Joan May, President Elect of Chatham-Madison Kiwanis Organized the Annual Christmas Program Held December 21

Kiwanis President-Elect Joan May was introduced by President Dick Plambeck. Joan introduced Kiwanis volunteer speakers who had prepared special Christmas remembrances and games. She was very happy to see the huge attendance by members and spouses. At the start of the meeting, Bob Stannard led everyone in singing Christmas carols.



Ron Whalin, Nancy Boucher, Joan May, Karen Swartz and Dick Plambeck

Christmas 1776

Karen, an advocate of New Jersey revolutionary war history, asked everyone to think back to the Christmas of 1776. George Washington crossed the Delaware to win the battle of Trenton. Shortly afterward, soldier enlistments were running out and Washington’s small army was about to return to their homes. Washington needed to convey to his troops the urgency of the situation and he asked them to stay. Karen read Washington’s inspiring words. The army responded with loyalty, staying on through the cold winter. (Click here to read the words from Winter Soldiers by Richard Ketchum.) She spoke these words to let all know that we can draw inspiration from our great leaders of the past and that we can all do our part.

Christmas Song Game

Ex-teacher Nancy Boucher distributed to everyone a game sheet (a kind of quiz). The page had a list of hints for Christmas Songs. Nancy read the hints one-by-one and people shouted out the answers. Everyone had a grand time playing this game. (Click here to see a copy of the game with the answers.)

A Christmas Poem

Karen Swartz spoke again and read a poem that Jim Baker had asked her to read. “I have a list of folks I know, all written in a book, and every year at Christmas Time I go and take a look ….” (Click here to read the entire poem). Karen said that Jim Baker wanted her to offer the poem, as a Christmas greeting, to each and every one of you.

TubaChrismas

Ron Whalin described TubaChristmas events held around the USA. The first one was held December 22, 1974 on the ice-skating rink at Rockefeller Center in NYC. Over 500 tuba players (who usually “get no respect”) gather every year on the ice to play a full program of Christmas carols. The movement has grown to over 240 events held around the USA every year. (Click here to visit the TubaChristmas website.)

Ron and his wife Bert drive a couple of hours to Reading, PA every year to enjoy the TubaChristmas held at Gring’s Mill. It is held in the second story of an old stone barn where about 50 tuba, euphonium, and baritone musicians play carols and tell jokes. The fireplace and crowded room make for a cozy, pleasant experience for families. Many Holiday Lights are also displayed outside in the park. Ron showed several short video clips from the December 10 concert. (Click here to see a YouTube video of TubaChristmas in Reading.)

Christmas Sugar Cookies

Joan May was the last story-teller, speaking about the joy of Christmas cookies. She remembered her mother baking Christmas cookies and every day when Joan came home from school, the cookies smelled better and better. Joan said, “The cookies that stood out in my mind and that I loved the best were the sugar cookies that were shaped as Christmas trees, Santa, wreaths, even cartoon characters, etc. We iced them with different colors and then Mom hung them on the tree.”

Joan’s Mom enlisted her at the age of six to help ice the cookies, so her cookie-making talents developed at an early age. From that time on, cookies were an important part of Joan’s Christmas’. There were some years without cookies after her Mom stopped baking. (Joan’s sister and brother were not into cooking).

Joan wanted this tradition to be known by her grandchildren. For the last 14 years she made and hung the cookies on the tree. About halfway through this period she wondered whether anyone else really cared about the cookies.

Then, about five years ago at the funeral of an uncle, Joan’s cousin came up to her and told her that a favorite memory was “being able to pick a cookie from the tree and taking it home.”

With that encouragement, she was renewed and continued baking cookies. As she baked and decorated 10 dozen this year (18 hours of icing), she wondered if she was “getting too old for this.” Then Joan’s young grandson visited her and he looked at the brightly lit tree. Staring at the tree he said, “Grandma, didn’t you make cookies this year?” Joan said she is now encouraged for at least another five years. The good thing is that she is giving her granddaughters cookie cutters for Christmas.

Next, Joan announced that she had brought along a dozen cookies in a box to present to some lucky person in the audience. At the beginning of the Kiwanis Christmas meeting, as members and guests arrived, they were given a tree-shaped memento decorated with a single Christmas ornament. The person who held the tree with the “star ornament” would win the box of delicious sugar cookies. AD Dudderar was that lucky winner.



Announcements: Kiwanis December 21 Breakfast Meeting at Charlie Brown’s in Chatham



The annual Christmas meeting started with everyone singing Christmas carols: Jingle Bells, Hark the Herald Angels Sing and Joy to the World. Next, Stu Shippey reported that there are only about 10 items left from the Holiday Nut Sale. This is the end of the sale, which was very successful. Income exceeded budget. He thanked members for their guidance and help.



Dick Plambeck (left) thanked Alan Nekoukar.

Alan Nekoukar, manager of Charlie Brown’s Restaurant in Chatham Twp., was recognized and thanked by President Dick Plambeck for the excellent service and food he and his staff provided at Kiwanis meetings today and over the many years. Alan thanked the club members and acknowledged his Charlie Brown’s workers who did such a great job. 



December 14 Program: Tim Butler, Co-Director of Green Vision, Spoke on the Recycling Program Staffed by Autistic Workers.

Tim Butler described Green Vision, which is the electronics recycling program affiliated with The Allegro School in Morris Knolls. The workers are Autistic developmentally disabled students and adults.

Valerie Olpp introduced Tim Butler who spoke about Green Vision, an electronics recycling organization

Green Vision is now incorporated, has 501(c)3 status and has its own board of directors.  Work continues to be done at the Allegro School but will move to a new building in Morris Plains. Workers take electronic equipment apart and ship it to companies for processing. The new facility will provide higher end training and employment for students and adults.

Arrangements have been made with several major corporations (e.g. Cantor Fitzgerald, ADP, etc. ) to supply discarded computers and other electronics to Green Vision. Green Vision can accept anything with a cord except for Televisions and Computer Monitors.

