1-23 LG

Lawrence artist’s paintings shine at area exhibition

BY REBEKAH SCHROEDER

The sensation of waking up to see rays of light streaming in from the outside can start your day with an equal glow of positivity. But when the wintry weather does not want to cooperate, or if you happen to pass a wall before a window, rise and shine to a painting with a sunny disposition that brings warmth to those colder, earlier hours of the morning.

Self-taught artist Shiranie Perera creates acrylic paintings with intense, emotive hues in the form of sunsets or abstract patterns. Her piece “Hiru Sevaya,” Sinhala for “sun rise,” melts from oranges and yellows into a sea of red, the rippling waves reflecting color in the sky.

“I don’t use too many dull colors. I want people to be uplifted by looking at a painting. That’s my idea—if you want to get up in the morning

and you see a nice piece, you feel good about it,” Perera said, reinforcing that feeling with similar compositions in her own bedroom.

Perera, who is originally from Sri Lanka, spent roughly 25 years living in Princeton before recently moving to Lawrenceville, where she now has her own studio and gallery at 21 Craven Lane. “Shirankala” is the permanent home for all of Perera’s 100-plus paint-

‘Senior Six’ help power LHS girls’ swim team

BY RICH FISHER

From guppies come sailfish. At least that’s what Lawrence High girls swim coach Hillary Hargraves-Dix is hoping. Oh, and for those who are not marine biologists, the sailfish is the world’s fastest.

In 2019-20 the Cardinals had a strong nucleus of freshmen and their coach couldn’t help but dream of big things if they remained together for all four years of high school.

They have done just that, and Hargraves-Dix is hoping to reap the dividends and build on last season’s 8-4 record that included a win in the NJSIAA Group B quarterfinal.

The Cardinals return every swimmer from last year and, combined with incoming freshmen, have a 24-girl roster—the largest in Hargraves-Dix’s five seasons at the helm.

Leading the way are seniors Emerson Dalton, Riley Burns, Alexandra Cherry, Richa Sharma, Megan Simpson and Kate Sullivan.

“I’m so excited that this is their senior year,” Hargraves-Dix said. “We’re the biggest we’ve ever been, and they’re our leaders given the situation last year, when they had to lead because we didn’t have any seniors.”

She added: “Individually they’ve all grown so much. Freshman year they would never swim the breast, now they’re swimming the breast all the time. Riley was never a distance

swimmer, now she loves the 400 free. It’s been cool to see them grow from freshmen to seniors. Now they have their own niche, and I’m looking forward to seeing what they do in their final season.”

As are the swimmers themselves. Simpson feels her senior class has been a productive work in progress and have grown together.

“We’re really close,” she said. “I remember freshman year it was new for us, but going into that year we were kind of saying it was a building year, an adjustment for our team. We built off that throughout our career and this year we’re really strong.”

The results could be seen early this season, as Lawrence carried a 3-0 mark into its Dec. 16 meet with Hamilton; and had first place finishes in 27 of the 33 events that were held. Their closest win was by 22 points over West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North on opening day.

Leading the way is Dalton, who returns as the two-time recipient of Swimmer of the Meet at the Mercer County Championships. Dalton is the first female swimmer going to a Division 1 school under HargravesDix, as she is committed to the University of North Carolina-Wilmington. Last year she swam a school and meet record of 4:23.49 in winning the 400 freestyle. The meet time broke an 11-year-old mark.

She also won the MCT 200 free-

Lawrence resident Shiranie Perera and her husband, Priyantha, at Songbird Capital in Princeton, which is hosting an exhibition of her paintings. (Staff photo by Rebekah Schroeder.)

PERERA continued from Page 1

ings, with the name a combination of hers, Shiranie, and the word “kala,” or “art,” in Sinhala.

Now, 15 of Perera’s paintings are on display in the office lobby of Songbird Capital, an investment services firm located at 14 Nassau Street.

The exhibition opened in November and is accessible to the public through the end of January on Saturdays from 1 to 6 p.m., as well as by appointment on Thursdays and Fridays from 5 to 6 p.m. To schedule a time to visit, contact Perera at (609) 331-2624.

Jie Hayes, the founding principal and portfolio manager of Songbird, personally asked Perera to display a number of paintings in her office through the end of January.

This “thrilled” Perera, who met her while working at the boutique below Songbird, Orvana London, which specializes in handcrafted textiles and artisan apparel. Before Orvana relocated to Nassau Street, owner-designer Alka Mattoo launched it as a pop-up in Palmer Square, then as a storefront on Chambers Street (see the Echo, October 2018).

What brought the two parts of the building together was a September day when Perera gave Hayes a business card for her gallery. While she had initially planned for

a quick visit, Hayes ended up spending nearly three hours with Perera, calling the experience “mesmerizing.”

Hayes proposed that Perera could use the space at Songbird Capital to show her work. During a pause in the installation process, Hayes confessed that in the morning after her studio visit, she was so moved by the paintings she described as “captivating and liberating at the same time” that she picked up her guitar and played again.

“That itself was telling me, ‘you need to paint more.’ It inspired her,” Perera said, grateful for the opportunity to spark another person’s imagination. “If somebody wants to get inspired [and] do something that they like to do—it need not be painting, it can be something different— then my message to them is you have to do it.”

Perera’s primary medium is acrylics on canvas, but she also enjoys using wood from time to time; according to the artist, the latter material requires primer, a “lot of paint,” and can be difficult to frame.

“When I grew up in Sri Lanka, things were not that easily available. Everything was expensive,” Perera explained, which kept her from pursuing her passion. She has “always loved” art since childhood, often mixing vibrant colors or using markers to scribble for fun. She was eager to

learn more about painting in her earlier school years, but once she grew older, classes on the subject were no longer offered.

But that did not stop her from experimenting with less expensive alternatives like chalk, even if the medium was never as rewarding as the acrylics she now gets to use.

After Perera received a degree in accounting and economics from the University of Peradeniya, she married her husband, Priyantha. The two of them moved to the United States together in 1983, where Priyantha continued his studies at Michigan State University.

As self-described “poor students” living on a stipend, the couple was able to get by, but Shiranie could not further her own education in America given the steep price of college credits.

“I regret it, and I don’t regret it,” Perera explained, noting that she did already graduate from an institution in Sri Lanka and feared that any financial complications would prevent her from living out another dream of hers—becoming a mother.

The Pereras welcomed a daughter, Dilshanie, and moved to New Jersey in December of 1997. There, Shiranie postponed her painting endeavors to work for Lisa Jones, the owner of a Witherspoon Street retail store by the same name that

sold jewelry and accessories. Jones closed the business in February of 2018 amid rising rent prices and the shuttering of several other smaller shops, leaving 11-year employee Shiranie with newfound free time.

By this time, Priyantha was an executive at a global reinsurance intermediary. Dilshanie had graduated from Princeton High School, moved out, and enrolled at the University of Chicago. This was the open window, sunlight and all, that Shiranie went for.

“I thought when I lost my job, ‘this is the chance; I need to do it,’” she said, noting that when she started out, the couple downsized from their first home to a smaller two-story apartment in Palmer Square. The arrangement presented difficulties, but Perera remained determined and carried on painting even after taking on another part-time position.

Perera would make multiple trips downstairs to the basement floor, where to properly store her pieces, she had to “put everything down and bring it back in the evening” after work. “You can travel with the wood pieces, but [when] you take canvas, you have to be very careful, so you don’t get any holes or anything like that,” Perera said.

see PERERA, Page 4

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more confidence in her skills along the way. Shiranie explained that both Priyantha and Dilshanie were “very supportive,” which encouraged her to keep going despite any bumps in the road.

Shiranie’s family members, including Dilshanie’s husband, Phil Friedrich, have helped to name all of her paintings. Dilshanie, who earned a PhD in anthropology at Stanford and now lives in New York with Phil, is a climate humanities postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Science and Society at Columbia University, as well as a lecturer in the department of anthropology.

“I never thought I could do this,” Perara said, whether that was in terms of affordability or timing, noting that her family’s best interests always had to come first. “Otherwise, everybody has to pitch in and do [more], but [Priyantha and Dilshanie] are over the top, always helping me…without them, I couldn’t have done it.”

When the apartment was no longer feasible for Shiranie and Priyantha, the Pereras bought a new house in Lawrenceville just before the COVID-19 lockdown. During the pandemic, Shiranie could focus on her pieces instead of worrying over her husband because Priyantha was able to work from home.

