Secaucus has recently renamed a road to honor a late local faith leader.
In May, Mayor Gonnelli accompanied by Councilman Bill McKeever, Councilwoman Orietta Tringali, Didi Krishna Kumari and several residents gathered to rename the driveway leading to the Secaucus Animal Shelter. A tour of the animal shelter took place prior to the unveiling.
The street was dedicated to the late Rev. Dada Vaswani of the Sadhu Vaswani Mission, an avid animal lover who has been an activist for the animal rights for decades. Vaswani has also long supported the humane treatment of animals at the Secaucus shelter, making the street renaming fitting.
Gonnelli and Kumari led the street renaming and street sign unveiling ceremony. A psalm was sang prior to the unveiling, with pictures of Vaswani accompanying the song. Additionally, a coconut was broken on a fence post adjacent to the street sign as a ceremonial offering.
The street is now known as Rev. Dada Vaswani Way. That sign is blue, his favorite color. A hymn was sung following the unveiling. Then a ribbon to open the road was cut.
This was followed by another sign unveiling. This one is green, the typical street sign color. Another hymn was sung following this unveiling.
Afterwards, Mayor Michael Gonnelli, spoke briefly. He noted the Secaucus Town Council would soon pass a resolution to rename the street.
Gonnelli said: “I don’t know what to say. This is a wonderful day. It is wonderful for all us. I pray for Dada every day of the year.”
“It’s a great day,” McKeever said. “It’s great to see everyone come out. It’s a great honor to have this in Secaucus.”
Later in the day, those in attendance gathered for the official groundbreaking for the Joy and Peace Garden, which will be constructed on Meadowlands Parkway. Members of the Native Plant Society and the Secaucus Environmental Department planted native flowering plants to mark the official start of construction on the garden. The space will have community garden plots and a variety of plants and walking paths, of which the Sadhu Vaswani Mission has in part contributed toward its inception.
The events culminated at the Sadhu Vaswani Meditation Garden at the Recreation Center on Koelle Boulevard where children sang songs and presented recitations. The faith-filled day ended with a lunch for all who attended.
Watch the three-hour back-to-back events online at youtube.com/watch?v=rlox2Okk2_c.
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