PC Problems, LLC in Madison serves as a location for collecting electronics discarded by Madison residents. Click here to learn more. The items are then delivered to Green Vision for recycling. Green Vision also handles New Vernon Township. Discussions are also underway with Chatham Township.

Over a period of one year, Green Vision recycled 101,000 pounds of materials. Just this morning, Tim collected 14,000 pounds of electronics. Autistic workers love the program and the staff.

Tim asked Kiwanis to encourage contacts who might have electronics to dispose of to get in touch with him at Green Vision. Click here to go to the Green Vision website.

Announcements: Kiwanis December 14 Meeting at Charlie Brown’s in Chatham

President Dick Plambeck reminded members to let Kiwanis know if their email address, phone number, etc. changes. Stu gave an update on the nuts project. He said sales are going well and his sales goal will be met by the end of the month. Members were urged to buy/sell as many as possible.

Betty Anne Keat said that a CHS Key Club officers’ meeting will be held in Rich Yar’s office at 10:45am on Friday 12/17 (editorial note: this was moved to Thursday). Dick told members that the CHS Key Club asked Kiwanis to submit an ad for the “Gen Rocks” concert program. Members approved purchasing a full page ad.

Joan May announced that sign-up sheets were placed on tables to get a count of the number of members and guests who will attend next week’s annual Christmas meeting, which will be a breakfast at Charlie Brown’s. Dick announced that a board meeting will follow next week’s the breakfast meeting. He also announced that the District Mid-Winter conference will be held Saturday, January 29 at the Somerset Crown Plaza.

Karen Swartz announced that members should start work on finding Tricky Tray items for the “Wines from Around the World” Wine-Tasting event. Detailed Tricky Tray info will be sent to members via email.

Heather Alonge announced that ECLC students will be presenting their Christmas program, “Rhythms of the Season” on Thursday at 12:30 pm.

Kiwanis NJ District Governor Marc Litwack with Nancy Boucher at the December 14, 2010 breakfast meeting held at Charlie Brown’s restaurant.

NJ District Governor Marc Litwack attended the club meeting. This is his first club visit since he suffered a bad fall six months ago in which he was seriously injured. Marc is a member of the Chatham-Madison Kiwanis Club. We admire his determination as he recovers after 9 months at Kessler Rehab and resumes his responsibilities as District Governor. He wished the club continued success enriching the family of man and serving the children of the world.

Colonel Amos Chalif and his wife Margaret attended the meeting. He holds dual club membership and we were happy to see them.

Amos and Margaret Chalif at Charlie Brown's Restaurant in Chatham Twp.

Dot Libman, Director of the ECLC of NJ P.R.I.D.E., Presents Program at December 7 Meeting.

At the December 7 Kiwanis Luncheon, Dot Libman described the newest ECLC of NJ program for helping adults with developmental disabilities. Called P.R.I.D.E., the initials stand for Promoting Responsibility, Independence, Decision-making and Employability.

Left front, Kim Paxton; back (L to R), Heather Alonge, Oni Struthers, Dot Libman and Dick Plambeck.

The state of New Jersey covers needs of special education students up until the age of 21, after which they are no longer eligible. PRIDE extends services beyond graduation from ECLC schools. Some funds are available through self-directed day services and ECLC’s clients have chosen PRIDE to be their agency. Areas of concentration include social skills, community skills, vocational skills and independent living skills (e.g. laundry and food preparation). The goal is to help clients lead the most fulfilling life that they can. Clients have a variety of cognitive and physical disabilities, including Autism, Down syndrome and others. PRIDE is happy to have visitors and volunteers.

Funding is through NJ state for “usage”. Contributions are needed for investments in facilities like buildings, vans, etc. PRIDE started 26 months ago as a day-care center with 18 clients and 2 staff members. It has grown to 61 clients and 14 staff. There are multiple programs: PRIDE 1, PRIDE 2, PEP (PRIDE Evening Program) and PRIDECO (providing career opportunities). For example, PRIDECO just started a packaging center for Tiffany & Co. e-commerce. PRIDECO is also planning a shredding business. The goal is for clients to spend their day at PRIDE in multiple programs, not languishing in their homes. PRIDE clients are transported by Access Link, a service by NJ Transit for people with disabilities.

PRIDE clients can choose their own mix of programs. Clients perform a lot of volunteer work and they feel good about doing it. Dot introduced two clients, Oni Struthers in PRIDE 1 and Kim Paxton in PRIDE 2, to tell Kiwanians about their experiences.

They described their PRIDE daily activities and goals. Today, Oni did a session of Yoga and then went to the bank to cash his PRIDE paycheck (for work done at the Center). Then he went to the Kiwanis meeting. Recently, he has volunteered by making cupcakes for the soldiers in Iraq.

Kim told of skills she is working on, including making choices, communicating, time management and team building. A new skill she is developing at PRIDE is drawing, which she never did at home. She also described therapy dog training, called the “puppy training program.” The puppies are for “Canine Companions” and “Paws for People.”

Oni described the PRIDE book club. In that activity, clients travel to Panera Bread where they buy a drink and read a book. The book club is reading “Just as Long as We’re Together”, a book about friendships. The clients voted to choose this book to read. His favorite thing about PRIDE is being with his friends and all the great staff.

Heather Alonge, who introduced Dot at the beginning of the program, returned to the podium to tell members about ECLC’s funding needs. They have plans for PRIDECO development that come with a large budget. They need a hydraulic table, shrink-wrap machines, aprons, etc. She asked the Kiwanis Club to make a contribution. She also asked club members to make individual contributions using the “Donate” button found on the ECLC website. Just be sure to type into the “note box” that the donation is to go to PRIDECO (or whatever project you want to support). Click here to go to the ECLC home page and then click on the “Donate” button. Then follow the instructions on the screen. Nancy Holt, chair of the Kiwanis Benevolence Committee, said that they will consider increasing the clubs giving to ECLC for the PRIDECO program.

