Ocean County Library Announces Online Book Club Selection

ESCAPE: From award-winning author Robyn Carr comes a story about relationships.(Supplied Photo)
Want to start 2025 with a relatable romance novel that you can discuss with book lovers everywhere? The next One Book OCL Online Book Club selection is Robyn Carr’s newest, The Friendship Club. The virtual interactions began Friday, Jan. 3 and continue through Friday, March 7.
One Book OCL, in partnership with PBC Guru, is the Ocean County Library’s free virtual reading club for patrons and the community. Club members exchange ideas and network in a private forum. Library membership is not required. Cardholders can borrow or download discussion books for free in print, audiobook and eBook formats through the OCL Catalog, Libby/Overdrive and hoopla.
The Friendship Club brings together four women at crossroads in their lives. Celebrity TV host Marni McGuire, with two marriages behind her, claims to be fine on her own. So does her co-producer Ellen. Marni’s expectant daughter Bella, a lawyer, travels a rocky relationship road. The show’s young intern Sofia becomes involved with a domineering partner. Soon, all four women find themselves carving paths through the forest of dating, marriage, loneliness and love – individually and collectively.
Carr’s mixture of tenderness, humor and drama has generated sales of 27 million copies of her novels, with translations into 19 languages in 30 nations. Eleven of them topped the New York Times bestseller list. In 2016 the Romance Writers of America awarded Carr their Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award. She has legions of followers on Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok.
To register, visit pbc.guru/OneBookOCL. For more information, stop by any of the library system’s 21 branches and reading centers or visit theoceancountylibrary.org.

Two science students bag 5.0 CGPA as UNILAG graduates 16,409

Ahead of its 55th convocation ceremony, the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Akoka, has announced Damilare Adebakin and Samuel Badekale, both from the Department of Cell Biology and Genetics, Faculty of Science, as the best-graduating students with a perfect Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 5.0.
They are closely followed by Olamide Emida, a student from the Department of Accounting, who achieved a 4.95 CGPA.

The Vice-Chancellor, Folasade Ogunsola, disclosed this on Wednesday at the convocation press conference at the university’s senate chamber.
Mrs Ogunsola, a professor of medical microbiology, said the total number of graduating students is 16,409.

She said 9,684 will receive first degrees and diplomas, 6,659 will be awarded postgraduate degrees, and 66 will graduate from the UNILAG Business School.

She noted that three individuals would be conferred with honorary degrees: Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the director-general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO); Fola Adeola, co-founder of Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank Plc), and Kolawole Adesina, the group managing director (GMD) of Sahara Power Group.
The convocation lecture titled “Universities as Hubs for Development and Wealth Creation” will be chaired by former Governor of Lagos State and former Minister of Works, Babajide Fashola, and delivered by the CEO of the Nigeria Economic Summit Group (NESG), Tayo Aduloju.

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Local business at Rushden Lakes calls it a day after increase to rent forces departure from shopping centre

Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565Visit Shots! nowThe Stop Gap, which specialised in fresh donuts and hot dogs, has made the decision to no longer trade at Rushden Lakes, citing rising rent as the key reason for its departure.The business, which was previously located at Rushden Lakes’ food court adjacent to the south walk, stopped trading on December 31.Andrea Hunt, who runs The Stop Gap, announced its departure from the shopping complex on the business’ Facebook page.It said: “Absolutely gutted to be writing this post but unfortunately after three-and-a-half years tomorrow will be my last day at Rushden Lakes. I simply cannot absorb the cost of the rent being tripled.The Stop Gap departed Rushden Lakes on New Year’s Eve“I would like to thank all my wonderful customers for the amount of support you have given over this period. It really does mean a lot to me.”Andrea claims the cost to rent the space in the food court has tripled since taking on the five-year lease in 2019, which she says is not feasible for the business moving forward.However, it is believed that The Stop Gap operated on a heavily discounted rent during its five years at Rushden Lakes, after which the cost to continue running escalated.The departure of The Stop Gap from Rushden Lakes comes soon after Camper Cones, an ice-cream van which had been in operation for seven years, left the shopping centre in September.2024 saw the arrival of Krispy Kreme in April and Ben and Jerry’s in the summer, seeing two locally-owned businesses leave as two popular High Street brands set up shop.Continue Reading

