ASBURY PARK PRESS

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THURSDAY 12.24.15

Readers share their best holiday light displays. Luxury Living, 1D

MERRY AND BRIGHT

Mike Conway, seen here at Raceway Park,

was murdered at his Freehold Township
home in 2011.

Being Santa means having the right answers, patience,

a heart of gold and a real snowy white beard

YES, N.J., THERE IS

A SANTA CLAUS

Two more men

charged in
Freehold Twp.
murder, arson
STEPH SOLIS @STEPHMSOLIS

FREEHOLD More than four years after a Freehold

mans body was found in his burning home, two more
people have been charged with his murder during what
authorities now reveal was a string of home-invasion
robberies in Monmouth County.
Ranu Sinha, 36, of Precedent Place, Manalapan, and
Ellis W. Goodson, 38, of Newgate Lane, Neptune, were
arrested Tuesday and appeared in Superior Court on
Wednesday on charges related to the home invasions
and the murder of Michael Conway.
Sinha and Goodson both pleaded not guilty to the
charges in a brief appearance before Superior Court
Judge Joseph W. Oxley.
Authorities said Conway, 42, a union laborer and
race-car enthusiast, was killed when men broke into his
single-family-home at 200 Jackson Mills Road in Freehold and set it ablaze on July 31, 2011. Conways live-in
girlfriend, who has never been identified, escaped
through a bedroom window and ran to the home of a
See CHARGES, Page 4A

PHOTOS BY DAVID GARD/CORRESPONDENT

HELPING HANDS

Ava Vanderburgh, 5, of Toms River talks about her wish list with Santa at the Ocean County Mall.

ERIK LARSEN @ERIK_LARSEN

One week ago, the line to see Santa Claus

at the Ocean County Mall in Toms River included two women who were obviously
much too old to be telling the man from the
North Pole what they wanted for Christmas.
They had come clutching a portrait of a
child, and the two women were the childs
mother and grandmother, said the man with
the white beard, in the red suit.
This was the second time this year, people have brought in pictures in a frame
of a deceased child, he explained. And
they said, this child just passed away.
Would you hold the picture so we can get a
picture with Santa? Its heartbreaking and
Ive had that twice this year.
Its an example that no matter what the
age, the symbolism and faith that people
project on Saint Nicholas is real.
After nine years of playing the role at the
Ocean County Mall Santa Dave, as he
asked to be identified said he is as prepared as one can be to address such sensitive issues.
Hes one of between 350 and 400 Santa
Clauses working nationwide for the Noerr
Programs Corporation, said spokeswoman
Ruth Rosenquist.
We seek out gentlemen with huge
hearts, that possess a love for the holidays
and enjoy working with children, she said.
Fulfilling the role of Santa is a calling.
Noerr Santas range in age from 40 to 80,

MARK R. SULLIVAN/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Jackson Memorial High School track athlete Clayton Engle

works out with teammates during an afternoon practice at
the school on Dec. 18.

Readers pitch in
to help give teens
the gift of vision
RYAN ROSS @RROSSAPP

See SANTA, Page 4A

Best Santa contest

Ava approaches Santa. See more photos at APP.com.

Weve searched high and low, read reader suggestions and determined, once and for all, the
identity of N.J.s best Santa Claus. Jersey Alive!

We create magic all over the place. The most important trait of a
Santa is that he has a Santa heart.
LIZ VOSS,
DIVISION MANAGER WITH NOERR PROGRAMS CORPORATION, WHO SUPERVISES ABOUT 30 SANTA CLAUSES IN THE TRI-STATE AREA

Editors note: This is an installment in the Asbury

Park Press Helping Hands series, in which we publish the stories of those at the Shore who find themselves
in need during the holidays and beyond and ask our
readers to provide what help they can.
Clayton and Rachel Engle are about to get the best
Christmas present the gift of sight thanks to the
generosity of the community.
The Jackson Township siblings high school sophomore Clayton and his sister Rachel, an eighth-grader,
are both affected by Stargardt Disease, a rare eye condition that causes a gradual loss of vision. Special goggles exist that correct the limitations of Stargardt, but
the $15,000 price tag of these special devices originally
pushed the dream of vision out of reach for the Engles.
But thanks to a GoFundMe fundraising drive started
by their classmates, 260 people donated a total of
$23,000 to Claytons account in 14 days. That effort was
See VISION, Page 4A

Police halt Black Lives rally

that started at Mall of
America. STORY, 1B

ADVICE
CLASSIFIED
COMICS
LOCAL
LUXURY LIVING

5D
1E
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3A
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OBITUARIES
OPINION
SPORTS
WEATHER
YOUR MONEY

8A
11A
1C
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6A

VOLUME 136

To see a video about the

NUMBER 307

Engle siblings, visit

SINCE 1879

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