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“If we can adopt the capital budget earlier in the year, we tend to get better prices on things like road repairs than later in the year,” he said.

Another issue in front of the committee for 2023 is the state of cannabis-related businesses in the township. The committee opted to allow limited cannabis cultivation, manufacturing and sales in 2021, when these things became legal at the state level. But the state’s Cannabis Regulatory Commission has moved slowly in granting licenses to operators statewide.

“We have one company that is interested in a cultivation and manufacturing license in the township, and we have several individuals who have applied for cannabis retail sale operations,” Ruger said. “We are waiting to see what the CRC says about those before any of those applications go forward.”

Ruger said he expects the committee to review a number of ordinances this year. He said these reviews could lead to changes to the township’s sign and food truck ordinances.

“During the pandemic, we had several local businesses interested in having food trucks on their properties. We don’t have an ordinance that fully addresses that,”

Ruger said. “I’d like to see us create an ordinance that makes a formal process for that.”

He says advances in sign technology have left the township’s sign ordinance behind the times. “We’ve heard people talking about the sizes and types of signs a business may have here,” Ruger said. “Times have changed with the way advertising technology works and we need to make sure our ordinance properly reflects that.”

As the committee’s liaison to the Woolsey Park Committee, Ruger is looking forward to the construction and dedication of the Woolsey Park Bandshell later this year. “We received a $500,000 grant from the state to build a bandshell which was very exciting. Once it is built, it’s going to be a terrific amenity for the park,” he said.

Ruger expects to see some significant progress this year on the long-discussed senior and community center this year. “There are a lot of moving pieces that have to be put together,” he said. “One of the keys, when the township received $16 million in consideration for the Zaitz tract, was that there was space reserved for a senior and community center. As these pieces come together, we will be able to make an announcement. I do hope that we will see progress this year.”

Construction has begun on affordable and market-rate housing in the lower portion of the township, and Ruger said sales may begin at some point this year.

“The ability for people to come to Hopewell Township, to me, is exciting. One of the things I see is the lifecycle of people living in Hopewell Township. Someone who is starting their career will be able to come here live there for a year or two (in the new housing), then if they want to move to a larger place, they can live in the same neighborhood in a larger home,” he said. “But maybe when they get to the point where they are retiring, they can move to a smaller home and they can all stay in Hopewell Township. I think that giving people that option is a very exciting thing.”

* * *

Ruger grew up in Willistown Township, west of Philadelphia. He remembers the Willistown Township of his childhood as being “very much like Hopewell Township. A lot of rural areas, horse farms, open space. When I moved here, Hopewell Township felt very familiar to me.”

He attended Penn State as an undergrad before heading down to Washington to get a law degree from Georgetown University. He remained in Washington afterward, working a number of years for the Federal Communications Commission, and there he met his wife, Theresa “Tracy” Vogler, a Hopewell native.

“We came to Hopewell Township frequently because her mother lived in the house that Tracy grew up in,” he said. “We knew that at some point we wanted to move here.”

That opportunity came in 1998, when Vogler got a job as a lawyer in Philadelphia and Ruger took a consulting job with Comcast. They bought Vogler’s mother’s house, and now they have been settled here for 25 years. Ruger’s mother, Betty, has also become a township resident.

Ruger joined Comcast full time in 2003, and today serves as its vice president of local government affairs for policy and operations. Vogler, who also has a law degree, left the workforce in 2004 to be a stay-at-home mom to their three children: eldest son Teddy and twins Billy and Bobby, who are seniors at Hopewell Valley Central High School.

Ruger says there came a time when he thought about what he could do to help his local community. “I’ve spent my entire career either working for or around governments,” he said. “I’ve always had great respect for people who choose government as a career.”

He ran first and unsuccessfully for a seat on the school board. In 2016, he made another run, this time for Hopewell Township Committee. Again he was unsuccessful.