The St. Lucia Visitor Channel at 25: Celebrating Innovation and Growth in Tourism

The St. Lucia Visitor Channel is proud to mark a milestone celebrating 25 years of promoting Saint Lucia as a premier travel destination. Since its inception, the Visitor Channel has consistently evolved, adapting to the ever-changing landscape of technology, while maintaining its reputation as a vital source of local information for visitors and residents. The channel remains a vital and effective mass communication tool and is now available to other OECS islands.
Given the digital world is transforming how we communicate, the Visitor Channel has embraced online platforms, blending traditional and modern approaches to hospitality marketing. Its commitment to delivering relevant content about local history, culture, tourism awareness, and opportunities has ensured its continued relevance in Saint Lucia’s tourism landscape, making certain to also include older and less tech-savvy audiences.
Innovating for the Future: The Launch of the Visitor Channel Mobile App
A key development that marks the Visitor Channel’s 25th anniversary is the successful launch of the Visitor Channel Mobile App, a groundbreaking tool designed to enhance the travel experience for visitors to Saint Lucia. Launched in November 2023, the app leverages the Visitor Channel’s 25 years of expertise in the tourism sector to cater to the needs of today’s digital-savvy travellers.
The app serves as a dynamic resource, providing instant access to local information, services, and attractions. From tour bookings and real-time dining suggestions to local maps and duty-free shopping, the app is a one-stop shop for visitors looking to enhance their stay. With its user-friendly interface, the app ensures that visitors have immediate, on-the-go assistance, offering a seamless and enriched travel experience.

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Empowering Small Businesses and Promoting Sustainability
The Managing Director of The Visitor Channel Mr. Alexander stated “As Saint Lucia’s tourism sector grows, particularly with the rise of micro accommodations, the Visitor Channel Mobile App aims to bridge the gap between traditional tourism and modern digital solutions.”
With an increasing number of travellers seeking more personalized, budget-friendly experiences, small-scale businesses have become key players in the island’s accommodation sector. :
”The app empowers these businesses by acting as both a digital concierge and a marketing tool, helping them reach a wider audience and providing tourists with the information they need to discover local gems”.
The television programming, now supported by the mobile app, also plays a vital role in advancing Saint Lucia’s sustainability goals. Connecting travellers with small businesses and local experiences, fosters a deeper connection between visitors and the island’s vibrant culture, contributing to the long-term success of the tourism ecosystem.

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Meeting the Demand for Real-Time, Personalized Travel Solutions
The Visitor Channel Mobile App was developed in response to significant shifts in the tourism market. With international tourist arrivals reaching 34,895 in November and December 2024—an impressive 27% increase from August 2023—the need for personalized, real-time travel solutions has never been greater. The app is designed to meet this demand, offering personalized, accessible, and instant information at the fingertips of every traveller.
In addition to supporting individual visitors, the app offers an important marketing advantage for Saint Lucia’s growing micro accommodation sector. These small businesses, which may not have the extensive resources of larger competitors, now have the opportunity to enhance their visibility, providing tourists with a comprehensive, interactive experience that promotes local services and attractions.
A Future-Ready Approach to Tourism
The launch of the Visitor Channel Mobile App represents a bold step forward in Saint Lucia’s tourism evolution. While the Visitor Channel Television has been a cornerstone of local tourism marketing since its launch in 2001, the app aligns perfectly with current trends in micro accommodations and the global demand for tech-enabled travel experiences. As mobile applications become essential tools in the global tourism industry, the Visitor Channel Mobile App ensures that Saint Lucia remains competitive in an increasingly digital world.
With record-breaking tourist arrivals and a continued emphasis on regional and international marketing, the Visitor Channel is committed to embracing both traditional media and innovative digital solutions to reach a broader audience. The combination of television and mobile platforms will continue to position Saint Lucia as a leading destination, offering enhanced services to visitors while supporting local businesses and sustainability efforts.

