The Tonka truck stopped here

Monroe - Just as there are toy trucks and then there are Tonka trucks, there are grandsons and then there is the grandson of Mona and Burt Rubenstein and Rhonda and Peter Dnistrian of Monroe. Young three-year-old Noah is the winner of Tonka Trucks’ 60th anniversary “Tonka Boy” contest. Last week Tonka delivered more than $3,000 in toys to the boy’s home in Upper Montclair, N.J., home. How does one become the 60th anniversary “Tonka Boy?” According to Mona Rubenstein, Noah’s mother, Barrie Dnistrian, who also is Rubenstein’s daughter, saw the contest on line back in August. Contestants were asked to answer why their child should be the Tonka Boy. Dnistrian’s poem was among five finalists. The winner was chosen following two weeks of online voting. “I also teach business at Monroe and had all my students in my computer class vote for Noah as well as e-mailing our friends and family member to vote, too.,” Rubenstein said. “There really was no contest if you read what other people wrote. I have to say Barrie has the gift of the word and uses it well.” Noah’s parents are both graduates of Monroe-Woodbury High School. Barrie graduated in 1993; she is a lawyer at Dechert, LLP in Manhattan. Joel Dnistrian graduated in 1992; he works for Soleil Securites also in Manhattan. On Dec.7, Tonka came with a truck that was specially built to deliver Noah his prize. His mother invited Noah’s nursery school friends to come and share in his winnings. Each child was invited to sit in the truck and honk the horn. The Dnistrians are donating most of the toys to Noah’s nursery school and Winter Wishes, which provides toys and clothes for families living in shelters. Here is Barrie Dnistrian’s award-winning entry: Tonka Boy Poem My Tonka boy loves trucks and trains, construction rigs and fast jet planes. Tow trucks, dump trucks, tractors too, he waves at cranes with a working crew. His eyes light up at digging sites, where concrete crushers show their might. Oil tankers, plows for snow, he loves the strength of a big backhoe. His sister’s dolls or frilly stuff is hardly tough or rough enough. My Tonka boy loves trucks of steel, with monster tires and giant wheels. He’s rough and tumble, loud and fast, his lightening wit will make you laugh. You’ll never know what you’re in for, he’s a true spitfire right to the core. Both bright and beaming, tried and true, he keeps us running, the whole day through. And while my boy is only three, a Tonka boy he’ll always be.