“With that election, I remember there was a doorhanger where Hillary Clinton was at the top of it, I was at the bottom of it, and that November every Democrat in between us won,” he said. “I decided to give it another chance the next year, and I’m glad that I did.”

WRESTLING continued from Page 1 first time to see if the sport is for them.

Hopewell Valley Youth Wrestling is a program for kids in grades kindergarten through 8th grade. Team members participate at a variety of competition levels depending on their skills and experience.

“Typically in spring and summer, we have open mats or spring practice. Often it’s a good opportunity for folks who are interested in getting kids involved in the sport, but aren’t sure it’s for them. A lot of parents have misconceptions about what it is and also what it’s not,” says Morfe, who is one of several coaches with the club. “This time of year is a time to get your kids on the mat, walk them through an easy practice, and try to get a sense of what wrestling on a team is all about.”

According to the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee, there were 804 girls wrestling in high school in the U.S. in 1994. By 2020, that number had risen to more than 28,000, says the U.S.A. Wrestling Girls High School Development Committee.

So while girls’ wrestling may be on the rise in Hopewell Valley, the truth is that in many parts of the country — and the state — girls’ wrestling has already risen.

Members of the Hopewell Valley Youth Wrestling club attended a “Girls Night Out” wrestling event in January, featuring girls’ wrestling teams from around the state and hosted by North Hunterdon High School, which has full varsity and junior varsity teams.

The four current members of the girls’ squad include Elinor Morfe as well as Hopewell Elementary school second grader Emma McLaughlin, Stony Brook Elementary School fourth grader Naëlle Belony and Bear Tavern Elementary School fifth grader Reese Bartlett.

When Morfe’s daughter was younger, she would see her brother Graham, now 8, take part in practice and wish that she could practice as well. When she reached kindergarten and was old enough to take part, she was excited to get started.

“I think a lot of people don’t know that it’s an option,” Morfe says. “All the girls on our team have brothers in the program as well. If someone’s got their son in wrestling, and they have a daughter of similar age that has some interest in wrestling, they might consider joining as well.”

During the season, wrestlers practice at the high school on Tuesdays and Thursdays. For now, Bartlett and Belony tend to be matched up in practices, and McLaughlin with Elinor Morfe. If more girls join the program, there will be opportunities for the wrestlers to practice.

On weekends, there is usually at least one day of competitive wrestling for those who want to compete. Away meets are usually within a 30-minute drive. Morfe says that while matches are scored, coaches strive to get wrestlers matched up fairly in competition, so that they win at least as many as they lose.

“A lot of parents say wrestling is really great for character building,” says Morfe, who is an account executive with Gartner. “It teaches kids how to win and lose with grace, and they learn a lot of skills that translate really well to life, and not just sports.”

Some wrestlers compete on the HVYS travel teams. Others compete only at the recreational level, and some don’t compete at all. Not until they feel that they are ready for it. Reese Bartlett is one wrestler who worked her way up to competitive matches.

“We were already there for her brother (Tadd, 9), and Reese started wrestling a little under duress, frankly,” said her mother, Lauren. “She didn’t want to wrestle boys she didn’t know. But this year, she said, “I think I want to compete.’”

Reese only wrestled girls in two events this season. The rest of the time, she was matched up against boys. Her mother said it has been a thoroughly positive experience.

“We have not had one incidence of sexism or ‘Oh my God, she’s a girl,’” Lauren Bartlett said. “Parents, coaches come up and say, ‘Way to go, girl’ and it’s really helped that they are just treating her like every other wrestler. That’s all she wants.”

Practices during spring and summer are usually only held once a week, “Kids have baseball, lacrosse, travel soccer, so we know we’re not going to get a full commitment then,” Morfe says. “But it’s a way to keep kids engaged until next season.”

To learn more about Hopewell Valley Youth Wrestling, check out the Hopewell Valley Wrestling Association page on Facebook (search for “Hopewell Valley Wrestling Association).