BY JOHN SNYDER
OF THEPRESSGROUP.NET
Five local residents are among roughly two dozen from the Fifth Congressional District to land inaugural Hometown Heroes Awards given by U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer at a ceremony last Monday.
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The awards are presented to members of the business community, first responders, teachers, children, seniors and community leaders “to recognize their commitment to bettering the lives of other Jersey residents and families,” according to Gottheimer’s office.
In a guest appearance, Teaneck’s Felicia Temple from Season 12 of “The Voice” shared a song with the heroes at the ceremony, at Holy Name Hospital.
The winners include:
• Navy Lt. Dong Joo Lee of Harrington Park, a former EMT who serves with the U.S. Navy JAG as a prosecutor operational staff judge advocate. In that capacity, Lee recently advised special forces troops on rules of engagement in exercises in South Korea.
He is so dedicated to his community that he turned his own bachelor party into a community service event, rallying his groomsmen to volunteer at the Korean Harvest (Chuseok) Festival in Leonia’s Overpeck Park, assisting with free medical check-ups.
• Michael Graham, a Northvale police sergeant, who was honored in part for having saved the life of a boy who nearly drowned during a Sunday gathering this spring in Emerson.
Graham, off-duty at the time, happened to be attending the same party as the boy and his family when the boy became unconscious while swimming, and his lips turned blue.
Police Chief Michael Mazzeo said at the time Graham did an outstanding job in administering lifesaving CPR.
• Jeanne Martin of Haworth, who has been executive director of Pascack Valley Meals on Wheels since 2005.
Previously, Martin joined the nonprofit world as the administrator for Christian Overcomers, a disability ministry offering respite care and social opportunities for disabled youth and adults, after leaving a successful corporate career.
In May 2015 the Pascack Valley Chamber of Commerce honored her as “Citizen of the Year” for her tireless work with the vulnerable and marginalized in the community.
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• Evan Kutzin of Emerson, a volunteer firefighter who joined the Old Tappan Fire Department just weeks before Sept. 11, 2001.
Kutzin also serves as a law enforcement officer for the Bergen County Society for Prevention of Cruelty of Animals and is a board member of the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Animal Cruelty Task Force.
• Argine Safari of Montvale, an award-winning music teacher at Pascack Valley High School in Hillsdale. Safari’s awards include being named the New Jersey 2016-2017 Teacher of the Year.
Safari has performed at such venues as Carnegie Hall and Madison Square Garden and studied at The Juilliard School and Westminster Choir College.
Also honored at the event were Mike Guadagino of Oakland, Walter Perry of Glen Rock, Shannon Lazare of Mahwah, Angelae Wilkerson of Teaneck, Sterling Blake of Hackettstown, Marc Abate of River Edge, Mary Ellen Vichiconti of Vernon, Brian Joyce of Dumont, Ethan Sandlofer of Upper Saddle River, Becky Carlson of Andover/Newton, Nick Magareli of Fair Lawn, Izzy Infield of Bergenfield, Mary Ann Uzzi of Paramus, Irina Tesoriero of Bergenfield, and Joyce Mortorano of Wyckoff.
The winners were nominated by neighbors, coworkers, friends, families, and others in their community.
“Today’s awardees are bound by a shared sense of duty—to their families, their communities, and their country,” Gottheimer said at the event, a video of which is at Facebook under /RepJoshG.
“They put the needs of others ahead of their own, and are committed to bettering the lives of other Jersey residents, especially those who need a helping hand the most. […] None of these people stood up because they sought recognition, they did it because they wanted to do what was right.”
Photo courtesy Office of Josh Gottheimer