Infant Celebrity
Manny and Yira Estevez of Plainsboro had an instant connection, a storybook wedding, and now, the birth of their first child, Gabriella Maria, has become a media event on the Learning Channel’s “A Baby Story.” The program, scheduled to air Thursday, January 8, shows the dramatic arrival of Gabriella on July 21 — remarkably, the Estevez’s first wedding anniversary — in the delivery room of St. Peter’s University Hospital in New Brunswick.
The couple met on the Internet while Manny was living in Massachusetts and Yira was living in Jersey. “Once we met and started dating, he would take the three-hour drive to New Jersey every weekend,” she says. “We got married in New York. We had a simple wedding with 125 people but it turned exactly as I always dreamed.”
The couple moved to Plainsboro from Cranbury in April, 2003. They were approached about participating in the television documentary during childbirth classes at the hospital.
Now, at almost six months old, the celebrity baby is “doing wonderful,” Yira says. “She’s very alert, she has a heart-melting smile, and has started saying ‘da da.’”
Yiri, born and raised in New York, moved to Miami in 1995. After living there for six years, she was relocated to New Jersey two years ago by her job. She attended St. John’s Prep High School and graduated from Baruch College, both in New York. She is employed as a credit relationship specialist at Merrill Lynch.
Her husband spent his first 10 years in New York and his adolescent years in the Dominican Republic. After attending high school and college in Dominican Republic, he moved back to New York. He is a health benefits coordinator for New Jersey Family Care.
The maternal grandparents live in Miami and the paternal grandparents are in the Dominican Republic. Her parents and his mother were here for Gabriella’s birth.
“When I applied I never thought we would get picked,” says Yiri of the television experience. After the couple was chosen, they were filmed getting ready for the baby and were interviewed on camera.
“I am a bit nervous considering that 3 million people watch this show and they will watch me giving birth,” she said prior to the show’s airing. “It was a pretty good experience, and we had a lot of fun with it. The producer and crew were awesome and we never felt nervous in front of the camera. People always ask me if I was stressed about having a cameraperson in the delivery room with me. I actually didn’t even remember she was there. I am sure my daughter will love it when she gets older.”
Military
Matt Rosania, 22, of West Windsor returned from the Middle East in mid-December. Lance Cpl. Rosania, a Marine reservist, was activated in December, 2002.
After graduating from West Windsor-Plainsboro High School in 2000, he spent two years at the University of Hartford in Connecticut before transferring to Arcadia University in Pennsylvania.
Rosania was stationed in Camp LeJeune in North Carolina close to six months before leaving for Okinawa, Japan; Bahrain; and Saudi Arabia. As part of the 4th Marine Division, he helped to conduct anti-terrorism missions while being stationed on an oceanography ship.
His parents are Richard and Lin Rosania.
Business
Joseph and Claude Gulino fulfilled their dream of starting their own business 10 years ago when the brothers established ERA Princeton Corridor Realty in West Windsor. Five years ago, Joe Gulino became sole owner of the company and Claude returned to being a full-time investment banker.
To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the company’s founding, more than 120 agents, vendors, and customers attended an open house celebration on December 18 at the ERA Princeton Corridor offices located on Old Trenton Road, at the intersection of Windsor and Edinburg roads.
Gulino credits the company’s success to its “team-spirited atmosphere” and multiculturalism. “Our staff, comprised of 40 agents and administrators, speaks 16 different languages.”
Gulino, born in Italy, arrived in Brooklyn when he was 14 years old. He received a certificate in business from New York University and was a data processor on Wall Street for 10 years.
“In 1986 I decided that I wanted to do something that I like to do so I became a salesman,” says Gulino. He worked at a Century 21 office in Brooklyn where he was a top producer in the northeast several times.
When the Gulino brothers bought the building at the present site, they renovated it. The building, over 150 years old, was formerly the Edinburg Hotel. The sign outside led people to believe it was a bed and breakfast and it wasn’t until “too many people came in wanting to rent rooms that the sign was removed.”
