Blogfinger

Nancy Ann Gillan replaces Michael Badger as Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association President. Photo distributed on 10/26/23 by the CMA.

By  Paul Goldfinger, MD, Editor.      Blogfinger.net.  We did not receive this information from the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association .  It was forwarded to us by someone on the CMA mailing list.

The  2023  email  was to announce  the new OGCMA  President: Nancy Ann Gillan.

The incoming President sent “greetings to the faithful supporters of the OGCMA community and friends.”

And in the email she “shares her thoughts below:”

“The opportunity to serve all of you and the trust my fellow board members have placed in me as President of  this 154-year ministry fills me with gratitude. As a trustee since 2005 I have held many positions including Treasurer and six years as Program Chair. I am blessed with a long legacy in Ocean Grove. My grandfather first came to Ocean Grove as a boy and later became a trustee. My father, Jim Truitt, served six years as OGCMA President.

“However, I do not look back, but forward to all God has planned for us.

“He says, “Behold, I am doing a new thing” (Isaiah 43:19.)    

“I believe the best is yet to come as we live into our mission of  spiritual birth, growth, and renewal and find new ways to reach more people as we proclaim theme of Jesus.”

Blogfinger Editor’s note:   2024.  This is not a policy statement as President Gillan is addressing and “greeting the CMA’s faithful supporters.”

We wonder about a number of issues where the activities of the CMA have impacted  those in town who belong to the residential secular community.  Will she institute some changes?

President  Gillan is taking over for President Michael Badger, but we don’t know if she will support his recent public statements about a number of “hot” concerns.

And  will she interact with the public and the press as he has done in such a forceful way?

President Gillan will be answering to the CMA Board,  and will the Board take this opportunity to make some changes in their policies as they impact the town of Ocean Grove?

The next challenge will be in April when the CMA meets the DEP in court over Sunday beach closures.   Here is a link about that:

CMA vs DEP over beach closures

We understand that Ms. Gillan spends her winters in Florida, so how will that influence the CMA’s operations?

We also note that the CMA’s  new COO  was appointed August 2023.   She is Mrs. Natalie Stephens-Stewart.  She is not new to the organization having worked for 6 years as Program Director.

COO Natalie Stephens-Stewart. Internet photo.

2026 update by Paul Goldfinger, MD.    The CMA undoubtedly is an important entity in the Grove. Their impact goes back to the 1869 founding, and the tenure of former President Michael Badger is still fresh in our minds because he was always willing to face CMA issues publicly.  But since he left in 2023, there is a void in terms of what “we-the-people” can expect from the CMA other than to read about them, such as the recent press updates about beach closures.   Now, 2026, we know that there will be no more Sunday closures.

If you read the CMA’s Summer Guide, you will see that their programs are as active as ever, and those programs, as before, continue to dominate life in the Grove.  But as far as reaching out to the largest demographic here–the secular community who are citizens,  they seem to be of little interest to the CMA which  attracts mostly religious tourists, although there is no data that we know of.

And there are other isolated groups in town who also create divisiveness and/or apathy including the Neptune Comedy, the Chamber of Commercials and Street Closures, the New Demographics with second homes but no interest in the town,  most renters,  and  year round citizens  such as the former Homeowners Association who now have a new name and  little else to help OG find it’s future self.   And finally there is the Coaster which has less and less to report  about the Grove. They don’t even recognize our bartenders

As for Pres. Gillan, it seems clear that she won’t be reaching out to the town like Pres. Badger did. Her themes can be found in the hymn below and is in the latest Program Guide which as we know contains many wonderful components which we all can enjoy along with the many religious tourists who come here–The Guide  should be out soon.   The CMA has stopped their Labor Day public outreach, so hopefully we will hear from her in the future.

Here is an authentic recording from the historic wax cylinders  of over 100 years ago from the Great Auditorium by Steven Porter.  The Grammy winning album is “Waxing the Gospels.”  And the hymn is “Yield Not to Temptation.”

