Awards for Adelman, Gore and Paul come from commissioners
As Women’s History Month comes to a close, three dedicated professionals – who are making history – earned certificates of excellence for exemplary and dedicated service from the Burlington County Board of Commissioners.
Sarah Adelman, commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Human Services, has helped the state get through COVID and is looking to the future.
She recently announced that child-care centers and Head Start/Early Head Start programs can now apply online for the Thriving by Three Infant and Toddler Child Care Grant. The funds will help providers expand their capacity for infants and toddlers, and increase high quality childcare services available to families.
“These new state investments continue our goal to make quality and affordable child care a reality to New Jersey’s working families,” Adelman said. “These grants are another step to strengthen our early-childhood education system and provide more access to high-quality child care services to working families.”
Caisse Gore, an eighth-grade teacher in the Moorestown school district, is the founder of the Jadon Strong Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to assisting families of pediatric brain cancer patients by providing emergency financial assistance for groceries, meals and care packages, according to county spokesperson David Levinsky.
Gore’s organization held its first Night of Hope winter gala in February and is currently making plans for a second annual 5K run/walk on Sunday, May 21, at Moorestown High School.
Joyce Paul, a Burlington Township councilwoman for nine years, was the first African American woman to serve as council president. She serves on the township’s zoning board and Green Team and is liaison to the recreation commission and board of education.
Levinsky said Paul has been an active volunteer with the Christ Baptist Church in Burlington and its prison, youth and feed the hungry ministries. She has also made several missionary trips to Haiti to deliver food and supplies to hurricane victims.
“Commissioner Sarah Adelman, Caisse Gore and Councilwoman Joyce Paul have remarkable stories and are doing great things for Burlington County and our communities,” said Commissioner Allison Eckel, who presented the certificates along with Commissioner Director Felicia Hopson.
“By spotlighting them, we hope to inspire more women to step forward and take on leadership roles to build on Burlington County’s legacy of outstanding women achievers,” Eckel noted.
“The list of women leaders and trailblazers from Burlington County is extraordinary and includes people like Alice Paul, Elizabeth White, Charity Still and Ethel Lawrence,” Hopson remarked. “Each of these women charged through barriers and overcame discrimination and exclusion to help change our state, nation and world for the better.
“While we honor these heroic women from our past, we also want to recognize the women of Burlington County who are helping to lead, mentor and advocate for equality today,” Eckel said.
“Women’s History Month is an especially poignant time to recognize not just the accomplishments of women from the past, but also the phenomenal women who are change makers today,” said State Sen. Troy Singleton.
“I have worked personally with Sarah, Caisee and Joyce over the years and this honor is so well deserved,” he added. “I am confident that they will each continue to make a difference here in Burlington County.”
