2024 SPRING ISSUE

INFORMING, SERVING AND CELEBRATING THE LAKE REGION 

ake Hopatcong News 

SPRING 2024 VOL. 16 NO. 1 

RENAISSANCE WOMAN 

Hopatcong’s Laura Grieco: award-winning National Guard 

member and bodybuilder, teacher, mom, wife and more. 

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lakehopatcongnews.com 3

4 

LAKE HOPATCONG NEWS Spring 2024 

From the Editor 

For the past year or so there’s been a wave of attention focused on the accomplishments and triumphs 

of women, especially those in the sports world. 

I’m pretty sure most of you have now heard of Caitlin Clark, the Iowa basketball player whose skill and 

bravado shined a spotlight on women’s college basketball, culminating in a recent March Madness for the ages. 

I will admit, up until this year, I hadn’t watched a college basketball game—women’s or men’s—in decades. 

There was a time I attended many—as a fan (I loved going to see the women from Seton Hall go up against 

dreaded UConn) and as a photographer for the Daily Record, back when the Big East Conference was the 

best in the country. I thoroughly enjoyed doing both. The energy, the noise and the emotions were off the 

charts. A great atmosphere to be part of. 

I’m excited at the realization that I’ll probably start following women’s college basketball again. There 

are so many amazing players and quality coaches who deserve my support, and I’m happy to root for their 

success—unless, of course, it’s UConn. Then, no. 

As I was putting together a preliminary lineup of stories for this year, I realized many of them would focus 

on the talents and achievements of women. It’s about time, I say! While I thoroughly enjoy all the stories in 

this magazine, I have quietly noticed that more women decline an offer to be part of a story than men do. 

Ladies, we deserve the spotlight. 

And it begins with this issue’s cover story. 

Sometime around Thanksgiving I received a call from Hopatcong resident Annette Grieco. She wanted to 

tell me about her daughter-in-law, Laura Grieco, who she thought was pretty special. She asked if I would 

consider featuring her in the magazine. 

(You might remember Annette from the Midsummer issue last year. She was chosen as Senior of the Year 

in Hopatcong and was featured in the magazine. Weeks later, she was chosen as Sussex County Senior of 

the Year! Pretty special, herself.) 

After our short but informative conversation, I agreed with Annette. Her daughter-in-law was pretty 

special and had a very interesting story to tell, as you’ll find out in Melissa Summers’ feature beginning on 

page 22. 

In Jefferson, a group of female teachers and administrators from the middle school have banded together 

to help raise awareness about mental health issues among school-aged children with a program dubbed 

Your Story Matters. 

Most people my age—I’ve piled up 63 years at this point—would agree: Everyone has a story to tell. 

Some stories, of course, are more interesting than others but none are more important than your own. 

That’s the lesson these educators are trying to teach their students. (See Lisa Church’s story on page 6.) 

Also in this issue is an update on the restoration of the historic fountain at Hopatcong State Park. (See 

Mike Daigle’s story on page 18.) In March, I caught a sneak peek at what most of you will get to see soon— 

gallons and gallons of bubbling water shooting 12 feet into the air. 

As a newbie to the lake (yes, even after 23 years of living here I still consider myself a newbie), I’ve never 

seen the fountain as anything but a misplaced concrete bowl. What a sight it 

will be when it’s up and running. 

This issue also includes a roundup of the annual Leap in the Lake at 

Hopatcong State Park, arguably the most unique and entertaining event in 

the area. If you haven’t been, I encourage you all to witness this in person at 

least once in your life. You won’t be disappointed. And it’s for a good cause. 

(See my story and photos on page 26.) 

This year marked the 14th time the Lake Hopatcong Elks hosted the 

event and the 14th time I photographed it. My goal each year is to find a 

different vantage point to shoot from. This year I chose to stand in the water, 

donning a pair of very large waders and planting myself in direct line with the 

participants as they ran past me toward deeper waters. 

All went well. I stayed on my feet and, except for the steady downpour, 

which drenched everyone in the park, I stayed dry—sort of. —Karen 

ake Hopatcong News 

HOLOCAUST TRIBUTE 

FOUNTAIN RESTORATION 

INFORMING, SERVING AND CELEBRATING THE LAKE REGION 

RENAISSANCE WOMAN 

SPRING 2024 VOL. 16 NO. 1 

Hopatcong’s Laura Grieco: award-winning National Guard 

member and bodybuilder, teacher, mom, wife and more. 

THEIR STORY MATTERS 

LEAP IN THE LAKE 

ON THE COVER 

Thanks to my friend, 

photographer Ulla 

Vinkman, for keeping an 

eye on me. 

Army National Guard Sgt. Laura Grieco 

near her home in Hopatcong prior to her 

deployment to the Middle East. 

—photo by Karen Fucito 

KAREN FUCITO 

Editor 

editor@lakehopatcongnews.com 

973-663-2800 

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS 

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Michael Stephen Daigle 

Melissa Summers 

COLUMNISTS 

Marty Kane 

Heather Shirley 

Barbara Simmons 

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Their Stories Matter 

Story by LISA CHURCH 

Photos by KAREN FUCITO 

More than 250 people of all ages came 

out on Sunday, April 14, to take part 

in the first Jefferson Township Middle School 

Your Story Matters Family Color Run & 5K, an 

event to raise awareness about mental health 

issues. 

“It was a perfect day and went well,” said 

Alyssa Guagenti, a gifted and talented and 

special education teacher at the middle school 

and one of the lead event coordinators. 

Peggy Widgren, the middle school principal, 

and Karen Roccisano, the middle school antibullying 

specialist, served as the other lead 

event coordinators. 

“This is an amazing opportunity to bring 

awareness to the community about mental 

health issues in such a fun and social way,” 

said spectator Kristi Cianfichi, who came from 

Riverdale to support local family members at 

the 5K. 

Open to the public, the 5K served as a 

fundraiser for the school and was part of 

ongoing efforts throughout the school year to 

spotlight mental health. 

In September, the school adopted the 

motto “Your Story Matters” to help students 

understand everyone is dealing with something 

and students are not alone in their struggles, 

said Roccisano. 

The goal of this grassroots event, she said, 

was to bring awareness to mental health issues 

and to raise money for ongoing programs to 

help students who might be struggling. The 

hope also was to foster a sense of community, 

support and understanding, she added. 

“Middle school is tough. Kids are 

already trying to find themselves and 

being in remote learning very much 

impacted them negatively. We see the 

effects, they’re still trying to catch up 

socially,” said Roccisano. 

The 5K took months of planning. In 

January, about a dozen school personnel 

and local volunteers met to begin 

organizing the event. The stakeholders— 

as they like to call themselves—were 

enthusiastic, adopting 

the mantra “Go Big or 

Go Home.” Getting 

the entire community 

involved was critical to 

the success of the event, 

they said. 

And go big they did. 

The group reached out 

to all the township 

schools, local businesses, 


6 

community officials, community clubs, media 

outlets and more to secure support and help 

spread the word. Their results paid off with 

event sponsors and nonprofit mental health 

organizations at the event to share information. 

Nonprofits on hand at the 5K included Hope 

One, a mobile outreach vehicle for addiction, 

recovery and mental health services; Mental 

Health Association of Essex and Morris, which 

seeks to improve the care and treatment of 

those with mental illness; Jefferson Township 

Youth Coalition, which focuses on the 

prevention and reduction of youth substance 

abuse; and JT Connect, which aims to bring 

mental health awareness, wellness, recovery 

and support to the community. 

The group of stakeholders from the middle 

school is still actively involved with township 

schools and encourages open discussions about 

mental health, said Melissa Kiritsis, chairperson 

of JT Connect. 

“When you start sharing stories with others, 

you realize there’s a lot of other people going 

through the same things,” she said at the 5K. 

“Events like today help. Makes you realize 

you’re not alone.” 

Madine Despeine-Udoh, director of self 

help, advocacy and education at the Mental 

Health Association of Essex and Morris, was 

at the event to dedicate a yellow picnic table 

to the middle school. According to Despeine- 

Udoh, a yellow picnic table is a place where 

students can gather to “break bread” in a safe, 

non-judgmental space, “putting mental health 

issues on the table,” she said. 

Along with the middle school table, there are 

31 other yellow picnic tables throughout Morris 

County, including two more in Jefferson: one at 

the high school and one at Camp Jefferson. 

The stakeholders at Jefferson Township 

Middle School weren’t the only ones 

enthusiastic about the 5K and raising awareness 

about mental health issues. The school’s student 

council embraced the “Your Story Matters” 

theme and encouraged full participation from 

their classmates. 

Top of page: Students and parents end the 

Color Run with a mass color toss. 

Below, left to right, top to bottom: 

Assemblywoman Aura Dunn and Jefferson 

Township Mayor Erik Wilsusen cut the ribbon 

on a yellow picnic table. William Henderson, 

student council member, covered in colors. 

Peggy Widgren, middle school principal, 

addresses the crowd. A runner celebrates the 

start of the 5K. Runners at the start of the 5K.

The group met regularly to discuss ways to 

boost peer engagement. Their efforts included 

producing two promotional videos with Curtis 

Mack, a Jefferson native and owner of his own 

production company, CM Productions, said 

Guagenti, who is also the school’s student 

council advisor. 

“What was most important about the 

run was to make our school better and have 

everyone feel safe here,” said Erin Leonard, an 

eighth-grade student council member in charge 

of public relations who spoke at the February 

meeting. “Everyone feels heard no matter what 

they are going through,” she added. 

“We appreciate every student and how every 

student’s story matters. The 5K brings people 

together,” added Krish Maheshwari, a seventhgrade 

council member. 

The 5K was part of a larger, year-round focus 

on mental health. Prior to the start of the 

school year, the school was awarded a grant 

from the state. With additional funding from 

the Jefferson Township Education Foundation, 

JT Connect and the Jefferson Township Youth 

Coalition, the school hosted motivational 

speaker Josh Rivedal. His programs included 

professional development for the teachers, 

student assemblies for each grade level and 

student leadership, and an evening parent 

program, said Widgren, the school principal. 

“It was also a catalyst for additional initiatives 

and to build on resources within our school,” 

said Widgren. “We’re trying to get kids excited 

again about being connected to school.” 

Proceeds from the 5K will go towards antibullying 

and substance abuse campaigns, new 

programming to improve mental health and 

family-friendly events open to all students and 

their families. 

For eighth-grade student council member 

William Henderson, playing sports and being 

on school teams has helped him stay healthy, 

both mentally and physically. 

“Sports helps kids bond,” he said at that 

February meeting, suggesting that any organized 

activity is a great way to make friends. 

“We wouldn’t have been friends if it wasn’t 

for the student council,” concurred Natasha 

Jacoby, eighth-grade student council secretary. 

The adult stakeholders agreed regarding 

the importance of being more physically and 

socially active and the boost it provides to 

one’s mental health. 

