Long Valley Resident is Newest Part Time Animal Control Officer for Mt. Olive
Page 8 • January 2022 • Mt. Olive Life • Like us on facebook www.facebook.com/mypaperonline.com
BY GARY SIMEONE STAFF WRITER MOUNT OLIVE TWP. -It is her love of animals that brought Long Valley resident, Cindy Zeller, to her new position as a part-time Animal Control Officer in Mount Olive Township. In her new position, she will be on call during the week and weekends to answer animal related calls after normal Township business hours. “I have been informed by my superiors that the majority of the afterhours calls I’ll be receiving will be wildlife related, with other calls including but not limited to dogs and other animals running at large,” said Zeller, a West Morris Central High School graduate. Zeller said that working with animals has been a calling of sorts and that she has always been drawn to animals in many aspects of her life. “ I always find myself seizing any opportunity that arises where I am able to interact with animals. I have worked
Obituary
extensively with horses and have experience with many different breeds and equine disciplines. In the past few years, I have spent time as a dedicated hands-on volunteer at several different wildlife refuges including Antler Ridge in Newton, Woodlands wildlife Refuge in Pittstown, and most recently The Last Resort Wildlife Refuge where I am presently still volunteering.” She added that she has had many adventures with the natural world, including swimming with stingrays and with beluga whales. She also has “hung out” with wolves, wolf-hybrids, tigers, monkeys, and even rescued a large angry seagull with her husband while on vacation. Currently she is rehabilitating a small amount of wildlife in her home under the permit and supervision of a licensed wildlife rehabilitator. Zeller said that her most
favorite thing about being an animal control officer is being able to help animals and people in distress. “I truly enjoy being that person that someone can call to help them when they find an animal that needs help or to be rescued,” said Zeller. “I love being able to rescue an animal in distress whether it›s a domestic or wild situation, and get it the help and assistance it needs to heal.” She says that her least favorite thing about her new position is seeing animals being abused by their owners or caretakers. “Cruelty cases are very difficult, but I try to concentrate on helping the animal and sometimes the people who are involved. I hate seeing animals in pain and suffering. Sometimes they don’t understand you are trying to help them but I do my best to try and not cause any more pain, fear, or
discomfort to them while trying to help. I don’t think any of us like to see the suffering, whether its animals or human beings. To be able to rescue animals in distress and get them the help they need, and see them released back into the wild is an amazing feeling.” As far as interesting or weird occurrences that happened to her while she was out in the field, Zeller said that there have been a few memorable ones. One that stands out most in her mind was a badly burned abandoned building where rescuers found a community of bats that were in bad condition. “When the fire department arrived on scene and began fighting the fire, there were bats flying out of this building in mass amounts. Many of the bats were very badly burned and did not survive. After carefully combing around the building and fire scene, I managed to find six bats that
Nicole Marie Barbato Connolly
Morris Plains - Nicole Barbato Connolly, a beloved wife, daughter, sister, aunt, godmother, friend, and teacher, passed away on Saturday, December 4, following a hardfought battle with cancer. Nicole passed in her home in Morris Plains, surrounded by people that loved her dearly. Nicole was born at Dover General Hospital on December 29, 1980, and grew up in Mt. Olive Township, New Jersey. A brilliant and gifted student, Nicole was 13th in her class at Mt. Olive High School, and received a scholarship to Rutgers University. She studied History at Rutgers, graduated with Honors in 2003, and was inducted into Phi Betta Kappa. Nicole also earned a Master’s degree in education from Rutgers in 2004, and was a teacher for 17 years, 15 of which were spent at Roxbury High School in Succasunna. A marvelous,
