By Robert Moreschi
Each year, the Robbinsville Irish Heritage Association honors two members of the Robbinsville community to represent the town at the annual St. Patrick’s Day parade. The honorees are chosen for the services they provide the town of Robbinsville and its residents, and for their status as upstanding members of the community.
This year, the positions of Grand Marshal of the St. Patrick’s Day parade and Irish Person of the Year are held by two men who have donated their time to the community over the years in a multitude of ways: Charles Petty and Greg McLaughlin.
They will be honored at the Robbinsville St. Patrick’s Day Parade on March 23. The parade will begin at 1 p.m. in the Foxmoor Shopping Center.
Petty, who was named the Grand Marshal of this year’s parade, spent 27 years as a member of the Robbinsville Police Department. Petty joined the force as a patrol officer in 1981, and was promoted to sergeant in 2000. Two years later, he was promoted to lieutenant.
Petty also educated fifth grade students about the dangers of drug abuse as a member of the D.A.R.E. program from 1992 to 2000. In 2008, Petty retired from the police force, and he is now employed parttime for Federal Express. He also serves as the fire chief for the Robbinsville Township Fire Department, where he has been a volunteer firefighter for 39 years. He is also currently attending classes at Burlington County College to obtain a degree in fire science.
Over the years, Petty has given his time to the Robbinsville Township Little League, where he has coached and been an umpire, in addition to being the board secretary.
“It is an honor, and I’m humbled by it,” said Petty about being named Grand Marshal of this year’s parade. “I’m not really big on attention and I never really like to be the center of attention, so I initially had some mixed feelings about it, but I appreciate it and it’s a great honor.”
This year’s other honoree, McLaughlin, was named Irish Person of the Year for his role in the community as the owner of McLaughlin Tree Farm and Nursery. A member of the Robbinsville community since 1999, McLaughlin has provided Christmas trees for the residents of Robbinsville and has donated trees to the Pond Road Middle School and the Sharon School.
McLaughlin serves on the subcommittee exploring ways to build a new recreation center in the community. In addition, he also currently serves on the township shade tree committee and is working on the tree-planting initiative to replace the trees that were removed to aid in the widening of the New Jersey Turnpike.
McLaughlin has also served on the board of the Robbinsville Soccer Association since 2010 and been a coach since 2009. Working alongside the Robbinsville Township Public Works department, he has served as a liaison to aid in field repair and restoration. He did not respond to requests for comment.