The hope of both the stakeholders and the 

student council was that the 5K would inspire 

students to become more active, which could 

help them feel more connected socially, 

said Widgren. The school is already planning 

another 5K for next year. “Bigger and better,” 

said Widgren. 

Township resident Jody Rabtzow echoed 

Widgren’s concerns about today’s youth, citing 

technology as a major concern. 

“It’s important to focus on helping kids, 

especially today. Because of social media, kids 

don’t know how to socialize,” she said. 

“Participating in this event with your friends 

or having fun in a club after school helps kids in 

their daily lives,” said Ashrith Meta, a seventhgrade 

council member. The 5K’s mission 

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resonated with Ashrith who said he knows 

people who are dealing with mental health 

challenges. 

“Everyone should feel proud of themselves 

for participating,” added Jake Small, eighthgrade 

student council vice president, noting 

some of his schoolmates have formed new 

friendships simply by taking part in the 5K. 

“JTMS is a place of acceptance,” added 

Natasha. “Students can reach out to anyone if 

they need help. Their voice can be heard.” 

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Holocaust Tales of Survival Preserved at Temple Shalom Exhibit 

10 

Story by MELISSA SUMMERS 


An installation of unique artifacts and 

insightful reflection is honoring Holocaust 

survivors and their stories at Temple Shalom in 

Succasunna. 

Opened officially in April 2023, the installation 

is the result of Rabbi-Cantor Inna Serebro- 

Litvak’s yearslong effort to preserve the history 

of past congregants. Temple Shalom Holocaust 

Memorial features accounts from congregants 

and their families and is housed in two rarely 

used rooms on the ground floor of the temple 

near its religious school. The main room has a 

window to the hallway, keeping the museum in 

clear view of the students. 

“We believe it is important to have as a 

constant reminder of what happened,” she 

said of the students’ access to the permanent 

exhibit. “We want our children to learn what can 

happen when people hate.” 

Serebro-Litvak, who was born in St. Petersburg, 

Russia, graduated with a degree in musical 

education at Tel Aviv University before moving 

to the United States in 1997 to pursue a master’s 

degree. 

She was the first woman from the former 

Soviet Union to graduate from the Jewish 

Theological Seminary in New York. She 

performed at concerts in various temples in 

New York and New Jersey and served as cantor 

at Temple B’nai Or in Morristown and Temple 

Beth Am in Parsippany before coming to Temple 

Shalom in 2017. 


That year, while presiding over the funeral of 

Michael Bernath, Serebro-Litvak learned his story 

of being a Holocaust survivor from Hungary. 

Serebro-Litvak found her congregation had 

several direct connections to the Holocaust, 

including Lee Dornfeld’s mother, Trudy Dornfeld, 

who was saved at 10 years old when she was sent 

to England from Austria by Kindertransport, a 

train loaded with children orphaned or separated 

from their parents. 

“I decided that I need to preserve those 

stories in a museum so we can share them with 

our congregants, children and also guests,” 

said Serebro-Litvak. “So, I started collecting 

photographs and documents … whatever they 

could share with me.” 

Family members did not want to part with 

their originals just yet, according to Serebro- 

Litvak. So, one of the congregants, Charleen 

Green of Hopatcong, took on the role of curator, 

making high-quality reproductions of photos 

and documents and preparing them for display. 

Green, who studied archaeology in Israel, had 

previously worked on a survivors exhibit at the 

University of Hartford in Connecticut. She saw 

Temple Shalom’s project as an honor and an 

opportunity to educate the community. 

“Because the exhibit is geared toward all ages 

and housed in the religious school, the emphasis 

is very much about moving through loss, grief 

and adversity toward tolerance, hope and 

happiness in every aspect of life,” Green said. 

The biggest challenge, according to Green, 

is that the Nazis stripped many of the Jews of 

their worldly possessions, making documents 

and records harder to come by. 

“All exhibits require collaboration, 

adjustments and maintenance and our museum 

is still evolving,” added Green. “It brings me such 

satisfaction to see this exhibit come to fruition.” 

Members of the First Presbyterian Church of 

Succasunna visited Temple Shalom Holocaust 

Memorial in February. (Photo by Melissa Summers.) 

Left to right, top to bottom: Rabbi-Cantor Inna 

Serebro-Litvak in the museum display room. 

Papers from Gertrude (Trudy) Knopf. Ellen 

Ehrlich, Claudia Witzling, Joan Rosen and Lee 

Dornfeld in the museum display room. 

Serebro-Litvak asked another congregant, 

Stu Bauer, to utilize his skills in woodworking 

to create cases. Rather than constructing them, 

Bauer, a long-time volunteer at the Roxbury 

Public Library, was able to get the library to 

donate a glass-top table and three wall cases. 

The collection on display includes a small prayer 

book, carried for good luck by Steve Rosenberg’s 

father, Issac (Jack) Rosenberg, when he was 

serving in the U.S. Army, Serebro-Litvak said. 

There’s also a larger prayer book that’s over 

100 years old from Poland donated by another 

congregant and pendants that belonged to 

Trudy Dornfeld, which were donated by her son. 

Included in the memorial space is a monitor 

displaying a rotating series of video interviews 

with survivors and family members filmed by 

former congregant and videographer, Bob 

Messinger. 

A video telling the tale of Anne Frank is 

also included. Mark Shemtob, a congregant 

who serves on the board of the Anne Frank 

Foundation, helped secure a donation to cover 

the museum’s expenses. 

One of the most compelling stories is that 

of congregant Joan Rosen’s parents, Kate and 

Michael Bernath. 

“They were high school sweethearts,” said 

Serebro-Litvak of the couple. “They were 16 years 

old when Hungary was occupied and eventually 

the Jews were sent in 1944 to different camps.” 

Sometime later, the teens sent word to each 

other that they had survived and were trying 

to find each other so they could be together. 

“Every day Kate went to the train station in the 

hopes that Michael would come back and one 

day he appeared, and they got married.” 

Claudia Witzling’s husband, Gary, hid with his

parents, Ester and Peretz, for a year and a half in 

an underground bunker in Poland. 

Ellen Ehrlich’s parents, Berta and Walther 

Ehrlich, were able to escape Nazi Germany, 

according to Serebro-Litvak. Their parents 

and many other family members died in 

concentration camps, including Auschwitz. 

Also featured in the collection are the legacies 

of Steve Rosenberg’s grandfather Moishe (Max) 

Rosenberg and stepmother Frieda Rosenberg, 

and of Dinah Fox’s mother Arlette Rappoport 

and grandmother Simone Levy Appel. 

To Serebro-Litvak, the museum is as much 

about educating future generations as it is about 

preserving the past. 

“While the Holocaust is one of the worst 

cases of hatred in the world’s history, at the 

same time there were so many genocides in 

other countries,” Serebro-Litvak said. “We 

explain to people what can happen not only if 

you are siding with people who are hateful, but 

also what happens if you don’t do anything … if 

you stay silent.” 

The creation of genocide is only part of the 

problem, according to Serebro-Litvak. “Those 

who just stay silent are essentially collaborators,” 

she said. “So, my purpose is to teach everybody 

to not be silent when they see that something 

is wrong.” 

Serebro-Litvak believes Americans pride 

themselves on freedom and tolerance, but 

still consistently sees examples of those who 

claim acceptance in words but not actions. As 

someone from the former Soviet Union, where 

she was unable to speak freely, this is a significant 

concern. “I’ve witnessed the other side of it,” 

Serebro-Litvak said of those societal influences 

spilling over in other parts of the world. “As soon 

as someone has a different opinion, people are 

not eager to accept that.” 

Recent events in the Middle East have brought 

antisemitism back to the surface, even for Jewish 

people who have no connection to what has 

happened. 

“All of a sudden, all Jews are blamed for what’s 

going on,” she said. “Whichever side you take, 

it doesn’t matter. Antisemitism is taking place 

on campuses, the streets of New York City and 

other places under the pretense of the pro- 

Palestinian fight for freedom.” 

But the rabbi and cantor wonders how much 

the school children will absorb when they pass 

by the window into the museum. 

“The question is, do they think of it when they 

pass? I don’t know. But I think that when they 

grow up they will remember. My hope is that 

when they grow up, it will be something that 

they remember about going to religious school 

every Sunday,” she added. 

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Large-scale Projects Slated for Lake Hopatcong 

14 

Story by MICHAEL DAIGLE 

The programs to combat the causes of Lake 

Hopatcong’s polluted water are going to get 

larger in scope. 

That’s because the problems are getting larger 

in scope. 

While three decades of data collected by 

consultant Princeton Hydro LLC have recorded 

the persistent and “statistically significant” rise 

in temperature of the lake’s surface water, recent 

data suggests the sediment at the bottom of the 

lake—the muck that holds decades worth of 

phosphorus—the lake’s chief polluting element, 

is also getting hotter, which could result in more 

phosphorus being released. 

If that’s not enough, water samples last year 

indicated the presence of new invasive 

cyanobacteria—the green slime guys—that 

previously had been largely found only in hot 

tropical waters. 

The warning came from Fred Lubnow, senior 

technical director of Ecological Services for 

Princeton Hydro LLC, the lake community’s 

water consultant, during a Zoom session in 

March sponsored by the Lake Hopatcong 

Foundation. 

In the recent past—and especially since the 

2019 Harmful Algal Bloom that whacked the 

lake community with beach closings, lake-use 

restrictions and business losses—intense, but 

small-scale projects tackled the causes of the 

lake pollution: phosphorus-rich water that 

fueled weed and algae growth. 

In 2024, the projects, if approved, would 

address conditions at one time in more than 

900 acres in the middle of the lake—one-third of 

the lake’s acreage, noted Marty Kane, chairman of 

the Lake Hopatcong Foundation. 

A long-planned project to install sanitary 

sewers in Jefferson would cover 40 percent of the 

lakefront, and a localized project in Roxbury calls 

for dredging all of Landing Channel. 

The driver? 

Climate change. 

Here’s how the 2023 Water Quality Report, 

issued by Princeton Hydro and funded by the 

Lake Hopatcong Commission, summarized the 

changes: 

“There has been a statistically significant 

increase in surface water temperatures at Lake 

Hopatcong over the past 34 years. Additionally, 

the July 2022 surface water temperature at Station 

2 (mid-lake) was the fourth highest recorded 

at (81.5 degrees F). It should be noted that each 

year from 2019 to 2022 were in the top six of the 

highest recorded July surface water temperatures 

dating back to 1988. The highest surface water July 

temperature at Station 2 was recorded in 2005 and 

was (85.1 degrees F). These data provide evidence 

that climatic change is impacting Lake Hopatcong. 


In turn, increasing water temperatures makes the 

lake more favorable for larger and more frequent 

Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs).” 

HABs, increased runoff from more intense 

rains, a string of iceless winters, more weeds and 

invasive algae—the children of climate change— 

could threaten the way of life in a residential and 

recreational community of 65,000 residents and a 

total 2022 net assessed property valuation of $8.5 

billion. 

