A Day On
Many years ago, when the Board of Education first announced plans to close schools in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday, one of our readers, Patricia Idrobo, came up with the idea of creating “A Day On, Not A Day Off.” She organized many community groups and mobilized a cadre of kids to go to the high school cafeteria to perform a variety of community services and it was a great success. The cafeteria was filled with tables at which people were working on behalf of others. It was a joy to see and helped to demonstrate to our children the lessons Dr. King taught. At the end of the program, there was also a brief educational component which helped to teach Dr. King’s ideals.
That gathering has since become an annual tradition, and this year, the Day of Service will be held on Monday, January 16, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Livingston Senior/Community Center on Hillside Avenue. Dozens of organizations will be sharing their service projects at the event, which will end with a special program, “Stronger Together,” presented by the Livingston Clergy Fellowship.
The Livingston Committee for Diversity and Inclusion, the organizer of the MLK “Day On, Not A Day Off,” should be commended for their efforts. There is much good being done during the Day of Service and we should all be grateful for the hard work done by the volunteers. We hope you will participate.
And AGAIN... Lock Your Cars!
We know you have heard this before, likely many times, but anyone who reads the Tribune is aware that car burglaries have remained an issue in town. At this point, we fear that Livingston has become a destination of sorts for these types of criminals. We have developed a reputation. Pull on the doors of enough vehicles in this town, and a few of them are bound to open.
There is a simple way to stop this, of course. Just lock your doors! We promise it is not that difficult. We suspect, in the era of push-to-start ignitions, more people are leaving their fobs in their vehicles overnight. Perhaps some of it is even simple forgetfulness. Still, it is well worth the effort to break these habits if it may save yourself the trouble of reporting your stolen car. We have not even mentioned the resources that are being used to track down all of these stolen vehicles and items.
At this point we – along with the Police Department, the Township Council, and countless others – have been saying this for years. Yet, we must keep saying it, because there continues to be people who refuse to listen.
As of the December 5 meeting of the Township Council, when Chief of Police Gary Marshuetz provided an update on auto thefts, there were a reported 39 cars stolen in Livingston in 2022, up from 30 the previous year. Of those stolen, 36 of 39 vehicles had key fobs in them. In the other instances, criminals entered homes specifically looking for the key fobs.
When asked by the Council why so many cars were left unlocked, Chief Marshuetz said that most were embarrassed to report that they mistakenly left their fobs in their car, but some others simply did not wish to live in a town where locking their cars is necessary, and therefore choose not to do so. To these people we say, “Grow up, join the real world, and lock your cars instead of wasting police resources because you want to live in Pleasantville!”
It must be stressed that this is not a negative reflection on our Police Department. Rather, this is about the individuals who continue to leave their cars unlocked, and their keys and key fobs inside their unattended vehicles overnight, despite all of the evidence showcasing what a foolish idea this is. We should also note that the LPD’s recent work in educating the public to lock their cars at night (when most thefts occur) has had a positive effect, though some vehicles have also been stolen during the daytime hours.
We know that our police department and township officials take this matter seriously, and we agree with the resolution that was passed at that December 5 meeting in support of federal legislation to establish a grant program to fund state and local law enforcement efforts to combat auto thefts.
According to that resolution, nearly 500,000 vehicles worth an estimated $4.5 billion were stolen nationwide in the first half of 2022, representing a 25 percent increase in thefts compared to the first half of 2019. In New Jersey, those numbers have increased even faster, with auto thefts rising by more than 30 percent from 2020 to 2022.
Still, at the end of the day, it is on you to secure your car, particularly when doing so is so simple. Take your keys and your fobs inside with you at the end of the night. Don’t become the next front page story in the Tribune. We do not want to see our neighbors victimized, particularly in a situation that is largely avoidable. Just take the simple steps necessary to protect yourself.