Kiwanis December 7 Meeting Announcements

Stu Shippey gave a report on Nut Sales and asked members to SELL-SELL-SELL. He has plenty of Cashews, the K-nut. Nancy gave an update on the February 24, 2011 Wine Tasting event. She asked team leaders to get info needed for publicity by the first of next year. Karen Swarz asked members to start working on the “tricky tray”. Items may be contributed by members or members can solicit local businesses for contributions. Gift certificates, baskets of foods, sports memorabilia, etc. can be contributed. In a tricky-tray event, donated items are awarded to the holder of the winning ticket, selected in a drawing during the event. To enter, people at the event buy batches of tickets and place them in baskets beside items they want to win. Also, Joan May said that she needs items for the December 21 Christmas Program.

Jim Baker (L) and Joe Marcel (R) at Kiwanis Meeting

John Gardner speaks to Kiwanis about oil and gold at November 30 meeting

John Gardner introduced his November 30 Kiwanis presentation with a sobering description of “Peak Oil”, the point at which oil production plateaus and then declines. The world is running out of oil. 

John Gardner (L) and Dick Plambeck (R)

Conventional oil comes from a drilled well; it is extracted by its own pressure and a pump. Unconventional oil is in place but cannot flow on its own without intervention. Fracturing, enhancement and chemicals are used to extract oil from where it is trapped. There is heavy oil (like tar). Oil sands (in Canada) and shale are formations that have to be fractured at great cost so that the oil will move. For example, in the Bakkon field in and around Montana, it costs about $3,000,000 to drill the well and about $4,000,000 to fracture and get the oil to flow.


Peak Oil is happening now. For the past five years, world production of conventional oil has plateaued at about 72-74 million barrels per day. Consumption is about 85 and the difference comes from unconventional oil and natural gas liquids.

News reports highlight new production but skip over depletion of old oil fields. Most oil comes from mature, declining fields. Large oil fields like Bergen and Kuwait were discovered before WWII. Saudi’s Ghawar field, the world’s largest, came on in the 50’s and 60’s. All fields are declining. Decline exceeds discoveries of new sources. We are consuming 3 barrels of oil from inventory for every barrel we discover. We are facing a decline in conventional oil production.

How can we reverse this? Reduce consumption through conservation. Higher prices and rationing could reduce consumption. Available alternatives for corrective measures will decline as the oil availability declines. There is only so much you can do when the scarcity problem hits. The price of oil and gasoline is going to go up significantly.

There are new discoveries like the Tupi field approximately 200 miles off the shore of Brazil in 7000 feet of saltwater. The oil lies 25,000 feet below the ocean bottom. The field has a potential for up to 40 Billion Barrels. It will take $50 Billion and 10 years to develop the field. At its peak, it will produce only about 1 million barrels per day, a small percent of the need. Market oil prices will have to be above $80 per barrel to make the field economically viable.

Kuwait plans to spend 60 Billion dollars to increase production by .9 million barrels per day, a “drop in the bucket” compared to what is needed.

The major changes in American life style caused by “Peak Oil” are going to be awful. We live in suburban sprawl, have oversized mansions, are hyper-consumers and use our autos wastefully. All this will have to go. There will be downsizing and reduced travel. Anyone who lives in a McMansion more than 15 miles from good public transportation is going to be hurting. SUV’s will be replaced with electric vehicles. However, the battery technology is still not efficient and economical. The lithium battery for the new Chevy Volt cost $12,000 to $14,000 and lasts about 100,000 miles.

Another source of supply is “coal to liquids”, “gas to liquids” and natural gas driven cars. There aren’t enough stations supplying natural gas for cars. There are economic and government policy problems in producing fuel from coal and gas.

75 to 80 percent of oil goes into transportation. Over 20 percent of that figure goes into agriculture and food processing, which cannot be changed. We need to have rules restricting oil to use for transportation. Other fuels must be used for heating and industrial purposes.

Clean (green) energy is increasing in use. Solar-electric generation has problems, for example, keeping the panels clean. Windmills generate noise and people don’t want them near their residences. The wind doesn’t blow all the time and sun doesn’t shine all the time so energy must be stored somehow. A better electrical grid is needed to deliver this energy to users. Right now, renewable energy accounts for less than 2 percent of energy production and will not make a significant difference in the near future.

Technology will help, but it will not solve the problem. For example, fracturing makes a well produce but it does not last as long as conventional oil wells.

Peak Oil is an ongoing question being debated at the highest levels of industry and government. Military in the US and Germany are trying to figure out how to maintain a supply of fuel for weapons during the period of Peak Oil.

We need to understand how Peak Oil will affect the economy going forward. A good book is the “The Impending World Energy Mess” by Robert L. Hirsch an others. In this book he shows that a 1 percent growth in energy supply equals a 2 percent growth in GDP. For example, the 2008 oil price of over $140 per barrel reduced available oil and had a crushing effect on the economy. Cheap and abundant oil in the past has contributed to our prosperity.

The 2008 recession stopped about $100 billion in exploration and development projects that eliminated about 2.5 million barrels per day of future supply, which will not be forthcoming. The US leads the world in consumption at 19 million barrels per day. The US only produces about 6.7 barrels per day. We import the difference, but the US must compete with China and other developing nations for this supply. Chinese policy is to make long range plans and deals with suppliers to ensure an adequate supply. The US does not have an effective policy to ensure adequate supply. John believes that the US competition with China for scarce oil will become nasty in the future.

Click on this link to visit The Oil Drum website and learn more about oil.

Right now we have a fragile economy with problems in housing and unemployment. Housing probably won’t be corrected for 3-5 years. Unemployment will not be solved until the housing problem is solved. Oil prices will rise and the US economy will be in bad shape in the future. The problems are serious.

The government doesn’t seem to know or care to know about the bad economic situation. QE2 serves only to bail out the banks and Wall Street. No effective steps have been taken to stimulate jobs. US citizens have no idea what the government will do about taxes and health care. We will just muddle through but in the meantime, the government is running out of money.