These new projects come at a time when there 

has been a change in the designated approach to 

lake cleanup. 

Since 2006, cleanup efforts were operated 

under a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL)-based 

Restoration Plan, which set a target of reaching 

daily maximum phosphorus levels of .03 mg/ml. 

“There has been a statistically 

significant increase in surface 

water temperatures at Lake 

Hopatcong over the past 34 

years...These data provide 

evidence that climatic change is 

impacting Lake Hopatcong.” 

—As stated in the 2023 Water Quality 

Report, issued by Princeton Hydro 

The highest recorded total was in 1991 at .045 

mg/ml, the lowest measured total was in 2010 at .11 

mg/ml. The three-decade mean is .21 mg/ml. 

With funds provided by the New Jersey Highlands 

Council, the restoration plan was upgraded in 2021 

into a Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) and 

is being used to select, design and implement 

additional watershed-based projects, the 2023 

water quality report said. WIP differs from TMDL 

in that it is more aggressive and incident specific. 

The large-scale projects described by Lubnow 

include treating the center of the lake with alum 

(aluminum sulfide), which bonds with phosphorus. 

Lubnow said alum is better suited for use in the 

deeper, wider areas of the mid-lake than Phosloc, 

a clay-based absorbent material used in Landing 

Channel. 

The alum treatment is planned for spring, Kane 

said. 

The other mid-lake project is to inject oxygen 

directly into the sediment and cold, oxygendeprived 

water on the lake bottom. 

The oxygenation of the sediment is designed 

to strengthen the bond between iron and 

phosphorus, Lubnow said. When that bond 

weakens, the trapped phosphorus is free to 

migrate into the lake water, potentially feeding 

weeds and algae. 

This system would require four oxygen 

generators stationed around the lakeshore. He 

said talks are taking place with the lake towns to 

choose potential sites. 

Pipes would run from the generators to diffusers 

on the lake bottom that would mix the oxygen 

and the lake water, he said. 

The project would cover 983 acres Kane said. 

The estimated cost is $1.5 to $2.5 million for 

the system and an estimated $100,000 in annual 

operating costs. 

The Lake Hopatcong Foundation and the Lake 

Hopatcong Commission are seeking grants to 

fund this project. 

A public meeting is planned, but no date 

had been set by early April. 

The next project is “the most important 

project on the lake,” Kane said. 

That is the plan to install sewers along 

Jefferson’s lakefront, which comprises 40 

percent of the total lakefront. 

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was 

awarded a $750,000 study and planning grant 

in the recently signed 2025 federal budget. 

The entire project cost is estimated at $90 

million. 

“This is fantastic news for the Township 

of Jefferson and a critical step forward in 

improving the health of New Jersey’s largest 

lake,” Jefferson Mayor Eric Wilsusen said at the 

time of the award. “We thank Congresswoman 

Mikie Sherrill and her staff for their support in 

obtaining the necessary funding to initiate this 

important project.” 

“The absence of sanitary sewers in Jefferson 

Township has long been recognized as a significant 

challenge to the water quality of Lake Hopatcong,” 

said Ron Smith, chair of the Lake Hopatcong 

Commission. “Septic systems, particularly aging 

and failing systems, introduce heightened levels 

of contaminants and elevated phosphorus levels 

to the lake, increasing the growth of aquatic plants 

and HABs and fueling concerns for public health.” 

“As we celebrate this milestone, we remain 

committed to protecting the health of Lake 

Hopatcong,” said Kyle Richter, executive director 

of the Lake Hopatcong Foundation. 

The last large-scale project is the potential 

dredging of 47-acre Landing Channel in Roxbury 

and the use of the material to rebuild Floating 

Island. 

In 2016, Princeton Hydro conducted a 

bathymetric survey funded by the Department 

of Environmental Protection that estimated the 

channel held more than 250,000 cubic yards of 

sediment. 

A $113,650 grant from the New Jersey Highlands 

Council supported the survey.

Lubnow said the state Department of 

Environmental Protection supported the 

“beneficial reuse” of the material to be removed, 

a process that is used frequently along the Jersey 

Shore. Dredging would immediately improve 

water quality and deepen the channel. 

This project is awaiting environmental permits 

and further funding, Lubnow said, and could be 

started in 2025. 

Smaller and continual projects also add to the 

effort to clean up the lake. 

In 2023, the long-running mechanical weed 

harvesting program, run by the commission, 

removed 2,198 cubic yards (990 tons) of plant 

biomass from the lake, the 2023 report said. 

That’s equal to 388,478 pounds of wet algae, 

which removed 353 pounds of phosphorus, or 4.9 

percent of the chemical targeted for removal. 

A boat shrink-wrap program restarted by the 

foundation recycled seven tons of plastic boat 

wrapping in 2023, Richter said. The program is 

back this year, with May 4 being the date for 

homeowners to recycle shrink-wrap at the 

Jefferson Township Health Center on Minnisink 

Road. 

This year will be the second year of a goose 

mitigation program, said Colleen Lyons, the 

commission administrator. 

The program is designed to reduce the impact 

a resident flock of Canada geese has on the lake. 

Volunteers have been trained by members 

of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Division 

of Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 

NEW CONSTRUCTION 

on how to approach homeowners on whose 

land goose nests exist, locating nests on public 

property and egg addling, which renders the 

unhatched egg infertile. 

In 2023, Lyons said in a release, the program 

successfully treated 271 eggs, thus potentially 

averting the growth of up to 135 pounds of 

phosphorus, or roughly 150,000 pounds of wet 

algae in the lake. 

Another repeat program is a combined effort 

by the commission, the foundation and the Knee 

Deep Club to tag and release 1,000 brown trout 

annually in a three-year study to determine if 

the species, a cold-water fish, survives the higher 

prolonged temperatures of the lake summers. 

The release of 1,000 tan-tagged brown trout 12 

to 14 inches in size was conducted in April. The 

tagged-trout study is a companion to a study 

seeking optimal or carryover trout habitat in the 

lake. 

Sections of the lake that had dissolved oxygen 

concentrations equal to or greater than 5mg/l 

and water temperatures less than 65 degrees were 

considered “optimal habitat” for brown trout, the 

highest standard. 

“Acceptable or carryover habitat,” a lesser 

standard, is defined as waters containing 

oxygen equal or greater than 5mg/l and water 

temperatures up to 79 degrees. 

In 2023, the water quality report said optimal 

brown trout habitat was present in the upper 35 

feet of the middle of the lake in May, in the upper 

22 feet of the lake in June, the upper 5 feet in July 

and the upper 4.5 feet in August, before returning 

to the upper 21 feet in September. 

The report concluded that “[optimal] brown 

trout habitat became limited during peak 

summer months...(but) carryover habitat never 

disappeared.” 

Regarding the tagged trout, Holly Odgers of the 

foundation outlined in a release the procedure: If 

a tan-tagged trout is caught, measure the catch, 

and, if possible, take a photo of the trout with the 

tag. She said it’s best to handle the fish with wet 

hands. After releasing the trout, report the catch 

through a form at LHCtrout.com. Paper forms are 

also available at Dow’s Boat Rental, 145 Nolan’s 

Point Rd., Lake Hopatcong, or Lake’s End Marina, 

91 Mt. Arlington Blvd., Landing. 

Lyons cited completed projects in the 

region: the installation of floating wetlands in 

Landing Channel; shoreline stabilization through 

plantings at Memorial Pond in Mount Arlington; 

replacement of filtration materials in stormwater 

drains in Jefferson. 

Replanting of a stormwater basin at Witten 

Park in Hopatcong is planned but not funded. 

Glen Brook and Musconetcong River below the 

dam will have stream bank stabilization projects 

completed by late 2024 or early 2025, she said. 

A state grant also funded projects in all four 

lake towns to install carbon filtering sleeves in two 

stormwater ponds and structures. The project also 

included the removal of accumulated sediment 

immediately in front of or adjacent to stormwater 

pipes that discharged directly into the lake. 

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16 


GREGORY SMITH 

LOCAL 

VOICES 

Gregory Smith, 17, began his musical journey like many of his peers. He learned to play an instrument—the trumpet—in elementary school. 

Since then, the Hopatcong High School senior has immersed himself in the music and theater culture available to him in his school 

district, joining every band, ensemble and theatrical production. Along the way, he cultivated a love for piano and music composition. 

In February, the Hanover Wind Symphony—a renowned community band—performed “Sledding,” a piece Smith composed depicting a 

young boy’s adventures sledding down a hill. “In a world filled with plenty of artistic imitation, I want to create a unique style, sound and 

personality for myself artistically,” he said. 

WHERE DO YOU LIVE? WHAT MAKES IT SPECIAL? 

I have lived in Hopatcong my entire life, and I have found the school district’s music department has been consistently encouraging and 

accepting. I have been a part of some truly wonderful artistic musical performances that were not only educational, but also vital in my 

journey as an artist. I have been given so many wonderful opportunities by the staff who have provided me a strong foundation in my 

musical journey. 

WHO MAKES UP YOUR FAMILY? 

My mom and dad, both loving and supportive parents, and two siblings: a younger sister who is endlessly funny and irrefutably goofy 

and an older brother who is needlessly sarcastic yet incredibly encouraging. 

DESCRIBE THE TYPE OF PERSON YOU ARE. 

I like to think I am a very caring person. I try my best to be considerate to the people around 

me, making them as comfortable as possible because I think there is a lot of discomfort 

in this world, especially as a teenager, someone learning to be their own person. I 

also try my very best to be as creative and original as possible. 

DESCRIBE YOUR MUSICAL JOURNEY. 

When quarantine happened, I did not really have a way to spend time with any 

friends. I started to get into films. I thought film might have been my calling. Then, 

when we started to integrate back into school, my friends and I began dreaming 

up some nonsense western movie. I figured I should go ahead and write the 

score for it in my free time. This was the first time I wrote original music. 

DESCRIBE A TIME IN YOUR LIFE THAT HAS HAD THE MOST INFLUENCE ON YOU. 

The summer between my sophomore and junior year. I committed myself to 

studying music heavily. I immersed myself in sheet music and poured 

over scores from morning to night. 

HOW DO YOU EARN A LIVING? 

I hope to be a successful commercial composer, writing the 

soundtracks to all different types of media, whether it be 

movies, television or video games. 

BESIDES MUSIC, WHAT OTHER INTERESTS DO 

YOU HAVE? 

I love indulging in different creative crafts. I really love 

watching movies and television and analyzing their themes. 

A hobby I’ve had a lot of fun with the past few years has 

been cooking. I cook a lot of dinners at my house, and I 

have had a lot of fun learning all different styles of cooking, 

especially making foods from different cultures. It’s not a 

craft that I am an expert in by any means, but it is definitely 

something I have fun with. 

IS THERE ANYTHING MOST PEOPLE WOULD BE 

SURPRISED TO LEARN ABOUT YOU? 

I think it would be surprising to some people that I taught myself 

piano and music theory. It took a lot of time and self-discipline, 

but I managed to become competent at playing the piano and 

skilled at composing and arranging. 