Here is some modern music:    Norah Jones:

Germans invade Poland 9/1/39 and seize Warsaw by 9/27/39. Jews rounded up.  400,000 people crammed into ghetto followed by mass deportations to death camps or concentration camps. (by train).  Paul Goldfinger still images obtained from the Netflix doc. Click once to enlarge.

Captive Jews make boots for German soldiers. Women sewed uniforms.   Some were  allowed to work in factories on the “aryan side” but eventually all were murdered.

Starvation and disease, especially typhus resulted in high mortality rates in the ghetto.  A small number hid outside the ghetto. but were mostly killed or captured during the ghetto uprising. (4/9/43).

Starvation on 140 calories per day.

700 Jewish fighters fought bravely, living like rats in bombed out buildings. The Germans used Ukrainians and Latvian soldiers to stamp out the resistance.  This is a famous photo of survivors.    The uprising was crushed by 5/16/43.  All survivors were murdered.

Many Jews were trapped in burning buildings. There is one photo of an entire family jumping to their deaths out of an apartment building  balcony.

Germans liquidated the Ghetto and burned  it  to the ground.

Why Paul Goldfinger, MD.  Blogfinger.net. Posted 3/22/26

During the occupation of Warsaw, no one was allowed to photograph except Germans.    But there were some  Jews who managed to get some images, but they were few, and some can be seen, for example,  in the National Holocaust Museum or at Yad Vashem in Israel.

A  courageous 23 year old Christian  Polish fireman  Leszek Grzywaczewskiego  obtained a camera and taught himself how to develop film and make prints. He hid his prints in his family home. He wanted to document what was occurring.    He survived.

Many years later a collection of his photos was unearthed by his children who found them in hidden floor spaces.   His photos are now  considered to be very rare and valuable historic records.

Eventually an HBO  documentary of about 33 of his photos was made, and I took  these still images from the Netflix film .  It is now available for viewing.  The 5th image  down is a famous photo of  remaining survivors.  I don’t know the source of that photo.

Cravings Desserts is on Main Street in Allenhurst. Very good. Pies are $25.00.   Over 30 years in business.   Paul Goldfinger photo. Nov. 2025. Open early for Thanksgiving . 6 am here.  We were first for the pie pickup.  Blogfinger.net.  Click once to enlarge.

THE DUBS:

Photo by Paul Goldfinger.    Allenhurst, NJ  The “Power Station”  (former JCP&L property)  seen above is at the east side of the Allenhurst  downtown revitalization project which  has just begun. But this mess should quickly turn into a magnificent change for the Borough of Allenhurst which does need  a makeover.   Note that this popular project is  near downtown, the ocean,  and the train station.

By Paul Goldfinger, Editor Blogfinger.net.  Originally posted   11/19/25.  Ocean Grove NJ, USA.  Now revised 3/21/2026.

By Paul Goldfinger, Editor, Blogfinger.net

Allenhurst is a small wealthy borough with a large downtown  building lot  and new ambitious  plans which  have just  begun revitalization.  This massive  property used to be part of a JCP&L facility and is now referred to by the developers  as “The Power Station.”

The project  will have several phases. Large expensive condos will have private garages. And there will be commercial and shopping facilities as well as low income housing.    The design will pay tribute to this quaint town’s history and character. Most everyone in town is supportive.   The downtown which could use an upgrade will become an admirable location for businesses and restaurants.

Allenhurst will become a sought after location as more visitors are sizing up this Jersey Shore  area as a desirable residential and business  investment site. The “Power Station”  project will do very well.

They began construction a few months ago, and the photo above shows how it looks today   (11/19/25).in the east part of the development area.

One developer prevails now, but some private builders  are being allowed in.  That’s better than what OG has gone through with its  North End Redevelopment Plan.

This project is part of a larger plan including rebuilding the train station and town parks.    The developers  are well aware of the project’s proximity to the Ocean.   It sounds like a wonderful concept.     It should be finished  in a few years.

