COMMISSIONER YRAIDA APONTE-LIPSKI

Yraida Aponte-Lipski always had a passion for public service, particularly public health. From an early age, while living in the Dominican Republic, she witnessed families and her community suffer from inadequate healthcare. She decided to do something about it, so she went to dental school, but dental school became too financially burdensome for her family. Yraida came to the United States seeking educational and economic opportunities. She worked during the day and attended school at night. Yraida’s hard work paid off. She earned an Associate of Applied Science degree in dental hygiene, a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology, and a Master of Public Health degree. Yraida puts this knowledge to work for the good of our community.

Yraida was a professor and clinical instructor at Eastern International College in Journal Square. She received many praises and awards for the work she did to promote health care in our community. One clear example of her work in the community was the ongoing partnerships she arranged with local schools and senior citizen residences to have their populations go to Eastern International College for free dental screenings and cleanings. Currently, Yraida is the Central Regional Coordinator for the New Jersey Department of Health’s Children’s Oral Health Program, which is comprised of nine counties.

Yraida is an active member of the Hispanic Dental Association and the New Jersey Dental Hygiene Association, where she sits on a committee that advocates for improved dental services for seniors and children.

Yraida is an ethical person. One of the courses she taught at Eastern International College was Ethics and Law. She loved teaching this course because it gave her an opportunity to share with her students’ ways to live and grow ethically. Yraida, also, attends and volunteers at her church on a regular basis, putting into practice what she believes.  

Married since 1993 to former councilman Steve Lipski, they have resided in Commissioner District 4 since 1995. Yraida had served as the elected Democratic Committeewoman in Ward C, District 23 for many terms. She currently is Sergeant at Arms for the Jersey City Democratic Organization. She is a member of the Friends of Liberty State Park, Serra Club, and Loyal Order of the Moose. She was awarded the “Service Above Self” community service award from the Rotary Club of Jersey City, and she was an honoree for the Jersey City St. Patrick’s Day Parade Committee, the Jersey City Dominican Parade Committee, the Jersey City West Indian Caribbean-American Carnival Association, and the Philippine American Friendship Community (PAFCOM) parade committee. Her activity in the community is what has prompted her to want to seek elected office.

Yraida has worked hard in our community. She has shown what hard work can achieve. She wants to continue to put her talent and skills to use for the people of Commissioner District 4.

Working For The People of Jersey City

Yraida has lived most of her adult life as a public servant. It’s the way she was raised. Since joining the Board of Commissioners of Hudson County, she has tried her best to make sure her constituents understand how our local, county, state, and federal government work and made herself accessible through newsletters, office appointments, email, and phone. She truly wants to hear from and work hard for you.

Since becoming a commissioner, she has attended every caucus, budget, and actual meeting, except one. She also serves on the County Planning Board as well as several committees. Having served as a committee person helped prepare her for this responsibility, but she has sure learned a lot and will continue to learn as her term goes forward. She’s grateful for all your feedback; it has been very helpful.

Being raised by a hard working-class family and having known poverty firsthand, she doesn’t romanticize it; she deals with it. She works closely with County Executive Craig Guy, her colleagues on the Board of Commissioners, the Hudson County Department of Housing and Reintegration, and many non-profits to assist those less fortunate gain access to services and resources. In addition, she started a food distribution pantry at St. Nicholas Roman Catholic Church in the Heights section of Jersey City.  While, as the saying goes, we can always do better, know that many initiatives are in place to help.

Coming from the Dominican Republic, a land rich with open space, Yraida appreciates open space and wants to see as much as possible here. Since becoming a commissioner, she has been working with the Jersey City Parks Coalition, Essex-Hudson Greenway Project, park associations, and open space advocates to maximize open space and find money to obtain additional open space or improve upon the space we already have. Being on the Hudson County Planning Board allows her to work closely with planners responsible for our open space and have input on grant funding.

Quality education is essential to our community. The County does not have any jurisdiction over the Jersey City Public Schools, but it has schools of its own, which are controlled by an independent school board, even though funding for these schools comes from the County Executive and the Hudson County Board of Commissioners. Our county schools are highly competitive, and families have reached out to Yraida for assistance navigating the process of admissions, which she has done and will continue to do.

Several quality-of-life issues she’s been working on are the reduction of helicopter traffic, cleanliness (particularly on Kennedy Boulevard), snow removal (particularly in the Heights and Journal Square), appropriate traffic safety improvements to JFK (Kennedy) Boulevard from Pavonia Avenue to St. Paul’s Avenue, and an approximately 3-acre park at the Brennan Courthouse. If there are quality-of-life issues that have not been mentioned, please reach out, and she’ll do her best to assist.

Lastly, Yraida has been very involved in our community, registering voters, attending neighborhood meetings, assisting at cleanups, gardening, attending National Night Out (police-community partnering), marching in parades, and taking part in festivals and special events. In fact, she was an honorary grand marshal for the West Indian-Caribbean American Carnival Association and the Philippine American Friendship Community (PAFCOM).