How do you protect your own money? “Things” are where you want to go. Energy and agriculture (including water) are going to have scarcity – also resources like copper, zinc, lead, gold, silver, etc will be scarce. Gold and silver are like a financial insurance policy. We are probably not going to have a nice ten years and should have a plan to deal with this.

In Q&A at the end of the talk, John mentioned a recent New York Times Sunday Supplement on energy. A headline was “You Will Have Fuel”. The article gives false hope. He also said that energy initiatives started during the recent oil price peak will return to favor when oil prices rise again. Also, drilling in the Pennsylvania Marcellus Shale is going to be slowed down because of potential ground water contamination. Relative to precious metals, he believes that silver is a better investment than gold at this time.

Kiwanis November 30 Meeting Announcements

Kiwanis Club President Dick Plambeck announced that the membership directory correction list is in the final stage of completion. If members have any changes to make, they should send them to Dick now. Ron, speaking for Stu Shippey, announced that some nuts were available for purchase at the meeting. Stu will attend next weeks’s luncheon meeting and will bring a larger amount that members can buy and take with them. He also noted that Cashews are available in tins and the delicious food (technically a seed) is a great source of Vitamin-K (which stands for Kiwanis).

Dick also announced that McLynn’s casual food and drink, Springfield will give 20 % of receipts received on Wednesday 12/1/10 after 4:00 PM to the Jonathan Dayton Key Club’s fundraiser for the Children’s Specialized Hospital. At the Tuesday, December 21 lunch meeting, we will hold our annual Christmas celebration. Joan May is asking members to help with items for the program. Dick also mentioned that Circle-K needs financial help with annual dues – this will be discussed at the December Board Meeting to be held immediately following the December 21 breakfast meeting at Charlie Brown’s.

Kiwanis marches in November 26, 2010 Madison Christmas Parade

Kiwanis of Chatham and Madison marched in the 2010 Madison Christmas Parade. The above photo shows marchers in the Ambulance Corps parking lot before the parade started.  Madison High School Key Club members pose in front of the Kiwanis Banner and 13 Kiwanians are standing behind the banner.

During the parade, an announcer at Waverly Place briefly described the Kiwanis Club. The above photo show marchers rounding the corner near Gary's on Main Street. Click here to view the Chatham Patch coverage of the parade.

Cindy Caporaso presented November 23 program on Interfaith Hospitality Network

Cindy Caporaso, an Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN) volunteer, was introduced by Diane O’Brien.  IHN provides a response to hunger and homelessness in Morris County. Cindy coordinates IHN in the Presbyterian Church of Chatham Township, where she is active in Missions. She also works on “before and after school” enrichment programs at Chatham elementary schools. The above photo shows (L to R) Doug Bryant, Cindy Caporaso and Diane O’Brien.

The parent organizations of IHN are The Interfaith Council for the Homeless in Morris County and Family Promise.

There are pockets of homeless and hunger needs in Morris County. For example there is a “tent city” whose residents go to the Community Soup Kitchen in the Church of the Redeemer in Morristown. The Kitchen serves over 300 people in the winter. Another program that deals with hunger is the Interfaith Food Pantry. A lot of food is contributed around the holidays. After the holidays, contributions decline so people should schedule support efforts in February. Her church goes to the Food Pantry once per month to do volunteer work.

A much larger (the size of seven football fields) food distribution center is located in Hillside, NJ near Newark. The Hillside Community Food Bank has food, a culinary school, a teachers’ store, a thrift store, and a children’s café. And, they make deliveries. When you go your local supermarket (e.g. Kings), the little $1 contributions cards at check-out provide money to the Community Food Bank, a very worthy cause.

Besides hunger, there is also the issue of homelessness. About 800 people in Morris County have no place to stay. There are 17,000 people living in sub-standard housing in Morris County. In 1986 the organization “Family Promise” was started to address needs of the homeless. Cindy referred to the chart shown above this paragraph to explain that Family Promise branched out to the Interfaith Council for Homeless Families of Morris County, which is now housed at the old Greystone Hospital. One arm of this organization is the IHN, 65 to 70 congregations that house the homeless 365 days per year. Churches host IHN residents for one week, four or five times per year. As the chart above shows, the IHN provides many more services than housing.

A typical week of hosting IHN begins with rearranging the church, converting classrooms to individual apartments for clients. There is also a larger common community room, game room and dining room. On Sunday, clients arrive with all their belongings in black plastic garbage bags. Church volunteers stay, sleep, and eat with the clients all the time they are in the building. Typically there are up to 15 clients who are served a hot meal when they arrive after which they go their “apartments” or common rooms. Clients are mostly single mothers with very young children. Weekday mornings, the IHN van comes and clients have to get on it. Children go to either their regular public school or day school. Adults are taken to work (if they have jobs), training, or the IHN day care center at Greystone. Clients have rules which are obeyed because the program is so good.

Cindy showed a video from Family Promise, which is trying to open more Hospitality Networks. Click here to view the video. She also handed out literature giving more details on the program.  Click here to go the Family Promise website to learn more about this organization.

The program includes clients who are poor as well as people who are educated and capable but just down on their luck. IHN provides shelter, food and tools to help clients becomes self-sufficient. There are some success stories. One woman recently completed her medical assistant training and is now looking for an internship position. She hopes to get a job and move into an apartment.

Kiwanis November 23 Meeting Announcements

Nancy Boucher and AD Dudderar reminded members to march in the Madison Christmas Parade.  Meet at the Ambulance Corps on Friday 11/26 at 5:00 pm. Bring banners. Doug Bryant thanked Stu Shippey and all members who worked on the nut sales at supermarkets last weekend. They were very successful – all future sales provide income we will contribute to benevolences.

Kiwanis Holiday Nut Sales – November 20-21

ShopRite Supermarket

 

Kiwanians sold nuts at local Kings and ShopRite supermarkets the weekend before Thanksgiving. They also sold nuts at the Madison Area YMCA Craft Fair. Sales were brisk in the moderate (not too cold) weather.  We still have nuts for sale - keep selling and buying.



