Wednesday, May 15, 2013
May 16 meeting will feature information on volunteer opportunities in Maplewood and South Orange.
The Hilton Neighborhood Association will welcome Chris Dickson, one of the organizers of the monthly Rent Party concerts; Kerry Miller, the Rent Party Garden Manager; and Tracey Miller, the Green Team's coordinator of the Adopt a Park Site Program on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. in DeHart Community Center, 120 Burnett Avenue, Maplewood. This is an opportunity to learn about some imaginative volunteer programs in our community and to consider participating. Everyone is welcome to attend. This event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served. For more information, contact cabms@aol.com or 201-787-7688.
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Maplewood Civic Association will honor five residents April 14
The Maplewood Civic Association has selected John Branigan, Carol and Jim Buchanan, and Chris Dickson and David Wagner, co-founders of Rent Party, as recipients of the 2013 Maple Leaf Award. "The recipients of this year's awards were selected after a thorough review of the many worthy individuals who were nominated," said chair Mary Devon O'Brien in a letter. "John, Carol, Jim, Chris and David, however, have demonstrated the generosity of spirit and selfless gift of time and talent that epitomize Maple Leaf Award recipients.' The Award will be presented at a Mimosa Brunch to be held April 14 at 1:30 p.m. at L’Affaire on Route 22 in Mountainside. Maplewood Township Committee members will also present official congratulations at the award …
Pilot program to encourage kids to walk to school.
Tuscan Elementary School is piloting a "walking school bus" program that kicked off March 15. A Walking School Bus is a group of children walking to school with one or more adults -- sort of a "walking co-op," according to information on the Tuscan PTA website. Trained parent chaperones will guide the "bus," picking up children along the way from their homes or at designated stops. This Friday, March 22, Chris Dickson of Rent Party will greet the kids on arrival with a healthy breakfast, and Nora Shepard and Meeta Patel will be greeting the children with Safe Routes to School backpacks and other goodies, according to Cami Zelevansky, one of the program coordinators. Ted Panayoutou, aka "Mr. P," and Principal Malikah Majeed will also be …
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Morrow's Junior Youth Fellowship presented founder with check for local food pantries.
JYF (the Junior Youth Fellowship) of Morrow Memorial Methodist Church presented Rent Party fouder Chris Dickson with a check for nearly $900 to support two local food pantries, the Our Lady of Sorrows Food Pantry in South Orange and St. Joseph's Church Food Pantry in Maplewood. Members of JYF gave Dickson the check on Friday, March 15 at the fellowship's regular weekly meeting. Dickson is the coordinator of Rent Party, which holds events for adults to raise money for local food pantries, along with David Wagner, who Dickson refers to as his "partner in crime." Wagner and Dickson started Rent Party together in 2009, and tried to find more ways to reach out to those who need help in the community. So far, it has been a success. "The Our …
Sunday, March 10, 2013
Donated food was brought to local food pantries in need.
Rent Party, MEND and the South Orange Elks joined forces for a "Neighbor 2 Neighbor Share and Care Food Drive" on Saturday, March 9 to help support those in need in the South Orange - Maplewood communities. Volunteers collected, packed and delivered donated food to local food pantries. A special celebrity, Libell Duran,Miss NJ-USA stopped by to help out. Enjoy Patch's photos!
Friday, March 8, 2013
Three local organizations join forces to feed needy SOMA residents on March 9.
Rent Party, MEND and the South Orange Elks are teaming up for a "Neighbor 2 Neighbor Share and Care Food Drive" on Saturday, March 9 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. to help support those in need in the South Orange - Maplewood communities. "This is a challenging time of the year for the hungry in our community," said Rent Party founder Chris Dickson. "As the generosity of the holidays wane and winter expenses grow, many of our neighbors struggle with putting food on their table." The South Orange Elks (220 Prospect Street, South Orange) will be the drop-off point for donations. Donations will also be accepted online at www.rentpartylive.com; or by visiting You Give Goods at this link. To volunteer to help out at the drive, email info@…
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Local organizations received proclamation from Maplewood for upcoming Food Drive.
Rent Party and MEND (Meeting Emergency Needs with Dignity) received an official proclamation from Maplewood township at Tuesday night's Township Committee meeting. Committee member Jerry Ryan presented the proclamation, which cited the work the two organizations are doing in conjunction with the upcoming Neighbor 2 Neighbor Community Food Drive on Saturday, March 9 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the South Orange Elks. Chris Dickson and David Wagner accepted the proclamation on behalf of Rent Party and John Pearson accepted on behalf of MEND. The drive is coordinating food donations to distribute to local pantries. Rent Party and MEND have enlisted the participation of various organizations including Prospect Presbyterian Church, Morrow …
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Recent British pantomime show was rousing success, and helped local organizations
The recent run of Arrr! A Very British Pantomime at the Burgdorff Performing Arts Center, produced by Deadgood Events, was a huge success and completely sold out for all five performances. "We were incredibly luckily to get such a great team together," said Gareth Jones, Deadgood founder and the play's author. "I was completely blown away by the enthusiasm of the cast, the crew, and the audience too. Everybody threw themselves right into the spirit of the whole thing, and it was just such great fun." Deadgood donated the money raised from the show -- over $3,500 -- to three non-profit organizations: Rent Party: founded in October 2009 in conjuction with the South Orange Elks, Rent Party is a monthly benefit that supports efforts to …
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Employees from Silver Jeans Co. make quick work of helping needy children in the SOMA community.
Just in time for the holidays this week, some helpful elves visited the Rent Party Pantry BackPack Pals program. Employees of Silver Jeans Co. spent Thursday morning packing and delivering backpacks with food to needy students in the South Orange - Maplewood School District. Launched in 2011 by Rent Party founders David Wagner and Chris Dickson, the program bridges the gap in nutrition for kids who qualify for subsidized school lunches, by providing a weekend's worth of healthy, nourishing food. "We're grateful to have been able to help out," said Doreen Panzer, Silver Jeans president of sales. A Maplewood resident, Panzer has long admired the good works of Rent Party and BackPack Pals. She spearheaded the morning as a team building and …
Saturday, November 17, 2012
Donations will benefit Community Food Bank of NJ
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Saturday, November 17, 2012
The South Orange Elks Lodge will be a drop off site for the Community FoodBank of NJ's annual Holiday Turkey & Food Drive on Saturday. Organizers will be collecting the following items at 220 Prospect Street in South Orange, from 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. Please, no glass bottles or jars. The drive enables the FoodBank to provide holiday meals for those in need. There are 41 collection sites in seven counties. Online donations are also accepted. Download the collection site list here.
Lee Navlen
11:44 am on Thursday, March 21, 2013
Great honor for Carol, Jim, Chris, David and John! Like the choices from the past including Janet, Irene, the Crandalls and Bruce Mandel, it's a special award and should be cherished! more ›