Officials hold the line in health-care costs in 2007 Township plays hardball with Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield BY PATRICIA A. MILLER Staff Writer       Councilman Stephen C. Acropolis told one of Brick Township’s health insurance brokers earlier this year that he wanted a “zero” increase in health-care premium costs in 2007. He got what he wanted. Township officials have managed to hold the line, bucking a national trend of... More ... Defying gravity       Steve Christensen, 18, Brick, works on some moves at the Brick skate park on a very mild Christmas Eve. More ... Family, friends mourn loss of gutsy young boy Mass, memorial service to be held Friday for 12-year-old Austin Troy Call BY PATRICIA A. MILLER Staff Writer       Austin Troy Call’s short life wasn’t easy.He was diagnosed with neurofibromatosis shortly after he was born in Idaho in August 1993. He spent the first six weeks of his life in the hospital. By the time he was 3, he had already undergone numerous surgeries. More ... Life on the front in the War Between the States Union soldiers’ letters home provide poignant glimpse into Civil War BY PATRICIA A. MILLER Staff Writer       Cpl. Aaron Elmer had already had his share of tragedy when he volunteered to fight for the Union cause in the fall of 1862. His young wife, Mary, had died in March of that year at age 21, leaving him with two young daughters. They had already lost a son in infancy. More ... Council members trade barbs over mayor pick       BRICK TOWNSHIP — The gloves are off. Township Councilwoman Kathy Russell, the lone Democrat on the governing body, and her Republican counterparts sparred over how to select the next mayor at the Dec. 21 Township Council meeting. More ... High hopes       Christopher Rush, 16, Brick, shows off his skills at the Brick skate park on a balmy Christmas Eve last week. More ... 2006 in photos      SCOTTPILLING staff Light sculptor Chris Freeman at his workshop discusses the properties of argon and neon. He displayed his works on “Flow Fabric/Woven Light” at the Ocean County Library in Toms River. More ... Police Beat       All items in Police Beat are taken from police department records. All suspects are presumed innocent until found guilty in court. Police responded to the Ocean Medical Suite, C-1 on Jack Martin Boulevard at 11:38 a.m. on Dec. 15, after employees called in to report an unknown odor... More ...