Madison Area YMCA



Kings Supermarket





November 16 Saint Barnabas Health Care System Presentations by Judy Webster and Lisa Olender

Judy Webster (left) and Lisa Olender (right) spoke to Kiwanis about health care options available from Saint Barnabas, located in Livingston. Speakers were introduced by Nelson Vaughan. Judy started by describing a sign (see below) depicting the Breast Surgery Dream Team.

The northern corridor of New Jersey is served by the excellent surgeons in the above photo. Three of them have offices in the Saint Barnabas Ambulatory Care Center, which is across South Orange Avenue from the Livingston Mall.  The facility has state-of-art MRI equipment, outpatient rehabilitation, physical therapy and other services.  At their ambulatory surgery center there is child-care for patients’ children/grandchildren, an on-site retail pharmacy, Internet kiosks in the waiting room, valet parking and other amenities. St. Barnabas also provides the Siegler Center for Integrative Medicine, which offers alternative and preventive solutions supporting the New Jersey Mayor’s Wellness Campaign.

Lisa Olender spoke on Post Acute Care Services – what happens to patients when they go home. The goal is to help people live comfortably and safely in their own homes. She described the Philips Lifeline with AutoAlert product and service. Patients wear a small necklace or bracelet which automatically senses if they fall and cannot get up. Many of St. Barnabas’ patients are admitted due to falls, with injuries aggravated by lying on the floor for a long time. There is an electronic link from the necklace to a speakerphone which permits patients to talk with a medical monitoring person. The service also includes a database holding subscriber’s medical information. The hardware is leased and there is a monthly fee (private pay).

Next, she showed the “Personal Medication Dispenser”, also a product from Philips Lifeline. See photo above. It holds a month’s worth of different kinds of pills and automatically dispenses them at the right time. The unit is connected to a phone line so that a service person will be called in case of a problem. The Dispenser also calls a monitor to report that the person did take the medication on time.  It can also give reminders for whatever non-medication activity is needed.  The Dispenser has a battery back-up. It will call to report a power failure and continue to dispense medication.

The Saint Barnabas Home Health Care Services “Red Door Program” was also overviewed. People will come to a patient’s home to provide home care services.

Kiwanis November 16 Meeting Announcements

President Dick Plambeck thanked Alan, the Chatham Charlie Brown’s Steakhouse manager, for keeping the restaurant open for Kiwanis and others in the local area to enjoy. Per Stu Shippey, nut sales are going well. CHS Key Club meeting is tomorrow at 10:45 am. Karen Swartz is working with the assistant advisor of the CHS Key Club on a visit to the Children’s Specialized Hospital in Mountainside. Kiwanis members will be invited to be part of the visiting group. More info later when the schedule is firmed up. Board meeting will be held November 17 at Methodist Church. Madison Christmas Parade will start at 5:00 pm November 26.

Dr. Tobi Ippolito, MD, Internal Medicine spoke November 9 on Preventive Health Care

(L to R) Chairman of Mayor’s Wellness Committee, Dr. Tobi Ippolito, MD; Secretary to Chatham Administrator, Janice Piccolo; President of Chatham-Madison Kiwanis, Dick Plambeck.

Chatham Mayor Nelson Vaughan, III introduced Dr. Ippolito, who is the Chair of the Mayor’s Wellness Committee covering Chatham Borough and Chatham Township. Dr. Ippolito is an alumnus of UMD-New Jersey Medical School and he has a practice in Chatham.

Prevention of disease is a higher priority than treating disease with has already developed. Treatment of chronic diseases (those that continue more that 3 months) consumes 75 percent of healthcare resources. Causes are genetic, environmental and behavioral. We can achieve better health by avoiding “toxic” life styles.

Half of all people have at least one chronic disease. These are Cardiac (including stroke), Cancer, Smoking (other than Cardiac and Cancer), and Arthritis. Heart is number one cause of death, cancer is second and stroke is third. Forty percent of Americans have two or more risk factors for heart attack or stroke. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death. Nearly 30 million people are affected by diabetes. Arthritis is the most common cause of disability.

One in three adults and one in five youth 6-19 years old are obese and this number grows every year. The power of prevention is the key to addressing chronic diseases and this concept is part of the New Jersey Mayors Wellness Campaign. We can empower ourselves to change life styles and reduce risk factors.

The current situation is alarming. Less than 24 percent of adults and less than 22 percent of children eat 5 or more fruits or vegetables a day. More than 60 percent of US children and adolescents consume more than the recommended allowance of saturated fat. Less than 30 percent of adults exercise on a regular basis.

People could change to a new life style. The Mediterranean diet (low in saturated fat and high in grains, fruits and vegetables) combined with 150 minutes of regular exercise per week can delay the onset of diabetes, improve blood pressure and cholesterol, reduce overall cardiovascular risk and risk of certain cancers. This will also improve emotional well-being and make you feel better because of the endorphins. Smokers can return to the cardiovascular risk level of non-smokers after stopping for only one year. Avoid excess alcohol. See your doctor regularly for screening tests.

Join the Mayor’s Wellness Committee. It is a committee which helps members change their daily lives to achieve better health. They are starting a program called “health chat” which meets 7:30 pm at the Chatham Library on the fourth Thursday of every month. Each month there will be a different health topic.

Announcements: Kiwanis Meeting November 9, 2010

Members should let Rich know if they have any changes to the member directory. Tom Mullin announced that a member had left a contribution to the Chatham Kiwanis Scholarship Fund in his Will. The amount will fund almost two years of scholarships.  Others members should consider leaving a contribution to the Scholarship Fund. Also, several people have made contributions to Kiwanis International and to the Scholarship Fund in memory of Cory Fuller. Stu Shippey reported that the next shipment of nuts arrived today. He is ready to start filling orders and asked members to get more orders to him. Betty Anne reported the CMS Builders Club is meeting today. Builders Club is selling entertainment books, which Betty Anne brought to the meeting today. CHS Key Club meets 10:45am Wednesday November 17. Dick reminded everyone about the Board of Trustees meeting next Wednesday, November 17, 8:00 pm at Chatham United Methodist Church.

