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DECA Chapter Moves On To State Events
COLTS
Wildlife Rescue 911 – Mother Seton Regional High School
Renee A. Thomaier
Retired New Jersey State Licensed Wildlife Rehabilitator
Typically, a wildlife rescue scenario is receiving a call, any hour - day or nightfrom a concerned person. If they’re lucky enough, they already know to contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitator (rehabber). They’re advised to transport the animal to the rehabber. There are times, however, when I performed the rescue myself as special skills are required. Don’t attempt rescue yourself before speaking with a licensed professional.
It was a warm summer afternoon when my phone rang. Like everyone else, wildlife rehabbers try to maintain a normal life and are often already caring for many animals. The woman on the phone explained there was a large bird who was having trouble flying. The bird was located at Mother Seton Regional High School in Clark, New Jersey. As I hung up the phone, so many things began running thru my mind. What kind of bird, was it a broken wing, a head injury, adult, or juvenile, and most importantly, where at the high school would I find this bird? The adrenaline starts pumping because you know the rescue could be dangerous for either the animal, for you, or both. Until you see the situation, planning the rescue cannot be done. I hopped in my car with my usual rescue supplies.
I arrived at the high school and was fortunate enough to quickly spot a red-tailed hawk, suffering from what appeared to be a broken wing, perched on the fence. Knowing that hawks have excellent eyesight, I positioned myself within a few feet of the bird, who continued to ‘watch me like a hawk.’ About five minutes passed, when he turned his head away from me. I quickly swung the net up, over and behind the bird, moving him to the ground, when I suddenly heard a woman on a motorcycle cheering. A sense of relief, I secured the hawk and transported him to the Raptor Trust for rehabilitation. Wildlife rescue begins with a concerned person making the effort to get the animal help. Without rescue, the odds of survival are very low.
To reach me please call 732-244-2768.
It is illegal to possess or relocate wildlife for any reason without the proper state and/ or federal permits. Violating New Jersey laws protecting wildlife, which include harm inflicted upon an animal, are subject to punishment.
Food Service – Howell Senior Center
HOWELL – Lunch is offered at the Senior Center Monday through Friday at 12 p.m. Seniors who are homebound may receive a hot lunch delivered to their homes (Meals on Wheels) on a daily basis. The meals are provided by Interfaith Neighbors, Inc. and may be requested by calling the Nutrition Department at 732-938-4500 ext. 2556. When we have parties or special events, we often offer a catered lunch from an outside source. Information about special meals may be found in our newsletter.
Hindenburg:
Continued From Page 13 thunderstorm and as I was walking across the ground and walkway back over to my house it blew up,” McGee said.
McGee added, “I didn’t know what it was. All I knew was this great big red ball had knocked me to the ground and I got up and ran to my house. My sister was four months old and in a carriage, and they said the carriage had bounced on the floor. My older two sisters were there watching her.”
She said she ran outside again and “I never saw so many people come to a house as they did to our house.” The highway wasn’t in place at the time and where the current 3 B’s restaurant is located on Route 37 is where her family house was.
“Lake Street ran all the way down to the bog and from the bog right across is where the fi eld was,” she added. “Everybody started to come and I didn’t know where they came from. I was a little leery; I was just a little kid and to see all these cars coming, you wonder what in God’s name is going on. My mother came quick and grabbed me and put her arms around me and checked the other three kids to make sure they were all right,” she added.
McGee said, “everyone came over and asked ‘is Doc” okay?’ My mother said she hadn’t heard yet. Doc was my father who was one of the ground crew of the Hindenburg. He was handling the (landing) lines.”
When her father David Reese Safford was fi rst in the U.S. Navy he had medical experience which is how he got the nick- name of “Doc.”
“Down the street from us was Auggie Miller who was head of the Lakehurst Fire Department and he came over to the house hollered, Dolly, Dolly (her mother) and he said I just talked to Doc and he’s fi ne and he wanted me to tell you he’s fi ne and he can’t come home until he’s released and it could be quite a while,” she added.
When her father did return, “he came to our bedroom and kissed each one of us on the cheek and said ‘I’m okay. I’m here for you, go back to sleep,’” McGee said with tears in her eyes from the memory. “We loved our father dearly. He was a very special man.”
She would learn later that her father had aided a woman and her son who had jumped from the zeppelin and were on fi re. He had wrapped his coat around them and put them into an ambulance.
Her uncle was at a theater in Toms River at the time of the incident and “he said that after it blew, the noise was so loud that you could hear it for miles and miles. They announced it. The man from the theater came up and announced to the audience that the Hindenburg had blown up at Lakehurst.
“My uncle said everyone just peeled out of the theater and just left. He said there wasn’t a soul left in the theater and of course he came right to our house,” she recalled.
The family has a copy of the May 1949 edition of The Airship News that published an article about her father, and his commendation for his efforts at the airfield that day.
