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No. 2 Vol. 8
www.musconetcongnews.com
August 2016
Netcong Celebrates With Walks, Runs, Food, Fair And Entertainment All In One Day
By Elsie Walker eptember 11 is the date, and Main Street will be the place, to celebrate: it’s Netcong Day! The day kicks off at 10:30 a.m. with a 5K race. Registration starts at 8:30 a.m. at Borough Hall on Maple Street that will take participants around town and by beautiful Lake Musconetcong. That is followed by the opening of the street festival at 11 a.m. where sounds including Bobby Valli and sights like Disney Princesses will be among the entertainment of the day. Of course, there will also be vendors selling food, crafts and goods, and informational booths on various organizations. Also, 9/11 will be remembered through a Tribute to America. “I think Netcong is the ultimate small town, and this event captures a lot of that,” said Borough Administrator Ralph Blakeslee. “Many different components come together for the day: recreation, municipal governing, private sector organizations.” Resident Leigh Ann Von Hagen, a trustee of the Netcong Community Partnership, echoed the sentiments about the day and the town, “The day pays homage to our strong community roots. [At Netcong Day] you will experience some good vibes, fa-
miliar faces, food, music and memories. It is organized by the Netcong Borough and Netcong Recreation Commission with support from Netcong Community Partnership.” The day begins with the 5K race which is opened to all runners and walkers. It offers ribbons in ten different categories, including a medal for runners over 80 years old. Once again, Mayor Joe Nametko will be personally sponsoring a silver cup trophy for the fastest male and fastest female runners. “Netcong's 5K Run is not only a U.S. Track and Field sanctioned race, we invite runners of all calibers and walkers to join in the excitement,” said Nametko, who shared that participants have mentioned how nice it is to run along the bank of the lake. However, that’s not all the runners and walkers enjoy. “I have received emails and personal comments from NCAA runners and parents pushing carriages on how exciting it is to start the 5K with the music from the Lenape Valley High School Marching Band playing their "Fight Song" and then [again], as they enter Main Street, the LVRHS Marching Band and over 50 LVRH Cheerleaders cheering them on as they run pass the vendors on Main Street,” Nametko said.
As he did in this picture, Netcong Mayor Jim Nametko will be sponsoring a Silver Cup trophy for this year's fastest male and faster female runner this year.
There are some other perks, too. “Shop Rite provides fresh fruit, bananas and oranges, for every runner,” Nametko said. “We provide plenty of pre and postrace drinks and food along with one of the best runners’ ‘goodie bags’ in the state. This year, we are giving every runner a long sleeve shirt in the goodie bag. We offer free before and after race massages for all walkers and runners.” While there is same day registration for the race, there is also registration online at https://runsignup.com/Race/NJ/Netcong/N
etcongDay5KStreetFairandMusicFest. At 11 a.m., the street fair begins. Booths will line the streets with things to sell or information to share. Among the booths are vendors including It Works, Mary Kay, and Usborne books; booths selling food, jewelry, stuffed animals, and other items, and local churches, organizations, and businesses sharing what they do. “The Netcong Community Partnership is a proud supporter of Netcong Day because our small businesses care about our continued on page 4