[Music] my name is Paula Quinton I'm the vice chair of the East Brans human relations Council and today is co-chair for our Unity walk with Taran Weber and we're sharing the duties here tonight so thank you so much for showing up in such wonderful numbers for our Unity walk but before I get any further into the program I'd like to welcome Aram Shak here East Brunswick human relations Council chair to bring greetings to you please put your hands together for her good evening everyone my name is Aram Shakir and I am the chair of the East brunic human relation Council I warmly welcome you to our eth annual Unity walk and it's incredible how time has flown by as it feels like just yesterday we started this tradition the main purpose of our yearly Unity walk is to bring our community together and showcase a public display of unity and solidarity by walking together in the symbolic gesture of togetherness we aim to promote understanding cooperation and unity among all community members East Brunswick is an incredibly diverse Township and we firmly believe that the more we learn about our similarities the stronger our Unity becomes events like the unity walk plays a significant role in bridging divides fostering stronger relationships and creating a more inclusive and harmonious Community the phrase united we stand divided we fall perfectly captures the essence of why Unity is crucial in our Community When We Stand United we gain the strength power and courage to speak out against biases and injustices that may arise together we can achieve far more than we could ever individually also this event provides a wonderful opportunity for residents from different backgrounds cultures and perspectives to come together and celebrate their diversity while doing so we also acknowledge our shared values and goals further strengthening the bonds within our community thank you for joining us tonight and let's Embrace this Unity walk as a testament to the power of unity in creating positive change in our community thank you what a warm wonderful message from our ebhc chair I'd like to acknowledge uh several elected officials who are in our midst today um council president Kevin McAvoy Council vice president Dana ziki and councilman Dennis Bal thank you so much and of course we have have our speakers here and acknowledging the presence please of Dr BR Cohen our mayor Dr Victor veski who is the superintendent of EB Schools public schools Reverend Chrystal Pleasant vibrant church and she's also a member of the East Brunswick Interfaith clergy Council and I'd like to also just acknowledge um our guest speaker Tim Cummings my colleague East brunic Board of AD member and you're in for a treat later on but first of all we're going to have our East Brunswick Scouts lead us into the Pledge of Allegiance VFW Post 133 was intended to be here however they're not but our Scouts are going to very aely do the task for us and they EB Scouts Pack 132 and 501 and Troop 132 the flag of the United States of America Republic which [Music] stands thank you so much it's always a solemn thing to hear that um be repeated and of course it's an essential part of our gathering here today and the largest crowd here by far and you'll hear their melodious voices soon they represent the hammerel Upper Elementary School chorus so the Hughes Unity chorus will be doing the Star Spangled Banner and they're led by Eileen man and Alex Dunbar so you're in for a treat please put your hands together for this wonderful looking group of young people [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] my star together [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] through the [Music] night was still [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] how wonderful come on let's put that energy let's encourage them the hammerel Upper Elementary School Unity chorus beautiful melodious voices Serena in us today just to match the weather don't you think everything is in perfect alignment we're going to have a very important part of um our Unity walk and that is the the community pledge and we're going to be asking our um ebhc members or student Representatives we have a representative from each of the high school grades who are a vital part of ebhc and we're delighted to ask them to repeat the community pledge for you please put your hands together for these young folks thank you we are now going to recite the community pledge please repeat after us as as part of this diverse as part of this diverse Multicultural Community Multicultural Community I pledge to promote respect IED to promote respect and understanding among members understanders irrespective of their choices religion and culture irrespective culture I will embrace our similarities I will embrace our similarities and differences through conversation and differences through the conversation and productive interchange interchange I will demonstrate our commitment I will demonstrate our commitment to preserve and promote to preserve and promote unity in our community unity in our community so that current and future Generations so the current and the future Generations can thrive in peace can thrive in peace both here and around the world both here and around the world please put your hands together for our student Representatives Andrew Perez vidy Gore tasn M and rayan Shakir and I think that they very ably and very capably demonstrated Unity they were in unison they were taking turn turns and the corporating right which is the whole point of this so thank you so much one of our seniors I'm going to put him on the spot it's not part of the program but our senior representative please join me I am in my mother and grandmother role right now he is a senior about to graduate and is headed to Yale and we are just delighted to put him on the but we've been so happy that he's been a part of the council for the last 3 years he has led programs for us and he is just so super talented and even more importantly he recognizes that he has Juniors and sophomores and freshmen behind him and he is helping them to transition into leadership roles so for that and for everything you've done for us please please accept our gratitude and our thanks we can have our dignitary sit uh somehow that's not in the script so I didn't have them sit please forgive me it's my pleasure to introduce to you someone whom you really don't need much introduction of so I'm not going to do that because uh Dr Cohen has been the mayor of re