HudCoRadio

Making A Difference One Meal, One Building, One Child At A Time: Interviews with three 2025 Hudson County Women's History Month Honorees

Hudson County Executive Craig Guy and the Board of County Commissioners presented the 2025 Women's History Month Gala and Awards Ceremony at the historic Brennan Court House in Jersey City on Thursday, March 27th. 

HCR had the chance to interview three of the outstanding local women honored at the event: Stephanie Glover-Wilson, Shirin Vazir MacCormack, and Veronica Park.

Glover-Wilson is the founder and president of Hunger Free in the Community, a non-profit that provides the only mobile food pantry in Hudson County—one that serves all twelve of the County's municipalities. Vazir MacCormack is the founder and president of the McGinley Square Community Board, and champions historic preservation and community-focused development policies in Jersey City. Park, a business executive, is the chairwoman of the board of the Hudson County Schools of Technology Foundation and the founder and chairwoman of the Youth Foundation of Jersey City; both entities fund co-curricular development and social support for youth in Hudson County and Jersey City. 

Here's the complete list of the 2025 Hudson County Women's History Month Honorees:

Patricia Ahern

Mirtha Benitez

Rosemary Bennet

Agnes Bowman

Katharine Chao

Magaly Garcia

Jen Giattino

Stephanie Glover-Wilson

Maria Kazimir

Elaine Maidhoff

Kathleen McMahon

Veronica Park

Ruth Shaw

Patricia Sherwen

Shirin Vazir MacCormack

Yoliesy Yanez

 

 

 

The ABC's of EHE: How this vital County initiative is making a difference in the LGBTQIA+ Community

County Executive Craig Guy's Hudson EHE (Ending the Hiv Epidemic) Initiative is part of a larger effort by his administration to engage and support the Hudson County LGBTQIA+ community. HCR spoke with County Health & Human Services Director Darice Toon and the Executive Director of the Hudson Pride Center, Elizabeth Schedl, about how the initiative is making a difference and saving lives. 

Built Right From The Ground Up: Hudson County's New Guarini Justice Complex

Recently County Executive Craig Guy and members of the Board of Commissioners joined administration staff and members of the construction management team for a tour of Hudson County's newly completed Frank J. Guarini Justice Complex located right across Newark Avenue from the current County Court House, in Jersey City. It will open to the public in 2025.

The host of that tour—and the County Executive’s point person overseeing construction of the massive project—is Deputy County Administrator Dave Drummeler. He joined HudCoRadio to talk about why the new building was needed, the challenges the County faced during construction, and just how very different the new County Court House will be from its predecessor.

You can can get peek inside the building, by watching the latest HudCoTV NewsClip about it on our Youtube Channel, HudCoTV.

HC Consumer Protection's Dynamic Duo

HCR visits with the "Dynamic Duo" of Hudson County Consumer Protection, Steve Krywinski and Alberico De Pierro.

Steve serves as Consumer Protection’s lead investigator and Unit Chief.  Alberico,  Deputy County Counsel  in the Law Department,  acts as its primary attorney.

They describe how the Hudson County Office of Consumer Protection came to the rescue of consumers in Hudson County—and across the country—who paid for extended car warrantees that didn't provide the coverage promised, warn about a new scam connected to a popular property tax relief program you should watch out for, and describe the Office's new enforcement efforts directed at local business to  ensure transparent pricing. 

The Roadmap For A Safer "Vision Zero" Future In Hudson County

Hudson County Executive Craig Guy’s new Vision Zero Task Force hit the ground running this Summer.

Conducting a wide range of community outreach efforts, developing a Federally-funded Road Safety Action Plan, and this week, carrying out it’s first-ever demonstration project at a busy intersection in Jersey City—all in the name of making County roads safer for everyone who uses them.

To better understand how Hudson County will travel the road  toward a Vision Zero future for the thoroughfares it operates, HCR spoke with a range of folks involved in the process. You can learn more about Hudson County's Vision Zero efforts on our website: www.hcnj.us. 

