Cranford Radio

While many people enjoy the Christmas holiday, not everyone enjoys getting their house or business decorated. Christmas Decor of New Jersey comes to the rescue by working with home and business owners to design and install their holiday decorations. In this Cranford Area Chamber of Commerce member profile, Cranford Radio talks with Rich Johns, the owner of the business, to discover what it's...

Fourteen short plays and monologues make up the Cranford Dramatic Club's 2017 Short Play Festival. The performances will be held September 7th, 8th and 9th. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Northern New Jersey Chapter of GLSEN. Three of those involved in the festival spoke with Cranford Radio about the plays; co-producer Edgar Hidalgo, David Christopher, who is both a director and a...

It's a first for the Cranford Dramatic Club. The CDC will be hosting the Hispanic Theatre Festival July 28-29 and August 4-5. Two one-act plays will be presented, Ana y las Langostas and Bony y Kim. Cranford Radio paid a visit during a rehearsal to speak with Joel Redmount, founder of the festival, Alicia Dolinsky, the playwright of Ana y las Langostas and Valarie Beckford of Cranford who is...

When the Cranford Historical Society was formed in 1927, Cranford had only been in existence 56 years as a township. A group of forward-thinking individuals, though, saw much more history in the community's future and today what they started is still going strong. Cranford Radio met with four members of the organization, Gail Alterman, Vic Bary, Christine Glazer and Patricia Pavlak to learn a...

Summer will be here soon and parents and kids are already planning what they'll be doing during those lazy, crazy days. One option is being part of a play. On Stage Theater Camp gives kids the chance to learn what goes into putting on a production. Mike and Patty Altmann, both veteran teachers, are the owners, and in this Cranford Area Chamber of Commerce member profile they tell us a bit abo...

There's no shortage of musical talent coming out of Cranford High School. That's not only true of graduates but of current students, as well. Madison Panno is a junior at CHS and this weekend she released her first album, Music Speaks. Cranford Radio sat down with Madison just a couple of days before the album came out to talk about the album and about being a musician.

What do you do if your job keeps you out of the house for eight hours of the day, or more, and you have a dog that needs some exercise and a potty break while you're gone? If you live in the Cranford area, We Leash the Hounds is here to help. The business is owned by Morgan Jenkins and Ryan Yorke. In this Cranford Area Chamber of Commerce member profile we sat down at the Downtown Family Rest...

If you had to pick two musical sounds that are more different, you'd have a hard time topping metal and opera. Cranford High School grad, Geddy Warner, is doing just that. In this Cranford Radio interview the NYU Steinhardt School junior talks about his upcoming opera performance in France and his local metal band, No Kings Among Wolves.

In less than 12 hours Cranford will be going from spring-like weather to a big winter storm. The National Weather Service is predicting six to ten inches of snow for the Cranford area. The Cranford Office of Emergency Management has put together these tips in advance of the storm.

If you've searched for information about the Township of Cranford then you've likely visited Cranford.com, the township's official website. The site has the usual information you'd expect, such as meeting agendas and contact information for municipal officials, but it also gives businesses in town an opportunity to promote their services. In this Cranford Area Chamber of Commer...

Cranford Radio concludes it series introducing the four Union County constitutional officers by interviewing Sheriff Joe Cryan. You see sheriff's officers in the county courthouse when you serve jury duty, but in this interview you'll learn about their other responsibilities.

Come in from the cold and enjoy a British comedy by Noel Coward at the Cranford Dramatic Club. The show will be presented in mid-February. Bill Seesselberg is the director of the play and he talked with Cranford Radio about it.

A blog post on NJ Urban Thinker by new Cranford resident Gabe Bailer gained quite a bit of attention when it was published in December. Bailer, who lived all of his life in New York City and Hudson County before coming to Cranford last year, wrote about what attracted him to the town and how communities, such as Cranford, are not suburbs in the traditional sense but should be in a new category he...

