West Caldwell Resident, Family Court Judge, Honored For Service

WEST CALDWELL, NJ — A university news release originally reported that Marcella Matos Wilson of West Caldwell was from West Orange. Patch has updated the below article to reflect the correction.

Caldwell University recently celebrated the professional accomplishments of three of its alumni at its annual Veritas Awards Dinner for 2018, including Marcella Matos Wilson, a family court judge and former prosecutor who lives in West Caldwell.

According to university administrators, the Veritas Award is “the highest honor the college bestows on its alumni for their professional excellence in diverse fields.”

The following biographies of this year’s honorees comes via Caldwell University:

MARCELLA (MARCIE) MATOS WILSON

Marcella (Marcie) Matos Wilson ’87 of West Caldwell, New Jersey received the Excellence in Family Law award. Wilson is a judge for the Family Division of the Vicinage 5 Superior Court in New Jersey, which presides over Essex County. She previously served as a prosecutor in Fairfield and Bloomfield, New Jersey. She is active in the community and has served as a member of the board of directors of the Fairview Lake YMCA Camps. Wilson holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Caldwell and a law degree from Seton Hall University. She received the Essex County Prosecutor’s Eagle Award for her outstanding contributions to crime victims and their families.

EVELYN (LYN) FERRARA MAJOR

Evelyn (Lyn) Ferrara Major ’68 received the Excellence in Dominican Charism award. She holds a bachelor’s in sociology from Caldwell and a master’s in education (rehabilitation counseling) from Seton Hall University. She is the founder and administrator of Every Child Counts at St. Francis de Sales Church in Abaco in the Bahamas, which provides an alternative education for children with learning, developmental or physical disabilities. After she and her husband adopted twin boys with special needs, they realized there was no special needs program in Abaco, so they decided to start one and ECC was born. Today ECC offers students education, vocational business internships and job opportunities. ECC also operates Starfish Enterprises, an on-site training center that produces soap and handmade gift items for sale and is one of the first facilities of its kind in the Bahamas.

JON CALLAHAN

Jon Callahan ’04 of Nutley, New Jersey received the Excellence in Entrepreneurship award. Callahan is the founder of Launch Snowboards, an international brand widely viewed as a game changer in the industry. He rides himself, demonstrating his company’s commitment to research and testing and to producing premium performance products. A competitive snowboarder in high school, Callahan gave up a lucrative professional touring opportunity to study at Caldwell. He snowboarded professionally while a student at Caldwell, competing at major contest series such as the U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix, a U.S. Olympic team qualifying event. In 2010, he ranked among the top 100 snowboarders worldwide. He is a member of the highly selective, invitation-only Young Entrepreneur Council. He serves on the advisory board of Brainguard Technologies, a firm working to reduce traumatic brain injuries and chronic traumatic encephalopathy through design of a multi-shell helmet safety system. He holds a bachelor’s in business administration with a minor in marketing and graphic design from Caldwell.

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Photos: Caldwell University

Caption: Caldwell University President Nancy Blattner , 2nd row middle and the Caldwell Veritas Committee members along with the 2018 Veritas award winners, Evelyn Ferrara Major (first row, 2nd from left), Jon Callahan (first row, middle) , Marcella (Marcie) Matos Wilson (first row, 2nd from right).