Brunswick for several years he's been part of the Board of Ed community and he's just been such a wonderful support to ebhc so on behalf of my colleagues on the council we just want to thank you for giving us the opportunity to serve our community in this way we're diverse we are we come from all walks of life different talents but we work together so on behalf of my colleagues I'd like to say thank you for the opportunity and it's our Delight to welcome you here to greet us and to bring remarks on this occasion thank thank you Paula uh good evening everybody good evening good evening I I it is an honor to be here this evening and to be here at the eth annual walking of the unity walk I think really just says something about our community and each year continues to grow and uh but before I get started I do want to thank wholeheartedly every single person on the human relations Council who who put tireless amount of hours into running tons of programs that really highlight all of the the uh different ethnic religious uh based groups that that exist here in East Brunswick and I I think they deserve really a large round of applause this is their [Applause] doing and before anybody forgets I'd like to thank our Parks and Recreation Department who every single year managed to do all the logistics to make sure that we can get the park set up for these type of programs and it's this and many many other programs they are the backbone to everything that we do so please give them your uh Applause they deserve it now I know that we talk all the time about diversity diversity is something that we're extraordinarily proud of in fact most people who move to this town while they constantly talk about the schools and here we saw this evening an example of what our TOS can produce uh but the second most common reason now has become the diversity of the township people like the fact that this Township not only talks about diversity diversity is is almost becoming uh a a a a uh overused word what does it actually mean anybody could look up the percentage of any ethnic group that lives in town what does that really tell you about the town and about the people that live there the uh quote that I'd like to to bring tonight comes from Henry Ford the industrialist the founder of the Ford Motor Company who said that coming together is the beginning keeping together is progress but working together that's success so just what you have on a page that's just the beginning what what creates the diverse Town what creates the culture that we have here what creates the energy that brings people out for events like this is when townships come together and welcome different communities together and engage with one another when they participate in boards and commissions and the running of the township when they are involved in all of the sports and athletic programs and the Arts programs when everybody works together as one as a team working together that's the success just like Henry Ford said when we start to celebrate everybody's ethnic uh uh holidays whether it's Ramadan or Lunar New Year or holy or or duali or Christmas or Hanukkah when everybody comes out together and shares in those occasions and talks to one another and learns about one another just like irim said earlier you find out that the differences start to melt away and that we're really far more alike than we are different from one another that's the beauty of unity that's the beauty of diversity that's what makes it come alive that's why people are moving here not because of what they read on a page so I really I really feel that that's what makes us unique and that's what we all should be proud of so thank you for being what East brunic is where a melting pot um and uh and and putting together a a community that really is successful I think that our better days are ahead of us and I thank you and look forward for all of you being part of that so thank you much thank you mayor for your words uh next we'd like to uh call up Dr Victor fesi [Applause] good evening everyone and I'm actually speaking on behalf of President LAX tonight and myself so you get two speakers for the price of one Unity is crucial for fostering a collaborative and supportive School Community when schools in the Greater Community work together they can create a more inclusive and collaborative environment that benefits everyone so let me share from a school perspective Unity ensures that educational policies and initiatives are well supported leading to improve academic performance and overall Student Success and you already saw as mayor said an example of that right behind me unified efforts promote greater involvement with parents local businesses and other stakeholders Unity Fosters a sense of belonging in mutual support among students families and in residents it builds trusting relationships and it builds a resilient and harmonious community and collaboration between schools and the community enriches cultural and extracurricular activities offering students diverse experiences that enhance their education and their personal growth so on behalf of President LAX the entire East bronic Board of Education East bronswick Public Schools remains committed to promoting Unity throughout the year in modeling modeling Unity through our actions thank [Applause] you thank you Dr Victor fesi next I would like to call up uh Reverend Crystal Pleasant of a pleasant Church who's also a member of the East Brunswick Interfaith [Applause] clergy good evening that's the vibrant Church our church isn't named after our last name Pleasant is our last name but good evening everyone I'm here on behalf of the East brunwick clergy Council and it's an honor to share this very special night with you and our human relations council at our very um special Unity walk and this happens to be the eighth one we've lived here for 25 years and I can honestly say that our city very much so Embraces diversity I want to share as one of the community Faith leaders that I respect that while the Bible is considered the word of God and my particular Christian tradition other religions and Faith groups have their own sources of holy sacred writings and teachings and words to live by I'm here to emphasize um what some of our similarities are as I too am a member as I stated before of the clergy Council I want to draw your attention to in your hearing um Psalms 24 and it's the very first verse it's a Psalm of David and it reads the Earth is the