By Tasnim Oyshi

 

WEST ORANGE, NJ — On May 21, the West Orange Chamber of Commerce gathered with guests at Rock Spring Golf Club for an Awards Dinner to honor this year’s winners of the Chamber of Commerce Awards.

The annual ceremony consisted of six awards in total: Educator of the Year, Young Entrepreneur of the Year, Police Officer of the Year, Firefighter of the Year, Business of the Year and Non-profit Organization of the Year.

Board Member Mark Brinn stated the Awards have been taking place for decades. “We actually met someone today who was walking in and said that she was recognized as Educator of the Year 20 years ago,” he said.

Brinn sat at the entrance with Executive Director Nichole Mariette, greeting guests and signing them in. Mariette is in charge of spearheading the different events the Chamber holds and she explained the process of selecting the winners.

While the Business and Community Organization of the Year are nominated and voted on by members of the West Orange Chamber of Commerce, the Police, Educator and Firefighter of the Year have a different method.

“For the winners for the Police, the Educators and the Firefighters, we ask their respective bosses, the Chief of Police, the Lieutenant Fireman and the Superintendent,” Marriette said, clarifying that each can have their own criteria.

Police Chief Matthew Feula, who presented the Police Officer of the Year award, said the nomination process is relatively simple. He distributes the criteria to all four division commanders, asking them for their input. The commanders submit their recommendations with supporting documentation and reasoning and the command staff come to a decision together.

“Shane was selected not only for his service to the community but to the country as a member of the Army National Guard,” Feula said. “We felt that it was appropriate to nominate Shane this year. It was an easy selection and he’s well deserving of it.”

Recipient Officer Shane Cooney said, “I think, just because there’s so many deserving officers that work for the department, for it to meet me is very humbling. I’m very grateful for the support and it’s just an honor to be selected out of so many great coworkers and colleagues that I get to work with.”

Firefighter of the Year James Bette also expressed how honored he was. “I strive every day to do the best we can, all of us, not just me, and to be picked out by my peers and the Chief to receive this nomination is an awesome feeling,” he said. “No words can describe the joy that it brought to get recognition for something that we work hard for.”

Darlene Berg, who received the Educator of the Year Award, voiced her gratitude and gave credit to the chamber. “I think it’s amazing that the West Orange Chamber of Commerce does this every year and acknowledges an educator every year,” she said.

Berg, who is the K-5 Supervisor of Mathematics, highlighted the work of her peers as well, saying, “None of this is in a vacuum. I’m very lucky to be a reflection of the people I work with, some of whom are here this evening, and it’s an amazing profession to be a part of.”

High School scholar Melanie Marrero was given the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award for her small business, Strawberry by Mell. The seventeen-year-old sells chocolate-covered strawberries, pretzels, brownies and dipped oreos.

“I’m super proud of myself and I’m just really thankful to, you know, be here,” she said. “It’s  something that started off so small and it became something so big, and hopefully, going to be even bigger. It’s really empowering and I’m very happy.”

The Business of the Year Award went to real estate agency YourTopia Realty Partners, owned by real estate broker Tezeta Roro. “I feel like the recognition helps kind of let folks know not only the business side but the community work,” said Roro.

She was glad the platform allowed her to elevate the space for her community work and was happy to be there with family, clients and even her college professor. “I think the best part for me is having different walks of life that I know come together,” Roro said.

West Orange Arts Center, which has been around for 25 years, was the recipient of the Non-profit Organization of the Year Award. Volunteer Chair Patricia Mitrano spoke about how supportive the Chamber has been when it comes to the arts.

“I think this award will really elevate our mission to support the arts,” Mitrano said. “There’s a lot of creative, talented people in town and we also like to promote and to recognize emerging artists, so we’ve had high school students exhibiting at the art center.”

In her speech, she communicated the pride she held for the accessible gallery and gift shop after serving as Chair for the past 10 years. Mitrano highlighted instances that inspired her and shared her excitement about the Center’s current exhibit, Art of the Game, in which artists and athletes transform soccer balls into creative forms of art.