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As the tourism industry in Saint Lucia flourishes in 2025, the Visitor Channel’s legacy of innovation, coupled with the launch of its groundbreaking mobile app, ensures that the island is ready for the future-offering visitors an unforgettable, tech-enabled experience while fostering the growth and success of its tourism ecosystem.
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People Moves: World Insurance Associates Names Miller EVP, National Accounts; Grange Insurance Names Hickman VP, National Underwriting and Business Operations

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World Insurance Associates Names Miller EVP, National Accounts
Adam Miller
World Insurance Associates LLC, headquartered in Iselin, New Jersey, named Adam Miller as its executive vice president, national accounts.
Miller, who is based in Chicago, has nearly 20 years of experience in the insurance industry, specializing in strategic leadership and account management. He most recently served as a managing director and senior account executive at Aon. Before Aon, Miller held leadership roles at Marsh & McLennan Companies.
Grange Insurance Names Hickman VP, National Underwriting and Business Operations
Mike Hickman
Grange Insurance Company, headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, promoted Mike Hickman to vice president, national underwriting and business operations, a role serving on the company’s commercial lines leadership team.
Hickman joined Grange Insurance in 2018 and previously served as assistant vice president, commercial underwriting services Before joining Grange, Hickman worked at Nationwide in various leadership roles in commercial lines underwriting, commercial product and middle market business development.

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Books 2024: A Presidential Biographer’s Personal Love Story

Book: An Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960sAuthor: Doris Kearns GoodwinReviewed by: Paul Varian, Retired CNN Sr. Editor/Exec.Producer@media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-1{min-height: 100px;}}@media ( min-width: 728px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-1{min-height: 90px;}}@media ( min-width: 970px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-1{min-height: 100px;}}
Paul VarianThere’s nothing complicated about what makes this memoir by acclaimed presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin so grippingly appealing.“It covers the history that was made during our lives and it is striking in its glory and tragedy,” said one fan, who happens to be my brother.“An Unfinished Love Story” provides an unflinching, up-close-and-personal record of “the political cauldron of the Sixties,” in Kearns Goodwin’s words.”It is based largely on the massive archive of speeches, drafts, letters, memos, documents and notes warehoused for some 50 years by her husband Richard Goodwin.And brought to life by their decades-long romance and a productive working relationship, professionally detached at times and touchingly intimate at others.@media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-2{min-height: 100px;}}@media ( min-width: 728px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-2{min-height: 90px;}}@media ( min-width: 970px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-2{min-height: 100px;}}
Goodwin was one of the bright young men personally recruited by John F. Kennedy for his “New Frontier” 1960 presidential campaign and subsequent White House staff.He rose through the ranks swiftly and went on to become President Lyndon Johnson’s favorite speechwriter, credited for the rhetorical flourishes of LBJ’s “Great Society” address.Goodwin left the Johnson White House in 1965 in disgust over the Vietnam War and became good friends and a top aide to Robert F. Kennedy after LBJ resigned his office in 1968.“It’s like getting bit by your own dog,” the ex-president told a reporter.Despite her involvement in anti-war protests and one widely read article denouncing U.S. Vietnam policy, Doris Kearns joined LBJ’s staff as a White House Fellow two years after her future husband’s departure, gaining rare Oval Office access and helping LBJ on his own memoir.@media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-3{min-height: 100px;}}@media ( min-width: 728px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-3{min-height: 90px;}}@media ( min-width: 970px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-3{min-height: 100px;}}
Although she later achieved fame for her biographies of Abraham Lincoln and the two Roosevelts, Teddy and FDR — Lyndon Johnson provided Kearns entree as a presidential historian.“My guys,” she affectionally calls them, though Johnson was the only one she ever got to meet.Goodwin’s more than 300 boxes documenting his life’s work along with the personal observations and thoughts became the last project he and his dearest Doris would tackle.The contents alone were like hidden treasure, filled with stories never fully told. Just as interesting, Kearns Goodwin recorded their insightful conversations and sometimes conflicting reactions to what they found.“So long as we were working together, opening boxes, learning, laughing, discussing the contents, we were alive.”In addition, Kearns Goodwin reached out to others from that revolutionary era — movers and shakers along with just plain folks — for their real-time impressions all these years later.In his 80s with his health steadily deteriorating, Goodwin told his doctors, “I want to finish this book before I die.” Such was not to be. His last words to his wife:“You are a wonder.”Her book — their book — makes the case.Editor’s notes: Global Atlanta will receive a 10 percent commission on any purchase of this book through the links on this page. Each year, Global Atlanta asks influential readers and community leaders to review the most impactful book they read during the course of the year. This endeavor has continued annually since 2010.See last year’s full list of books on Bookshop here and see Global Atlanta’s full store, featuring Reader Picks lists going back to 2013 along with lists of books we’ve covered through stories or author talks.All books were chosen and reviews written independently, with only mild editing from our staff.