“Actually, it was very peaceful for me to

work with my art,” Shiranie explained, the “freedom” of expression giving her a way to relax further.

Using the internet as a tool, Perera could build a platform through her gallery website, shirankala.com, and view online exhibitions from artists she admired. Shiranie fondly remembers that in the past, she would travel with Priyantha to see some of these inspirations in physical museums, too.

“Rothko is my favorite,” Perera said, citing additional figures like Henri Matisse and Jackson Pollock as influences even if her own artistic approach does not exactly match theirs.

Rothko might have refrained from defining his personal style, but he is most famous for his color field paintings, an offshoot of abstract expressionism “characterized by large areas of color, typically without strong tonal contrasts or a defined point of focus,” according to the MoMA website.

Some of Perera’s works even include geometric shapes reminiscent of Rothko, particularly in “Trio,” which features three shapes—one rectangular is evocative of Rothko’s signature shape, yet much longer and readily overlapping others in thick, bold lines of red.

“Doing abstract work, there’s no limit. You can stop anywhere you want. But whereas if you’re doing a portrait or some-

thing like that, that has to [look like] that person, or, if you’re doing a scenery, it has to look like that scenery. With abstract painting … it’s limitless,” Perera said.

Now, she has a spacious studio and gallery where there is “plenty of room” for her passion. Her rules are simple, no matter the complexity of the piece; if she hangs it and “is not happy” with the result, she just “paints over it” until that feeling changes.

“In life, there’s so many hurdles you have to jump [through], but when you’re alone and looking at a painting, if it feels good to you, then it’s good,” Perera said. “Sometimes people have lots of things to do with their lives. It’s so hectic, and you look at a painting or a picture … and then you feel relaxed.”

Perera is candid in saying that while she does view her endeavors as a long-awaited escape, she also wants to hear the opinions of people who view or purchase the paintings.

“I think that’s a good thing. That’s why, I think, painters paint—because they want to give a message,” Perera explained, adding that a musician once told her that three paintings she had purchased “sang to her.” “She said, ‘I see music in these three paintings,’ so that in itself is so interesting to me. But I like people to give feedback; then you want to paint more.”

While “Ness” is another natural scene, Perera’s palette changes in tone, with blue occupying the top half of the composition before being greeted by familiar yellows encroaching on a black beach. But this time, Shiranie paints a promontory, a headland or cliff leading into a body of water, to provide visual contrast.

Others, like “Gateway,” are less defined, giving the artist the ability to make shapes her centerpiece, then invite spectators to apply their perspectives to the paintings. Everyone can see abstract work differently, so as Perera’s exhibit at Songbird Capital continues through January, she is eager to share this selection of works with the community and hear thoughts as vibrant as her use of colors.

“I am so happy with what I have done thus far,” Perera said. “It’s very relaxing to me, and I enjoy every piece that I have done.” If it dawns on you to ask the artist herself to pick one of them over another, though, her response will be as humble as it is illuminating.

“I don’t want to say that because the other paintings will get mad,” Perera explained with a laugh. “They’re all my favorites.”

For more of Shiranie Perera’s work or inquiries, see her website at shirankala.com or visit in person at the Shirankala Art Gallery at 21 Craven Lane in Lawrenceville.

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Talking Tea with Holsome Teas and Herbs & Tea-For-All

BY REBEKAH SCHROEDER

January has few holidays after the new year, but a lighthearted observance that makes the weight of a dark winter better is the month’s national recognition of hot tea.

Stay snug with a satisfying cup of your own, or, for an experience combining the leisurely with the educational, put that kettle back on—the wisdom of these tea shops is steeped in years of creativity and care.

Holsome Teas and Herbs

The rows of colorful Chinese tea bins lining the walls at Princeton’s Holsome Teas and Herbs shine like hidden gems in this “hole-in-the-wall” establishment, each resembling vibrant jewels with their own origins, flavors and brewing customs.

Holsome, which takes its name from the word “wholesome” minus two letters, is in the rear of the building at 27 Witherspoon Street, reachable either through the brick back alley and egress or by walking straight through the storefront of Junbi, the bubble tea shop that Holsome’s owner, former chemist Paul Shu, rents the space to.

According to Shu, the longtime spot described on its website as “Princeton’s

Holsome’s rear egress at 27 Witherspoon Street in downtown Princeton.

best kept secret” was the first tea store in the downtown Princeton area, opening in 1996 at 20 Nassau Street prior to moving to its permanent home on Witherspoon. The welcoming white interior, accentuated by an emerald seating area of modest tables and a prime outside view, is a window into the scientist’s second dream.

Holsome has successfully tested Shu’s hypothesis, carrying a combination of three aspects—high-quality teas from around the world, Chinese herbal medicine, and nutritional supplements and vitamins—over 26 years of business, long before you could buy bubble tea on every block.

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“Many of these treatments may come as a surprise to patients suffering from chronic pain, especially those who think that their pain — and poor quality of life — is something they have to endure,” Dr. Patel notes. A double board-certified anesthesiologist and pain management specialist, Dr. Patel focuses on treating pain in the back, neck, face, and joints as well as pain related to cancer and chemotherapy.

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Shu’s teas, whether traditional or flavored, come from a variety of countries, including China, Taiwan, Sri Lanka and India.

“A tea shop like this can do well because our tea’s so different, it’s really so different. You will come to a tea shop to buy tea; you can actually see it, smell it, and taste it,” Shu said. “But if you go online, that quality and service are not there.”

Shu also mentioned that relying solely on descriptions for reference raises the risk of “disappointment,” a scenario easily avoided by providing a physical, pleasant environment for perusing and purchasing tea.

Holsome is open Monday through Saturday from 1 to 5 p.m. Shu’s wife used to help, but he has since encouraged her to do all the paperwork and bookkeeping from home while he oversees the storefront.

Shu is an impressive one-man show, balancing phone calls, brewing tea, and measuring out the leaves waiting to be weighed, which can be purchased for the minimal weight of a quarter pound.

Born in China, Shu moved to Taiwan when he was about 6 years old. In 1965, he came to study in the United States, obtaining a master’s degree in chemistry from the University of Notre Dame and his Ph.D. in the same subject from the University of Michigan.

After graduating, Shu completed his postdoc at the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, then started as a research scientist with 3M, a manufacturing company based in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

ExxonMobil, then known as the Mobil Oil Corporation, used to have a research and development center based in Hopewell Township that offered Shu a position. He arrived in Mercer County in 1981, worked there for 15 years, and registered an estimated 74 patents in his name.

While he trained as a chemist, Shu rarely stuck with a single passion and “always had more than one job at one time,” leading him to found the Whitewaters Swim Team in 1983. Shu is now the acting director, but before he stepped back to focus full-time on Holsome about three years ago, Whitewaters had “the longest history of one coach and the same head coach” in the area.

In 1995, Mobil exited the area, and Shu accepted what he described as a “package deal” for early retirement from Mobil, which left him wondering about what to do next in his career.

Thinking about his family background, Shu knew that both of his paternal and maternal grandparents were “very knowledgeable in traditional Chinese medicine,” even applying what they knew to serve as healers in their hometown communities. Those who practiced Chinese medicine back then, Shu said, were not often

“formally trained in college or university,” learning instead through “self-study.”

But, “more importantly, because Chinese medicine is very closely linked to our philosophy, our Chinese philosophy tends to be [that] we are more into nature; it’s not artificial, so whatever goes harmoniously with nature, that’s the way they approach.”

Shu observed how a greater number of people in America were taking an interest in this practice so “deeply ingrained” in his culture. The supplement industry was also booming, with health stores in malls like GNC making vitamins more accessible to the general public.

Around the same time, Shu had recently discovered his affinity for tea while revisiting Taiwan, returning to America with some that he eagerly shared with friends. Back in the late ‘90s, he said that because America was such a “fast-moving” country, people tended to gravitate towards soda or coffee, consuming the latter in instant form rather than taking the time to properly prepare their morning java.

Shu envisioned a company that would be informed by both his principles and professional experiences in chemistry. Such expertise, he added, allowed him to “pick up new information”—such as how to run a business without official training—quicker.

Because of Shu’s capacity for analysis, he emphasized the importance of remembering how “nature came first; science is after that.”

“Everything is in nature. It’s already there, and we just don’t know enough. We gradually learn more and more about it, but people think we’re discovering it. You didn’t discover it; it was already there. You bumped into it.”

