{"id":227444,"date":"2026-05-11T17:32:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T17:32:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/227444\/"},"modified":"2026-05-11T17:32:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-11T17:32:09","slug":"union-county-commissioners-announce-2026-union-county-shero-honorees-county-of-union-new-jersey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/227444\/","title":{"rendered":"Union County Commissioners Announce 2026 Union County SHERO Honorees \u2013 County of Union, New Jersey"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"A<\/a><\/p>\n

In celebration of Mother\u2019s Day, the Union County Board of County Commissioners proudly unveiled the nominees for the prestigious Union County SHERO Award. This prestigious award was presented in honor of Women\u2019s History, celebrating the remarkable achievements of women who made significant contributions to our community.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday is the perfect day to announce the names of the amazing women whose leadership, compassion, tenacity, and accomplishments have left an indelible mark on their community,\u201d said Union County Commissioner Chairman Joseph C. Bodek. \u201cOn behalf of the Commissioner Board and those who proudly nominated you, I want to congratulate each and every one of this year\u2019s recipients; your presence on this list is not by accident. Thank you for your dedicated service to this community and for continuing to enrich the lives of those around you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nominations for the Union County SHERO Award were open to individuals who are at least 18 years old, reside or work within Union County, and have made a meaningful impact in their communities\u2014regardless of their role or area of focus.<\/p>\n

After careful consideration, the following exceptional women have been chosen as the recipients of the 2026 Union County SHERO Award:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Noreen Andrews, Scotch Plains
\u2022 Brianna Armstead, Linden
\u2022 Michelle Barrett, Linden
\u2022 Diana Calle, Elizabeth
\u2022 Angela Calzone, Roselle
\u2022 Crystal Cappozzoli, Linden
\u2022 Samantha Carpio, Roselle
\u2022 Dianna Constable, Cranford
\u2022 Kathleen Czarnecki, Kenilworth
\u2022 Maria DeLuca, New Providence
\u2022 Mayor Angie Devanney, Berkeley Heights
\u2022 Alissa DiScala, Elizabeth
\u2022 Lily Duran, Elizabeth
\u2022 Dr. Denise Fernandes, Elizabeth
\u2022 Laura Giacobbe, Rahway
\u2022 Lara Greene-Vaught, Rahway
\u2022 Sherry Heidary, Mountainside
\u2022 Denise Horta, Elizabeth
\u2022 Bette Jane Kowalski, Cranford
\u2022 Maria LePage, Springfield
\u2022 Fatima Luis, Elizabeth
\u2022 Maria Martinez Lazarte, Plainfield
\u2022 Tereza Martins, Elizabeth
\u2022 Kimberly Matos, Linden
\u2022 Dr. Diane Matos-Reis, Elizabeth
\u2022 Megan McDonald, Linden
\u2022 Julia Melton, Garwood
\u2022 Mayor Kathleen Miller Prunty, Cranford
\u2022 Michelle Morin, Berkeley Heights
\u2022 Ranee Muirhead, Scotch Plains
\u2022 Jayne Myers, Summit
\u2022 Dee Perez Guzman, Elizabeth
\u2022 Marcella Perrotti, Elizabeth
\u2022 Nancy Polow, Scotch Plains
\u2022 Kristina Quigley-Leonardelli, Mountainside
\u2022 Assemblywoman Annette Quijano, Elizabeth
\u2022 Cindy Rabinowitz, Cranford
\u2022 Union County Clerk Joanne Rajoppi, Elizabeth
\u2022 Jariclia (Heidi) Recinos, Roselle
\u2022 Nadege E. Ricketts, Union
\u2022 Elsie Rivera, Union
\u2022 Juanita Rochelle, Elizabeth
\u2022 Rubina Saghir, Cranford
\u2022 Detective Carrie Scharpnick, Elizabeth
\u2022 Kristen Sonnek-Schmelz, Westfield
\u2022 Officer Rosa C. Sorto Reyes, Elizabeth
\u2022 Anita Thomas, Union
\u2022 Sandra Toll-Luchsinger, Elizabeth
\u2022 Christina M. Topolosky, Elizabeth
\u2022 Nadine Toussaint, Elizabeth
\u2022 Bernie Wagenblast, Cranford
\u2022 Tashira Wheeler, Plainfield
\u2022 Michaela Whelan Spinola, Mountainside
\u2022 Erica Witte, Westfield<\/p>\n

These nominees reflect the rich fabric of Union County, each bringing a unique perspective and an unwavering commitment to making a difference in our community. Their efforts serve as an inspiration to us all, embodying the spirit of Women\u2019s History Month and the values we proudly uphold in Union County, New Jersey.<\/p>\n

The SHERO Award is a one-time honor, proudly recognizing extraordinary women for their lasting impact. Please view our past SHERO recipients to celebrate their inspiring contributions.<\/p>\n

For more information about the 2026 Union County SHERO Award, please reach out to Jennifer Erdos at the Union County Office on Women at 908-527-4216 or email jerdos@ucnj.org or visit https:\/\/ucnj.org\/shero-award<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In celebration of Mother\u2019s Day, the Union County Board of County Commissioners proudly unveiled the nominees for the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":227445,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[9,24,63,134,136,135],"class_list":["post-227444","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-staten-island","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-staten-island","tag-staten-island-headlines","tag-staten-island-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/227444","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=227444"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/227444\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/227445"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=227444"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=227444"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=227444"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}