passionate, and dedicated educator, Nicole touched the lives of thousands of students, parents and colleagues, as a classroom teacher, club and class advisor, and union leader. She was adored by the Roxbury community. In July of 2019, Nicole married the love of her life, James Connolly, another History teacher at Roxbury High School. They went on countless adventures together, traveling across North America and Europe, tasting as much of life as they could. In the Spring of 2021, they fulfilled a lifelong dream when they purchased their home in Morris Plains, a community of which Nicole was deeply proud. Nicole was kind, generous, passionate, fun, brilliant, and beautiful. She loved history, romance, music, dancing, laughing, fashion, food, travel, friendship, and cats. She was also a giver, volunteering at and donat-
ing to numerous charities and non-profit organizations. Nicole was a person who always selflessly put others before herself. She enriched the lives of everyone around her, and made the world a better place, through her smile, warmth, and compassion. Nicole will live on forever in the hearts of all who knew her. Nicole is survived by her husband James Connolly, mother Joanne Barbato, twin brother Stephen Barbato, sister Laura Barbato, step-mother Natalie Sylvester, as well as cousins, nieces, nephews, godchildren, and many devoted friends. A viewing was held at Dangler Funeral Home in Morris Plains on Friday, December 10, from 4-8 PM. On Saturday, December 11, at 9:30 AM, a funeral mass was held at St. Virgil’s Church, Morris Plains. The funeral mass was followed by burial at Stanhope Union Cemetery in Mt. Olive
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Fonseca’s goal is to grow the program at Rosaritas. “My goal with the program is to get it so well known, have so many people donating, that every month I can feed at least 100 people – and that’s just the least. I would love to feed 200 people, and that’s just a month. And then in the future, maybe every week.” “Come in,” Fonseca says.
“I’ll give you a hug. I’ll give you a meal. We’ll talk, I’ll get to know you. My family is your family now.” Rosaritas Mexican Grill is located at 286 Route 206 South in Flanders. For more information about the restaurant and the Share-a-Meal program, visit www.rosaritasmexicangrill. net, or call 973-927-4536.
Rosaritas
at my table, and I want you to feel like you have a place to go if you need a place to go. Whether it’s because you are homeless, because you have special needs, because you are part of the LGBTQ community and you don’t feel safe somewhere or any of those things, I think that Share-a-Meal has hit a lot of those points.”
ule Your ultation 84-4888
Township at 11:15 AM. You may make a donation in Nicole’s name to a cancer charity of your choice, such as the National Cancer Institute, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, or the Cancer Research Institute.
were still alive and was able to transport them to a bat rehabilitator, where they could get the emergency care and rehab they desperately needed. I found out later those five of the six bats had survived and were successfully able to be rehabbed and released. back into the wild.” Another story revolved around a mother deer and her baby fawn that was caught underneath a car. “I got a call late one night from a friend who lives on a very busy road. She reported to have seen a deer run across the road by her house and then a tiny baby fawn stumbling behind her shortly afterwards. She told me the baby had trouble keeping up with the mom and skidded across the road. The fawn became separated and was caught under a car in a nearby driveway. I was able to crawl under the car and free the baby fawn with the goal in mind of reuniting it with its momma. Unfortunately, I was unable to safely do so but the baby was eventually freed and taken to a wildlife refuge where she was successfully rehabbed and eventually released back to the wild.” One of her favorite stories is centered around two kittens
who were found in very rough shape inside of a horse stall in a barn. “I was working at a horse farm several years ago and there were multiple barns and buildings on the property. One day while working in one of the smaller barns, two tiny kittens were discovered by the gentlemen cleaning the stalls. He showed them to me and I figured that the mom may have been scared off.” She said the next day when she arrived at the farm, the first thing she did was go check on the kittens. “I was sad to find they were not there. The gentleman who found them said they moved them to one of the hay bales so they could work in the area. I found them cold and hungry with their eyes still closed and bits of the umbilical cord still attached. I ended up taking them home and did my best to warm them up and get them to eat something. I did not expect them to survive as they were so tiny and in rough shape. For the first few days it was pretty much touch and go. I was happy when I began to see them thriving. Watching them grow and turning into happy active kittens was truly amazing.”
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