Shu wanted to improve his clients’ quality of life and health under the belief that he could “fundamentally help people’s overall wellbeing” in an informed, practical manner. Now, he sells organic ingredients such as burdock root, goji berries, rosehips, lavender flowers, and peppermint.

By bringing products and tea to an American audience not nearly as familiar with such a market back at the beginning of the 21st century, Shu capitalized on a niche that has since been embraced in the public sphere.

This change can be visibly seen just in Princeton alone, which is now bustling with various shops to buy, try and enjoy tea. Many of these places also sell bubble tea, a sweet, Taiwanese tea-based drink that typically features boba—chewy balls of tapioca “pearls” with a divisive texture—as well as milk, sweetened red bean, coconut-based flavored jellies, and other additions.

“When I first moved to Princeton, Princeton was a sleepy small town, essentially,” Shu said, remembering a time when the shops were scattered solely from Nassau through Witherspoon, as well as in Palmer Square. One of the only businesses still operating, he added, is Small World Coffee, which he believes was the first coffee spot when it opened three years before Holsome in December 1993.

“I’ve seen so many businesses come and go,” Shu said. “Fortunately, I’m still here,” with the owner attributing that to the fact that his “original formula seems to be working.”

Back then, there were numerous banks and a few restaurants in Princeton, but only one chain: a single Burger King. Similar fare was seen as unbefitting of the town’s atmosphere, so when industry giants like Starbucks came along, “that was a shock at the time,” Shu said.

This attitude of wanting the town to “have its own distinct status and reputation,” Shu continued, has now fallen by the wayside in favor of more chain stores.

Shu was pleased that Holsome had been successful “from day one,” and when Urken Supply Co., a family-owned hardware store on Witherspoon, closed in 2002, Shu’s enterprise had the chance to expand into a larger location.

Once he acquired the building, Shu ran

his tea shop in the front, while a multipurpose space in the back served as an art gallery where, “every two months,” a new, local creative would showcase an exhibit of their works.

When a yoga studio on Spring Street closed, Shu gave the equipment, as well as some of the teachers, a new home at Holsome Teas and Herbs. The “Holsome Yoga”’ program ran for years until instructor Gemma Farrell took over and moved the group, now known as “Gratitude Yoga,” to the second floor of 86 Nassau Street in 2018.

Shu acknowledged that although Holsome was able to incorporate more of a holistic flair, the 2008 financial crisis had a significant impact on the company.

Eventually, Shu made the decision to begin renting out the front of the building, which turned out to be a “very valuable” source of income, as Holsome carried on in the rear. To do so, he redid most of the interior, carving out a corridor and a second egress for additional room.

Shu said that Junbi, which means “preparation” in Japanese, opened in March 2021 with a lineup of matcha-forward drinks, bubble teas, coffees and more. Junbi is “very popular for young people,” he added, with bubble tea frequently serving as “the first step” toward regular tea consumption for these generations. Holsome even sold healthier, “unconventional” bubble tea back when they were in the front area, yet now that Shu is without a kitchen of his own, his recommendation is to take full advantage of Junbi’s menu.

The revamped layout at Holsome is still used for a zen meditation class, but Shu is considering converting the old gallery into a place where people can come to sit, study, and learn while drinking tea.

Shu noted that he is more than “happy here” at Holsome’s spot, gesturing to the wide window, a personal request of his, which fills the room with light as it looks out onto the courtyard area. “This is almost like my own backyard. When you sit here, it’s almost like they let me share their garden,” Shu said with a sincere smile.

Throughout times of uncertainty, Holsome Teas and Herbs has remained true to its roots—and name—by inviting customers to pause and savor the simple things in life. “People just come to talk to me for any health advice. If I know, I’m more than happy to provide it,” Shu explained. “My philosophy here is, I like to provide knowledge.”

Shu insisted that he is not interested in any products with unproven abilities or hypes, and everything he does retail has been vetted in terms of efficacy and safety.

Shu has built trust in his relationship with customers over the years, meaning that if someone asks about a particular problem or product, he will be “very hon-

For the past 26 years, Paul Shu, the owner of Holsome Teas and Herbs, has been running a shop that combines his love of tea with Chinese herbal remedies influenced by his family. background.

est” in letting them know the truth, even going so far as to refuse to sell it to them.

Shu said people he has known for years regularly call him for questions and conversations, becoming like his old friends. Many of them have since moved away, but despite the distance, he arranges for products to be delivered to them wherever they are now.

The owner maintained that because such a feature had always been an integral part of Holsome’s business model from the start, he did not notice a dramatic increase in the sale of “natural alternatives” during the pandemic. The modest storefront, which only accepts in-person or phone orders, does not have an online store.

Just as simply, with green tea being the least oxidized and black tea being the most oxidized, Shu’s favorite tea, oolong, is semioxidized and falls somewhere in the middle. Shu said that depending on how much air the leaves are exposed to in production, the color will fluctuate, giving a “different taste and flavor” to the tea.

His recommendations, however, revolve around each person’s individual tea experiences, as a match must “depend on their interest, state, and appreciation level.”

Everyone “has a different value system,” Shu explained, meaning that there are differences between the palates of beginners and those who have dedicated time to honing their taste preferences. He believes that rather than selecting the most expensive tea, an introduction to tea should begin with sampling and exploring flavor profiles through more affordable options.

Shu equated the experience to that of wine, stating that college students are likely to opt for a cheaper option that works for their roommates at the time. But once they develop a discerning palate, those same people might buy “a particular year or variety” at a higher price.

“Tea drinking is very similar to that,” Shu said. With thousands of years of customs and history behind it, the craft has “evolved continuously” throughout time to the point where drinking tea, according to Holsome’s owner, “is almost like an art” in and of itself.

“You can brew a nice cup of tea your way, [with] your knowledge, and then you can appreciate the result,” he said. Shu explained that although manipulating the climate, and temperature can influence the overall flavor of a tea, the maker has a level of control over the final product that far exceeds that of coffee, where the definitions of a dark or medium roast differ from shop to shop.

“If you understand the tea brewing process,” he said, “a good cup of tea is very easy.” While he referred to tea as “more subtle,” Shu also drinks coffee, brewing it with the same care as his tea. Customers who enter Holsome with a cup of java in hand, though, always seem to apologize

Browse the beautiful displays of teas, left, while taking in the charming courtyard view at Holsome, right.

to the owner as if he would look down on them for their choice; when this happens, he reassures them that there is no need to worry over such a trivial detail.

“Coffee and tea—they all can improve our lives, so what’s the big deal?” Shu said.

Since tea is organic, Shu acknowledged that there is no surefire way to ensure the exact consistency of each tea from batch to batch, but he has long established a rapport with producers that allows him to get as close to the same result as possible every time. Despite coming from “the same tea garden, the same facility, the same teamaking master, every year’s different,” he explained, comparing those variations to the harvest from a vegetable garden.

As shops across Princeton may go about tea in a “different style,” Shu shared, he is glad to see the shift in attitudes about what can be savored as a beautifully understated selection, one that is less ubiquitous in America.

Back when Teavana was in business— the now-defunct tea store and mall staple that was bought out, then dissolved by the Starbucks brand—Shu was still pleased, noting that they provided more ways “to introduce average people to tea drinking” on a larger scale.

“We’re all promoting tea drinking,” Shu said in earnest, adding that to create an art and culture of tea here, others must aid the general mission to “broadcast” the practice. Coffee might have reigned supreme at the beginning of Holsome’s journey, but now that people have a better understanding of tea or are eager to learn, the clientele’s choices have changed accordingly.

“I can see many of our customers are coming with good knowledge and taste in tea, and that’s very encouraging. My original idea is working, but it takes some time,” Shu explained.

He has no interest in moving on or elsewhere, keeping busy with over two decades’ worth of dedication and regulars. If he ever does find a successor, Shu said he would need to ensure that their interest in tea is just as strong as his—someone who can apply his scientific precision, as well as Shu’s peaceful understanding and enduring philosophy, to the business.

Tea-For-All

Tea-For-All is located in the north end of the Trenton Farmers Market at 960 Spruce Street in Lawrence, down the main corridor of permanent and rotating vendors, right by the vegan eatery Savory Leaf Cafe and Out Of Step: Offbeat Boutique & General Store.