I AM involved I AM original I AM creative 


Left to right: The fountain roars to full height 

under the watchful eye of Bob O’Donnell 

during a test run in early March. Chris 

Bittenbender struggles to close the gate at the 

dam after releasing water to test the fountain 

downstream. 

State Park Fountain Splashes to Life 

18 

Story by MICHAEL DAIGLE 


It’s not going to chase away the cyanobacteria 

that turn the lake green or trim the weeds that 

clog shallow coves or make careless boaters speed 

less or pick up their own trash. 

It’s not even going to hasten the replacement of 

the Landing bridge. 

But the sight of the fountain at Lake Hopatcong 

State Park splashing away might make you smile. 

That was the case on March 8 when Mount 

Arlington contractor Bob O’Donnell and his crew 

flushed leaves and debris from the underground 

24-inch-wide channel that feeds the fountain from 

the Lake Hopatcong dam and set forth a brief 

splashing rebirth. 

With a cry of “Did you hear that sucking sound?” 

worker Chris Bittenbender alerted O’Donnell and 

a few viewers that the flow had begun. 

At the 40-foot basin, O’Donnell monitored 

the water flow filled with leaves and debris, 

occasionally dragging handfuls of junk from the 

outflow. 

A few false starts later, as the debris flushed out, 

the fountain burbled to foamy life, slowly rising to 

12 feet of splashy exuberance for the first time in 

decades. 

Everyone smiled. 

Even the guy passing by with his dog. 

That March test was one of the last steps in 

the process of bringing the fountain back to life, 

said Marty Kane, president of the Lake Hopatcong 

Historical Museum, which kicked off this project 

in 2014 with a $45,381 grant from Morris County to 

assess the fountain’s functionality. 

“What remains is installing a fence around the 

basin and landscaping,” Kane said in late March. 

“The fountain is essentially functional.” 

Kane said the landscaping and fence should be 

completed sometime in June, with a rededication 

ceremony scheduled toward the end of that 

month. If there is a delay, the construction and 

ceremony would be set for September to avoid 

disruption during the park’s busy summer season, 

he said. 

The smiles came not just from acknowledging 


a job well done but from a notion that history 

was being repeated. It might be safe to say that 

in 1925, when the fountain was completed and 

nearby structures of the Morris Canal were being 

dismantled, the only people to view that initial 

flow were the engineers who designed it and the 

workers who installed it. 

“This is a community project,” Kane said during 

a phone interview. 

He said he made that comment while driving on 

Howard Boulevard in Mount Arlington past Lee’s 

County Park Marina, home to the famous pavilion, 

now being renovated by the Morris County Park 

Commission. 

Kane said the pavilion and the fountain are 

examples of the types of renewal projects that 

have meaning for current residents of the lake 

community and connect them to its history. 

The fountain has special meaning for Hopatcong 

native Justin McCarthy. 

“I’d see the fountain at the park as a kid and 

think it was sad that it was sitting there unused 

and neglected,” McCarthy said, now a structural 

engineer for Titan Engineers. 

With that memory for incentive, McCarthy 

participated in a 2021 project with fellow Stevens 

Institute of Technology seniors and a group of 

engineers to assess the fountain. Specifically, 

the team set out to determine the condition 

of the fountain’s concrete exterior basin, the 

underground tunnel that carries water from Lake 

Hopatcong to the fountain, the plumbing system 

and fountainhead, and the gates that control the 

waterflow and filter debris from leaving the lake 

and entering the tunnel. 

Assisting the engineers and students by providing 

some clue of the tunnel condition was a 2019 video 

created by volunteers Phillip 

DiStefano of Hopatcong and 

Keith Hnojowy of Iselin. 

Using a modified remotecontrolled 

model Sherman 

tank outfitted with a video 

camera, the team was able 

to venture 64 feet inside the 

water tunnel to a point near 

the “elbow.” 

That study, funded by a $36,800 grant from 

the Morris County Historical Preservation Trust 

Fund, discovered the tunnel was in good shape 

and relatively clear except for a tire that had to 

be removed. 

O’Donnell, whose past local restoration projects 

include the historic Lotta Crabtree house in Mount 

Arlington (his home) and the Lake Hopatcong Train 

Station in Landing, joined the project in 2023. Since 

the fall, he and his crew have systematically been 

working through the challenges of restoring the 

famous structure by replacing the old grate at the 

dam with one that has half-inch holes that will 

block large debris in the lake from entering the 

channel. At the fountainhead, a 3-foot diameter 

stainless steel cover with dozens of similar halfinch 

perforations was bolted through the concrete 

foundation and into the ground, he said. 

The project was overseen by Connolly & Hickey 

Historical Architects of Cranford. 

Construction was funded through a $204,000 

Morris County historical preservation grant. 

The fountain was planned in 1924, when the 

state of New Jersey took control of the Morris 

Canal, which ran both east and west from Lake 

Hopatcong. 

With the canal shut down, the locks and gates 

were dismantled and a new dam was built. 

Kane said the fountain was not erected just for 

aesthetics, but to solve a long-standing lake issue: 

The management of the lake’s water level. 

The fountain was designed by Cornelius C. 

Vermeule, the engineer charged with dismantling 

the Morris Canal. 

For much of its life the fountain acted as a 

pleasant attraction and a swimming and wading 

spot. It was shut down and abandoned in the 

1990s because of maintenance and liability issues. 

Once opened, swimming and wading will not be 

permitted. 

McCarthy is looking forward to the fountain’s 

rededication. 

“The fountain is the crown jewel of the park,” 

he said. 

With the dam in the background, Chris 

Bittenbender and Bob O’Donnell watch as 

leftover debris from the fall leaf drop gets 

washed out of the outflow pipe.

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From Barbells to Battlefields, 

Hopatcong Mom is Winning It All 


What do an electrician, a beauty queen, 

a piano teacher, a bodybuilder, a 

humanitarian aid worker and a National Guard 

member have in common? 

They are all Laura Grieco. 

In 2005, Grieco held the title of Miss Central 

Coast at the Miss New Jersey pageant. Just 

about two decades later, she took center stage 

in a much different contest. 

The 38-year-old Army National Guard 

sergeant is the first female enlisted guard 

member to bring home the title of New Jersey 

National Guard’s Best Warrior. 

The three-day competition, held in April 

2023, consisted of a combat fitness test, M4 

carbine qualification, M17 pistol qualification, 

day/night land navigation, stress shoot, 

and a 12-mile ruck march. The competition 

culminated with an appearance before a board 

of sergeants major, according to a release 

from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, which 

hosted the yearly contest. 

Grieco lives in Hopatcong with her husband 

of 17 years, Michael; son Caleb, 14; and daughter 

Penelope, 11. 

Grieco, who grew up in Stanhope and 

Hampton Township, and her Hopatcong native 

husband dated for two and a half years before 

marrying. 

While the couple was dating, Grieco 

attended Redeemer University in Ontario, 

Canada, where she studied French, music, 

political science and theology. She would 

return to New Jersey frequently to spend time 

22 

Story by MELISSA SUMMERS 


with her then-boyfriend and to compete in 

beauty pageants. 

“My platform was abstinence advantage. I 

was volunteering with First Choice Women’s 

Resource Center, and we would go to high 

schools and talk about the advantages 

of waiting. It was something I was very 

passionate about. So, it was a good way to stay 

accountable,” she added with a smile. 

“I was going to wait for that first kiss. If the 

guy was going to truly love me, he’ll wait, so I 

found one who would,” she recalled. 

The couple shared a first kiss on their 

wedding day in 2006. 

After two years of college, Grieco decided 

academics wasn’t for her. 

“I have always been the square peg in a round 

hole,” she said. “I was the tomboy growing up. 

I did sew, and I liked getting dressed up, but I 

was really good with my hands, so trades were 

always something that I enjoyed.” 

She joined her father in construction and 

later began working for an electrician. Halfway 

through her apprenticeship, she became 

pregnant with her son. She tried returning parttime 

after her son was born, but it wasn’t the 

same. 

“I didn’t feel I was able to contribute to 

the team the way I wanted to, and it was 

frustrating,” she said. 

As one door was closing, however, another 

was opening. Grieco, a member of the musical 

band at her church, Grace Church on the 

Mount in Netcong, was approached by the 

parents of a girl in the congregation about 

teaching piano lessons. The worship director 

lent her a keyboard and her company, Piano 

Top to bottom, left to right: Laura Grieco shows 

off her Best Warrior trophy, which she keeps on 

display in a small music room in her home. Laura 

Grieco is pinned winner of the enlisted New Jersey 

Best Warrior Competition by Brig. Gen. Lisa J. 

Hou, D.O., The Adjutant General of New Jersey 

at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst on April 27, 

2023. (Photo courtesy of Spc. Michael Schwenk.) Laura 

Grieco at the Miss New Jersey contest in 2005, 

where she held the title of Miss Central Coast. 

(Photo courtesy of Michael Grieco.) Laura Grieco sprints 

during the stress shoot/warrior tasks portion of the 

New Jersey Army National Guard’s Best Warrior 

Competition at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst 

on April 26, 2023. Laura Grieco with her medals 

from the Armed Forces Classic in 2022. (Photo 

courtesy of Michael Grieco.) Caleb, Laura, Penelope 

and Michael Grieco at home in January. 

Con Brio, was born. The name is Italian for “piano 

with spirit.” Grieco still maintains the business 

with a friend, handling the instruction for around 

15 students. 

In 2010, Lou Felo, a missionary with the 

humanitarian aid organization Beyond Tears 

Worldwide, visited the church and introduced the 

Griecos to mission work. 

“He did work over in Bosnia, Afghanistan, Nepal, 

India, quite a few different places. I was always 

intrigued by the stuff he was doing over there,” 

said Grieco. Eight years later, after Felo had passed 

away, his wife put an ad in the church bulletin 

looking for anyone interested in joining a team 

headed to India, according to Michael Grieco. In 

July 2019, the Griecos traveled to the Himalayas to 

do school restoration. 

The homeschooling, stay-at-home mom of two

didn’t become a guard member until 2020 when 

the pandemic had the couple rethinking their 

priorities and goals. 

Michael Grieco had considered the military 

after 9/11 but never signed up. While on a drive to 

go hiking with the kids, the subject came up, and 

he suggested his wife still could. Always up for a 

challenge, she considered the idea. 

“That would be kind of cool,” she told him. 

The Army sets the age limit to enlist at 35, and 

Grieco was a few months older at the time. “I do 

bodybuilding. I do women’s figure. So, my husband 

thought I’d probably crush it at basic training.” 

At the time, the family was primarily dependent 

on her husband’s income. “Mostly, I was home 

doing my domestic thing and teaching piano. 

There’s not a lot of future in that financially.” 

Grieco was attracted to the National Guard 

and the opportunity to serve and do relief work 

while receiving consistent income and both state 

and federal benefits, including loans and college 

tuition available to military families. 