From the archive:

Books 2024: A Presidential Biographer’s Personal Love Story

Book: An Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960sAuthor: Doris Kearns GoodwinReviewed by: Paul Varian, Retired CNN Sr. Editor/Exec.Producer@media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-1{min-height: 100px;}}@media ( min-width: 728px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-1{min-height: 90px;}}@media ( min-width: 970px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-1{min-height: 100px;}}
Paul VarianThere’s nothing complicated about what makes this memoir by acclaimed presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin so grippingly appealing.“It covers the history that was made during our lives and it is striking in its glory and tragedy,” said one fan, who happens to be my brother.“An Unfinished Love Story” provides an unflinching, up-close-and-personal record of “the political cauldron of the Sixties,” in Kearns Goodwin’s words.”It is based largely on the massive archive of speeches, drafts, letters, memos, documents and notes warehoused for some 50 years by her husband Richard Goodwin.And brought to life by their decades-long romance and a productive working relationship, professionally detached at times and touchingly intimate at others.@media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-2{min-height: 100px;}}@media ( min-width: 728px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-2{min-height: 90px;}}@media ( min-width: 970px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-2{min-height: 100px;}}
Goodwin was one of the bright young men personally recruited by John F. Kennedy for his “New Frontier” 1960 presidential campaign and subsequent White House staff.He rose through the ranks swiftly and went on to become President Lyndon Johnson’s favorite speechwriter, credited for the rhetorical flourishes of LBJ’s “Great Society” address.Goodwin left the Johnson White House in 1965 in disgust over the Vietnam War and became good friends and a top aide to Robert F. Kennedy after LBJ resigned his office in 1968.“It’s like getting bit by your own dog,” the ex-president told a reporter.Despite her involvement in anti-war protests and one widely read article denouncing U.S. Vietnam policy, Doris Kearns joined LBJ’s staff as a White House Fellow two years after her future husband’s departure, gaining rare Oval Office access and helping LBJ on his own memoir.@media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-3{min-height: 100px;}}@media ( min-width: 728px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-3{min-height: 90px;}}@media ( min-width: 970px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-3{min-height: 100px;}}
Although she later achieved fame for her biographies of Abraham Lincoln and the two Roosevelts, Teddy and FDR — Lyndon Johnson provided Kearns entree as a presidential historian.“My guys,” she affectionally calls them, though Johnson was the only one she ever got to meet.Goodwin’s more than 300 boxes documenting his life’s work along with the personal observations and thoughts became the last project he and his dearest Doris would tackle.The contents alone were like hidden treasure, filled with stories never fully told. Just as interesting, Kearns Goodwin recorded their insightful conversations and sometimes conflicting reactions to what they found.“So long as we were working together, opening boxes, learning, laughing, discussing the contents, we were alive.”In addition, Kearns Goodwin reached out to others from that revolutionary era — movers and shakers along with just plain folks — for their real-time impressions all these years later.In his 80s with his health steadily deteriorating, Goodwin told his doctors, “I want to finish this book before I die.” Such was not to be. His last words to his wife:“You are a wonder.”Her book — their book — makes the case.Editor’s notes: Global Atlanta will receive a 10 percent commission on any purchase of this book through the links on this page. Each year, Global Atlanta asks influential readers and community leaders to review the most impactful book they read during the course of the year. This endeavor has continued annually since 2010.See last year’s full list of books on Bookshop here and see Global Atlanta’s full store, featuring Reader Picks lists going back to 2013 along with lists of books we’ve covered through stories or author talks.All books were chosen and reviews written independently, with only mild editing from our staff.

From the archive: