Brain Injury Lawyer

The Brain Injury Association of New Jersey (BIA-NJ) held its annual meeting on Wednesday evening, October 26, 2005. At that meeting, I was honored to be elected to serve on the BIA-NJ Board of Trustees. I had previously served, and I am thrilled to be reunited with old and wonderful friends.

At the annual meeting, the attendees were entertained by puppeteers who presented "Kids on the Block: Safety on the Go" which they perform in schools and communities around the state of New Jersey in order to teach children about safety and brain injury prevention.

The annual meeting is also an opportunity to recognize and honor various companies and individuals for their work on behalf of families and individuals with acquired traumatic brain injury and the Brain Injury Association itself. The 2005 Founders Award, established in 1985 by the Brain Injury Association of America to recognize individuals or groups who have rendered exceptional volunteer services that benefit persons with brain injury and their families was presented to Vincent Diorio for his role as the curator of the "Creativity Expo" which featured the creative talents of persons with brain injuries.

The Trooper Christopher Scales Memorial Award, annually given in honor of Trooper Scales who was struck and killed by a vehicle while conducting a seatbelt enforcement check, was presented to Detective Sergeant Peter Ziegler of the Cranbury Police Department who has been a leader in promoting brain injury awareness in his community through the positive helmet ticket reinforcement program. This award is given to an individual from the law enforcement community who has demonstrated exemplary efforts in promoting public safety and brain injury prevention. All of us are indebted and thankful to Detective Sergeant Ziegler for his outstanding work.

Also recognized and honored was Billy Snook and Children's Specialized Hospital for their individual fund-raising efforts during the recent 2005 Walk For Thought/Cycle For Safety event. Kudos go out to Wendy Burke (Prevention Outreach and Mentor Coordinator), Susan Quick (Prevention Outreach Coordinator) and Judy Unterman (Family Support Specialist) who were recognized for their five-year service working with BIA-NJ. Congratulations to all three of them.

A special thanks and recognition must be given to Albert R. Pressler, P.E. this year's outgoing President. One cannot say enough about the outstanding work that Al has done over his long career with BIA-NJ. I know I join with everyone in the brain injury community in thanking Al for his tireless work on behalf of families and individuals with acquired traumatic brain injury.

Finally, congratulations and good luck go out to Glen McCreesh who will begin a two-year term as the incoming president of BIA-NJ. As a new Board member, I look forward to working with Glen and everyone else on the Board.