WINTER 2024
15th Anniversary Issue
Princeton’s Fondly Remembered Establishments
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| CONTENTS
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72
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42
20
56
32
64 LOOKING BACK
EXERCISING TO AVOID INJURY
BY WENDY GREENBERG
BY TAYLOR SMITH
In New Memoirs, Two Former College Presidents Explore What Made Them Who They Are
How a Balanced Body Can Keep You Active for the Long-Term
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SHOPPING LOCALLY
LEARNING ALLY
BY ANNE LEVIN
BY DONALD GILPIN
Princeton’s Fondly Remembered Establishments
Providing Access to the “Amazing World of the Written Word” for 75 Years
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“WE TRAIN TO LEAD”
SOUP’S ON!
BY DONALD H. SANBORN III
BY MARY ABITANTO
ROTC Programs of Princeton, Rutgers, and Penn
Comforting and Nourishing Soups for a Cozy Winter
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SPECIAL OLYMPICS NEW JERSEY BY ILENE DUBE
Empowering People with Different Abilities 42
A WELL-DESIGNED LIFE
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BOOK SCENE BY STUART MITCHNER
A Mid-Century Modern Book Tour 78
BY LYNN ADAMS SMITH 50, 52 ON THE COVER: Princeton University Store. (University Archives, Princeton University Library; colorization by Steven Veach for Princeton Alumni Weekly)
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(CREDITS) CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: PRIEST’S PHARMACY, COURTESY OF THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF PRINCETON; “UP HOME” BY RUTH J. SIMMONS; “NECESSARY TROUBLE” BY DREW GILPIN FAUST; SOUP PHOTO BY MARY ABITANTO; PHOTO COURTESY OF SPECIAL OLYMPICS; SHUTTERSTOCK.COM; RUTGERS UNIVERSITY ROTC PHOTO COURTESY OF ELISABETH O’CONNELL; NORTHERN TOBOGGAN COMPANY GREEN MOUNTAIN SNOWSHOES, NORTHERNTOBOGGAN.COM; ILLUSTRATION BY JEFFREY E. TRYON.
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CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Anne Levin Mary Abitanto Donald Gilpin Ilene Dube Wendy Greenberg Stuart Mitchner Donald H. Sanborn III Taylor Smith William Uhl ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Charles R. Plohn ACCOUNT MANAGERS Jennifer Covill Joann Cella Joshua Karnelius ADVERTISING OPPORTUNITIES 609.924.5400 Media Kit available on www.princetonmagazine.com SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION 609.924.5400 ext. 30 subscriptions@witherspoonmediagroup.com
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| FROM THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Dear Readers,
FEBRUARY 2022
PRINCETON MAGAZINE
PRINCETON MAGAZINE
Happy New Year and welcome to the Winter issue of Princeton Magazine. I am pleased to report that 2024 marks our 15th anniversary of publishing the magazine! You might think that after so many years we would run out of ideas, but that is far from the case. Princeton is home to a plethora of accomplished people and there is always another interesting person to interview. We also enjoy exploring topics on architecture, nature, health, cooking, sports, history, culture, politics, and businesses that have a positive impact on the community. Publishing the magazine is a collaborative effort, and each member of the Witherspoon Media Group staff has their own favorite stories and covers. For me, a few of our most compelling covers were Albert Hinds, J. Robert Oppenheimer, and Pearl S. Buck depicted as Mother Earth. I had the pleasure of meeting Albert Hinds years before we put him on the cover, at the opening of the Waxwood. The building was originally the Witherspoon School for Colored Children, and Bob Hillier restored and renewed it as a condominium residence. Hinds was 102 at the time and couldn’t have been more charming. When I mentioned that I lived on Greenview Avenue, which faces Princeton Cemetery, his eyes lit up and he said he could tell me many stories about partying in the cemetery as a young man — then we both chuckled. Another fond memory about a past cover story was meeting Ben Bernanke, who was the former chairman of the Federal Reserve. I pursued him for over a year before he agreed to meet us during a visit to deliver Princeton’s Baccalaureate speech. To the dismay of the Baccalaureate organizers, Bernanke was incredibly generous with his time for the interview that took place in Prospect House, with the photography in Prospect Gardens. He talked about his obsession with baseball as a child and how the Strat-O-Matic Baseball game sparked his interest in statistics and probability. I was struck by how soft spoken and pleasant he was for such a powerful person. When deciding on the editorial mix of a specific issue, we try to include at least one global story that has a local angle. Given America’s complicated involvement with the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, as well as recent attacks on our ships in the Red Sea, our story in this issue is about ROTC programs at Princeton University, Rutgers, and the University of Pennsylvania. Before reading Donald Sanborn’s article, I knew very little about the ROTC. I now have newfound respect for participants who balance academics, physical fitness, and training in leadership skills.
