What annual event features food vendors and live entertainment in Sparta?

I-80 Eastbound Sinkhole

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Household Hint of the Week!

Revive stale bread
Sprinkle water on stale bread and bake it briefly to restore its freshness!.

Short Story of the Week

"The Gratitude Chain" by Randi Lace

Sarah stared at her cold coffee, another hectic morning at the downtown café where she worked. An elderly man shuffled in, his weathered face creased with worry. "Just a small coffee, please. That's all I can afford today."

Without hesitation, Sarah added a warm muffin to his order. "On the house," she smiled. The man's eyes welled up as he shared how he'd been stretching his pension to help his grandson through college. His genuine gratitude touched something deep within Sarah.

That afternoon, the elderly man held the door for a stressed-looking woman juggling shopping bags. Remembering Sarah's kindness, he offered to help carry her groceries. The woman, Maria, was overwhelmed by this unexpected assistance. She'd been struggling since losing her job last month.

Inspired by the man's kindness, Maria later helped a young artist pack up his scattered drawings when wind gusted through the park. The artist, moved by her help, gifted her his most precious sketch. Maria's eyes lit up – it was exactly what she needed for her upcoming job interview at a design firm.

The chain continued. The artist helped a lost child. The child's mother later assisted a stranded motorist. The motorist bought lunch for a homeless veteran. Each act sparked by gratitude, fueled by love, creating an invisible thread connecting strangers across the city.

That evening, Sarah was closing the café when the artist walked in. He ordered coffee and handed her a sketch – it was her, from that morning, showing kindness to the elderly man. Below it, he'd written: "Gratitude and love are two hearts beating as one."

Moral: Gratitude and love form an endless cycle, each feeding the other. When we receive kindness with genuine gratitude, it fills our hearts with the love needed to extend kindness to others. One small act can create ripples of compassion that transform countless lives.

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Poem of the Week

"Sonnet 18" by  William Shakespeare

An iconic love poem comparing the beloved to a summer’s day, celebrating eternal love.

Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date;
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm’d;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm’d;
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st;
Nor shall death brag thou wander’st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow’st:
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee

Source: Reader's Digest

Pope John girls lacrosse team wins three games in a row.

What an absolutely thrilling showdown it was on Saturday afternoon, April 19, as the Pope John XXIII Regional High School girls lacrosse team soared to a spectacular 11-10 victory over Rutherford! Junior attack sensation Lilly Gang dazzled on the field with a career-high five goals, showcasing her incredible talent and determination. But she wasn’t alone in this triumph; Jordyn Smith added two goals and two assists, while the dynamic Keira Donegan lit up the scoreboard with two goals, an assist, and four crucial draw controls!

The support didn’t stop there—Olivia Zywicki made her mark with one goal, two assists, three ground balls, and two forced turnovers, while Grace Sedlack and the ever-reliable Serena Lorenzo contributed with a goal and two assists, respectively. And let's not forget goalie Kendall Weiss, who was a wall in front of the net with a jaw-dropping 20 saves!

With this victory, Donegan now leads the team with an impressive 26 goals and three assists. The scoring frenzy continues with Zywicki racking up 19 goals and 14 assists, Gang with 15 goals and three assists, Smith with 10 goals and four assists, and Lorenzo contributing eight goals and four assists!

What’s even more exciting is that the Lions have flipped the script after a tough start at 1-4—their thrilling three-game winning streak has propelled them to a balanced 4-4 record this spring! This team is gaining momentum, and the excitement is palpable as they continue to rise in the ranks! Go, Lions! 🦁💪💥

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Nikki Flynn, MS, OTR/L

Quote Of The Day

You must be the change you wish to see in the world. – Mahatma Gandhi

The calendar includes a variety of activities such as community meetings, sports events, performances, and festivals.

Residents can search the calendar by date or keyword to find events that interest them.

Quick Contacts:

Emergency Services

• Emergency: 911
• Sparta Police (non-emergency): (973) 729-6121
• Sparta Fire Department: (973) 729-8433
• Sparta Ambulance Squad: (973) 729-2100

Township Offices

• Township Manager's Office: (973) 729-4471
• Township Clerk: (973) 729-4471
• Planning & Zoning: (973) 729-4471
• Building Department: (973) 729-4471
• Tax Collector: (973) 729-4471
• Recreation Department: (973) 729-2383

Community Resources

• Sparta Public Library: (973) 729-3101
• Chamber of Commerce: (973) 729-6811
• Board of Education: (973) 729-8151
• Sparta High School: (973) 729-6191
• Department of Public Works: (973) 729-7133

Media Contacts

• The Sparta Independent - Kathy Shwiff, Managing Editor 
  njoffice@strausnews.com
• TAPinto Sparta: editor@tapinto.net
• NJ Herald: (973) 383-1500

Health & Social Services

• Sussex County Health Department: (973) 579-0370
• Social Services: (973) 383-3600

Utilities

• Jersey Central Power & Light: 1-888-544-4877
• Sparta Water Utility: (973) 729-7133

Sparta Day