Ran by couple Deborah “Debbie” and Michael “Mike” Raab, Tea-For-All has been

in business since 2011, opening in the Trenton Farmers Market eight years later in a spot that comes complete with a tea bar and retail space.

Just four months into this long-awaited storefront, though, the COVID-19 pandemic temporarily closed their physical location, so the Raabs, like true tea entrepreneurs, pivoted to take away teas, porch deliveries and off-hour curbside pickups.

Debbie was used to reinventing her approach as the owner and principal; after retiring from a career in corrections in 2009, she honed her business skills through pop-up markets and partnerships. First, she graduated from Trenton State College, now known as The College of New Jersey, with a bachelor’s in sociology and a minor in psychology, then worked in the field for over 30 years, starting as a state social worker before becoming a program director.

Mike joked that Debbie “was terrible at retirement,” because rather than enjoy her free time, she began studying her second interest in tea whenever and wherever she could, with the thought of starting her own, all-encompassing business.

Instead of just focusing on tea and its corresponding products, Tea-For-All centers on education by coordinating a monthly tea club membership program as well as “about 20 or 30 different lectures” that, for a fee, touch on topics from history to wellness. Tea-For-All is also a regular at places like the West Windsor Community Farmers’ Market, where the company can interact with a broader audience.

For January, Tea-For-All is expecting to host more of these educational classes and private tastings “two or three times a week,” while due to the onset of the cold weather, they have been selling more warm beverages such as tea lattes, hot chocolates and apple ciders.

Tea-For-All is currently open from Wednesdays through Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., as well as on Sundays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. While the Trenton Farmers Market is closed on Wednesdays, several shops remain open to the public and can be entered through their respective entrances, including Tea-For-All, Out of Step, Savory Leaf, and the Lady and the Shallot.

Mike, whose background is similar to Shu’s in their shared love of science, spent 25 years in sales, complemented by his

experiences in engineering and marketing. He received his bachelor’s degree in applied mathematics with a minor in engineering from Northrop Institute of Technology, followed by his MBA from the same institution, which closed as Northrop University in 1990.

Growing up with a dad in the Navy, Mike spent his childhood in “every place that God put water” before living in California for roughly 30 years. Once in the chemical industry, he held a number of managerial, liaison, and leadership positions. Mike’s company, the Chemtura Corporation, wanted to move him to the marketing department on the east coast, so he made arrangements for his teenage son, Andrew, to come along with him.

Once in New Jersey, the plans to bring Andrew fell apart, so Mike let off steam by walking the three miles from Lawrence Square Village to the Quaker Bridge Mall. As he passed by the now-closed store called This End Up Furniture Co., Mike decided to look for a desk for Andrew in the hopes that he could still come in the future.

There, he met Debbie, who was working there as a second job. The two chatted for a long time, and Mike promised to come back once given the official go-ahead. When Mike returned a few weeks later, Debbie was not on shift, so Mike—always a salesman at heart—told her coworker that he wanted to ensure she received credit for the purchase, then passed on a note with his contact information.

The two soon became a couple, bonding over their mutual love for outdoor activities, even training all summer for the MS 150 Bike Tour in Woodstock, a cycling fundraiser for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. But the week before the event, Mike got sick with the flu, while the facility Debbie worked at had just closed.

Both upset and physically weakened on Mike’s end, they canceled. After he recovered, Mike went out looking for condos with Debbie, having just sold his place in California. When the curious realtor asked about their relationship, Mike confessed to him that he was going to propose to Debbie at Woodstock, which unfortunately was not to be. At dinner that night, Debbie

serve “two benefits: one, it’s a revenue generator, and they’re all profitable, but they also are a major part of our promotion and advertising.”

Their new truck with the Tea-For-All name is hard to miss, and Mike is pleased at how the ruby red ride has been able to build brand recognition from just being out on the road.

“One of the, I hope, infectious things is why people do business with us—because I think we treat people the way we want to be treated. We greet everyone that walks in. We don’t overshadow them,” he said, giving patrons the space to move at their own pace while still providing “accurate knowledge” as needed.

In their travels, the Raabs have traveled to regions like China and Taiwan, but also lesser-known areas of the U.S. that produce tea, such as commercial farms in the states of Mississippi—where they picked, plucked and processed black and green tea firsthand—and South Carolina. Mike added that Tea-For-All is “probably one of the only continental US companies that have Hawaiian tea for sale,” with two visits under their belt and another planned in March.

As a “guiding principle,” Mike and Debbie also want to positively impact younger generations by providing them with opportunities for employment and customer interaction.

“We take them on as our own sons and daughters,” he said. This staff includes another family member interested in tea, the couple’s grandson, John Major IV, or “J.” Another addition to the team is the talent of Kathleen Hippeli, the former owner of One Steep at a Thyme, a Jamesburg tearoom that closed during the pandemic. On Saturdays, Hippeli steps in to help, bringing her expertise and freshly baked goods.

This welcoming atmosphere is perfect for customers who want to expand their tea horizons from the familiar to the esoteric.

“Many people just grew up with a cup of Lipton when they were sick, with some honey in it from grandmom. They don’t really know a lot about the different types of tea,” Debbie said, sharing her own example of how tea can capture the comfort of family love, much like she did with her mother, and then cultivate that into a profound appreciation for the drink.

“Whenever possible, if a customer is not sure that they would like a certain tea—as long as we have the ability to do so—we try to give them a taste so that they can experience it and make their own decision,” she added.

“It’s always amazing to me that I love watching the light bulb go off with people, first of all, when they learn that all tea comes from one plant, and secondly, when they taste five different black teas, and it’s just unbelievable to them at the difference in the flavor profiles.”

Debbie explained that British tea does have its own appeal, but she is “just so much more fascinated with the different cultures of tea” across the globe.

Mike said that they do not sell a single tea that he does not like, but Tea-For-All also counts its vendors as a “backup knowledge base” with a focus on quality control that matches the veracity of their claims.

“Left to my own devices, if I were to pull something off the shelf, it would probably be an oolong or a pu’erh,” Debbie said, the latter being “bioactive,” as Mike pointed out, with a host of health benefits.

The couple includes a good green in their winter rotation but prefers tea without flavors or sweeteners all year. Because TeaFor-All has “a marvelous selection and palate of really excellent quality teas,” according to Mike, he admitted that his tastes in tea have matured. Various additions are available based on customer preference, yet Mike does not mean to downplay the importance of flavored teas.

“Nine out of every 10 cups of tea out of this shop, or any of our pop-ups, it’s going to be a flavored tea. It’s going to be a pineapple coconut, or it’s going to be lemon souffle, or it’s going to be any of these, which are wonderful, strong flavors, and that’s much more accessible to a wider audience,” he said.

Green teas, which the Raabs prefer on the higher end, can also be polarizing if prepared improperly, turning matcha, a type of green tea ground into a powder with a vegetal, nutty, and grassy taste, “almost astringently bitter,” as Mike warned. Matcha is usually associated with either the culinary grade, which should only be used for cooking, or overly sweetened versions where any true flavor is lost amid the other ingredients.

Debbie said that if she has the time to make matcha correctly for a customer who has sworn off it after a bad experience, she will prepare both of the two grades that Tea-For-All carries: one is “very close to ceremonial grade,” or what would be utilized in Japanese tea ceremonies and made from younger tea leaves, while the other is just below it in ranking.

“Four out of five times, the person ends up buying the ceremonial,” she continued, with people able to note the differences in taste between them.

Most customers are coming in exclusively for loose teas, according to Mike. There was also a significant uptick in the purchase of caffeine-free herbal teas, or tisanes, as a byproduct of the pandemic, with many people seeking out other ways to alleviate health symptoms or boost their immune systems. One of these herbal teas, the butterfly pea flower, blooms blue and brews a drink of the same color that transforms into purple when exposed to the acidity of a lemon.

Mike said that he regularly directs custom-

ers who come to him with questions about what teas have the most or least caffeine to the herbal shelf, noting that “even decaffeinated tea has some caffeine in it,” providing an alternative for people with allergies or other concerns.

Without a proper chemical analysis, he continued, a seller cannot properly gauge those qualities in a tea, since countless factors are at play that affect the resulting levels.

“In general, certain tea types have less or more caffeine, but green teas are the perfect example. You drink matcha, and it’s probably one of the highest caffeine contents that you can imagine, as opposed to one of the other green teas that, maybe, is a late-season green tea,” Debbie added.

