Freeholder Rayland Van Blake
Freeholder Rayland Van Blake comes to the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders with a broad background in financial analysis, having worked for two top tier financial institutions, Citigroup and Deutsche Bank as a specialist in global markets. Freeholder Van Blake has also worked as a pricing analyst for American Standard, a leading global manufacturer. While completing his education, Freeholder Van Blake interned with Johnson & Johnson Consumer Products Inc., where he worked on statistical analysis projects, and interned with Price Waterhouse LLP. Freeholder Van Blake is serving his first term on the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders, to which he was elected in November, 2007. He plans to use his financial background to help expand Union County’s recent efforts to promote shared services agreements among the county’s 21 municipalities, creating a stronger platform for local governments to build new efficiencies into their operations and control costs. In addition to focusing on economic development countywide, Freeholder Van Blake also strongly supports important quality of life services, including the renovation of Cedar Brook, Echo Lake, and other County parks, as well as paratransit, Meals-on-Wheels, the Senior Home Improvement Program, and other services for the elderly and disabled. Another priority is transportation improvements such as the new County-run shuttle bus on Route 22. A lifelong resident of Plainfield, Freeholder Van Blake was elected to the Plainfield City Council in 2002 by an overwhelming 2-1 margin. He served as the City Council President and in 2006 he served as Chairman of the Committee as a Whole. During his tenure at City Council he focused on economic development projects in Plainfield such as the new Senior Center, the Seidler Field and Rushmore Park public pools renovations, and the Park-Madison Redevelopment project. Freeholder Van Blake attended Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania on a Lehigh Football Scholarship and a Jack Barnett Academic Scholarship. He spent his junior year studying abroad at the University of Nottingham in Nottingham, England, and received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Finance from Lehigh University in 1998. Freeholder Van Blake works professionally as an actor and has appeared on television and in advertisements.