How you adequately describe someone who has lived in every ward in town, served her community in some capacity for over four decades and now lives high above the docks her grandfather once worked?

Kim Glatt has seen Hoboken transform from the town where the lunchtime go-to-spot was Blimpie, into the go-to-city for food connoisseurs near and far. And for those of us who believed that the current Blimpie location (First and Washington) is the “original store”, Kim has this to offer, “Wrong! The Original Blimpie was on 6^th and Washington.”

My apologies to the B&R’s reading this. I’ve only lived here since 2004.

After speaking with Kim (also known as Judge, Esquire, daughter and mother to other fellow Hobokenites) for some time you soon realize just how much more she knows about our community and history than most of our neighbors. That’s probably because she and the many generations of her family are currently the longest tenured family in Hoboken.

“I grew up on First and Monroe but have pretty much lived in every ward in town.” For those of you not following local elections, that totals six. That doesn’t necessarily mean that she prefers one location over another. “I love every neighborhood in Hoboken but wherever I live is where I tend to settle in.” Which should make the owners of Zylo very, very happy. “They have great food and they deliver!” she laughs since Zylo sometimes serves as room service for her and her family.

As if having a popular steakhouse right downstairs wasn’t enough to entice a move to the W Hotel a few years ago, “You can’t beat the commute, either.” After serving for fifteen years as the Presiding Municipal Judge of Hoboken (and the first full-time female judge in city history), she decided to go into private practice, opening a full service law firm in town. Located at 235 Hudson Street, the office has been open since November 2010.

When asked about the craziest thing she saw while serving as the town judge she quickly replied, “My first week on the job I presided over the infamous Big Head Case which involved a pit bull mauling a Weehawken woman. It gained national attention, was an emotional case and was certainly an interesting way to begin my role as judge.”

Divorce, increasingly common, often results in families being called before the courts. “Law is especially tough when it concerns families,” said Glatt. That is one of the reasons she and her team are working hard to become known as a legal group that helps build families. Whether it’s through facilitating adoptions or helping families through tough transitions (divorce, illness, etc.) she and her firm work to help people create new, healthy and lasting families.  “In particular when it comes to divorce it’s important for everyone involved to try to understand that they’re not necessarily losing their family. Instead they have to focus on how to create a different kind of family  -- even if that seems impossible at first.”

Hoboken has no adoption agencies or homestudies groups for people looking to adopt, and this is one area in which Mrs. Glatt hopes to further help the community through her practice. “Social Media has changed the landscape greatly and people are using it to help adoptive parents and parents who have had to give up their children. It helps connect people to others who are going through similar situations.” She’d like to help connect these people in town and create an adoptive community here in the real world, not just online.

Its important to remember that there is no such thing as the “ideal” family.  There are all kinds of families, and Hoboken is no exception. With more same-sex couples, interracial and interfaith marriages, old social norms and standards can no longer dictate how people live their lives and form their families. This includes peoples’ beliefs about adoption.

Once considered taboo and only whispered about in private, people from all aspects and sides of adoption can now open up and connect with other people more easily. “By creating a world that’s more accepting and by organizing events such as this past year’s adoption forum we can help lots of people relate and connect to others who have had similar experiences in their lives.”

Mrs. Glatt and other individuals involved in adoption also want people to remember that while many people want to adopt a baby there are plenty of toddlers, children and teenagers that need homes.  People need love at any age.  “One compassionate adult can make a huge, positive difference.”

In my humble opinion and as someone whose adoption into a warm, loving family was the blessing of a lifetime, I agree with her completely and encourage anyone considering adoption to contact her office as soon as possible.

Every week hMAG posts Faces articles featuring someone from the community because, after all, hMAG is all about the community.

Do you know someone we should interview for an upcoming article? Pitch your idea to editorial@hmag.com and we might include you or someone you know on hmag.com or an upcoming issue of the magazine!

All candidates MUST live or work in Hoboken and agree to have their picture posted.