SPRING 2023
J. Robert Oppenheimer The Princeton Years
Albert E. Hinds Princeton Legend and Witness to History
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The leadership skills of some Ivy League presidents have been recently scrutinized in connection with their handling of antisemitism on campuses, making this next article timely by addressing what makes for a good college president. Wendy Greenberg’s interviews with Drew Gilpin Faust, who was the first female president of Harvard University, and Ruth J. Simmons, who was the first female president of Brown University, as well as the first Black president of an Ivy League school, were focused on their recently published memoirs. I read both books and appreciated their inspirational messages about embracing knowledge, recognizing opportunities, and believing in yourself. The women come from very different backgrounds with Simmons growing up in rural Texas, the 12th child of sharecroppers, and Gilpin Faust growing up in Virginia horse country with a family history tied to politics and the military. The interviews reveal they not only share a passion for education, but also for civil rights, and they both experienced losing a mother as a teen. Reading is a vital part of becoming a successful student, and it may not come naturally for people who are dyslexic or visually impaired. Don Gilpin, a former teacher and brother of Drew Gilpin Faust, has written an article on the contributions made by Learning Ally to help people enjoy and comprehend what they are reading. Originally called Recording for the Blind, the organization began 75 years ago to aid soldiers who lost their sight during wartime. Today, the volunteer driven organization ben bernanke offers a wide range of services to students, parents, and teachers using technology, audiobooks, magnifying texts, and reading braille. Learning Ally makes us realize there are many ways to enjoy books, one being for their beauty. Stuart Mitchner’s Book Scene features mid-century modern books that are both beautiful and informative. Later this year we will be publishing an article on Bob Hillier’s mid-century home on Lake Carnegie, which is undergoing extensive renovations. Ilene Dube has written an inspirational article on the Special Olympics with heartfelt quotes from participants in the New Jersey games. Eunice Kennedy Shriver established the Special Olympics in the 1950s in honor of her sister, Rosemary, who had an intellectual disability. As a child, Rosemary enjoyed swimming, sailing, football, and skiing, but Eunice was aware that other children with disabilities were missing out on the many benefits of playing sports, and wanted to make the experience available to them as well. 4/6/23 3:51 PM
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Obama’s Brain Mapping project SaMuel Yellin: IrOnman Summer SaturdayS on the Delaware rIver brIck Farm market: it StartS With the Soil mIstral restaurant Q&a with shIrley tIlghman diScovering rumsOn/reD bank
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Special Olympics New Jersey is based in Lawrenceville and offers a year-round sports training center for children and adults with intellectual disabilities. The winter events will take place at various locations across the state, and Ilene’s article provides a schedule. In Princeton, the Hun School will host basketball games on January 14 and 21. The competitions wind down in February with skiing, snowshoeing, figure skating, and snowboarding. Staying injury-free while playing sports or working out is a priority for athletes of all ages and abilities. Taylor Smith has written an article with helpful tips on how to be fit and avoid injuries. Visiting a physical therapist or a podiatrist may help to give some insight on how your body is performing in terms of your exercise form, balance, and overall muscular development. While regular movement and strength work is necessary for a healthy life, overexercise can be equally frustrating and detrimental. During the worst of the pandemic, while all the gyms were closed, President Christopher L. Eisgruber opened Princeton University Stadium to the public. I would like to take this opportunity to thank him for that because, to my surprise, I developed a routine of running up and down flights of stairs in the stadium. I did so with high schoolers, college students, and seniors. And I wasn’t exercising for time or distance, but realized that the sheer enjoyment included mental and physical benefits. I think it is important for everyone to realize that they should exercise with longevity in mind, and Taylor’s article helps to explain that point. The Well-Designed Life pages continue our seasonal theme and feature winter getaways and snow sports. After a day of playing
in the snow, or maybe just shoveling it, homemade soup is very satisfying. Making soup is a learned skill and cookbook author Mary Abitanto shares tips and some of her favorite recipes. I am a soup lover and have attempted to make my own after becoming obsessed with Olives of Princeton’s white bean kale soup with sausage. My version turned out well and was especially delicious with crusty bread from Terra Momo Bread Company. Every issue of Princeton Magazine has what we refer to as a “Princeton-centric” story. Anne Levin has taken us down memory lane with an article on former Princeton merchants. She posted a message about the article on the Facebook page “I Grew Up in Princeton,” and there were over 600 comments from people sharing memories about the mom-and-pop stores in Princeton. Some of our readers might be aware that Bob Hillier’s mother, Florence, was the proud owner of The Flower Basket on Nassau Street. Look closely at the photos in this story and you will see an image of her storefront. Bob and I greatly appreciate how Princeton’s merchants contribute to the town’s character and vibrancy. So please join us in helping to support their success by shopping local! Respectfully yours,