Grieco began meeting with a recruiter and 

applied for the age waiver. “Thankfully I was in 

really good shape at the time,” she said. “I was 

trying to compete in bodybuilding, so I had been 

dieting for eight months.” 

She passed the Armed Services Vocational 

Aptitude Battery test, and by November 2020 was 

off to 14 weeks of basic training at Fort Jackson, 

South Carolina. 

COVID-19 presented challenges for the trainees, 

including constant testing and quarantine periods, 

extending the process. 

Grieco was sent to Fort Gordon in Georgia for 

advanced individual training geared toward her 

specific job as a signal support systems specialist. “I 

had to be in school for another six months to train 

on the radios and networking and encryption,” she 

said. 

Throughout the rest of 2021 and 2022, Grieco 

received multiple orders and assignments, 

including an eight-day mission with NATO in 

Albania in August 2022. “It was a cool project,” 

she said of the work. “We trained some of the 

Albanian forces in the new equipment that they 

were being provided.” 

Grieco was able to show off her bodybuilding 

skills in 2022 when she won first place in the Group 

A figure class, second overall in the figure class, and 

second overall in the masters figure class at the 

Armed Forces Classic. 

In April 2023, Grieco’s first sergeant approached 

her with some paperwork for “the competition.” 

Caught off guard, she asked, “What 

competition?” 

That’s when the sergeant informed her that 

she’d be representing her unit in the Best 

Warrior contest. 

“I said, ‘How come I had no idea about this?’” 

She had three weeks to prepare. 

Although she’s in an infantry unit, Grieco 

wasn’t used to handling certain weapons but 

got some help from her fellow soldiers. “Take 

it apart, put it together, take it apart, put it 

together. I would do that until my fingers were 

sore.” 

Grieco also had to brush up on her ability 

to understand navigation and map reading 

because she was literally going to be dropped 

somewhere and asked to find points and do it 

within a certain amount of time, she said. 

And then there was the 12-mile ruck—a 

march with a weighted backpack and a weapon. 

“That sounded bad,” she recalled thinking as 

the event was described to her. 

She was used to training but wasn’t doing 

much cardio. Grieco would go for runs on the 

hills of Hopatcong, sometimes at 10 p.m., while 

trying to manage the rest of her life. 

“I’d be running around town and people 

would see I had a backpack on,” said Grieco. 

“I didn’t want to do it. I was tired and I had so 

much going on—it was a lot. But I was really 

determined to do well because I felt like I was 

representing. I was chosen by my unit. I trained 

hard because I just didn’t want to be last place.” 

Thirteen enlisted soldiers and noncommissioned 

officers competed during the 

grueling and lengthy contest. “I didn’t even 

think I was going to win or even have a chance 

because I was the only enlisted female,” she 

said. 

“I focused on the things I was going to be 

very strong in,” said Grieco. The ruck and stress 

shoot would be difficult to win against the 

men, but she could get points toward her final 

score. 

She knew she could win the army combat 

fitness test because they were scored 

differently for women and men and had a good 

chance on the rest of the events. 

“So, that’s what I did. I won the board, the 

[army combat fitness test]. I came in the top 

two for the shooting events.” 

The stress shoot involved tasks like tending 

to injured soldiers, reacting to fire and a 

simulated chemical attack, Grieco said. 

During the board interview, Grieco had to 

present herself in her dress blues in front of her 

superiors, recite the Army Creed and answer a 

series of questions. 

Brig. Gen. Lisa J. Hou, the first Asian American 

and the first woman to lead the New Jersey 

Army National Guard, made history again as she 

presented the Best Warrior awards to Grieco, 

who won the junior enlisted competition, and 

to Sgt. 1st Class Antonella Catalioti, winner of 

the non-commissioned officer award. 

Hou expressed how proud she was of both 

women, according to Grieco. 

As the junior enlisted winner, Grieco 

advanced to the regional Best Warrior 

competition in Maine in May. Representing 

New Jersey, Grieco placed sixth out of seven. 

A day after returning home, Grieco headed 

to the Joint Readiness Training Center and Fort 

Johnson in Louisiana to prepare for her next 

challenge—deployment to the Middle East. 

“That was probably one of the hardest things 

I’ve done,” she said of the month-long training. 

“There was a 16- to 17-day period where we 

were sleeping in the middle of woods playing a 

very glorified version of laser tag.” 

In November, Grieco received another great 

honor, a call inviting her and her family to 

represent New Jersey at the White House for 

an event called Joining Forces. 

Caleb and Penelope were asked to participate 

in a roundtable of military kids, during which 

Caleb was chosen to introduce First Lady Jill 

Biden. 

Grieco said she was starstruck by all the 

multi-star generals she encountered, including 

Gen. Daniel R. Hokanson, the chief of the 

National Guard. She said she was glad her kids 

saw a little bit of what mom does when she’s 

away. 

“This was something that they got to be 

part of. They also got to talk about their 

...continued on page 24 

Top to bottom, left to right: Penelope and Caleb Grieco, 

seated at table facing camera, sit to the right of First Lady 

Jill Biden during a visit to the White House in November. 

(Photo courtesy of Michael Grieco.) Laura Grieco evaluates a 

Tactical Combat Casualty Care Exportable kit mannequin 

during the stress shoot/warrior tasks portion of the New 

Jersey Army National Guard’s Best Warrior Competition 

at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst on April 26, 2023. 

(Photo courtesy of Spc. Michael Schwenk.) Penelope, Caleb, 

Michael and Laura Grieco at home enjoying a favorite 

board game. 


Barbells to Battlefields, (cont’d.) 

Laura Grieco packs her gear 

getting ready for deployment. 

experience. I felt like it was therapeutic in a 

way,” she said. “This is us. This is our life. It’s 

different, but it’s a special and adventurous 

life that we live,” adding that her children may 

never totally understand the significance of 

being chosen for the visit to the White House. 

“I did something special, and I try to represent 

our family well.” 

Over the next few months, Grieco and her 

husband evaluated every part of their family 

life in preparation for her deployment to the 

Middle East this past January. 

She will be gone for nine to 11 months, just a 

bit longer than her basic and advanced training 

when she first enlisted. “We’ve done a big 

chunk of time apart before. Knowing that, this 

deployment will not be undoable,” Grieco said. 

The family spent time getting a system in 

place and developing a schedule that allowed 

her husband to work and both kids to continue 

homeschooling. A tutor comes twice a week 

and keeps them on track with schoolwork. “I 

have other homeschool families that have 

come alongside of us and give us the support 

we need when I’m not here,” Grieco said. 

One of those families takes Caleb and 

Penelope once a week, and her in-laws take 

the children another day for extracurricular 

activities. Other families offer rides and meals 

to the kids as needed. 

“Even things like taking my daughter out for 

a manicure,” Michael Grieco added. “People 

have really embraced the opportunity to help.” 

“I’ve lost so many hours of sleep over these 

things,” Laura Grieco said. “It makes me feel 

good to know everything is going to work out.” 

It doesn’t make it easier, though, to be away 

from her family. 

“I was on the plane coming home from 

training at [the Joint Readiness Training Center], 

and I hadn’t been home for about two months 

— and it was only two months. I was just going 

through my phone looking at old pictures and 

then I got to a point where I had nine months 

of pictures missing,” Grieco said with the tears 

starting to seep through. 

“My son—I had left him as a little boy and 

when he picked me up, he was like 6 inches 

taller, and his voice dropped and he had a 

beard and a mustache, and I missed all of that. 

You don’t realize so much happens in a short 

time when they’re kids,” Grieco said, recalling 

her time away from her family during basic and 

advanced training. 

During her deployment, she won’t be there 

for certain things. “Somebody else is going 

to have to fill that role,” said Grieco. “And 

hopefully they won’t see that their mom just 

left them. That’s the hardest part.” 

She holds onto a piece of advice she was 

given when she first joined the National Guard 

about being sent overseas. 

“I was told that if the doors are all open and 

you get in, you have to trust the fact that God 

is going to provide. The people are just going 

to be there for you. I remember thinking, ‘I 

don’t know, that’s a lot of trust, that’ll take a lot 

of faith.’ And I kind of tucked it back in there, 

but he was totally right.” 

Grieco said she’s seen that faith come 

through for them, after a rough month last fall 

where things weren’t working out. 

“We prayed about it and God provided just 

what we needed and just who we needed to fill 

in the gaps so we could make this happen, and 

I can go and serve and be part of something 

bigger.” 

Because Grieco and her husband started in 

a disciplined, long-distance relationship, they 

feel better prepared for the time apart. “It 

was almost like 

God gave us that 

training early on 

so that we’ll be 

ready for now,” 

she said. 

The experience 

of being the 

spouse of a National Guard member is different 

for a man, Laura Grieco said. The wives manage 

schedules and details differently and have 

more in common when they get together. 

When the “CEO” of the family is away, it leaves 

a big hole, she added. “There are not a lot of 

people that he can relate with that are dealing 

with things on that kind of level.” 

Michael Grieco said he is proud of everything 

his wife has accomplished, after having begun 

her military career later in life. 

“At points, I know it would have been easy 

to give up or just maintain the status quo,” 

he said. “But at her heart I know she strives 

for excellence, to be the best that she can 

be in what she does. Seeing everything 

she’s accomplished in her military career in 

such a short period of time has been pretty 

phenomenal.” 

Having traveled around the world, Grieco 

realizes she may not have been able to 

accomplish what she has as an American had 

she been born elsewhere. 

“There are other places in the world where 

women don’t have the same rights and 

privileges that we have. We take that for 

granted,” she said. “As much as our country 

may come with its flaws, we have so much 

to be thankful for here and there’s so much 

opportunity here. You can change your life.” 

And she certainly has shown that to be 

true—multiple times. 

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Record Number at Annual 

Leap in the Lake 

Story and photos by KAREN FUCITO 

steady rain was no match for the 856 participants—a new record— 

A at the 14th annual Leap in the Lake in early March. 

To the cheers of hundreds of very wet onlookers, 28 teams, some 

wearing costumes, some just wearing a bathing suit, braved the cold, 

dreary day and made the run from the beach at Hopatcong State Park into 

the lake, most wading out to the line of local fire and rescue members 

standing chest high in the water. 

The event, hosted by Lake Hopatcong Elks Lodge #782, raised more 

than $104,000, said Rick Gathen, Elks trustee and event coordinator. He 

noted that this year’s total came in just shy of last year’s recordbreaking 

amount of $111,000. 

“It’s essential to shine a spotlight on how these funds are 

making a tangible difference in the lives of those in need within 

the Lake Hopatcong community and beyond,” said Gathen. 

“Beyond the record-breaking numbers, the true impact lies in 

the transformative programs and initiatives that these funds 

support.” 

One of the primary beneficiaries of the event’s proceeds 

are the 16 area public school special needs classrooms, he said. 

These classrooms receive sizable donations “that enable them 

to enhance their educational resources, provide specialized 

equipment and create a nurturing environment where every 

child can thrive,” he said. 