Gulino is a Plainsboro resident and his mother, Concetta, 89, lives at Village Grande.
ERA Princeton Corridor ranks 138th out of 2,”800 ERA offices; its goal is to become among the top 100 ERA companies. The office donates one percent of its gross commission to local associations and charities. The agency has also contributed to several Little League associations, local victims of 9/11, the Muscular Dystrophy Association — and even helped a low income family buy a home by donating the down payment.
For more information about ERA Princeton Corridor Realty, contact 609-490-0300.
Scientific Awards
Arthur Brooks, of Plainsboro, an engineer at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) is this year’s PPPL Distinguished Engineering Fellow. He was recognized and honored during a ceremony and reception in November.
A graduate of the City College of New York with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, he earned a master’s in mechanical engineering from Polytechnic Institute of New York. He began working at PPPL in 1976 as a subcontractor to support the design of the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor.
“Art’s list of contributions to the laboratory’s projects includes all of our large-scale facilities,” said PPPL director Rob Goldston. “He has made critical, creative contributions to every one of them.”
Hantao Ji, of Plainsboro, a principal research physicist at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), recently received the Kaul Prize for Excellence in Plasma Physics Research and Technology Development. The award recognizes Ji, along with another scientist, Masaaki Yamada, of Princeton Township, “for the experimental investigation of driven magnetic reconnection in a laboratory plasma.”
Ji received a bachelor’s degree in physics from Ehime University in Japan in 1985 and a doctor of science degree in physics from the University of Tokyo in 1990.
Orators Are on Top
The WWP Chapter of the New Jersey Orators won the statewide competition during the New Jersey Orators winter contest on Saturday, December 13 in Somerset. They competed with 11 other chapters from throughout the state. The team included Kali McMillan, High School South; Eldred Richards and Corrine Lewis, Grover Middle School; Camenon Starks, Village School; Daphnee Warren and Exexia Warren, Princeton Friends School. They each received savings bonds for their individual performances.
Coaches include David Clark, Diane Ciccone, Eldred Richards,Jr., Valerie Llewellyn, and head coach Constance Clark.
Only in existence for one year, the WWP chapter participated for the first time in the semi-annual competition. To prepare for the event, members recited during Barnes & Noble Black History programs in February and met weekly with coaches. At the competition on Saturday, April 24, the chapter will defend its title and seek to win overall title for the year.
New Jersey Orators, a non-profit organization headquartered in Somerset, seeks to enhance the formal language skills of African-American youth and to develop an appreciation of African-American oratorical heritage in students seven to eighteen years old.
The training for students includes developing skills in seven oratorial categories including declamation, extemporaneous speech, interpretation of prose, interpretation of poetry, dramatic interpretation, original oratory, and illustrated talks and demonstrations.
Students are welcome to join the WWP chapter.
Meetings are held at High School North and parents or other interested adults are encouraged to become involved. For more information contact Constance Clark at 609-716-0136.
In the Schools
King Contest Winners
Jessica Boston, a senior at High School North, received the second place prize in the Martin Luther King Jr. contest. Manisha Bhattacharya, a junior at High School South, received third prize. To commemorate the 40th anniversary of King’s famous “I have a Dream speech,” students in grades 7 to 12 were invited to submit an original speech that would be moving to Americans today.
They will be honored at Princeton University’s annual celebration on Monday, January 19, at 1:30 p.m. in Richardson Auditorium. The event is free and open to the public.
High Honors
Mary Kathryn Pidgeon of Plainsboro earned honors for the fall term at the Hill School in Pottstown, Pennsylvania. She received honors for the first list and high honors for the second list. Pidgeon, a senior, also received the Hill School Award for cross country and was named second team prep all-state in cross country. Her parents are John and Mary Ann Pidgeon.
National Certification
David Argese achieved national certification with the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. A mathematics teacher at Grover Middle School, he has taught in the West Windsor-Plainsboro School District for 12 years. He is one of three certified teachers at the school.
