The residents of Newman Avenue held an unusual mid-summer block party on Saturday, July 27, and raised a large amount of money for a key New Jersey charity.
Work on the Newman Cares Blockfest started at dawn with the building of a stage in the middle of the street by Shabazian Construction. The first performers took to the stage just after noon and by the time the stars came out, a string of bands had entertained the street from it, including Out of the Blue, Big House Groove, Dr. Jameson and Verona’s own The Brothers. Chef Carmen Quagliata fed a steady stream of people from a large grill set up on his front lawn, and there were games and face-painting for kids. The event, organized by the Conroy family, drew guests from Newman Avenue and beyond.
When everything was tallied, Newman Cared raised $6,000 for the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation.