With two busy rail lines, NJ Transit and Conrail, passing through Cranford, safety is an issue of concern to parents, law enforcement and others. Operation Lifesaver New Jersey provides education to any group requesting it. Tom Jedic serves on the executive board of the organization and also is a special agent for the Norfolk Southern Police. He talked with Cranford Radio's Bernie Wagenblast...

Catherine Felegi was honored this evening by the Cranford Clergy Council and the Interfaith Human Relations Committee with the annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Award for Human and Civil Right. Catherine was recognized for her work organizing the Operation Warm Heart chapter at the First Presbyterian Church. Operation Warm Heart serves the homeless by providing a warm place to sleep as well...

Freeholder Bruce Bergen was elected by his fellow freeholders as their chairman for 2017 at the freeholders' reorganization meeting on January 8. At the same meeting Cranford resident Bette Jane Kowalski was sworn in to her new term as a freeholder. After his election, Cranford Radio spoke with Chairman Bergen to discuss the year ahead for the freeholders.

Tom Hannen was selected as Cranford's mayor at the annual township committee reorganization meeting Tuesday night. Hannen is joined on the committee by Patrick Giblin, who will serve as deputy mayor, as well as commissioners Andis Kalnins, Mary O'Connor and newly-elected commissioner Ann Dooley. Mayor Hannen spoke with Cranford Radio's Bernie Wagenblast about his priorities for the...

Why does it seem home disasters always seem to occur late at night, on weekends or holidays? While there's never a convenient time for a fire or water emergency, PuroClean Restoration Services of Cranford is there to help get your home back to normal. The business is owned by Chris and Robin Hoy and they spoke with Cranford Radio's Bernie Wagenblast about their company.

Perhaps one of Cranford's most notable landmarks is found at the intersection of Springfield and N. Union avenues. The First Presbyterian Church has occupied that plot of land since 1869, with the current building on the site since the mid-1890s. Rev. Chris Kile is the current pastor and he talks with Cranford Radio about the church, its people and its ministries.

Buying or selling a home is one of the biggest transactions you'll ever make. There are seemingly endless questions; how much to offer, how best to position the house for sale, what's the neighborhood like? Realtors, such as Barbara Zeckman of Coldwell Banker Westfield East, can help answer those questions and walk you through the process. In this Cranford Area Chamber of Commerce member...

The Cranford Area Chamber of Commerce recognized a number of individuals, organizations and businesses Wednesday night with its "Pride in Cranford" Awards. Cranford Radio attended the event spoke with Barbara Bilger, the co-chair of the program and Todd Sweeney, one of the award recipients.

Three non-profit organizations are coming together on Saturday, October 15 to sponsor the Walk for Wellness and Recovery at Nomahegan Park. Cranford's Monarch Housing Associates, along with the Mental Health Association in New Jersey and National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence-New Jersey, will be sponsoring the walk and other events. Cranford Radio spoke with Richard Brown, the CEO...

Not too many years ago things got quiet in downtown Cranford at night. That's certainly not the case these days. A big part of the change is due to the many restaurants that have opened in town. One of the newest is The Thirsty Turtle at the corner of South and S. Union avenues. We talked with Duane Hand, the manager of the restaurant, to learn a bit about it as well as to find out how he got...

One sign of fall is the start of a new theater season at the Cranford Dramatic Club. The first play on tap for the 2016-2017 season is Stephen Sondheim's musical, Assassins. Cranford Radio stopped by the Winans Avenue theatre to speak with the show's director, Alan Van Antwerp, as well as cast members Richard Colonna (The Proprietor), Zach Love (Leon Czolgosz) and Matt Burns (Samuel Byck...

You see them in their blue uniforms outside stores and on street corners at Christmastime. But what else do you know about The Salvation Army and their services? Major Ivan Rock is the New Jersey Divisional Commander for the organization and he spoke with Cranford Radio to tell us more about what they do.