Since customers have been looking for and requesting more herbal options, the Raabs have been continuing their own learning to be certified in courses about this rising

YEARS

ANNIVERSARY

609-584-5252 www.priornami.com

trend in holistic health. Tea-For-All’s selections reflect the diversity of their customer base, harkening back to countless homeopathic remedies passed down through generations.

While the owners hope to better understand the nuances of products such as licorice root or raspberry leaf, Mike said that Tea-For-All lets the medical professionals study and decide what advantages such products might have.

“People should make [tea] part of their healthy diet, but it’s not going to solve people’s medical issues,” Mike said. “We don’t need to make those claims. We’re happy to tell you what we know the benefits are.”

It’s this everlasting meeting of artistry and philanthropy that encouraged Mike to tell the story about the “Texas bowl,” a vessel for both tea and the tale itself that took the

1666 Hamilton Ave. Hamilton, NJ 08629

RWJUH Hamilton

Scoring Top Nursing Honors: Achieveing Magnet Status Recognizes the Highest Quality Care for Patients

Nurses have been called the backbone of healthcare. At Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton (RWJUH Hamilton), an RWJBarnabas Health facility, they provide vital care at the bedside but also promote teamwork, enhance safety, improve patient outcomes, nurture community health, educate staff, provide leadership and more.

As a result of such efforts, RWJUH Hamilton has earned Magnet recognition for nursing excellence from the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). The designation is the nation’s most prestigious nursing honor—one that only 9 percent of hospitals across the country have achieved. “At RWJUH Hamilton, our nursing team continuously strives to provide excellent care to our patients in an authentic, compassionate way. “We were very excited about being designated for the first time as a Magnet hospital,” says Lisa Breza,

Pieces repaired using Kintsugi, left, and the “Texas bowl,” right.

RN, MSN, NEABC, Senior Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer at RWJUH Hamilton. “It’s not something you just get by applying. “You need to prove that your nursing is consistently exemplary through data, surveys and outcomes for eight consecutive quarters, or two years,” Breza says.

RWJUH Hamilton’s 400-plus nurses excelled even while facing the peak of an unprecedented pandemic. “I’m so proud of our nurses.” “They all work very hard, and our programs are truly outstanding,” says Richard Freeman, President and Chief Executive Officer at RWJUH Hamilton.

Standards of Excellence.

The ANCC considers a number of key criteria that reflect not only best clinical practices but also organizational factors such as leadership structure, shared decisionmaking and education. “Achieving Magnet designation has been years in the making,” Breza says. “We did an analysis of existing practices and executed plans to make sure we met standards for providing exemplary nursing.”

“These honors testify to the outstanding care and compassion our nurses bring to their patients,”

says Dawn Hutchinson, MSN, RN, PCCN-K, and Assistant Vice President of Nursing at RWJUH Hamilton.

Colleagues in Quality. Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton is one of six Magnetrecognized hospitals in RWJBarnabas Health (RWJBH), the state’s largest healthcare system. To learn more about Magnet recognition, visit rwjbh. org/magnet

To discover what awaits you or someone you know in a nursing career at RWJBarnabas Health, including Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton, visit rwjbh.org/nursing

Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton also recently achieved a Leapfrog ‘A’ Hospital Safety Grade for the 13th time underscoring RWJUH Hamilton’s commitment as a High Reliability Organization (HRO). Through the concerted effort of RWJUH Hamilton’s physicians, nurses, staff, volunteers and leadership, patients and families benefit from the highest level of quality care and the safest hospital experience.

To learn more about Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton, visit rwjbh.org/Hamilton or call 609586-7900. See ad, page 13.

couple back to about five or six years ago to a Dallas tea festival. One of the seminars featured students from a nearby school district with two of their tea-loving teachers, who had started an after-school tea club for the children.

During this experience, the students were encouraged to go over to a potter’s table, where the sculptor had created matcha bowls of varying structure and size. “If you notice, this one is not perfectly round,” Mike explained, showing the piece in his hand but refraining to call those aspects “imperfections,” calling them the work of an artist.

“This one little girl picked up this bowl, and she said, ‘You see how it’s murky down here and it’s not clear? That’s the early part of my life. I don’t see that. But it gets up here, closer to the top,’” Mike recalled, visibly moved by the memory of her words that day.

“‘It becomes much more clear, and how much more perfectly rounded it is, and how it had these indentations and imperfections at the bottom, but…’” Mike stopped where he was in the story with tears in his eyes.

“We like to see kids succeed, and needless

to say, I bought her bowl,” he finished with a laugh, just in awe at how the children “developed this marvelous relationship over tea because they could all relate to that.”

This theme was reminiscent of the Japanese concept of “wabi-sabi,” which Debbie defined as about “how life’s not always perfect, but learn to find the beauty in imperfection…people aren’t in our lives forever, but accept that and celebrate them for when they are there.”

When someone accidentally broke a bowl at Tea-For-All, another customer, Steve, took it upon himself to practice kintsugi, a Japanese art that breathes new life into fragments by adhreing them again with a golden line of lacquer. Kintsugi, which translates to “golden joinery,” embraces any perceived flaws as part of an improved, more elegant piece of pottery.

For Mike, this built on his resounding message of “Yes, it’s imperfect, but so what? It’s beautiful.” Just as time might need to pass for a bowl to become its most colorful itera-

tion yet, he conveyed that younger people deserve to be given the proper space to heal and process.

As the Raabs aim to help from the heart, Tea-For-All has also been making strides to be more sustainable, whether that is in their packaging or products. Customers are also encouraged to bring their own cups for a discount or tins for refills, as long as they call ahead for the latter so that the owners can ensure the tea is in stock.

It’s an expensive endeavor to be more environmentally conscious, Debbie acknowledged, but one they prioritize given its match with both their values and the aesthetic of the farmers’ market. Trips to the World Tea Expo and possibly Japan are scheduled for the new year, but each endeavor shares the same resounding mission statement that Tea-For-All has always echoed from the two who know it the best.

“I think ours is a story of adaptation and teamwork,” Mike said. “We treat people the way we want to be treated. We try to always

speak with knowledge and understanding of where the customer is, always willing to share what knowledge we have. We’re also willing to be told we’re wrong, or we need to know more, and we charge a fair price for a cup of tea—and a quality cup of tea.”

“We’re having more and more people that are coming in, too, that are saying, ‘we like to come here and get the tea, because we always get an education with it,’” Debbie said, with that love of endless intellectual exploration forming a mutual bond between owners and customers.

“We continually learn about tea. It’s not an endpoint, it’s a journey; that’s one of the things we pride ourselves on,” Mike added.

Shu and the Raabs continue to cultivate their crafts and curious minds with a ceaseless resolve—retiring has never stopped them before—and there is always more tea to pour, more kettles to fill, and more knowledge to impart with an equal helping of smiles.

But if you take anything in your tea, let it be the lesson that these two businesses in Mercer County are serving up cups of endless enthusiasm to ease the brunt of the cold winter season.

Read the full story online at the CNS website, communitynews.org.

AllCure Spine and Sports Medicine

Helping seniors find the right diagnosis and right treatment

AllCure Spine and Sports Medicine is a multidisciplinary family practice that has been in business for over 10 years. Over the past decade, the senior community has been a big portion of our patient demographic. We hear many different complaints week to week, but one of the biggest complaints we see with our seniors is balance and gait dysfunction. As our bodies get older, degenerative changes take place, which can lead to a host of symptoms taking away from your quality of life. This can lead to loss of balance, decreased range of motion, decreased strength, trouble with gait mechanics, and much more. Here at AllCure, we provide the proper imaging and testing to help us diagnose these common complaints before they become debilitating. We always say that a small problem will remain small if it’s treated early enough. We strive to get ahead of each patient’s chief complaints and provide a comprehensive plan of care.

One of the major issues seniors face is getting a proper diagnosis early enough to find effective treatments. In many cases we see that patients are given a prescription for medication that will only treat the symptoms, but not the root cause.

This will lead to worsening symptoms over time and keep patients from an active and independent lifestyle. We pride ourselves in making tailored treatment plans to fit each patient’s individual needs and impairments. There is no one-size-fits-

all approach to healthcare and each patient should be treated with that mindset.

We strongly feel that a multidisciplinary approach is the best way to get patients the care they need and the relief they deserve in a safe, fast, and efficient manner. Our experienced team of providers consisting of chiropractors, physical therapists and acupuncturists collaborate on each case to get the patient the best plan possible to achieve their goals.

