Perception of problems in county not reflected in quality of life here

Perception of problems in county
not reflected in quality of life here

As an employee and resident of Monmouth County, I was surprised by the recent article "Freeholders Plan Nepotism Ban."

The article gave the false impression that Monmouth County is guilty of wrongdoing by having relatives employed by the county.

As a county employee, I feel privileged to be able to work for the best county in the state, and probably the nation. As an employee, I know the reason why we are No. 1.

Monmouth County is No. 1 for many reasons. The Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office is the first law enforcement agency in the United States to be accredited by the National Sheriffs Association in all five areas of operation.

In parks and recreation, the county has beautiful, award-winning parks. The Monmouth County Park System recently received national recognition from the National Commission for Accreditation of Parks and Recreation Agencies.

We were one of only eight park agencies in the nation to receive this honor and the only one in the Northeast. I would be proud if one of my children wanted to work for the county.

People are not leaving Monmouth County to move to another county; they are coming here in droves because Monmouth County is a great place to live.

Yes, we have problems, and I was very pleased to read what Freeholder Ed Stominski said at the reorganization meeting in January about the need for more affordable housing.

This is a serious problem area. Blue-collar workers and may seniors can no longer afford to live in their own hometowns. I commend Freeholder Stominski for his leadership in addressing this problem.

It’s wonderful to have a county that everyone wants to move to, but what about the people who were born and raised here? They deserve to live and work here, too.

Please keep up the good work, Freeholder Stominski.

Tonya Hyman

Manalapan