The Week in Union County

Every week, Patch takes a look back at what made the headlines in Union County. Here's a roundup of the region's biggest stories.

According to Clark Police Captain Alan Scherb, the sightings were reported near Valley Road and Linda Lane. Because the fox was spotted during the daytime, which is unusual according to Captain Scherb, police were concerned that it could potentially be rabid.

Drivers can now fully drive the popular thoroughfare between Raritan Road and Westfield Avenue, which for weeks had been closed except to local traffic.

In Garwood, Gayle Carrick, superintendent of Cranford schools, thanked the Garwood Board of Education for opening Washington School to Cranford students after flood damage hit Brookside Place School. First and second graders from the Brookside Place School started school at the Washington School and will be using the facility for two to four months.

New Providence

Hundreds of local residents hit South Street last Sunday, Sept. 18, for the . Sponsored by the Summit Medical Group,  and The Star Ledger, the fair featured rides, petting zoos, pony rides, clowns, a soccer ball kicking contest, performances from local bands, street vendors and a variety of food options. Local organizations and businesses were in attendance, including Lions Club, Community Service Association, the New Providence Historical Society, Karate World, , ,  and the League of Women Voters. The fair was presented by the New Providence Business and Professional Association.

Celestina Berlin, a young widow who lives on Osborne Avenue, came before the Zoning Board of Adjustment on Monday night for a  she would like to put up on the portion of her property that runs along Vista Lane. She said she wants to put it up to afford her privacy and protection for her dog and her children. But the issue sparked debate among her neighbors, who are concerned with the size of the fence, landscaping around the fence, and drainage. The board is expected to vote on the matter at the Oct. 3 meeting.

New Providence resident Tracy Beckerman, who writes the syndicated humor column called "Lost in Suburbia" that focuses on her life, her family, her kids, and the funny, sometimes embarrassing, bits of daily living that everyone can relate to, recently . Beckerman, who has appeared on "The Today Show," previously published a book called "Rebel Without A Minivan" that includes a collection of her columns. Beckerman said her new book, "Momoir," will be released in 2013 and will focus on "how I used to be a cool city chick, then how I started driving the kids to school in my bathrobe, then how I got my cool back. After you get stopped by a cop in your bathrobe, you realize it’s time to make some changes.” Beckerman's "Lost in Suburbia" column is carried weekly by the NJN Publishing Group, the North Jersey Media Group, The Mahopac News, and the Gatehouse Media chain.  In total, her column is carried by more than 450 newspapers, more than 250 websites and reaches an audience of nearly 10 million readers in 25 states.

Berkeley Heights-Mountainside

Tuesday’s Mountainside Borough Council meeting honored individuals and departments, including the Mountainside Volunteer Fire Department on the celebration of its 100th Anniversary.

“We certainly encourage everyone to go out and support our fire department as they supported us during Hurricane Irene,” Mayor Paul Mirabelli stated. “This is one of the best volunteer organizations in the state. My basement had to be pumped out by the fire department after the hurricane. What they accomplished during that time with the amount of man power and equipment they had was truly remarkable.”

In other news, when Scotland Preston hits the links, her golf clubs and incredible talent team up to win championships. 

To that end, she was recently honored for her exceptional achievements as an amateur golf player by the Mountainside Borough Council, receiving a Resolution of Commendation.

Scotland Preston played for the 2011 Governor Livingston High School golf team during her junior year.  Preston went on to compete in the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association Tournament of Champions where she won the NJSIAA/MGA Girls Tournament of Champions.

Preston then entered the 86th New Jersey State Golf Association Amateur Championship where she captured the title of 2011 New Jersey Women’s Amateur Champion.

With this victory, came the prize of becoming only the second women in New Jersey history to capture the Women’s Amateur title and the NJSIAA/MGA Tournament of Champions title in the same year.

As a 2011 first team All-State selection, the Star Ledger named Preston the Girls Golf State Player of 2011.

Springfield

Springfield’s School Board voted this week to enter a . The vote followed a year when the Springfield board explored withholding payments from the school, contending after the district’s complete l, they were not . Parents questioned the board's legal right to stop payments and criticized the district for not notifying them of their intentions. Ultimately, the Board opted to , fearing prohibitive cost of litigation. During this week’s vote, board members made their reluctance clear.

In other Springfield school news, Chris White, a popular math teacher at Jonathan Dayton High School, was . This week, Yale announced that White was among the winners of the Yale Educator Award, a recognition program where Yale students identify outstanding educators across the country.

Cranford

Cranford officials say about 75 percent of the debris left by Hurricane Irene has been removed from curbsides throughout the flood-damaged areas of the township. Local and county public works crews have methodically been moving from street to street, and hauling it to the Conservation and Recycling Center on Birchwood Avenue, where all of it will then be transported to the Newark rail line and eventually hauled out of state.

The First Presbyterian Church of Cranford  recently welcomed a new pastor to the fold. The Rev. John “Chris” Christian Kile, a native of Kingsville, Texas, took over when the church's former pastor and shepherd, Gregory Horn, left to work at another church.

Outside the Cranford Hotel last Sunday morning, members of the Cranford community poured into the streets, anxiously awaiting the arrival of Brian Ennesser and his troop of riders to return after a four-day, 400-mile ride to raise awareness and funds for BIKE 4 ALS, a charity that Ennesser founded two years ago after his mother passed away from ALS, just three months after she was diagnosed. This year, BIKE 4 ALS has raised more than $10,000 for the ALS Therapy Development Institute.

Scotch Plains

SPF Soccer Coach Notches 600th Win: Veteran Scotch Plains-Fanwood soccer coach Tom Breznitsky became the fourth coach in New Jersey history to win 600 games when the Raiders cruised to a 6-0 victory over Cranford on Tuesday. Breznitsky joined Pingry’s Miller Bugliari (752), Columbia’s Gene Chyzowych (745) and Shawnee’s Brian Gibney (653) in the 600-Win Club.

“It’s a nice milestone to achieve. It shows a lot of consistency over a long period of time,” Breznitsky said, who also won his 500th game at Cranford in 2004, a 2-0 decision. For more, click here.