And there will be some low income housing as required by the State of New Jersey.

And unlike our Ocean Grove North End fiasco, all Allenhurst parties involved are focused on what’s best for the town, and the word “redevelopment” is missing.

But there are a variety of issues which are currently surfacing  causing troublesome “tensions”  in Allenhurst, and  Coaster reporters have their sensors turned to “on.”    These concerns involve Beach Club fees, concerns about overdevelopment, concerns about compromises regarding the town’s history and traditions, and issues about State housing mandates.  And there may be more to be revealed.   For example, citizens demanded a public meeting with elected officials, and the meeting was held outdoors during freezing weather. Talk about a “cold shoulder!”

And here is a quote from the latest Coaster :

“Peggy Marquezi, a lifelong Monmouth County resident, expressed concern about the broader changes:  ‘It feels to me like the current government doesn’t really care about the heart of this town..Every plan that’s being implemented is strategically designed to wipe out all the remnants of the town’s history and integrity,”

And another Coaster quote; about recent town meeting:  “The gathering reflected a town torn between nostalgia and progress. “

Ocean Grove continues its unfocused ways as its residents gaze awkwardly into the future.

In fact, other new beautiful projects in our part of the Jersey Shore such as Ft. Monmouth, Colt’s Neck, Long Branch,  Bradley Beach, Asbury Park, Red Bank and Monmouth Mall are moving ahead optimistically without the need for “Redevelopment designations” such as were  approved by Neptune  for Ocean Grove 17 years ago, and that project at our  North End is still stuck in the mud, and most Grovers dislike the idea.  It will suck the life out of our small historic town and we will  be left behind floundering  as the rest of the Jersey Shore in this area becomes more distinguished.

I’m beginning to think that OG would have been better off without the “historic” designations which hold us back now.  We also have the Camp Meeting Association, The Chamber of Commercials, developers from inside and outside the town,  and the Neptune Comedy weighing in to influence how the Grove evolves. Look what they have done at the North End.

So, keep an eye on Allenhurst and Asbury  Park as they evolve by comparison into the future.

BOB DYLAN:

Paul Goldfinger photo. Wegmans, Ocean

A new shipment of sweet onions had just arrived;  from where? Maybe Peru.

Eileen and I were selecting some onions. We liked their color, size, shape, and potential for salads. We were discussing the situation.

Suddenly I felt a presence behind me; I turned.   A man, perhaps age 60 was standing nearby staring at our onion exploration.

Me:  “Eileen,  I think this man wants to get at the onions.”

She:  “OK;”  We stepped aside.

Me:  I turned toward the man and I said,  “Ok you can get the onions. ”

Man:  “I don’t want any”

Me:  “Oh.  It seemed like you do.”

Man: ” No; I was just eavesdropping on your conversation.”

Me to him: ” I didn’t know that we are so fascinating .”    He smiled as did I.

Then we headed towards the potatoes.  He stayed by the onions.

On the way to the cashier we squeezed some avocados.  Eileen is an expert avocado squeezer. She picked out four, and we were done. She prefers to check out with a person. I like the electronic self checkout, but I need help about 1/3 the time.  It’s more complicated than you might think.

” Duo For Two Shoppers in E Major” by Jacque Offenbach.    Uh, oops—It’s for two cellos.

Paul Goldfinger photo;

PINK MARTINI.   “Donde Estas, Yolanda”

The Asburians might think so, and the media coverage of the Casino plight  ignores the Grove, but maybe they need to take the bypass or the breezeway  (when it opens)  and walk on the OG wild side:   After all, although we do have our religious side, secular Grove might be a  surprise.

Girls in their summer clothes: Ocean Grove,NJ, USA. Paul Goldfinger photo Blogfinger.net

AMY WINEHOUSE with JOOLS HOLLAND and  PAUL WELLER. From the 2006 album At The BBC.   “Don’t Go To Strangers.”