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Bill Bowman is an award-winning, 40-year veteran of community news. He has written for weekly and daily newspapers, and state, national and international magazines. His investigations have resulted in the first-in-the-nation state program to purchase thermal imaging cameras for all NJ fire departments and fire academies, the halting of a massive land development deal marred by influence peddling, and the creation of a web-based database charting violations against New Jersey senior-citizen facilities.

Life Story: Mrs. Josephine Brickey, 95; Teacher’s Aide, Executive Assistant To Schools Superintendent

Mrs. Josephine Brickey passed away on September 6 at Parker Assisted Living in Somerset at the age of 95, surrounded by her loving family. It would have been the 74th anniversary of her wedding day. She was born in New Brunswick to Frank and Mary Scibilia. She attended New Brunswick Public Schools until the family moved to Highland Park. She …

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Life Story: Jack Jerome Spector, 100; Art History Professor At Rutgers

Screenshot Jack Jerome Spector of Somerset passed away on September 4 at home, surrounded by his family, less than one month away from his 101st birthday. Born in Bayonne, he grew up in and around New York City and attended City College and Columbia University. He earned a Fulbright scholarship to research his doctoral dissertation in Paris, France for a …

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Franklin Adult Baseball Team Continues Players’ Dreams

BATTER UP! – The Franklin Adult baseball team faced off against their Bridgewater nemesis September 6 at TD Bank Ballpark in Bridgewater. The Franklin Township Baseball League’s adult division highlighted its sixth season Sunday with its once-a-year game at TD Bank Ballpark in Bridgewater, the home of the Somerset Patriots, after spending the summer facing the same opponent because no …

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Life Story: Robert Snyder, 75; Lifelong Township Resident

Mr. Robert Snyder passed away on September 4 at his home in Somerset. He was 75 years old. Mr. Snyder was born in New Brunswick and was a lifetime resident of Franklin Township. He graduated from Franklin Township High School and married his sweetheart, Jeanne Yager only a couple months later. The young couple remained in Franklin Township where they …

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FR&A Sports: Warrior Football Falls To Colonia, 16-14

A second-quarter safety proved to be the undoing of the Franklin High School Warriors football team September 4 as they were defeated by the Colonia Patriots 16-14 in their season home opener. Junior Michael Rogers provided Franklin with both of its touchdowns, a 2-yard run in the first quarter and a 7-yard run in the second quarter. Don’t Miss Out! …

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Township High Schools Ranked Among Best By US News And World Report

BEST IN THE STATE – Principal Oguz Yildiz stands with a graduating senior at the 2025 Thomas Edicaon EnergySmart Charter School graduation ceremony. (File photo.) Thomas Edison EnergySmart Charter School and Central Jersey College Prep Charter School are ranked as the top two charter schools in the state in the latest US News & World Report ranking of high schools …

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Weekending ‘Round The Towns: September 4-7, 2026

Here’s what’s happening in and around Franklin over the weekend: Friday, Sept. 4 Dead Man’s Curve Wild Hot Rod Weekend, Somerset: The four-day show continues at Delta Hotels Somerset through Sunday. Expect pre-1972 hot rods, customs and muscle cars, celebrity appearances, vendors, a swap meet and more than 25 bands playing oldies, rockabilly and surf music. Spectator admission is generally …

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New Schools Superintendent Takes In His First Franklin ‘First Day’

FIRST DAY CHAT – Schools Superintendent Jamil Maroun speaks with a Road to Success program student September 3 at the Franklin Youth Center. Elementary and high school students across the township returned to their classrooms September 3 for the opening of the 2026-27 school year, and for schools Superintendent Jamil Maroun, the morning marked a first of his own. Don’t …

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Recreation Board Weighs ‘Traffic Garden’ On Old Middlebush Skate Park Asphalt

TRAFFIC GARDENS EXPLAINED – Hannah Younes, of the Voorhees Transportation Center at Rutgers University, talks to Advisory Recreation Board members about traffic gardens at the Board’s September 2 meeting. The Franklin Township Recreation Advisory Board on Sept. 2 endorsed a plan to study whether an unused slab of asphalt at Middlebush Park, left behind when the township’s skate park was …

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In Our Opinion: Franklin Should Pull The Plug On Flock

The 27 Flock Safety automatic license plate readers now mounted on poles around Franklin Township were bought with good intentions. A $339,000 state technology grant was available. A four-year contract was signed in October 2025. The Township Council did what more than 6,000 communities across the country have done, and accepted a public safety tool that appeared to cost taxpayers …

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