– Photo by Michelle Dryden The 50th annual House Tour in Mill Hill District featured a Horse and Buggy ride during the touring event from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday. Historic Mill Hill District commemorates nostalgia and contemporary living as seen on 50th Anniversary House Tour event that featured various art forms and fun activities today.
Visitors and residents came out to tour homes, sing in choirs, see art show exhibits at Artworks, enjoy live music, look at classic/antique cars, have lunch from the Crepe Food Truck, enjoy the crisp fall weather, take fun photos, among other fun stuff.
The annual House Tour happens on the first Saturday of December each year. This year’s event was bigger and better than the tours in recent years because it marks a half-century milestone since Mill Hill residents have been opening their doors for visitors to see unexpected views and charms of homes in Trenton.
With unprecedented controversies and unstable projections during the 2016 Presidential Race for the White House, voters are hoping that the winner will be the fair choice.
Photo by Michael Vadon/Wikimedia Commons Business Mogul, Donald J. Trump is leading opponent Hillary Clinton, nationally, in the presidential votes and electoral votes: 238 to 209.As they voted, Americans were hoping for favorable changes in benefits for veterans, the homeless, students, children, seniors, gays, the disabled, and basically anyone who needs help.
-Photo by Michelle Dryden George DiFerdinando, M.D., Chair on Princeton Future and member of Princeton Board of Health presents chart on aspect of healthcare.
The Council on Princeton Future held its regular fall meeting last week and discussed many matters regarding the future of healthcare locally and nationally. There were members of the local board of health, including George DiFerdinando, M.D, Heather Howard, Ph.D, and Rick Weiss. They spoke about the Affordable Healthcare Act, nutrition, and technology, among other topics, to a group of community individuals at the Princeton Public Library.
The grassroots nonpartisan Council on Princeton Future met twice this fall at the Princeton Public Library to engage community participation in making plans for the region, and the meetings have yielded suggestions to solve several issues.
Both meetings were led by Kevin Wilkes, AIA, and president of Princeton Future. Several members from government and other organizations were available to answer questions and to offer recommendations.
At the first meeting on Nov. 21, participants discussed community housing, transportation and mobility, and downtown vibrancy. These individuals also participated in a survey where they gave feedback on areas in town that they liked the most and those they liked the least. Wilkes reported the results of these activities at the Dec. 5 meeting.
Among recommendations and feedback, were to reduce traffic in town. This has been a longstanding issue and as a result, Peter Kramer and company have developed the Princeton Ride Share app to encourage carpooling in the Princeton area.
Princeton Future also suggested other goals such as engaging Princeton University plans to expand and grow. Wilkes reported that there are suggestions for reinforcing the positive qualities for places where people usually gather in town. He also mentioned the concerns about first floor spaces in community housing. Also, there were suggestions for improving the health and nutrition of Princeton residents, said Wilkes.
According to Wilkes, the council is actively working to produce desired results for the community.
The Rev. Calvin Nadir Lynn Powell has been named the first African-American pastor of First Baptist Church of Trenton about five months ago, but Sunday he affirmed his commitment in an Installation Service at the church.
Joined by several other area Baptist pastors, his family, FBCT congregation members and visitors, the former pastor, a clergy, friends, customers and others, the Rev. Powell accepted his call to lead the 210-year-old church.
“It’s a very emotional day,” said the former pastor, Elizabeth Congdon. “As we look at how God uses us, and how God continues God’s work through us and the people who follow us… It’s such a special day for me, and a special blessing, “ she said.
Bishop Donald Hilliard Jr. who gave a sermon preceding The Service of Installation, called on the new leadership and the church community to maintain a church that focuses on God. He emphasized the purpose of the Church and why the nation needs good churches.
The Rev. Powell said he accepts the position as senior pastor with humility after serving the congregation as associate pastor for about four years.
You are on a stringent budget, but you want to improve your home. You may have to think about a diy
project that will allow you to be frugal.
Prof. Michelle Dryden is a multimedia journalist and educator with a master’s and a bachelor’s degree in journalism.
For individuals who like beautiful homes and are on a fixed income, you should try these simple, cost-saving ideas that can improve your surroundings:
• Examine your home and write down the improvements you’d like to see.
• Start with your favorite room, or an area outside.
• If you want to start remodeling your bathroom, think about the changes you would like to make. Do you want to change from vinyl to tiles? Do you want to paint the walls? Thinking about doing electrical work?
• Stop into a Home Depot Store. They are very helpful. In fact, they frequently host classes on diy projects for all areas of the home – interior and exterior.
Yusef Williams, a lead generator at the Home Depot in Ewing, N.J., said, “For people going from vinyl to ceramic floors, they can use an adhesive remover to pull up the vinyl.”
Improve your beautiful home with your diy projects
He continued to explain that when you choose ceramic you would first have to lay down either a Wonder Board or a Hardie Backer, then mix your cement and lay on either boards. Then, you should place your ceramic tiles on top of the cemented boards. He said that if you see Hardie Backers that are half-inch thick, then you should use those for your walls. You are to use the quarter-inch ones on your floors.
When on a budget, you will want to pay extra attention to how you choose your ceramic tiles. Williams explained that tiles are made of natural stone, porcelain or ceramic. Porcelain is the most expensive, with ceramic being the least costly.
If you were to hire a contractor to tile your walls and floors, he will charge you for each sq. ft. of tiles he lays. The Home Depot classes can teach you diy tips in laying your tiles.