Madison Christmas Parade - Kiwanis Jingle Bells

Chatham-Madison Kiwanis members met Wednesday morning at ABC in Madison for coffee, pastry and to work. (L to R) Betty Anne Keat, Evangeline Lee, AD Duderar, and Joan May assembled 100 “jingle bell” hand-outs for the Madison Christmas Parade.  Kiwanis will march in the November 26 parade. Marchers should assemble at the Madison Ambulance Corps building lot at 5:00 PM.

Tissue and Bone Donation in New Jersey – Improving Lives

Sue Hoag (left in photo) and Lenore Ford spoke to Kiwanis on November 2 about tissue and bone donation in New Jersey.

Sue spoke first about the New Jersey Hero Act, signed by Richard Cody in 2008. This permits Motor Vehicle Commission workers to ask applicants and register them as donors when they receive a driver’s license or other state ID. All applicants need do is say “yes” and their license will identify them as an “Organ Donor”. Due to this law, the registration list in NJ has grown to over 2,000,000. More recently, legislation requires that public schools and medical schools include donor awareness in curricula. She noted that people who are registered donors should add the information to their Living Will. There are over 100,000 U.S. patients in need of transplants, of which 4500 live in NJ.

Lenore Ford, Chair of the Donate Life Committee of Overlook Hospital Auxiliary, spoke about tissue donation, which is different from organ donation. Members of the organization give talks to raise awareness about being a donor. They work with organizations like the NJ Sharing Network and the Musculoskeletal Transplant Foundation (MTF). MTF is sometimes regarded as the “bone bank”.

Lenore handed out a poster showing the many body parts (not organs), which can be donated to help improve the lives of people. Donors can provide eyes, heart valves, skin, blood vessels, tendons, cartilage, bones and more. As an example, she discussed an 8-year old girl who had bone cancer. Her doctor avoided amputation of her leg by transplanting a healthy bone from a donor. To make operations like this possible, generous donors are needed. She ended her presentation by asking all members of Kiwanis to say “yes” and become donors.

Many brochures were handed out. Click here to learn more.

Kiwanis November 2 Meeting Announcements

Stu Shippey reported that nuts have arrived and members should give him their orders. Another skid will come in about a week. Dave Pike reported that the Pasta Dinner income this year exceeded last years. He thanked volunteer workers: 33 Kiwanians and 27 Sponsored Youth. Joan May reported that the Breakfast with Santa event will not be held this year, for various reasons. Planning for next year’s Saturday, December 3, 2011 fund-raiser has already begun. Kiwanis will march in the Christmas Parade scheduled for 5:00 pm Friday, November 26, 2010. Betty Anne Keat reminded members that they can buy Entertainment books for $30 from the CMS Builders Club. She has Morris County books but can bring books for other counties to meetings for members to purchase. Dick Plambeck reported that gifts in memory of Cory Fuller may be given to Chatham Kiwanis Scholarship Fund or to Kiwanis International Fund.

Kiwanis Pasta Dinner Excitement – Thanks for the Support

Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen enjoys Kiwanis Pasta Dinner with Isabelle Cunningham

Kiwanis wants to thank the people of Chatham, Madison and the surrounding towns who attended our annual Pasta Dinner at the Chatham High School. Income from this event supports our scholarships and contributions to youth-oriented charities.

Everyone had a great time, even though we had a fire alarm which cleared the Cafeteria for a while.

The fire alarms were triggered, we believe, by artificial smoke in the Haunted House event taking place in another part of the school.

It was also nice of Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen to stop by and have his dinner with us. Mr. Frelinghuysen maintains excellent communications with our community.

Kiwanis will have it’s annual Fish/Chicken and Chips Dinner next March. Please mark your calendars: March 30, 2011.

Kiwanis Holiday Nuts Delivered – Place Orders Quickly

On October 28, 2010 a shipment of Kiwanis Holiday Nuts were delivered to Stu Shippey, Chair of the Chatham-Madison Kiwanis Holiday Nut sales project. Photo shows a pallet holding Deluxe Mixed Nuts, Cashews, Chocolate Tuttles, and many more. Click on this link to view and print an order. Please place your orders now.

Joan Thuebel spoke on her "Amazon River Trip" with Earthwatch

Joan Thuebel, who has attended twenty-seven Earthwatch missions since 1980 reported on her recent trip to the Amazon River. She was introduced by Nancy Holt (on the left in the photo). Earthwatch volunteers work with scientists to solve environmental problems.

She has been to the Amazon 3 times, the most recent visit in August-September this year. A previous visit was 12 years ago. She flies from Lima into Iquitos, Peru. She was surprised to find that the Amazon River depth is the lowest level in recorded history. The boat her goup lived on, built in 1906, has a draft of only 8 feet. They had to travel 2 hours upriver to board the boat. After boarding, they were unable to travel all the way to the Samiria Park Preserve where they hoped to do most of their work.

Things were quite different from past trips but they still had much work to do. They counted (by estimation) wading birds, macaws, and fish .They went into the rainforest, which was quite strenuous, and counted monkeys and other mammals. Trees had a lot of thorns and there was lots of mud, no rocks. The group caught fish in a net, identified them, counted them and weighed them. They counted the number of river dolphins seen jumping out of the water.

There was an 8:30 pm night boat ride to count Caiman, small crocodiles. She was able to see stars clearly because there were no lights along the river. After traveling in a small outboard boat for a long time without lights, the leader turned on a search light so they could see the Caiman.

Joan showed slides of the river, forest, animals and cities. Iquitos was a rubber baron’s city. The town has been spruced up since she saw it 12 years ago. The group had a chance to tour the local market, which is quite large. On the boat, the researchers stayed in nice refurbished double rooms with private bathrooms. Rooms were air conditioned. Washed clothing hung out in open air would not dry in the high humidity.