Lord's and everything in it the world and all who live in it this particular verse caught my attention because it shows God as the owner of the entire Earth and all of its people that's very exciting because it includes every single human being what's so special about ownership well the owner is always concerned that proper care and handling of their valuables are in place and that no one is is mishandled mistreated and cared for and so as the owner of the entire Earth and world we find very interesting instructions in our particular source of sacred teachings which is the Bible they include nature for instance the heavens declare the glory of God it includes how to treat others like do unto others as you would have them do unto you it includes things about families like children obey your parents right or husbands and wives mutually respect each other it includes teachings on generosity for instance if someone is hungry feed them and so many others and so as one who believes that my role is to restore Hope and Faith I want to leave before you one simple challenge to Let's value what God values the Earth is the Lord's everything in it the world and all its people let's choose to keep the peace preserve Beauty work well with others to make this Earth that we live on a better place I want to leave with you one more verse how good and pleasant no pun intended it is when God's people who are the people those connected by Blood those connected by faith and those who are members of humanity Psalms 1333 and 1 how good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity let's value what God values thank [Applause] you thank you so much for that the words of inspiration our next speaker has over 20 years of experience in the social impact sector after college he spent several years providing Direct Care to marginalized individuals and communities in Haiti Peru and inner city Philadelphia his professional career includes multiple leadership roles working for an affordable and Supportive Housing provider in New York City a mental and Behavioral Health provider in New Jersey and currently an agency focused on the advancement of African Affairs his outside work commitments include serving on multiple boards and commissions committees including the East Brunswick Board of Education and our own Town East Brunswick human relations Council his him and his wife Christie are the proud and very busy parents of three energetic children we are so delighted to have Tim as our Council colleague he brings a thoughtful and collaborative Spirit to every situation and we're equally delighted that he accepted our invitation to serve as our Unity walk speaker please put your hands together for Tim [Applause] Cummings thank you thank you thank you and and before I begin I got to give uh Paula and Taran another shout out this is a lot of work I was on all the emails watching everything from afar you guys did an amazing job so thank you it's yeah and to the whole human relations uh Council it's a great group of people to be a part of and I'm I'm very grateful so Taran thank you for that awesome introduction um it's really wonderful to be here with everybody this evening with my wonderful colleagues uh up here who shared just wonderful words about our community and who we are and what it means to us to engage with one another in this space so as Taran mentioned I am the first and foremost proud father of three children who are here with us we have quinnn Nolan and Connor who's hiding somewhere maybe and my wonderful wife Christy uh we have children at waren ster Church Hill and hamers shold um and I have been coming to East Brunswick although I'm originally from Ohio I've been coming to East Brunswick since 2000 when my wife and I first started dating she's a native of the town so I hope that you'll continue to accept me um what I wanted to talk about real quickly is just a little bit about you know my own journey and largely what it is that I've experience ered what I've seen or witnessed and what I've learned from that and so I'm going to pinpoint just some key points in my life when I had the privilege of serving other people and being taught by them what it means to engage uh mindfully and sustainably and compassionate compassionate compassionately with one another in Philadelphia I worked uh for a couple years at a soup kitchen in Kensington Philadelphia for those of you who are familiar with it this is shortly after I finished my undergrad degree and we lived in community right outside the soup kitchen it was a really Prof found and difficult place to be but so the and while there's so many stories that I remember there I wanted to share a quick one we were closing up the yard one day and a group of uh individuals all homeless all dealing with their own issues were huddled together and I went up to them and said hey guys it's time to go right we need to lock the yard and they said wait wait wait we just need a couple more minutes what turns out was that one of their colleagues a dear friend of theirs was sick and living in an abandoned building and they were working out a routine to to get that person meals and who would rotate in terms of the responsibility so that food could be brought to them the flag is blowing I like it um on a regular basis to me it was a sign of the love and the attention that people will give to one another in times of need my wife and I we had the privilege of living in Peru for a short period of time working at an orphanage and serving at a school there was a school in particular that was situated on the Mountaintop uh a little bit of a hike up due to flooding that was an area that was susceptible to floods and every day we would walk up with these young kids holding our hands and teachers who committed to being together engaging with one another in this space so that they could learn and help one another grow and thrive in another sign of what it means to be in community with one another in Haiti the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere I had the opportunity to Street serve Street Youth which was probably the most profound and intense experience of my life as you can imagine these are young kids largely boys anywhere from the ages of 6 to 14 homeless and alone one of the things that I engaged in while I was there was working with a community of people to go and treat individuals who were near the end of their life cycle so these could have been anyone from adults to children who were