“This is the strongest professional development program a faculty member can undertake,” says Argese. “You improve as a teacher, grow as an educator, and learn how to work with parents and students to better your classroom.” The year-long process includes four classroom portfolios, six test assessments, and a demonstration of innovative ways to involved parents and students in the learning process.
The honoring organization’s mission is to establish standards for what accomplished teachers should know and be able to do, and to advance educational reforms.
Amigos at CMS
Community Middle School’s AMIGOS recently launched its first publication, a school newspaper called “The Panther Prowler.” The group (the acronym stands for Addressing Middle School Issues, Giving Options to Students) was established in 1985 to provide service, mediation, and assistance at school and around the community.
“This newsletter is quite different, as it is written by students for students,” says student Allison Friedlander. “We wanted the students to get a little inside scoop.”
Katherine Galton created the name of the paper and Alicia Rowland designed the masthead. The advisors are Patrick Lepore and Karen Rosnick. The second edition is scheduled for February publication. Articles include stories about the new schedule and Principal Arthur Downs’ 70th birthday celebration.
Seventh grade members of AMIGOS include: Oana-Marie Barbu, Alexis Biegeleisen, Mike Campellone, Ali Campiglia, Allison Casparium Ainee Dehradunwala, Cristina Dunne, Erin Egan, Stacy Harfenist, Kevin Hawryluk, Virginia Hung, Cassie Ireland, Scott Kelly, Adam Kessler, Christopher SanPedro, Alex Schwarz, and Erica Zalma.
Eighth graders include Carolyn Breden, Alexa Carvalho, Cong Ding, Allison Friedlander, Catherine Galton, Joon Lee, Danielle Parisi, Lily Pepper, Victoria Register, Alicia Rowland, Jane Sandberg, Kate Sandberg, and Ramya Tallapragada.
College News
University of Delaware: Erin Gallins of Plainsboro is on the dean’s list for the fall semester. She is majoring in elementary and special education with a concentration in English as a Second Language. Gallins is a 2002 graduate of High School North. She is currently on a trip to the Middle East with Birthright Israel through the Hillel chapter at the university.
Allegheny College: Charles Myers of West Windsor was named an Alden Scholar. He is a junior majoring in political science.
Franklin & Marshall: Serena Weren of Plainsboro presented during the annual research fair. Her project is on Martian polar volcanoes. A senior, she is majoring in geosciences and music.
Johns Hopkins University: Aryn Emert of West Windsor was named a Woodrow Wilson Fellow and will receive funding to cover her research topic: “Is There a Link Between Athletic Ability and Self-Esteem in Learning Disabled Children?”
Births
This December brought a poignant homecoming to Brian and Beth Welsh, both teachers at High School South, where Brian also coaches boys soccer. Twin daughters were born to the Welshes on August 26 at Cooper Hospital in Camden; they spent more than 100 days in the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit. Kendall weighed one pound, 13 ounces at birth and was discharged on November 18. Shannon, who weighed one pound, nine ounces at birth, was discharged on December 8. The family lives in Hamilton. South guidance counselor Leslie Fisher organized food deliveries to the family.
The University Medical Center at Princeton has announced the following births:
Daughters were born to Plainsboro residents Srividya Rajendran and Rajenoran Kannan, December 22; and Mary and Norihiro Kondo, December 28.
Sons were born to Plainsboro residents Amanda and Joseph Hessler, December 4; and Shakira and Mohammed Khan, December 17.
Daughters were born to West Windsor residents Mitali and Miland Hajarnis, December 12; Patricia and Christopher Cordasco, December 18; Deborah and Andrew Peel, December 19; Srilatha Endabetla and Vijay Chigurupati, December 24; and Jung Hee and Daniel Chunxu Yang, December 31.
Sons were born to West Windsor residents Shira and Alan Leeds, December 16; Amy and Steven Mindnick, December 21; and Meenu Chabra and Shobhit Kapoor, December 30.