She showed photos of macaws and insects taken during her earlier trip to the Amazon. Also, there was a photo of a red arrow poison frog. The natives do hunt and they are learning about sustainability, to not overhunt wild game. Natives along the river in the area migrate with their houses when required.

Click on this link to visit the Earthwatch website and learn more.

Kiwanis October 26 Meeting Announcements

Club members are asked to arrive 15 minutes before their Pasta Dinner work assignment is scheduled to begin. Setup people are asked to arrive about 3:30pm. Youth volunteers usually arrive early. Builders Club is having a Halloween party at the Middle School on 10/26 after class at 2:35pm. We are looking for a volunteer to be Santa for the breakfast with Santa. Next Wednesday, 11/3 at 9:00am, members will meet at Atlanta Bread Co. to assemble hand-outs for the Christmas Parade.  Reminder: the visitation for Cory Fuller is at Bradley Funeral on Friday (2-4 and 7-9). The funeral is at St. Pat’s at 11 on Saturday. There will be a reception at Fish and Game after the funeral. Articles on Cory are available in local and state newspapers.

Chatham High School Key Club Officers Meet October 22

CHS Key Club officers met on October 22 to make plans for the 2010-2011 school year. Photo shows officers in attendance. Recording secretary is holding the new Key Club long sleeved t-shirt, on sale for $20. Proceeds benefit Children's Specialized Hospital  and other Key Club sponsored Charities.

From train whistle to doorbell: The story of Sears kit homes

Marilyn Wittlinger presented an entertaining and informative illustrated talk on Sears kit homes.  The PowerPoint show given at the Kiwanis October 19^th Charlie Brown’s breakfast meeting was enjoyed by a packed house. The photo above shows Marilyn on the left with her friend Debbie Behling. She started her research into Sears homes in 2004 while doing a report for her Vernacular Architecture class at Drew University. She was given the Drew certificate in Historic Preservation in 2005. Later that year she set up a tour of five nearby Sears homes for a group of visiting professors from Virginia when Drew held a special one-day class on kit homes. Marilyn and her husband Hal found twelve Sears homes in towns near Chatham, NJ.

Downers Grove, IL and Hopewell, VA have very large numbers of Sears homes, although kit homes are also found in many other places. Early in the 20th century, kits of parts to build these homes were shipped by railroad so homes are found in towns along railroad lines. Sears had a good reputation and over 100,000 “pattern” homes were purchased from a 146-page catalog. Long after construction, many were expanded and altered. Identification is difficult (Sears records are very incomplete) and only about 6,000 have been publicly identified. More recently, people have discovered the historical significance of these homes, which were once regarded as low cost bungalows.

Sears homes were sold and built between 1908 and 1940. Other companies also sold mail-order homes. Sears opened 48 sales offices devoted to homes and the first was opened in Akron, OH in 1919. Plants produced and shipped the homes from Cairo, IL and Port Newark, NJ. Sears even provided mortgages. Kit prices ranged from $191 to $5,140. Number of rooms could be from two to ten. There were many styles and Sears would customize them for the customer. Options like screen windows could be added. Builders who purchased and assembled the kits for customers saved about 40 percent in labor cost. Kits were shipped with drawings and specifications and even paint colors were recommended.



Alhambra



Hundreds of home photos were shown in the presentation, including a large, nearby “Alhambra”. These homes were built in prosperous times when everyone wanted a home of their own. They were reasonable, functional, high quality and popular – modern homes for their time. Marilyn asked that she be told the location of houses that could be Sears Kit homes. To learn more, she recommended reading the book “Houses by Mail: A Guide to Houses from Sears Roebuck and Company” by Katherine Cole Stevenson and H. Ward Jandl.

Kiwanis October 19 Meeting Announcements

If errors are found in the membership directory, send an email to Rich Behling and he will correct the database. Holiday Nut final order has been placed with the vendor. Pasta Dinner tickets should be sold by members. Builders Club and CHS Key Club meetings are on 10/20.  The Board meeting will be held on 10/19 after breakfast. Amos Chalif will have duplicate membership (Hunterdon and Chatham-Madison)

Cory Fuller, Past President of Chatham-Madison Kiwanis

On Sunday, October 17, 2010 our dear friend and Past President of Chatham-Madison Kiwanis passed away.  This photo shows her receiving an award from Dick Plambeck at the club's 80th Anniversary celebration on September 22, 2010. Arrangements for viewing and service are available on the Bradley website.  Club President Dick Plambeck provided a very nice tribute to Cory:

Cory Fuller - a life of service to Chatham

Cory Fuller lived to serve the Chatham community and Morris County. She was a great example to me and to so many others of service above self. I was privileged to follow in the path she prepared – joining the Borough Council the year after she did, serving as Council President the year after she did and now serving as President of the Kiwanis Club of the Chathams and Madison three years after she did.

Cory loved Chatham and was a life-long resident here. Among other things, she Co-chaired the Fishawack Festival before she was on Council and Chaired the Streetscape Committee after being on Council. She was thrilled to throw the switch when we completed the new lighting along Main Street. She served on the Planning Board and the Historic Preservation Commission and was outspoken at keeping the best features of Chatham intact while modernizing our infrastructure.

Cory was never afraid to speak her mind, and offered her own humanitarian perspective when we had to make tough decisions on budgets and funding. She loved working with the employees of the Public Works Department and regularly participated in and won the women’s heavy equipment driving contests amongst the neighboring towns. She also served on committees for the Morris County League of Municipalities and the New Jersey League of Municipalities and on the Executive Board of Morris Tomorrow. She will be sorely missed.

Local Sustainability Programs: Green Initiatives in the Chathams and Madison



Mary Anne Maloney (left) with speaker Cindy Steffens



Cindy Steffens spoke on “Green Initiatives” in local New Jersey areas. She was introduced by John Eyre. Cindy is a native of Chatham, has extensive academic and government experience and now leads the Chatham Borough Sustainability Program.