failing medically and had nowhere to go we would go in and we would wash bodies we would care for individuals and we would serve one another in a really profound manner that was very informative and and and difficult at the same time but together every day we showed up together to provide that service to one another when I moved back to New York City I worked for a Supportive Housing provider I'm almost finished I promise and uh we one of my greatest responsibilities there was running a building for formally homeless mentally ill seniors you all remember Hurricane Sandy I would assume everybody probably doesn't want to remember that but you can so when Hurricane Sandy hit we were on 22nd Street down in theel area we identified the top most frail individuals in our building because we had no power and we didn't know how long it would last and we moved them to another building on the upper west side where they knew that at least they could have water electricity and and other things that that you know elderly individuals need so I remember one morning shortly into that experience I got a phone call from the manager up on 74 Street saying Tim we don't know where George is George has left George was an 84ye old frail man diagnosed schizophrenia and he had disappeared from the building we went hunting looking for this guy to try to make sure that he was safe could not find him 10 hours later he showed up back at our building because he wanted to come home he wanted to be with the people that he cared about and that loved him again the power of community I most recently worked for an organization in sumerset that provided services for mentally ill uh women women battling mental illness and substance use and I recall one day a staff member called me and said we have an emergency I said what's going on they said Heather just came to us and said that it's her 5-year-old daughter's birthday tomorrow and she has nothing she was early in her stages of recovery very low income and so what do you do you scramble to find ways to support her we got toys cake mix everything that we needed Heather was too embarrassed by her own financial situation but she deserved and needed help again the power of community here in East Brunswick engaging with various groups and committees that I get to be a part of being part of something so special like this where we have this beautiful diverse group of people who come together and accomplish amazing things I get to witness people day in and day out giving back in some way or another whether it be just through a friendly hello or taking care of one another there are plenty of opportunities to do that here day in and day out we witness the power of community and finally as a member of the Board of Education I get the privilege of witnessing the amazing groups and and people that come into not just our building uh when we have our board meetings but day in and day out when that that take place you know the amazing activities and events in school teachers and administrators working tirelessly to take care of one another and most importantly the kids in this district and an Administration doing the same I'm always so impressed in inspired by the Innovative nature of the people who come in front of us and speak towards their passions and towards the things that they truly care about what a joy to witness the power of community so from these experiences you know I have been a blessed man uh I I live a great life and I'm I'm you know continue to count my blessings and there are things that I have learned as a result of all of this I'm going to share them with you real quickly this is not unol unsolicited advice I don't like to give advice but these are the things that I have learned through my experiences do the right thing or as some would say do good I don't know if you all can see my shirt in the back there there are always opportunities to give back something as mundane or simple as picking up trash on your walk is a way to give back and so notice the opportunities and take advantage of them they do make a difference and Mayor Cohen you in the parks department may be happy to know that I pick up routinely about three or four empty water bottles in Bicentennial Park on my dog walks every day an opportunity to give back while things may sometimes get cloudy seek the good in everyone and every moment I I'm not purporting to be an expert of any of these things by the way I'm just sharing what I've experienced practice gratitude enjoy the opportunity to meet new people engage a quick story we were leaving church uh last Sunday and I I had seen this man who was in dressed in traditional African attire and I commented on his shirt and I said wow I really like that we had a really quick connection and he has since called me and texted me three times just to check in and see how I'm doing this is a nice thing right there's nothing wrong with this it's very powerful and we all have something to share with one another and then quoting from the words of a dear friend of mine who I met in Philadelphia we learn we learn who we are meant to be from the people that we are called to serve so again it's an honor and privilege to be a part of this community to serve all of this amazing people and uh engage most importantly with the vibrant life uh that exists here and I just thank you so much for this opportunity thank you wow I don't know if I could top that um but uh I'm inspired by you and you obviously uh are emblematic of your sweatshirt um at this time uh we are in the process of closing this out and going to commence our walk around the pond but before we do I would like to just once again thank uh some folks who are here with us today I'm going to start with um our elected officials including council president Kevin MC McAvoy Council vice president Dana Z I council member janesh bahal mayor Brad Cohen Victor veski Dana's sorry I said that already um okay the VFW Post 133 the Boy Scouts 132 and 301 and 132 the department of recreation ebtv the East Brunswick Arts Coalition the East Brunswick Board of [Applause] Education the East Brunswick Interfaith clergy Council the East Brunswick Public Library the East Brunswick Public Schools East Brunswick Youth Council Citizens Bank East Brunswick Regional Chamber of Commerce the lost souls public Memorial project the Mom's Club of East Brunswick and AJ bales thank you all for coming and now I'd like to ask the Boy Scouts to lead us on our walk thank you all [Music]