Party Lines Aside: The Toms River Mayor Election is about Integrity

As someone who cares deeply about the future of Toms River, I am writing to express my support for Ben Giovine as the next mayor of our town. This November 7, we will be choosing between two candidates to lead our community, and I believe that Mr. Giovine has the vision, experience, and leadership skills needed to move Toms River forward.

In contrast, his opponent, Daniel Rodrick, has proven himself to be the wrong choice for our town. Mr. Rodrick's signs say Stop Building which continues his position of saying NO, as opposed to recommending solutions and plans in the best interest of the 100,000 residents of Toms River. Whether we like it or not, Toms River is the sixth (or seventh, depending upon source) largest municipality in the State of New Jersey, in the most densely populated state in the country (11th most populated state in the nation) with the fourth largest school system in the State. Mr. Rodrick is proud that he has voted NO to redevelopment plans for the downtown (approved by Planning Board on October 18th so redevelopment will move forward); voted NO for development on the Route 9 corridor; and voted NO when it came to funding new emergency vehicles, when he has attended meetings. Furthermore, Mr. Rodrick has a history of campaigning against initiatives that would move Toms River in a positive direction. He has missed meetings and has a full-time job as a teacher in Monmouth County, his workload won't allow him to keep up with the pace of Toms River. I believe a mayor should put Toms River first!

Let me be completely transparent since immediately after winning the primary, Mr. Rodrick warned Republicans not to turn their backs on him and went as far as saying “If there are Republicans out there who believe that they are going to secretly support the Democrats this year…we will know about it and you will not be welcomed back into the fold when it is over.” Sounds like McCarthyism, not a person planning on uniting a party and a town. Some may secretly support Ben Giovine, but I am not one to hide and I am not going to be threatened; I want what is best for Toms River, as we all should, and that is why I and many others are supporting Ben Giovine for Mayor of Toms River. Don't let threats keep you from doing the right thing and most importantly...VOTE!

I was appointed to the Toms River Municipal Utilities Authority in 2021 (Mr. Rodrick abstained) and I do receive health benefits and a small stipend for my time (when I agreed to the appointment, I had no clue about the benefits, I always want to serve my community). I am a small business owner in Ocean County that in 2019 filed for reorganization bankruptcy as well as I filed personally due to personal guarantees and I am proud to say I will be done paying my debt in 2025. I am a graduate of Rutgers, grew up in Franklin Township (Somerset County) in a single parent household and voted against the form of government change and name change to Toms River in 2006. I am a fiscal conservative, but maybe more liberal on views on the environment, social services and gun control. Why do I share…because I want to make sure when Mr. Rodrick comes after me, you know the truth!

As a member of the Toms River Community, I have served as President of Congregation B’nai Israel for 10 years; Chairman of the Greater Toms River Chamber of Commerce (GTRCC) and Past-President of the Ocean County Business Association (OCBA) all to make a difference in the lives of others. I don’t see Mr. Rodrick volunteering for committees or leadership roles and I only see him dividing the community and disrespecting the citizens of Toms River. In all my volunteer years, I have never seen Mr. Rodrick attend a function at the synagogue, or a Chamber event, though he has been invited on numerous occasions – others on the council and the mayors have attended. Even more concerning is Mr. Rodrick's anti-Semitic campaigning, which he has failed to fully address. As a community, we must reject all forms of hate and bigotry and elect leaders who will unite us, not divide us. It's time to bring Toms River together.

Supporting Ben Giovine is not a matter of partisan politics for me - I am supporting a Democrat because he is the best candidate for Toms River. I also support Republicans, Senator Jim Holzapfel, Assemblyman Greg McGuckin, Paul Kanitra, Surrogate Jeff Moran and Frank Sadeghi, for their respective positions. But when it comes to the Toms River election, I believe that Ben Giovine is the clear choice. He has the expertise to lead Toms River into the future, including creating an exciting downtown waterfront, attracting new businesses and preserving open space. Ben has spent his life working with people to listen to their views and solve their problems; not demean them or separate them due to their religious practice or race.

In conclusion, I urge all voters in Toms River to vote for Ben Giovine as our next mayor on November 7 because he will allow us to move into the future with renewed energy, and give us a better chance of building a prosperous Toms River. The future of Toms River is in our hands, and together, we can take it in the right direction.