Do you also want to change your bathroom fixtures? These vary in price according to brand names. Williams said a name such as Glacier Bay is not as popular as Delta, Moen and Pfister. But he cautioned that people should choose a brand based on their budgets and preferences.
Next, you may want to shop for paints to give your bathroom color a lift. Edie Ellison, a paint associate at the Home Depot, advised that you should first decide on a color before visiting the store.
By having your color, Ellison can help you to find a match, based on work that needs to be done, your budget, brands, and prices.
• For those who like high quality paints, but cannot afford them, use coupons, wait for sales, or buy comparable products that are less costly.
Ellison said that Behr paints are the most popular. These paints are available in both paint and primer as one product. She said this combo makes them a more economical way to shop for paints. However, if a shopper cannot afford the Behr, she suggested the comparable Glidden Duo. They also have paint and primer in one, she said.
So, when you have started the painting job, it’s important to make sure your paint is enough for the area to be painted and that your paintbrush will last for the entire job.
More tips:
• Keep a Ziploc bag handy while painting. Instead of continually washing your paintbrush when you take breaks, stick the brush inside and seal it to keep it fresh and clean until you pick it up again.
Use multipurpose Ziploc bags to help you with your paint projects
• Also, if you have Vaseline at home, use it to grease your hands and the brush handle so the paint will not stick to you as you paint. You may still need old rags and T-shirts close by.
You can also save money by performing simple diy electrical repairs. However, some people might be terrified of getting shocked by electrical wires, so they pay contractors.
Nevertheless, when on a limited budget, you can learn how to replace outlets, switches, bulbs, and other electrical pieces yourself.
A flathead screwdriver can help you with your electrical work.
• Use a flathead screwdriver to remove the outlets and study the inside wirings, then you will be able to reconnect and replace the old ones with new ones.
• Use a box cutter to draw a mark around the old outlet you’ll be removing so the paint won’t peel when you remove it. Study the color of the wires that wrap around the screws so you can similarly rewire the sockets. Typically, white wires wrap silver screws; black wires wrap gold screws, and the bare copper wires wrap green screws.
There is a standard electrical outlet and a preferred one. They differ in price with the preferred one being more expensive. However, the installation is the same for both.
And, changing a light switch is similar to changing the outlet but it does not matter which color wires you wrap around the screws.
Electricians charge about $70 for these jobs that take about 10 minutes to complete.
DIY projects are gratifying, cost saving, and are fun.
The staff and members of Grand Family Success Center, a kinship organization, deliberated at their meeting Wednesday as they brainstormed sources for future funding of their grandparents and children’s support initiative.
As the group deliberated about how to raise funds, members also expressed reasons why they really need the program to continue over the next years.
“I joined the program three years ago. I didn’t know it existed,” said Pearlene Armstrong, a grandmother. “I have a granddaughter who really, really needs attention,” she said.
Jacqueline Harris, also a grandmother, said it is difficult to imagine not having the program in her life. “Without this program I don’t know what I would do because they help me in so many ways,” she said. “They help me with my grandson who has multiple disorders.”
Recently, the Grand Family Success Center, (GFSC), received notice from their funding source, The Nicholson Foundation, that it will no longer fund the GFSC after Dec. 31, 2015. As a result, the staff and the group of caregivers, who are mostly grandparents, have been researching ways and means to continue the services of this resourceful kinship group. They will need a new home location and funding to keep the community services and resources available.
The GFSC is a program under The Children’s Home Society of New Jersey agency. This support group assists kinship families, who are caregivers for children of family members who are not able to financially, emotionally, mentally, or otherwise able to take care of their own children.
The Children’s Home Society, Grand Family Success Center and Kinship program also welcomes donations to:
The Children’s Home Society
For The Grand Family Success Center
Building #1, Suite #220
168 Franklin Corner Rd.
Lawrenceville, NJ 08648
The First Baptist Church of Trenton celebrated the end of the Rev. Elizabeth Congdon’s five-year pastorship, Sunday. The pews were filled with many congregation members who love Rev. Congdon and had memorable stories about her leadership. Even though the more than two-centuries-old church has changed leadership a few times, the membership still came out to show support, appreciation, remember good times, and express good wishes for her future. She was presented with good gifts, serenaded with songs, and she preached her last sermon. After the sermon, the congregation gathered in the community room for dinner with the Rev. Congdon and her family.
The Youth College (YOCO) at the James Kerney Campus of Mercer County Community College had a summer extravaganza last Friday to mark the end of their summer school academic sessions. The Youth College partially comprise of Upward Bound and Very Important People, (V.I.P.) high school students, staff and faculty. During the summer session, students attended classes that prepared them for their standardized tests that they need to graduate from high school and also to attend college. These tests include the High School Proficiency Assessment, (HSPA), Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, (PARCC) and their Scholastic Assessment Tests, (SATs). The students went on trips each Friday during the first five weeks of the program. During week six, the last week of the program, they went on their trip that Wednesday. The students said they learned many lessons and enjoyed the programs. They plan to return during the fall semester.
Winter 2013-14 has been one of the most stormy snow seasons in several years in the Northeast. Trenton, N.J., has been getting six to eight inches of snow each snowfall. Conditions get real bad at times, where residents lose electricity and their basements flood. As an online student at Full Sail University, I am trying to cope, hoping not to lose electricity. One of the biggest snow storms was within a few hours after SuperBowl XLVIII ended at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.
