News

Sorry New York. I’ll Take New Jersey ANY DAY

It’s not secret that I’m an avid supporter of my home state. Why wouldn’t I be? Sure, I do a ton of my business in New York City; I’m in the city 1-5 days a week.
I bounce around between clubs, fundraisers, fashion events, retail or corporate gigs. When Fashion Week, shows or big events comes, forget about it my car sleeps in a parking deck. I grew up a suburban kid, and I’ll probably want to raise my family the same way: close enough to New York where they can enjoy it for what it has to offer, but far enough that we can enjoy PEACE and QUIET. New York It is a cultural mecca and there’s no doubt about it. But, I never understood the snootiness and attitude that I got whenever someone asked me where I was from and I said: “Jersey.” It’s like we don’t classify you and say “oh you’re from NY so you must be an asshole.” So step back with your attitude and check yourselves because New York is NOT the #1 place to raise children…. New Jersey Is.

Released by the Foundation for Child Development, the annual Child Well Being Index (CWI) is a state-by-state comparison of quality of life for kids.
The report weighs 28 indicators in seven categories, from family economic well-being and health to emotional/spiritual well-being.
New Jersey Ranked Number ONE in the Country!

That’s right… New Jersey. The state people LOVE to HATE.
The state famous for our shore. We don’t have a Vegas, but we have AC.
We don’t have a Freedom Tower, but we have Hoboken and downtown Jersey City. New Jersey had JAMBA JUICE and Whole Foods before New Yorkers knew who or what those chains were.
We may not have Gross Point or Bel Air (wait… yes we do… my home town of LIVINGSTON NEW JERSEY has Bel Air and shouts to my new townie Ivanka Trump). and we have a ton of other GREAT
places to live and raise kids that are low on crime and have incredible Blue Ribbon School Systems.
New Jersey has 5 of the Top 100 Golf Courses in the WORLD to play at… including the #1 Golf Course in the World: Pine Valley.
We have one of the best State Colleges to go to: Rutgers University and although our taxes need a little work… it’s all worth it when you consider our college tuition and the education that one can receive in our public school system.

New Jersey…. I love You.

You can read the entire Child Well Being Index for all the details, but here are some of the highlights: Overall, the report found that higher levels of child well-being are directly related to tax rates and the amount of money available for social and education programs. Quelle shock. The South and Southwest on the whole did the worst, while the East Coast and upper Midwest dominated the top 10. The West Coast didn’t score so fabulously either — my beloved home state of California only ranked at number 30. The five states with the BEST child well-being scores are …

1. New Jersey
2. Massachusetts
3. New Hampshire
4. Utah
5. Connecticut

Read the entire report by clicking here”