We do accept Medicare! We find that most of our Medicare patients don’t have to pay a dime out of their pocket, rather just commit the time and effort.

Please give us a call today and we would be happy to hold a free 10 minute consultation for you or a family member to make sure that you are comfortable and get the correct information to make an important decision for improving your health and quality of life. We look forward to hearing from you!

AllCure Spine & Sports Medicine, 140 Cabot Drive, Suite A, Hamilton. 609-528-4417. www. allcurespineandsports.com. See ad, page 9.

Brothers Anthony Alfieri, DC, left, and Victor Alfieri, DPT.

Hamilton Dental Associates

New Year, New Smile

Smile, it’s a new year! A time that for many means resolutions, and a renewed commitment to health and improvement. A healthy smile is a big part of that, and now you can care for your and your family’s teeth all in one place. When families come to HDA, they are happy because they can take care of their own dental needs while everyone in their family’s oral health is being looked after at the same time. “It’s a win-win,” commented Dr. Irving Djeng, pediatric dentist, “kids get attentive, gentle treatment by a dedicated, specialist team that works only with kids, while parents and adult patients are cared for by our experienced adult staff right down the hall.” Dr. Lauren Levine, pediatric dentist, also commented, “We go to great lengths to make the children feel comfortable because we know that teaching children good oral hygiene at a very young age prepares them for a lifetime of healthy smiles.”

You may have heard the term 6-Month Dental Recall, but what does that mean? A “recall” or “dental recall” visit is a regularly scheduled checkup appointment to help dentists have an ongoing knowledge of the status of their patients’ oral health. These visits are vital to both practice and patients. The more often a patient can meet with their dentist, the better care that doctor can provide. The frequency of appointments is determined by each dentist and usually coincides with a hygienist visit, usually every 6 months or twice a year. A recurring 6 month recall to your dentist is so important to supporting oral and overall bodily health, that many insurance companies outright cover many of

recall services included in the visit!

The basic components of the preventive dental appointment consist of:

• Review and update medical and dental history

• Blood pressure screening

• Oral cancer examination

•Examination of the teeth and periodontal tissues (i.e. gum tissue and supporting bone). This includes a visual examination for signs of dental caries (cavities), other problems with the teeth (chips, broken fillings, etc.), looking for signs of inflammation and infection, and periodontal probing, which measures the depth of the gum pocket.

• Radiographic exam. The content and timing of dental x-rays can vary and are customized to the needs and disease susceptibility of the patient. The dental team weighs risk vs.

benefits when taking dental x-rays, keeping radiation exposure to a minimum

•An actual prophylaxis (cleaning) to mechanically remove any build up or plaque from tooth surfaces.

•Application of a topical fluoride

agent, when indicated.

Usually at the end of the appointment, the dentist will review all the findings and radiographs, make any necessary diagnoses, and recommend treatment, if indicated.

Hamilton Dental Associates (HDA) has been serving Hamilton and the Greater Central New Jersey area for over 50 years. While HDA’s roots are in pediatric dentistry, they also specialize in adult and cosmetic dentistry, orthodontics, oral surgery, periodontics, and endodontics. Patients are treated by specialists in their field. For example, orthodontic treatment is done by an orthodontic specialist, and patients requiring a root canal will be treated by an endodontist — a dentist who specializes in root canals. It’s all done under one roof which is time saving and eliminates the need for multiple referrals.

Come see what all the smiling is about! To request an appointment, call 609-586-6603 or visit

HamiltonDental.com. Locations are 2929 Klockner Road and 2501 Kuser Road, Hamilton, New Jersey.

Happy New Year! We look forward to seeing your smile! See ad, page 12

Physical Therapy

Nutritional Services

Caruso PTRD offers a unique, patient-centered physical therapy approach that offers patients the chance to work closely with a Doctor of Physical Therapy. Our therapists' main goals are to listen to each of your needs and provide individualized care to treat your condition. We want you to get back to being you; whether it's getting you back on the field, back at the office, or back to running around with your children or grandkids! Treating pain is only the first step!

performance, or weight loss goals through an approach that is anything but “cookie cutter”. Our Nutrition Experts, RDN’s,are the ONLY medical professionals qualified to give you nutrition advice. We don’t believe in quick fixes or the latest craze. We believe in life long change without having to sacrifice ANYTHING that makes your life unique!

Pilates Reformer

The most recognized and effective form of safe and successful exercise. Pilates can be tailored to the specific needs of the client to provide injury prevention, rehabilitation and muscle stability work. We offer Private and Semi Private Sessions.

Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy

ATTENTION ALL AGES: Achieve your body composition, sport's performance, nutrition or weight loss goals through an approach that is anything but "cookie cutter". We take the time to learn about you, any medical conditions you may have and tailor to your individual needs. Our Nutrition Experts, RDN's,are the ONLY medical professionals qualified to give you nutrition advice. We don't believe in quick fixes or the latest craze. We believe in life long change without having to sacrifice ANYTHING that makes your life unique! Relax and unplug in our new Salt Room! Offering numerous health benefits such as; providing relief for respiratory

THERAPY

Regenerative Spine and Pain Institute

Treating Pain with PRP and Stem Cell Therapy

Pain.

It gnaws at you. It drains you. It becomes the focus of your life.

Experiencing a few pain-free moments can be euphoric; it makes you realize how long you’ve been living with aches and pain. You might wonder how you can find a solution to relieve the pain and regain your freedom from discomfort.

Dr. Ronak Patel at Regenerative Spine and Pain Institute wants you to know there are two new revolutionary answers to pain relief.

Both platelet-rich therapy — otherwise known as PRP — and stem cell therapy give patients new hope by using the body’s powerful healing power to accelerate the battle against pain. Dr. Patel has seen incredible success implementing these cuttingedge treatments on hundreds of patients suffering from pain-related issues.

So if you are suffering from any of the ailments below, there’s a lifeline.

• Osteoarthritis

• Rotator cuff tear

• Back pain

• Meniscus tears

• Tennis elbow

• Disc herniations

• Tendonitis

• Neck pain

Here’s the best news: Neither PRP or stem cell therapy involves drug use with side effects or any surgical procedures.

Both PRP and stem cell treatments use the body’s own healing resources to repair diseased or damaged tissue — and the results are quite remarkable.

PRP therapy involves injecting concentrated platelets and growth factors into damaged tissue to

stimulate the faster growth of new healthy cells. Platelets are cells that prevent and stop bleeding. If a blood vessel is damaged, the body sends signals to our platelets to get on the job and start the healing. Some call platelets the body’s natural bandage.

So how does PRP therapy work? It’s basically drawing a one small vial of blood from the patient and then using a centrifuge to turn it into a potent and concentrated form of platelets. It is then injected back into the patient. Think of it as a boost of your own blood — only superpowered.

Recovery time for PRP therapy is far shorter than for surgery. Patients usually experience soreness for a week or so, but the gradual improvement soon begins. Unlike

a steroid shot, which gives you immediate relief and quickly wears off, a PRP patient will see pain symptoms improve over a period of months, and up to 80 percent of patients will see relief for up to two years.

Stem cell therapy can be an even more powerful way to harness the body’s healing power. Stem cells are the building blocks for every cell in our body. These powerful cells can be harvested to produce powerful new cells to fight inflammation and disease.

For those suffering from osteoarthritis, stem cell therapy has proven very effective. That’s because the stem cells may help develop new cartilage cells and suppress inflammation. Stem cells can be harvested through a sample of body fat or bone marrow or be harvested from donated umbilical cord tissue.

And yes, you can even augment PRP therapy with stem cell therapy for an even bigger boost!

Stop wondering if you’ll have to live with your pain forever. Contact Regenerative Spine and Pain Institute today at 609-269-4451 or go to www.njpaindoc.com to book an an appointment and learn more. See ad, page 3

Dr. Deolinda Reverendo

I’ve got breast cancer

but I also have an expert team on my side.

RWJBarnabas Health, together with Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, the state’s only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, offers the most advanced, patient-centric cancer care for adults and children. Our multidisciplinary teams of nationally renowned oncologists, nurses, oncology nurse navigators, and support professionals ensure a compassionate, comprehensive approach, creating an individualized plan to treat your type of cancer. Our patients have access to innovative clinical trials, precision medicine, immunotherapy, advanced surgical procedures and sophisticated radiation therapy techniques. Visit rwjbh.org/beatcancer or call 844-CANCERNJ.