Far More than Flag Raisings: The HC Office of Cultural Affairs Growing Portfolio

The Hudson County Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs/Tourism Development has grown steadily thanks to encouragement from County Executive Craig Guy and the leadership of its Director, Gina Hulings.  It has taken on new projects that now include The Strides for Safety 5K Road Race, Hudson's first-ever Celebration of Fleet Week, and groundbreaking educational programing in schools across Hudson County. We talked with Director Hulings about her Office's expanding role—the challenges, the rewards, and how her team is making a difference—especially in the lives of our youth.

HC Women’s History Month Honoree ”Hoboken Girl” Jennifer Tripucka

Hudson County honored twelve outstanding local women at our Annual Women’s History Month Celebration and Awards Ceremony held at Brennan Court House March 29th. 

The event, in keeping with the National Women’s History Month theme this year, highlighted “Women who tell our stories.”

Among the honorees was Jennifer Casson Tripucka, founder and Editor-in-Chief of the popular hyper-local news and lifestyle blog, “Hoboken Girl.” Launched more than decade ago, “Hoboken Girl” is now just one part of Tripuka’s growing "Local Girl Media Group.”  

We caught up with her a few days after being honored to talk about what it meant, how Hoboken Girl got started and how she’s looking to build the “Local Girl Media” Brand.

You can learn more about all twelve 2023 Women’s History Month Honorees on our County website, www.hcnj.us. Each honoree was nominated by their county commissioner and selected for recognition by the County Women's History Month Committee. Here is the entire list:

Bayonne: Angélique Jackson-Belle, Guttenberg: JoAnn (Mott) Lazzari , Hoboken: Raakhee Mirchandani, Hoboken: Jennifer Tripucka, Jersey City: Tami Weaver-Henry,  Jersey City: Tisha Jackson, Jersey City: Rev. Dr. Bertha Reels, Secaucus: Patricia Guma, Weehawken: Francesca Amato, West New York: Elsa Jimenez, Lifetime Achievement: Mireya De La Cruz.

Talking With Hudson County’s New Director of Corrections & Rehabilitation

The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has a new Director, former New York City Department of Corrections Bureau Chief, Becky Scott. 

After 30 years on the job in New York, Director Scott comes to Hudson County with a wealth of experience and a unique perspective as an outsider—the first person to hold this post in three decades who did not come up through the ranks inside the facility. 

She took time from her demanding day to talk with us in her office in the Corrections & Rehabilitation Center, located in South Kearny.

#Bidfest

"#Bidfest," Hudson County's flagship professional development seminar for small businesses owned and operated by women, minorities and veterans  seeking to compete for contracting opportunities with local government, will be held next week. The Hudson County Office of Business Opportunity (HCOBO), responsible for enforcing the County's set aside ordinance to support these kinds of small businesses through its vendor choices, conducts #Bidfest. We spoke with the HCOBO's Director, Markis Abraham, about the event and his vision for the agency's future. And with Denise "The Procurement Queen" Williams, an author and expert on local government contracting who will be speaking at #Bidfest. 

A Conversation With Three of Our ”Hudson County Veterans of the Year”

Hudson annually honors 12 veterans, one each from our 12 municipalities, as Hudson County’s “Veterans of the Year.” Today, on Veterans Day, we spoke to three of them: North Bergen's Frank Gargulio, Guttenberg's Jessica Reyes, and Secaucus's Patrick ‘Littlewolf’ Brooks. Three very different people but three proud veterans who share a common love for their country and a strong belief in the value of service.

Our 2022 Hudson County Veterans of the Year:

Bayonne – Owen Ballweg 

East Newark – Frank Acuna 

Guttenberg – Jessica Reyes 

Kearny – Michael J. Machado 

Harrison – Robert Gerris 

Hoboken – Sergeant Josue Velez

Jersey City – Randy Riotto 

North Bergen – Frank Gargiulo

Secaucus – Patrick Brooks 

Union City – Henry Kaden 

Weehawken – Erik O. Valentin

West New York – Sean McDonald