She described in detail the Sustainability Jersey (SJ) Certification Program for Municipalities. Green Team leaders and members are in place for all three local towns. Chatham Township was one of 34 municipalities certified at the “Bronze” level in 2009. Chatham and Madison Boroughs are seeking Bronze certification. Of the 566 towns in NJ, 309 are involved in SJ Certification. Many individuals and organizations are planning and implementing the program. It seems that the best SJ managed towns may get the most NJ state aid for their Green projects. Sponsors include Wal-Mart, Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, PSE&G and NJ Natural Gas.

Chatham Township received a $25,000 Wal-Mart Grant to be used for recycling waste materials by the School District of the Chathams. Reuse of materials is a primary focus. Also, reducing energy consumption is emphasized. For example, Cindy mentioned the “Turn the Key – Be Idle Free” program. By NJ law it is illegal to idle a vehicle more than 3 minutes.

Paper copies of a PowerPoint presentation which documents the topic may be obtained from her. Also, please visit the Sustainable Jersey website. Click here for a ChathamPatch article.

Kiwanis October 12 Meeting Announcements and Reminders

“Holiday Nut Sales at the Supermarkets” needs three more sign-ups, per chairman Stu Shippey. Tom Mullin reminded members to send in their dues and pick up their new member directories. Betty Anne Keat has Entertainment Books sold by Builders Club for review and purchase. Next Builders Club meeting is October 19. The next CHS Key Club meeting is October 20. Pasta Dinner Tickets are available for sale. Board meeting is next Tuesday following the breakfast. Marge Ahrens circulated three cards for signature by members.

John Reardon of Betteridge Jewelers presented "Time, Clocks and Patek Philippe Watches"

John Reardon, speaker at October 5 Kiwanis Meeting in Chatham

Antique watch and clock expert John Reardon led the audience in an entertaining “who owned this watch?” contest. He mentioned his new book “Patek Philippe in America Reference Guide Volume 1” which is getting favorable reviews in the press. During a brief introduction to the history of watches, he took the audience back to the late 16^th century when wealthy people showed them off as trophies.

He then held a contest where he described watches, gave a few clues and asked the audience to shout out the name of the owner of the watch. The first watch, owned by Marie Antoinette, took so long to make that she passed away before it was completed. A Swiss Patek Philippe watch was purchased by Queen Victoria in the 19th century at the Crystal Palace Exhibition.

Mr. Reardon gave interesting historical anecdotes surrounding the owners and their watches. Watches had a variety of features and capabilities matching needs of their owners. One owned by a blind man played chimes signaling hours. General McArthur had a watch showing the time in major cities around the world. The most expensive watch was sold at auction for $11,000,000.

The Dalai Llama, a self-trained watchmaker, was given a perpetual calendar Patek Philippe watch by President FDR and recently was given paperwork for his watch by President Obama. He still wears the watch. Howard Hughes owned and secretly gave away Patek Philippe watches to people on his staff.

A Patek Philippe clock was given to JFK following his “Ich bin ein Berliner” speech. Jackie Onassis donated it to the Presidential Library in Boston. Warren Buffett owned the last watch described by Mr. Reardon, who was given a huge round of applause by the audience for putting on such a delightful, fun program.

Announcements at Kiwanis October 5 Meeting

The meeting was called to order by Kiwanis Vice President Joan May. Stu Shippey asked members to send him Holiday Nut order forms so that he can know how to place future orders from the vendors. Click here for forms. He needed two volunteers for Saturday at 5:00pm to take down the sales display at ShopRite and load nuts back into his car. He passed around the sign-up sheets so members could volunteer.  Betty Anne Keat has 30 Pasta Dinner posters and will give them to people who are willing to put them up in public places. Nancy Boucher asked members to give her or Dick Ligertwood their money and returned tickets for the Pasta Dinner ticket sales. He has a few extra tickets to give members to sell.  Builders Club at CMS will hold a meeting Tuesday 10/5 at about 2:40pm.  Builders Club will sell Entertainment Coupon Books again this year – get your orders to Betty Anne. The sign-up sheet for the Madison Christmas Parade was passed around by Joan May. Dick Plambeck gave a Kiwanis pen to Swedish visitor Goran Svensson, who attended as the guest of Ron Whalin.

Chatham Community Garden Program by Dick Plambeck

Marta McDowell and Dick Plambeck at Charlie Brown’s

Plambeck overviewed Chatham Community Garden, which grew from the vision of a small number of leaders who wanted local residents to be able to raise healthy vegetables and flowers with their own hands. Dick described the careful planning and dedicated work that led to the first successful season of the Garden. Also present at the meeting was Master Gardener Marta McDowell who played an important role in planning the garden and making it an important part of Chatham. Many dedicated volunteers from diverse organizations came together to make the garden real.

Dick focused on the process for building and managing a community garden by presenting PowerPoint charts. He said a community garden is a shared area for individuals to plant, grow and harvest. It is also an opportunity to grow community spirit and expand ecological education.

 Existing local and distant community gardens were reviewed to learn from past experience. Working with all involved in the project, Dick established rules for plot-holders to follow. The existing garden has 40 plots which are 10 feet square. Starting early in 2010 the garden was built, mostly by volunteers, on land near Division Ave. leased from PSE&G at $1 per year. Opening on May 1, all plots were planted by June 1.

Produce was harvested and 110 pounds of excess given to the Morristown Food Pantry. (Local press has followed the activities – click here to view ChathamPatch stories.) Tomatoes grown in the garden won the Chatham Farmers’ Market Tomato Cook-off contest during the summer. On June 17 the garden won the Morris Tomorrow McFlowertown Award.

Dick showed many interesting photographs during his program. Some photos were taken by Marta McDowell and you can view them on her ChathamCommunityGarden blog.

Looking into the future, the Chatham Garden leadership wants to build more plots to meet the demands of a waitlist of 48 applicants. Expansion near the present site and other sites is under study.

Dick has been making presentations to people in nearby communities, sharing Chathams’s experiences so that others can plan and build community gardens serving local residents.