The money raised also offsets the cost of events and 

experiences for children and adults with special needs and their 

families, he said. 

Throughout the year, the Elks lodge hosts a variety of seasonal 

events tailored to children with special needs, including breakfasts 

with the Easter Bunny and Santa, Trunk or Treat events and an 

annual Sussex County Miners baseball game and BBQ at the park. 

“Moreover,” he said, “the funds raised from the Leap enable 

the Lake Hopatcong Elks to directly address the practical needs of special children. 

Whether it’s purchasing motorized wheelchairs, adaptive equipment or other 

essential resources, these investments ensure that every child has access to the 

tools they need to live life to the fullest.” 

Mark the calendar. The 2025 Leap in the Lake is scheduled for Saturday, March 1. 

To sign up or to donate, visit www.lakehopatcongelks.com. 

Photos: Participants in the 14th annual Leap in the Lake fundraiser brave the 

38-degree waters of Lake Hopatcong on Saturday, March 2. 

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Bunny Brunch Back and 

Raising Money 

Story and photos by KAREN FUCITO 

After a three-year hiatus, the Junior Woman’s Club 

of Jefferson Township once again hosted its Bunny 

Brunch and Tricky Tray on Saturday, March 23. This year 

marked the 39th time the club has hosted the event. 

The Bunny Brunch raised over $6,000. A portion of 

that will be donated to the Jefferson Township Education 

Foundation, specifically to help fund grants that are offered 

twice a year to teachers in the school district, said Antonella 

DaSilva, event co-chair. 

The remaining proceeds will fund the operating budget 

for the Junior Woman’s Club. The club’s budget includes 

funding scholarships for high school seniors from Jefferson, 

sponsoring local youth sports teams and supporting local 

food pantries and first responders, she said. 

More than 200 tickets were sold, with a few participants 

sporting bunny ears in a nod to the occasion. 

Following a pancake brunch, guests embarked on the 

tricky tray ritual of choosing where to drop their tickets. 

There were 132 prizes ranging from towers of assorted 

candy to tickets to a professional sporting event to a round 

of golf for four to a bucketful of gift cards worth $425. 

“We think the Bunny Brunch went 

very well,” said Nichole Lewis, event 

co-chair. “We are so grateful to all who 

attended—our generous sponsors 

and our wonderful Juniors and families 

who helped run the event. We truly 

hope the community enjoyed it!” 

30 


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Junior Woman’s Club of Jefferson Township. Dawn Morris, 

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CELL 


HISTORY 

by MARTY KANE 

Photos courtesy of 

the 

LAKE HOPATCONG 

HISTORICAL 

MUSEUM 

The emergence of the outline of a 

large boat embedded in the muck off 

Kingsland Road in Landing Channel generated 

much interest and excitement last fall when 

Lake Hopatcong was dropped for its five-year 

drawdown. 

While it turned out some neighborhood 

“old-timers” knew of it, the boat remains were 

perceived as a great discovery for most at the 

lake. 

It is almost certain the hull’s increased 

visibility was due to an application of Phoslock 

in 2020 to combat Harmful Algal Blooms. In 

addition to locking phosphorous to the lake 

bottom, this clay-like substance compresses 

the muck, thereby making the ship’s skeleton 

more apparent than it had been for decades. 

While the Lake Hopatcong Historical Museum 

was able to make an educated guess as to the 

origin of the boat, what might lie beneath the 

visible portion remained a mystery. 

With no permits in hand or plans in place for 

an archaeological investigation, the museum 

consulted experts on ground penetrating radar 

to determine the feasibility of scanning the 

area. It was soon learned that although such 

radar has difficulty under normal situations 

separating wood from muck, much better 

results can be obtained once an area freezes. 

While we patiently waited for a freeze, 

Mother Nature had other plans as more than 

10 inches of rain fell in December, and the lake 

rose almost 4 feet before the area froze. 

Stuck in the Mud 

The boat remains were quickly covered with 

water as Landing Channel refilled. 

Although a physical investigation could not 

move forward, a thorough investigation was 

conducted as to how this artifact came to be in 

Landing Channel. 

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, 

almost all transportation at Lake Hopatcong 

was conducted by water. Roads did not circle 

the lake and those that existed were of poor 

quality. Most goods, even mail going to the 

existing post offices, were delivered by boat. 

While steamboats were introduced to the 

lake in the 1830s to tow vessels filled with iron 

ore to the Morris Canal, the lake’s first power 

passenger boat, the Stella, arrived in 1871. This 

boat was the idea of C.C. Veber, proprietor 

of the Lake View House, a hotel located high 

above Great Cove in Mount Arlington (where 

Floyd and Hover Drive are located today). 

Until the introduction of the Stella, travelers 

to the lake were picked up by horse and wagon 

at the Lackawanna Railroad’s Drakesville Station 

(located near where Mount Arlington Station is 

situated today off Howard Boulevard). 

To facilitate tourism, Veber devised a plan to 

simplify the journey using the Morris Canal. He 

convinced the Lackawanna Railroad to stop its 

trains in an area of Roxbury Township where the 

canal paralleled the railroad tracks for some 800 

feet, a perfect spot for a steamboat to dock 

and await incoming trains. 

Arriving rail passengers could then debark, 

cross the platform, and board waiting 

steamboats while porters transferred their 

luggage. The Stella could then proceed 

westward on the canal, turn into the “feeder 

canal” that connected to Lake Hopatcong, pass 

through the lock (located roughly where the 

Lake Hopatcong dam sits today) and continue 

to the Lake View House. 

Since hotel porters moved luggage while 

passengers checked in at the front desk, visitors 

did not have to handle their bags from the time 

they boarded the train until they arrived in their 

hotel room. 

The Lake View House ran the Stella until 1880, 

when it was replaced by the Matilda. As the lake 

began to develop, the Lake View’s new owner, 

F.W. Zuck, along with other prominent local 

businessmen, launched the Lake Hopatcong 

Steamboat Company in 1885 under the 

leadership of G.W. Campbell. 

An organized steamboat company with 

regular routes was just what the fledgling 

lake resort needed. The Matilda became an 

excursion boat, available for private events. 

The steamboat company, quickly dubbed the 

Black Line, started with three boats traveling 

from the lake’s southern shore at Landing to 

its northernmost point in Woodport. (Brady 

Bridge and East Shore Estates did not yet exist, 

so large steamboats had no limitation reaching 

the northern end of the lake.) 

Because of the steamboat service, the 

Lackawanna Railroad erected a station at 

Landing in the 1880s. When the Central Railroad 

of New Jersey introduced regular train service to 

Nolan’s Point in 1886, the Black Line expanded 

its service to meet these trains, as well. 

In those years, almost every arriving passenger 

was dependent on steamboats to reach their 

hotel, cottage or campsite. The Black Line 

advertised service to any public or private dock. 

Public docks were established in many areas as 

a means to deliver passengers to areas where 

docks were non-existent or insufficient to 

support boats ranging from 35 to over 60 feet 

long. 

In 1890, a group led by Theodore F. King 

founded the Hopatcong Steamboat Company, 

dubbed the White Line, as competition for the 

lake’s steamer business. Though it also serviced 

the docks at Nolan’s Point, the White Line was 

unable to obtain the right to use the Morris 

Canal due to the canal’s exclusive contract with 

the Black Line. 

To provide service to the Lackawanna Railroad, 

the White Line dredged the southernmost part 

of the lake, which was then non-navigable 

wetlands, thus creating Landing Channel. The 

Hopatcong Steamboat Company used the 

channel to bring its boats to within a block of 

Landing Station. 

Since a trip on the White Line avoided a 

shaky trip through the canal lock, many patrons 

preferred to walk the extra block to take the 

White Line. Porters were available to help 

transfer luggage. The White Line included two 

side-wheelers—boats with paddle wheels on 

each side—that were allowed to carry up to 300 

passengers under the loose safety standards of 

the day. 

For the next two decades, the two steamboat 

companies competed aggressively for business 

34 


Left to right: Boats from the Lake Hopatcong 

Steamboat (Black Line) on the Morris Canal at 

Lackawanna Railroad Station in Landing, circa 

1905. The skeletal remains of what is thought 

to be an old steamboat, discovered in Landing 

Channel in November.

Left to right: The Lake Hopatcong Steamboat Company (Black Line) crew in 

1895. The steamboat Hopatcong, from the Hopatcong Steamboat Company 

(White Line) fleet, full of passengers, circa 1900. 

on Lake Hopatcong, at times accusing each 

other of having unseaworthy boats, artificially 

lowering the lake and stealing customers. 

Despite management’s squabbling, the 

captains and crews of the rival steamboats 

jointly held a large annual charity ball to benefit 

local people in need. 

The state began to conduct safety inspections 

in 1905, following a tragedy in New York City’s 

East River the previous year, when a fire aboard 

the steamboat General Slocum resulted in over 

1,000 deaths. 

At Lake Hopatcong, both steamboat 

companies resisted investing heavily in their 

aging boats. The pressure only increased when 

the White Line side-wheeler Musconetcong 

sank in 1905 in River Styx Cove with 120 

passengers requiring rescue. While that boat 

was quickly raised and resumed duties, the 

White Line ceased operations after the 1906 

season. 

The Black Line reduced its fleet, finally ending 

operations in the early 1910s. 

Despite the demise of the two large 

steamboat companies, water transportation 

persisted thanks to many smaller, familyrun 

operations. Families such as the Decker, 

ready Chaplin, to tackle Willis, any Hulmes, project. Beck and Lee families 

all continued to offer transportation services at 

the lake. 

By the 1930s, with roads finally built around 

the entire lake and automobiles becoming 

commonplace, boat service Hablamos evolved into Español water 

taxis and sightseeing boats. 

By the 1950s, Bertrand Island Park’s 40-foot 

tour boats offered the only passenger service 

around the lake. After the park’s closure in 1983, 

the tradition of sightseeing boats continued for 

years from the Jefferson House and, in 2014, with 

the debut of the Miss Lotta, the first doubledecker 

boat on the lake in over 100 years. 

Judging from its size and location, the boat 

hull in Landing Channel is almost certainly the 

remains of one of the White Line steamboats. 

White Line boats were moored in this area and 

abandoned there when operations ceased after 

the 1906 season. 

The boats can be seen sitting idly in this part 

of Landing Channel in photos circa 1907-1908. 

The July 10, 1910 edition of the Lake Hopatcong 

Breeze reported that “the dilapidated steamers 

of the old White Line, which had been drawn 

up on shore at Landing for several years, were 

removed this past winter.” 

In a July 1977 letter to the Breeze, then 

longtime resident Carrel C. Bryant provided 

further details. “Many will recall that one of the 

boats was allowed to disintegrate on the West 

Shore, opposite the Powder Works [today’s 

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may still be found there, when the water is 

low,” Bryant wrote. 

