West Orange organizations provide backpacks to Kelly Elementary School

WEST ORANGE, NJ – Second-grade students at Kelly Elementary School had a surprise visit on Sept. 7 from West Orange Rotary and the West Orange African Heritage Organization, who brought 140 backpacks for distribution. Rotarian Cynthia Hadley-Bailey, whose children attended Kelly — formerly Pleasantdale — Elementary School, brought 100 backpacks and WOAHO President Robert Simmons […]

‘Black and Blue’ sheds light on stigmas for black males

MAPLEWOOD, NJ — Addressing the stigmas surrounding black masculinity is a difficult task, but that is exactly what Maplewood resident and Columbia High School alumna Claudia Schafer hopes to do with her new exhibit “Black and Blue,” which examines the personal experiences with prejudice and racism of six young black men. The exhibit is on […]

Van Tassel’s hosts annual Pet Memorial Day

BLOOMFIELD, NJ — For the dozen or so people who came to mourn a pet at the 4th annual Pet Memorial Day, held Sunday, Sept. 10, at Van Tassel’s Funeral Home, in Bloomfield, the first speaker, Vicky Valvano, of East Rutherford, may have captured the spirit of the day. It was touching, personal and a little […]

Blind resident finds fault with ADA-required curbing

GLEN RIDGE, NJ — If crossing the street wasn’t tough enough for a visually impaired person, Glen Ridge resident Peter Seymour said ADA curbing makes it downright dangerous. According to Seymour, when the American Disabilities Act eliminated curbs at crosswalks in favor of ramps for wheelchairs, the law took away a landmark that visually impaired people […]

West Orange singer to help teach master class in NYC

WEST ORANGE, NJ — Jeff Alani Stanfill doesn’t spend much time on Twitter, but when he does, the West Orange resident and New York City vocal coach follows people he admires. That’s how he met David Phelps, a world-renowned vocalist who has won Grammy and Dove awards, and began a friendship and teacher-student relationship that […]

CHSSF works to keep sending SOMA students to college

MAPLEWOOD, NJ — The Columbia High School Scholarship Fund hosted its fifth annual cocktail reception for 120 guests at the Maplewood Club on Sept. 9 to raise money for the scholarships that will be distributed next May. The nonprofit awards need-based scholarships to graduates of Columbia High School to help fund their post-secondary education. In […]

CHS named the most beautiful school in NJ

MAPLEWOOD, NJ — Architectural Digest recently published its list of the most beautiful public high schools in each state in the United States and Columbia High School in Maplewood took New Jersey’s top spot. CHS is one of the oldest schools in the country, having been founded in 1815, though the current Gothic revival building […]

Green Hill takes part in national study

WEST ORANGE, NJ — The Program on Aging, Disability, and Long-term Care of the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill chose Green Hill in West Orange for a National Institute of Health study to “inform and advance care practices and policies for people with […]