NCI

Designated Comprehensive Cancer Center

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HappyHeroes used books looking to buy old Mysteries, science Fiction, Children’s illustrated, kids series books (old Hardy boys-Nancy Drew-Judy Bolton- Dana girls, WITH DUSTJACKETS in good shape), Dell Mapbacks - Good Girl Art PULPS - non-sports cards, good conditioned pre 1975 paperbacks old COLLIER’S. Call 609-619-3480 or email happyheroes@gmail.com

Cash paid for World War ii military items.Helmets, swords, medals, etc. Call 609-581-8290 or email mymilitarytoys@optonline. net

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WAnteD- QUAlitY CAMerAs AnD PHOtO eQUiPMent, FOUNTAIN PENS AND OLDER WATCHES FAIR PRICES PAID CALL JAY609-689-9651.

COMMERCIAL SPACE space available in the ewing Professional Park. Comfortable suite currently used by mental health professionals. Waiting room, kitchenette and restrooms in suite. Well-lighted parking lot. Available Jan 1st. For more details, email suppsoln27@ yahoo.com or call Supportive Solutions at 609-635-3751.

Doctors Office Suite TurnKey ready in Hamilton, Mercer County nJ approx. 1405+/- SF for lease. Fully furnished. $2,550/mth. DiDonato Realty 609-5862344 Marian Conte BR 609947-4222.

Office Space For Rent:

Pennington ground floor office space 32 N Main Street. Share with clinical psychologist and real estate management company. Private entrance, off street parking. 305-968-7308

Princeton Commercial retail spaces for lease: Various Locations in Town. Please Contact: Weinberg Management. WMC@ collegetown. Text 609-7311630

VACATION RENTALS

Florida Beach rental: Fort Myers Beach 1br vacation condo on the beach, flexible dates available. Call 609-5778244 for further information

BUSINESS FOR SALE

To book a classified ad in this section, please email your text and any other information to mdurelli@communitynews.org. Classifieds run at 75 cents per word with a $20 minimum per month. For more information, call 609-396-1511, ext. 105.

salon for sale- excellent opportunity. Priced to sell. Relocating out of state. Large space, great potential. Call 609-462-0188.

CEMETERY PLOTS

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Mon-Thurs:

style and owns the school standard in that event as well. In reaching the Meet of Champions, Emerson was seventh in the 400 and 11th in the 200.

“She’s been a super strong swimmer since she came on as a freshman,” Hargraves-Dix said. “She swims year round for a club team and is a very talented, consistent freestyler. She can pretty much go anywhere and is pretty great at any stroke. It’s fun to throw her into different events from time to time, but the place where she shines is definitely distance freestyle.”

Simpson has a strong relationship with Dalton, saying “she’s my best friend forever.” Meghan admires her BFF not just for her ability, but the way she handles herself.

“She’s the most humble person and the fastest swimmer I’ve ever known,” Simpson said. “I love to watch everything she does. She’s always smiling, and never acts like she’s extremely good.”

Simpson returns as a freestyle swimmer and is also good at creating chemistry.

“Megan is a really great leader,” GravesDix said. “She brings the team together with team spirit and that kind of stuff. She’ll do mid-freestyle and maybe a few other things.”

The gutsy Katie Sullivan is also back for a fourth season, as she continues to battle through shoulder issues with nary a complaint. “She’s a very hard worker and very diverse,” her coach said. “She can go in lots of different events, including some of the most grueling like the 200 IM and the 100 butterfly, which does contribute a little to her shoulder problems. But she’s really tough, and always fights through and does as much as she can.”

Alexandra Cherry is also a club swimmer who does mostly freestyle and some butterfly. “She’s kind of like Katie,” HillgravesDix said. “She’s very versatile. I can throw her wherever. She’s super dedicated and focused and just kind of cruises through the water.”

Rounding out the Senior Six are distance freestyler Riley Burns and sprint freestyler Richa Sharma. Burns also does the 200 while Sharma can swim the breaststroke, and “both are very reliable,” according to their coach.

Aside from their individual skills, the best thing about the group is what they can do as a whole to help the rest of the squad.

“It’s huge, it makes such a difference,” Hargraves-Dix said. “From the start they wanted to do team bonding things—lunches and activities outside of the pool, which is nice. They lead by example. We always ask our seniors to do that but they do it pretty naturally. The underclassmen look up to them, and see how they behave and how hard they work and what it takes to be successful on the team.”

Those underclassmen include juniors Alex Murphy and Olivia Yuchmow. Yuch-

mow is truly versatile, able to do the 200 IM, 100 fly and some freestyle, while Murphy swims the 200 free and 100 back. Club swimmer Purba Karmaker is back for her second year with the Cardinals and “she looks way different than last year and has shown a lot of improvement already,” according to Hargraves-Dix. Karmaker is strong in the freestyle, butterfly and IM.

Providing even more depth to the mix are freshmen Liah Kibbey, Raina Lewis, Bisakha Basnet and Zoe Snellings.

“They all work really hard,” HargravesDix said. “They’re on some club teams. They came in and were in shape, ready to go, ready to work. They show a lot of promise and they will definitely soon be earning spots in the starting lineup.”

In looking at the overall picture, Lawrence is a team built for dual meet success. It has a number of versatile swimmers that Hargraves-Dix can mix and match depending on their opponent. Although they have just one true stud in Dalton, the coach feels they can also move up from last year’s seventh place MCT finish (tainted by a false start DQ) and get into the top five. She is also hoping for a strong run in states.

One of the main reasons for her optimism is that there is now competition amongst each other on the team, so everyone pushes one another.

“With so many girls there’s kind of this new edge where everybody knows they have to work for their spots in the lineup,” Hargraves-Dix said. “There are freshmen and sophomores working hard, some meets it will come down to ‘Who’s gonna win?’ and that’s who I have to put in. It’s definitely an added motivation for everyone to try their best with such a big team. It’s gonna

be a puzzle putting it together. It’s a great problem.”

Entering the season, Simpson had a positive attitude but was not making any brash statements.

“Honestly, I have no expectations,” she

said. “But I’m very confident in how we’re doing, I think we only have room to improve. Every day we’re growing and getting better. We’re working on all the little things. I think we’ll be tough competition for the other CVC teams for sure.

“I’d say one of our biggest strengths is depth. It’s great because we have a lot of numbers and a lot of different ranges and skills. We’re improving every day in practice and getting better. We can fill all those spots in the meet.”

The goal this year is to have all three swimmers gain points in each race they swim.

“No sixth places is our biggest goal,” Simpson said. “We want to get all the points we can in every meet. Everyone swimming in the pool matters, it doesn’t matter what lane we’re in.”

Hargraves-Dix agreed whole-heartedly.

“In swimming it’s so great to have stars but that can only carry you so far,” the coach said. “You really need depth on a team to consistently do well in dual meets. I’m so pumped to have so many girls to move around in different events. I hopefully see us getting not just first and second and then fi fth and sixth, but taking the three and four places which will help us more as a team.”

A team that is loaded with young talent and blessed with six seniors who have been patiently waiting for this season to arrive.

Senior swimmers Richa Sharma (left), Riley Burns, Megan Simpson, Emerson Dalton, Katie Sullivan and Alexandra Cherry. (Photo by Hillary Hargraves-Dix.)

Severe respiratory illness increasing in children: what you need to know

Ask The Doctor

Uzma N. Hasan, MD, division director of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center, and part of the Children’s Health Network at RWJBarnabas Health, and Seth D. Rosenbaum, MD, MMM, senior vice president, chief medical officer at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton, an RWJBarnabas Health facility, discuss symptoms and risk factors of these viruses and respiratory illness, when to seek emergency care, and how to protect your children.

What viruses are currently circulating in children?

Dr. Hasan: An increase in severe respiratory illness in children is being seen across New Jersey, caused by climbing cases of respiratory syncytial virus (commonly known as RSV), the flu, COVID-19, and other seasonal viruses.

RSV, which is being seen in record numbers, causes upper and lower respiratory tract infection, such as

a common cold and pneumonia/ bronchiolitis.

Infants, in particular those who are premature, as well as children with asthma and those born with cardiac disease, weakened immune systems, and neurological deficits are at risk for severe illness.

While influenza and COVID-19 can affect various systems in the body, they commonly cause varying degrees of respiratory illness. We expect this flu season to be the worst we have seen in recent years. Going into our third winter of the pandemic, we can rely on historic knowledge to anticipate an uptick in COVID cases during the winter months as people spend more time indoors.