It is likely one of the steamboats left 

in Landing Channel sank or was too 

difficult to move by the time cleanup was 

conducted in the winter of 1909-1910, and 

it was deemed easier to let the hull remain 

on the lake bottom and remove anything 

above the water level. 

The exact extent of the ruins must 

wait until a future drawdown. The museum is 

currently investigating the permits that will be 

required to support such an excavation. 

So, for at least the next five years, the mystery 

of this steamboat remains at the bottom of 

Landing Channel. 

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COOKING 

WITH SCRATCH © 

My 

Friend, 

Brenda 

Story and photos by 

BARBARA SIMMONS 

How many of you out there enjoy having 

company? For dinner? Overnight? A 

weekend or even a three-week stretch? (Wow!) 

I wonder if hosting is becoming a lost art, 

along with cooking and baking. There are just 

so many excuses not to: It’s too much work, the 

house isn’t clean enough, how can I possibly 

make enough food. These are concerns that 

usually end the idea of a party even before it 

starts. 

Most people would rather go to a private 

home instead of a restaurant, but rarely want 

the home to be their own. 

I learned firsthand that living on Lake 

Hopatcong was a big draw for our friends and 

relatives and, at my mother’s side, I experienced 

all of the work that went into entertaining and 

preparing for company. 

We loved it, though, and looking back, 

certainly enjoyed all the fun we had. 

However, I don’t think I’ve seen anyone make 

entertaining look easier than my friend, Brenda 

Robinson Agamie. 

Brenda was a fourth generation resident 

of Lake Hopatcong. I met her in elementary 

school when my family moved to the lake in 

the middle of winter. It was a tough transition 

for me—a “city kid” who was used to blocks, 

sidewalks and a candy store right around the 

corner. 

In that little fifth-grade classroom at the Ellen 

T. Briggs Elementary School, her welcoming 

smile and wonderful sense of humor thawed 

out my frozen heart and a lifetime friendship 

 

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I still can’t wrap my head around the fact that 

she is gone. Far too soon. 

Brenda and I graduated from Jefferson 

Township High School together and then went 

off to college in Boulder, Colorado. We shared 

all our life’s milestones: marriage, careers, 

having kids, all of the ski training and races with 

our kids (home and away), having grandkids, 

learning to enjoy cooking. Brenda was always a 

constant in my life. 

I miss her greatly. We made so many fun 

memories together. From movie night to 

Friendsgiving, to Fire and Ice parties on the 

lake in front of her house, to a very memorable 

ladies’ only sleepover two summers ago 

(complete with goodie bags!) to a ski trip to 

Aspen, Colorado. Time spent with Brenda was 

just the best. 

Brenda and her husband, Mark Fisch, owned 

Espanong Market in Jefferson for about 19 

years. We loved going on Wednesday nights 

during the summer, when they offered a 

variety of holiday-style dinners like a Rosh 

Hashanah brisket and a Thanksgiving turkey 

feast. Those mid-week dinners were so popular 

with their friends and customers from Nolan’s 

Point, Mount Arlington and East Shore Estates, 

that it was often hard to get a table. 

Like I said earlier, Brenda made throwing all 

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36 LAKE HOPATCONG NEWS Spring 2024 

Left to right: Brenda (Robinson) Agamie and Barbara 

(Kertscher) Simmons in Boulder, Colorado in 1972. 

Brenda Agamie and Mark Fisch in 2000. Aaron and 

Barbara Simmons dressed for a “Jaws” movie night at 

Agamie’s Lake Hopatcong home in 2022. 

these parties, dinners and events look easy. I 

remember asking her for advice about a big 

Oktoberfest I was planning several years ago. 

I had some basic ideas, but what followed was 

a two-hour phone call that went into details 

like scheduling a timeline, menu planning, food 

quantity estimation, decorations, drawing out 

maps of how to lay out the buffet table and 

starting the bonfire. 

I took detailed notes and archived them 

all in my cookbook binder. To this day I am 

grateful for her help and advice. It sounds like 

it was daunting and complicated to get all the 

logistics down, but it was so much fun, and so 

worth the effort. 

Brenda’s trademark for hosting an event was 

to always have a theme—it contributed to 

the success of the evening and created the 

memories that all of us took away. Our movie 

nights (Brenda’s idea) were a great example of 

this. 

We set them up as a “dine-around” format— 

we all took turns hosting every month. We 

matched the movie to the dinner menu and 

often came dressed in costumes to go with 

the theme. 

For our “Jaws” movie night two summers ago, 

dinner was out on Brenda’s patio, decorated 

with nautical touches. Brenda asked my 

husband, Aaron, to carve a shark out of a 

watermelon with half of a Barbie doll in its 

jaws. (There are YouTube videos that show you 

how to do this!) We came dressed as lifeguards, 

complete with white sunblock on our noses 

and whistles around our necks. Brenda served 

a spectacular seafood tower that featured 

shrimp, crab claws, lox, pickled calamari and an 

octopus salad. It was a wonderful evening and 

that old movie, “Jaws,” held up really well. 

It was unforgettable, just like the lifetime’s 

worth of memories we made together, which 

I treasure and have only begun to scratch the 

surface of. 

Brenda, how I miss you. Please know that so 

many loved you so much. 

Rest easy, my friend.

For this issue, I’m offering an Asian-themed dinner plus an appetizer. If you’re doing a 

movie night, maybe you’d pick “Godzilla?” 

The dip with rice crackers and the salmon nori cups are very sushi-like in their flavors and 

the ingredients can be found in most grocery stores. There’s always Amazon, if needed. 

Ginger-Wasabi Cream Cheese Dip 

Ingredients: 

1 8-ounce tub whipped cream cheese 

1/4 cup pickled ginger slices 

1 to 2 teaspoons pickled ginger syrup (as needed) 

1 to 2 tablespoons wasabi paste 

2 tablespoons soy sauce 

2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil 

Procedure: 

1. Empty the contents of the cream cheese tub into a bowl and allow it to come to room 

temperature. 

2. Finely chop the ginger slices and add them to the cream cheese, blending together with a fork. 

3. Scoop the mixture into a shallow bowl and dot with the wasabi paste. 

4. Whisk the soy sauce and toasted sesame oil together and drizzle over the top of the dip. 

5. Serve with sesame rice crackers. 

Salmon Sushi Cups 

Ingredients: 

1-pound skinless salmon filet 

2 tablespoons sesame seeds 

1½ packages nori (seaweed) snack sheets 

(20 sheets per package) 

Marinade: 

2/3 cup mayonnaise 

3 tablespoons Korean gochujang paste 

(or 2 tablespoons sriracha hot sauce)* 

1 tablespoon soy sauce 

2 scallions, thinly sliced 

Prepared kimchi (Korean-style pickled 

cabbage) 

Sushi rice: 

1 cup sushi rice 

2 cups water 

1 teaspoon salt 

1/3 cup seasoned rice vinegar 

*I love Korean gochujang paste for marinating the salmon, but you can substitute sriracha hot 

sauce. If you don’t like spicy, you can omit the gochujang or the sriracha, substituting a teaspoon 

of minced garlic and a teaspoon of grated fresh ginger (or 2 teaspoons of ginger-garlic paste, 

which can now be found at your local supermarket). 

Procedure: 

1. Add the sushi rice to a medium-sized saucepan with the water and salt. Set the saucepan over 

high heat. When it comes to a boil, reduce the heat to a low simmer and cook, covered, for 20 

minutes. When finished, take off heat and let cool for about 10 minutes, covered. Then sprinkle 

the seasoned rice vinegar over the cooked rice and mix well. 

2. While the rice is cooking, make the marinade and prepare the salmon. 

3. In a medium-sized bowl, whisk the marinade ingredients together. Set aside. 

4. Cut the salmon into ¾-inch cubes. Add to the marinade and mix until well coated. 

5. Toast the sesame seeds for 2 minutes in the microwave or on the stovetop in a small saucepan, 

being careful not to scorch them. Set aside. 

6. Preheat the oven to 350°. 

7. Set a muffin tin on the counter with the saucepan of cooked rice, the nori sheets and the 

marinating salmon nearby. 

8. Place 2 of the nori sheets in the palm of your hand, overlapping them in the center. With the 

other hand, scoop about 1 ½ tablespoons of rice into the center of the nori sheets. Cupping 

your hand, mold the sheets around the rice, forming a sort of rounded shape, leaving the top 

open. Put the nori-rice “cupcake” into the muffin tin, open side up. 

9. Continue until all 12 cups are filled. 

10. Place about 2 tablespoons of marinated salmon cubes on top of the rice cups. 

12. Sprinkle each cup with some toasted sesame seeds. 

13. Bake for 15-17 minutes, until you just start to see some browning around the edges. 

14. Toss the sliced scallions over the top of the salmon sushi cups. 

15. Serve with kimchi and maybe some steamed broccoli if you think you need a vegetable. 

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WORDS OF 

A FEATHER 

Backyard Besties 

38 

Story by HEATHER SHIRLEY 

Photos by KYLE MATERA 

It’s finally here! Spring! The season of 

renewed growth, full of hope and splendor. 

Sunlight stretches its span across the day 

and blooming forsythias electrify hillsides. 

Daffodils, jonquils and crocuses poke their 

vibrant heads out of the sleeping earth. 

Birds joyously sing out to announce their 

arrival, advertise their territories and tempt 

prospective mates. 

Many birds will migrate north this spring, but 

many have resided right alongside us all winter 

long. They might not have been as noticeable, 

both because we may not have been outside 

as much in the cold winter months and also 

because birds do not sing as much in winter. 

But as anyone who enjoys watching bird 

feeders knows, our backyards are full of truly 

spectacular birds all year long. 

Northern cardinals are probably the most 

conspicuous and most splendiferous. These 

beauties are usually seen in pairs during spring 

and summer. 

The male is a brilliant cardinal color, hence 

the species’ name. He has a perky crest, a 

dashing black mask and a shiny orange beak. 

His female partner is equally lovely, though 

less flamboyant. She is mostly soft brown, but 

sports a reddish tinge on her wings, crest and 

tail. She also has a black mask and orange bill. 

Cardinals can raise and lower their crests. 

When agitated, their crest is erect; when they’re 

relaxed, it can be so flat it is barely noticeable. 

These birds tend to hop through low 

branches or shrubs and usually forage on or 

near the ground for seeds and nuts. They eat 

some insects and mostly feed their young a 

diet of insects. (All that protein!) 

They will readily visit feeders and prefer 

black oil sunflower seeds. When they sing, 

which they frequently do, they choose a 


higher perch. Their 

song is a lovely, clear 

whistle. 

And while male 

cardinals do the 

majority of singing, 

female cardinals do, 

too. It’s rare among 

birds for females 

to sing (most only 

Left to right: Adult male northern 

cardinal, adult blue jay 

make what are called chip notes). Even more 

interesting, female cardinals will call when they 

are sitting on a nest. 

One theory is they are communicating a sort 

of grocery order to their mate. “Go visit the 

neighbor’s feeder, and please bring me some of 

those tasty seeds, would you, dear?” 

