sincerely, Roberta Orzepowski No one knows what will happen in the near future, as well as the distant one. We human beings don't like uncertainty, and this whole situation is fraught with it. I am trying to just appreciate each day as it comes. One of our readers expressed frustration with my column from last month – you can read that below. Please know, dear readers, that when my family was away on vacation, we rented a remote beachfront house, stayed to ourselves and took extra precautions when venturing out by wearing masks, surgical gloves, washing our hands frequently and using a lot of hand sanitizer. We ate at home, and we avoided strangers. And yes, we quarantined afterwards. Later on, when my son's (3) friends visited us, we were extra careful. They had been in quarantine for many months previously, and after, as well. Thankfully, so far, all is well with us. I was raised by an MD as well as a mental health counselor. My father asks me about my physical health, and my mother asks about my emotional health (and vice-versa, of course). I feel both are extremely important, during this pandemic as well as in normal times. As such, my family is trying to go about our daily lives (as normally but safely as possible) appreciating all that is glorious about Hunterdon County and this beautiful time of year. As always, I really hope you and your family are doing well and staying strong, both mentally and physically. I want to say THANK YOU to the Clinton Sunrise Rotary for giving me their Annual Ducky Race Award for 2020 – I am so honored! I know Ruth would be too! You can read about that in this issue. Also, please do spend money locally, if you're able to at this time – we need to keep our local economy healthy too!

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