NJ Cops Dec18 | Page 32

Keep on Truckin’ Flemington Car & Truck Country increases its support for the NJ State PBA n BY MITCHELL KRUGEL n PHOTOS BY ED CARATTINI JR. Steve Kalafer came to the NJ State PBA meeting on Dec. 4 to offer a fairly significant gift to the membership. The owner of Flemington Car & Truck Country, Kalafer has become one of law enforcement’s greatest supporters and has donated more than $150,000 to the NJSPBA Survivor & Welfare Fund the past four years. But this time, Kalafer even outdid himself. Along with Jerry Sheehan, the general manager emeritus of the Flemington fam- ily of brands, Kalafer’s son Josh and salesman Tom Santangelo, a retired Raritan Township Local 337 member, Kalafer presented the new Ford F-350 truck his company is donating to the PBA to haul its renowned Special Services trailer to law enforcement events across the country. What he didn’t expect to find at the meeting were the thou- sands of toys members had carried in that day for the annual PBA Toy Drive. Swept up in the spirit, Kalafer asked Josh to fig- ure out a way to instantaneously support the PBA Toy Drive. So before getting to the truck, he announced a donation of 50 Kindle Fire Alexa-enabled tablets to New Jersey Foster and Adoptive Family Services, the beneficiary of the PBA Toy Drive. And he committed that if those 50 could be provided to young adults to support their educational advancement, Flemington would donate an additional 50 Kindles. “I did not expect to see the work and thoughtfulness and de- cency that you all put into this toy drive,” Kalafer told the mem- bers. “It upsets me greatly that there are people out there – pan- derers and pimps – who, when it comes to doing the right thing for law enforcement, trade out headlines or a statement that put you and your families in danger.” Then he made his own statement about what brought him here, about what motivated his presentation of the new truck, a bevy of Kindles and a whole lot more. “You know, I get a lot of phone calls from elected officials who ask me to be quiet about my support for you,” he continued. “Well, I’m not going to be quiet.” The statement of support seemed to draw an even greater ovation than the donation of the truck and Kindles. “There’s people who say they support law enforcement, but they don’t put their money where their mouth is,” praised PBA President Pat Colligan. “Steve has not only given us a truck but he’s also donated to the trailer. And his generosity doesn’t stop there. He said it. There are people who want him to be quiet. And supporting law enforcement is not the most popular busi- ness decision in 2018. But that’s not his concern. His concern is to know the women and men in blue are appreciated.” The new truck is being fully outfitted with every detail to facilitate the cross-country trips that the PBA makes with the trailer to the funerals for line-of-duty deaths with the utmost comfort for members who are part of the team. And the value of that support is almost immeasurable. “It’s going to extend our range and be a much better and more comfortable platform for those who journey to support their brothers and sisters to work from,” noted PBA Special Projects 32 NEW JERSEY COPS ■ DECEMBER 2018 Flemington Car & Truck Country owner Steve Kalafer presents a picture of the new Ford F-350 truck his dealership is donating to the PBA to pull its Special Services trailer. The PBA presented Flemington Car & Truck Country with a special plaque in appreciation of its ongoing support. Coordinator John Hulse, who leads many of the PBA expedi- tions with the trailer. “Flemington’s generosity will help us take a great thing and make it even greater.” For all the support from Flemington Car & Truck Country, the PBA wanted to make its own gift of appreciation. Colligan presented the Flemington team with a plaque of the PBA logo mounted on the Ford logo outline, a hand-carved message of thanks on a second plaque and a cache of challenge coins. Kalafer reminded members that he will be back for the PBA Mini Convention in March, where he has doubled the total for the 50/50 giveaway the past two years. And after inviting law enforcement officers to the dealership the last Saturday of every quarter for special deals, he offered one last thank-you note. “We want to spread the message of what you do in New Jer- sey, and we want to provide the substance to back you up,” Ka- lafer declared. “We respect you and we want nothing to get in the way of your work.”