Cardinals are mostly monogamous. Many 

pairs stay together after nesting season and 

through the winter, but about 20 percent will 

split up by the next breeding season. 

In the spring, a male will perform elaborate 

displays for his mate. He will twist and turn, 

shift his weight from side to side and start to 

sing to get his lady’s attention. Gotta appreciate 

that he tries to keep things fresh in their birdy 

relationship! 

Cardinals don’t migrate, so they’re around all 

year for us to enjoy. 

Another backyard dweller is the blue jay. 

Male and female blue jays look alike, and their 

appearance is unmistakable. 

Like cardinals, blue jays have a crest they 

can raise and lower. They’re the only bird in 

North America that is bright blue with white 

on their wings and tail. While they appear blue, 

the pigment in their feathers is brown, from 

melanin, the same substance in our bodies that 

produces hair color and skin pigmentation. The 

blue color we see is a result of light reflecting 

on special cells on the barbs of their feathers. 

Blue jays also have black on their faces that 

resembles a bridle or necklace. These black 

markings vary from bird to bird and may help 

them recognize each other. 

Jays are highly intelligent and have complex 

social systems. They form strong family ties. 

Blue jay pairs are much more monogamous than 

their cardinal neighbors. Many monogamous 

species of birds separate when it’s not mating 

season, but blue jay pairs not only mate for life, 

they stay together throughout the year. 

Blue jays will also happily frequent bird 

feeders, although they prefer a tray-style 

feeder. They enjoy the same sunflower seeds 

as cardinals, and they love suet and nuts such 

as peanuts and acorns. 

Capable of carrying up to five acorns at 

a time by stashing them in a special throat 

pocket, jays often transport nuts and cache 

them. Scientists tracked six birds one autumn 

and found they cached about 5,000 acorns! 

Jays are credited with spreading oak trees 

across the continent after the last glacial age. 

They very accurately choose only the best 

acorns, free from weevils or other pests, so the 

acorns they cache but don’t eat can turn into 

forests. 

Unlike non-migrating cardinals, blue jays may 

occasionally migrate. Their migration patterns 

are a mystery. Most don’t migrate at all, but 

some do. 

Sometimes it’s younger birds that migrate 

(but not always). A blue jay may migrate one 

year but not the next. 

I love that in this age of information overload, 

there are still things we don’t understand. 

Nature is a constant source of wonder. Get out 

there and enjoy it! 

Scan the QR code with 

your phone’s camera 

to hear the sounds of 

cardinals and blue jays. 

Is something hairy going on at home? (Leaks? Drains?) 

$ 

25 

off your next 

hairy situation! 

Coupon must be presented at time of service. Applies only to 

work performed. Cannot be used for dispatch/diagnostic fees. 

No cash value. Cannot be combined with any other discounts. 

Remember...we will never ask how it happened!

akeside 

CoNstruCtioN 

A full service site-work 

contrActor speciAlizing 

in the following AreAs: 

excAvAting & pAving 

Bridges 

roAd construction 

site work 

utilities 

crushing 

www.Lakeside-NJ.com 

973-398-4517 

Fax 973-398-5623 


directory 

CONSTRUCTION/ 

EXCAVATION 

Al Hutchins Excavating 

973-663-2142 

973-713-8020 

Global Contracting 

800-292-3268 

globalpaving.com 

Lakeside Construction 

151 Sparta-Stanhope Rd., Hopatcong 

973-398-4517 

Northwest Explosives 

PO Box 806, Hopatcong 

973-398-6900 

info@northwestexplosives.com 

Robertson Excavating 

973-398-9476 

ENTERTAINMENT/ 

RECREATION 

Lake Hopatcong Cruises 

Miss Lotta (Dinner Boat) 

37 Nolan’s Pt. Park Rd., LH 

973-663-5000 

lhcruises.com 

Lake Hopatcong Mini Golf Club 


973-663-0451 

lhgolfclub.com 

Roxbury Arts Alliance 

72 Eyland Ave., Succasunna 

973-945-0284 

roxburyartsalliance.org 

HOME SERVICES 

Central Comfort 

100 Nolan’s Point Rd., LH 

973-361-2146 

Evening Star 

LED Deck/Dock Lights 

eveningstarlighting.com 

Homestead Lawn Sprinkler 

5580 Berkshire Valley Rd., OR 

973-208-0967 

homesteadlawnsprinkler.com 

J-I Renovations 

862-462-0183 

jirenovation.us 

Jefferson Recycling 

710 Route 15 N Jefferson 

973-361-1589 

jefferson-recycling.com 

Metro Supply and Service 

201 Green Pond Rd., Rockaway 

973-627-7626 

metrosupplyinc.com 

The Polite Plumber 

973-398-0875 

thepoliteplumber.com 

Premier Tech EcoFlow 

973-600-9264 

premiertechaqua.com 

The Probilt Group 

973-886-3654 

probiltgroup.com 

Royalty Cleaning Services 

973-309-2858 

royaltycleaningserv.com 

TriStae Lighting 

973-358-9302 

LightTheTristate.com 

Window Genie 

973-726-6555 

windowgenie.com/northwest-nj 

LAKE SERVICES 

AAA Dock & Marine 

27 Prospect Point Rd., LH 

973-663-4998 

docksmarina@hotmail.com 

Batten The Hatches 

70 Rt. 181, LH 

973-663-1910 

facebook.com/bthboatcovers 

Lake Management Sciences 

Branchville 

973-948-0107 

lakemgtsciences.com 

MARINAS 

Katz’s Marinas 

22 Stonehenge Rd., LH 

973-663-0224 

katzmarinaatthecove.com 

342 Lakeside Ave., Hopatcong 

973-663-3214 

antiqueboatsales.com 

Lake’s End Marina 

91 Mt. Arlington Blvd., Landing 

973-398-5707 

lakesendmarina.net 

South Shore Marine 

862-254-2514 

southshoremarine180@gmail.com 

NONPROFITS 

Canal Society of NJ 

973-292-2755 

canalsocietynj.org 

Lake Hopatcong Commission 

260 Lakeside Blvd.,Landing 

973-601-7801 

commissioner@lakehopatcongcommission.org 

Lake Hopatcong Elks 

201 Howard Blvd, MA 

973-668-9302 

Lake Hopatcong Foundation 

125 Landing Rd., Landing 

973-663-2500 

lakehopatcongfoundation.org 

Lake Hopatcong Historical Museum 

260 Lakeside Blvd., Landing 

973-398-2616 

lakehopatconghistory.com 

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES 

Barbara Anne Dillon,,O.D.,P.A. 

180 Howard Blvd., Ste. 18 MA 

973-770-1380 

Fox Architectural Design 

546 St. Rt. 10 W, Ledgewood 

973-970-9355 

foxarch.com 

REAL ESTATE 

Kathleen Courter 

RE/MAX 

131 Landing Rd., Roxbury 

973-420-0022 Direct 

KathySellsNJHomes.com 

Robin Dora 

Sotheby’s International 

670 Main St., Towaco 

973-570-6633 

thedoragroup.com 

Christopher J. Edwards 

RE/MAX 

211 Rt. 10E, Succasunna 

973-598-1008 

MrLakeHopatcong.com 

Karen Foley 

Sotheby’s International 

670 Main St., Towaco 

973-906-5021 

prominentproperties.com 

RESTAURANTS & BARS 

Alice’s Restaurant 


973-663-9600 

alicesrestaurantnj.com 

Big Fish Lounge At Alice’s 


973-663-9600 

alicesrestaurantnj.com 

The Windlass Restaurant 

45 Nolan’s Point Park Rd., LH 

973-663-3190 

thewindlass.com 

SENIOR CARE 

Preferred Care at Home 

George & Jill Malanga/Owners 

973-512-5131 

PreferHome.com/nwjersey 

SPECIALTY STORES 

Alstede Fresh @ Lindeken 

54 NJ Rt 15 N, Wharton 

908-879-7189 

AlstedeFarms.com 

Hawk Ridge Farm 

283 Espanong Rd, LH 

hawkridgefarmnj.com 

Hearth & Home 

1215 Rt. 46, Ledgewood 

973-252-0190 

hearthandhome.net 

Helrick’s Custom Framing 

158 W Clinton St., Dover 

973-361-1559 

helricks.com 

Italy Tours with Maria 

ItalyTourswithMaria@yahoo.com 

JF Woodproducts 

973-590-4319 

jfwoodproducts.com 

Orange Carpet & Wood Gallery 

470 Rt. 10W, Ledgewood 

973-584-5300 

orange-carpet.com 

STORAGE 

Woodport Self Storage 

17 Rt. 181 & 20 Tierney Rd. 

Lake Hopatcong 

973-663-4000 

40 


16th Annual 

Spring Charity Hike 

Hudson Farm Club • 270 Sparta-Stanhope Rd. • Andover 

Saturday, May 11, 2024 (Rain or Shine) 

7:30AM (Last hiker may enter at 11:00AM) 

This event is open to everyone! 

Benefits many local organizations 

Complete the hike—get $1 per year of age—donate to any participating organization 

Lunch and souvenir gift compliments of the Hudson Farm Club 

For details call Anthony Luciani at 201-874-1412 or Donna Luciani at 973-222-8398

KAYAKING 

HYDROBIKING 

PEDALBOARDING 

HIKING 

BIKING 

DISCOVER THE NATURAL BEAUTY OF LAKE HOPATCONG ON 

AND OFF THE WATER WITH OUR GUIDED TOURS 

Hassle-free rentals led by fun, experienced guides! 

37 NOLAN’S POINT PARK RD. LAKE HOPATCONG, NJ LHADVENTURECO.COM 

BOOK YOUR TOUR TODAY! 

LHADVENTURECO 

Scan the code to 

visit our Etsy Shop 

handmade toys for cats 

CATCRAPHQ 

1,300 5 star reviews over 4,800 sales 


Nolan’s Point Park Rd., Lake Hopatcong 

42 


livethelakenj.com • 973.663.2490 • Connect with us! 

LivetheLakeNJ 


SEE THE LAKE FROM A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE WITH 

LAKE HOPATCONG CRUISES 

Whether you are a local or visiting the lake for the first time, a cruise on 

Lake Hopatcong aboard Miss Lotta is an experience you don’t want to miss! 

Signature & Themed Cruises, Wedding Ceremonies, Rehearsal Dinners, 

Corporate Events, Birthday Parties, Bridal & Baby Showers, And More 

Lake Hopatcong 

NEW JERSEY 

37 Nolan’s Point Park Road, Lake Hopatcong, NJ 07849 

LHCRUISES 


SCAN THE QR CODE FOR MORE INFORMATION 


MISS LOTTA 

· 2014 - 2024 

CELEBRATING MISS LOTTA THIS 2024 SEASON! 

Let’s celebrate Miss Lotta together for her 10 year anniversary on Lake Hopatcong!

2024 SPRING ISSUE

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