What are common symptoms of these viruses?

Dr. Hasan: Symptoms of RSV, the flu, COVID-19, and other viruses are similar so it is difficult to identify which virus(es) is making your child sick.

Common symptoms include fever, nasal congestion, cough, sore throat, headaches, body aches, loss of appetite, and fatigue. Less common symptoms may include vomiting and diarrhea. In some cases, however, these viruses can sometimes lead to difficulty breathing, wheezing, and asthma flare.

For the most part, RSV symptoms are

that of a common cold/upper respiratory tract infection. The virus, however, is also notorious for causing lower respiratory tract infection — such as bronchiolitis or pneumonia.

As the virus typically peaks at 3-5 days after the onset of symptoms, be aware that wheezing will often be a presenting symptom. Key flu symptoms are high grade fever, severe muscle aches, vomiting, diarrhea, and feeling overall miserable. In severe cases, complications may include brain or heart inflammation, ear infection, and pneumonia.

When should I call my pediatrician or seek emergency care for my child?

Dr. Rosenbaum: You can always call your pediatrician for guidance whenever your child is ill. However, if your child is exhibiting new onset wheezing or violent coughing, you need to call your pediatrician right away.

Additionally, if your child is exhibiting any sign of respiratory distress or difficulty breathing – such as rapid and shallow breathing, belly breathing, struggling to finish and the area around the lips turning blue or grey – as well as insufficient fluid or food intake, bring them to the emergency department right away or call 9-1-1.

Why is this year’s respiratory virus season much worse than in recent years?

Dr. Rosenbaum: We believe that we had a milder viral season the last couple of years because of all the preventive measures in place during the COVID pandemic. Masking, social distancing, and school closures did not allow the usual spread of viruses, which may have impacted our immunity to these viruses.

To learn more about Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton, visit rwjbh.org/Hamilton or call (609) 586-7900. For more information about children’s health, visit rwjbh.org/childrenshealth.

Coming up this month at RWJU Hospital Hamilton

For more information, call (609) 584-5900. Registration required for all programs. To register for a program or for schedule changes go to rwjbh.org/events or call (609) 584-5900.

FRidAy, JAnuARy 6

Healthified Favorites (HYBRID), 1 to 2 p.m. Join in-person or from the comfort of home as we take the guilt out of guilty-pleasures.

MondAy, JAnuARy 9

Pantry Basics Deep Dive “Bread” (VIRTUAL), 10 a.m. to Noon. Join us as we dive deep to uncover the history, science, and processing behind some of our go-to pantry favorites.

ThuRsdAy, JAnuARy 12

Hearing Loss and Tinnitus, 10 to 11 a.m. Join Dr. Lorraine Sgarlato, Au.D, to learn about the latest in technology to help treat tinnitus and hearing loss.

FRidAy, JAnuARy 13

Jazz Up Pantry Basics “Bread,” 1 to 2 p.m. Learn the nutritional value of overlooked basics and how to make them stand out!

MondAy, JAnuARy 16

Cyberbullying: Dealing With the Haters, 1 to 2 p.m. In this discussion, increase your digital awareness about the online world.

TuEsdAy, JAnuARy 17

Orthopedic Open House: Joint Replacement, 6:30 to 8 p.m. Discover the latest advances in knee and hip replacement surgery.

ThuRsdAy, JAnuARy 19

Clinical Culinary nutrition: Meal Planning and Food Prep, 5 to 6:30 p.m. Come by to learn how to prepare food for a stress free week of healthy meals. Space is limited— register at least 48 hours prior to event.

Fee: $10. Taryn Krietzman, RD

Licensed in NJ & PA

Licensed in NJ & PA

Dawn: 609.462.8333

Dawn: 609.462.8333

Mark: 609.658.1127

Mark: 609.658.1127

Stefanie: 609.954.5206 Office: 609.987.8889 dawnmonsport@verizon.net mcutaneo5@gmail.com sprettyman@kw.com

Stefanie: 609.954.5206 Office: 609.987.8889 dawnmonsport@verizon.net mcutaneo5@gmail.com sprettyman@kw.com

Mark

The process before the process: a story about land development

As I look back on 2022, I can definitively say that land developers and business owners are actively looking to recover from lost time and money since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

I come to this conclusion based on my seat as the municipal manager for the Township of Lawrence. From early 2020 to early 2022, one aspect of my job decreased dramatically, and COVID-19 filled the void with new and different challenges. But the winds of change are upon us again, with developers and business owners acting with a sense of confidence in the future.

Whether we like it or not, Lawrence Township remains an appealing option to those seeking to invest their time, effort and money in their business pursuits. To some, that’s a good thing, and to those who view new and different things negatively, it isn’t.

What aspect of my job “decreased dramatically,” you ask? The answer is, meeting with property owners, developers and their professionals as they “pitch” their idea for a new “this or that” in our community. Judging by comments on the various social media sites, at public meetings, or to me directly while I am at and about in town, there seems to be a lack of understanding about the development process and the local government’s involvement in it.

So, I thought I would take a stab at giving a broad and general description of what typically happens before developers submit applications to the Zoning Board or Planning Board. Before a property owner

or developer commits their time and money to a given project, more often than not, they will reach out to a local official (i.e., mayor, municipal manager or zoning officer) and request a meeting to get a sense of whether their idea would be received positively or not in the community. Usually, they have prepared concept plans and offer a general description of their vision.

Jim Parvesse (municipal engineer/ zoning officer) and I take these meetings, because in our form of government (councilmanager), the elected officials are part-time, and the mayor’s role is limited. We differ from Hamilton, Ewing, Trenton, Princeton, and others, because voters do not elect our mayor directly, and the mayor is not a fulltime position.

Instead, the elected council members select the mayor (by a majority vote) to serve a two-year term. In addition, those same elected officials appoint the municipal manager to a full-time position to oversee the day-to-day operations of the municipal government, much like a chief executive officer in a private corporation.

As a result, it falls on the municipal manager and staff to take these meetings. They are called “courtesy meetings” and are not required by law. However, it is a good practice for the town and the developer to meet to discuss potential projects, because it is often where bad ideas die or potentially good ideas are improved before the developer submits an application for consideration by the planning or zoning board. There is no science to these meetings nor polls conducted in the community. We provide some honest and, at times, critical feedback that may guide the next steps taken.

Importantly, the township does not seek

out land development within its borders; it is not a function of our government. What we (i.e., elected and appointed officials of our town) do is less direct. We work hard to make our community a desirable place to live, work and play and let the economics take care of the rest.

We are not “Big City USA” and don’t have an economic development department in our municipal operations. So, when developers call to meet with us, it is not a return call. They initiate it, and as a responsible government, we take the call and take the meeting no matter what. But here is the critical part, no decisions or agreements are EVER made between developers and municipal officials behind closed doors. It doesn’t happen here. Neither myself nor our engineer (mayor or council members) has the legal authority to approve or deny development applications. The development process is an open, public process that occurs at the Planning Board or the Zoning Board upon proper notice to the public, where all can participate and express an opinion before the appointed members vote to approve or deny applications based upon the facts and the law which they have taken an oath to abide.

And, here is the kicker—even if Jim or I

(or the mayor or council Members) hate the development project for whatever reason (i.e., it’s too big, too loud, too much traffic, or we “don’t need another one of those,” etc.), the developer has the legal right to move forward and make the application before the Zoning Board or Planning Board (which I am a voting member of) for consideration.

When that happens, the community tends more often than not to support our negative feeling about the project, and they come out in droves to express their opinions. Also, it is common for us to meet several times with the same developer of a proposed project who works with us to implement the improvements we express are needed before they file their application.

Those are received better by the boards and the community because they are scaleddown and have the elements we value as a community. And sometimes, a project that we think is excellent for the community is met with strong opposition (usually by those living near the site). The board members earn their keep at those times by approving or rejecting the application. In the end, however, all should rest assured that we always follow the lawful process before development occurs in our community.

When someone you care about is sick, you’ll do whatever it takes to make sure they get the best care. And so do we. With a collaborative structure so our doctors can craft a treatment that’s uniquely right for you. With primary care physicians who never schedule an appointment that’s less than 20 minutes. With world-renowned surgeons that are changing cancer treatment.

Because you’d go to the ends of the earth for the people you care about. And we do too.

how far would you go if they were sick?