Lynn Adams Smith Editor-In-Chief
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Ruth J. Simmons
LOOKING BACK
In New Memoirs, Two Former College Presidents Explore What Made Them Who They Are INTERVIEWS BY WENDY GREENBERG
Drew Gilpin Faust
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wo extraordinary women, both with leadership roles in higher education — and each with ties to Princeton — have written compelling memoirs that were published in 2023. Drew Gilpin Faust, the first female president of Harvard University (2007-2018), whose father, uncle, and brothers were Princeton University graduates (she might have been, but Princeton didn’t admit women in 1968), has dug deep into her childhood and adolescence to understand the roots of her rebelliousness in Necessary Trouble: Growing Up at Midcentury. Ruth J. Simmons, president of Smith College (1995-2001), the first woman president of Brown University (2001-2012) and the first Black president of an Ivy League institution (and a former Princeton administrator), relives her journey from poverty in rural Texas, and circles back as she becomes president of Prairie View A & M University (20172023) near her hometown, in Up Home: One Girl’s Journey. Each woman’s childhood made them who they are, setting them up to travel vastly different paths to the heights of higher education. Yet, they have some common ground. Each lost their mother as a teen. Each was motivated by the civil rights movement: one wrote to President Eisenhower when she was 9, pleading with him to end segregation; one lived segregation. Both experiences informed their responses to affirmative action as college presidents. Born in 1947, Faust grew up in Virginia horse country, the greatgranddaughter of a U.S. senator, and the daughter of McGhee Tyson Gilpin, Princeton Class of 1942. A historian of the Civil War and American South, she is the Arthur Kingsley Porter University Professor at Harvard and was the Annenberg Professor of History and director of the Women’s Studies Program
at the University of Pennsylvania, where she earned her master’s and doctoral degrees, and served on the faculty for 25 years. The author of six books, she visited Princeton this past fall for a talk at Labyrinth Books with former Princeton University President Shirley Tilghman. The book’s title is an homage to civil rights leader John Lewis, who often referred to “necessary trouble.” Faust writes in the book: “I did not have the privilege of getting to know Congressman Lewis until very much later in my life, but I have often seen that his words captured something of the essence of my childhood rebelliousness. It was urgent and imperative and I did not feel that I had a choice … penetrating the blindness and the taken-for-grantedness of the present and coming to terms with the real meaning
Eddie Glaude Jr., the James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor of African American Studies, who provides praise for Up Home on the book cover. She spoke at Princeton’s Baccalaureate ceremony in 2021, and her portrait is in the University’s permanent art collection. Simmons was also first director of studies at Butler College, acting director of the Program in African American Studies, and a former University trustee. She is now an adviser to Harvard on relationships with historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and a president’s distinguished fellow at Rice University. She writes: “I was born to be someone else. Someone, that is, whose life is defined principally by race, segregation, and poverty. As a young child marked by the sharecropping fate of my parents and the culture that predominated in East Texas in the 1940s and ’50s, I initially saw these factors as limiting what I could do and who I could become.” Later in the book, as she is going to study in France, she writes: “I was constantly trying to return to the place of my childhood, which had imparted values I somehow knew I would need in my life.” Here, the two women answer questions posed by Princeton Magazine about their memoirs, and their futures.
of the misrepresented past would become for me work for a lifetime.” Simmons, born in 1945, grew up in rural Texas and then in urban Houston, the 12th child of sharecroppers, in a loving family. She lived for a time with no running water, no electricity, and no books; discovered reading and going to school; and was mentored by teachers. She graduated from Dillard University, where a teacher had gone, and from there, Harvard Graduate School where she earned her master’s and doctoral degrees in Romance languages and literature. She is a chevalier of the French Legion of Honor. At Princeton, Simmons is an honorary board member of the Princeton University Department of African American Studies. This past fall she presented a talk with
DREW GILPIN FAUST, AUTHOR OF NECESSARY TROUBLE: GROWING UP AT MIDCENTURY PM: What prompted you to write a memoir, and what process did you use to remember or research those vivid details from your childhood? DGF: I wanted to tell the story of a time fewer and fewer living people remember — a time of rapid transformation and powerful reaction in American life: the 1950s and 60s. It was a time of constraints and conventions that were slowly being overturned to open paths for me that my mother and grandmothers could never have imagined. WINTER 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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My process in writing this book included rather traditional historical research in archives and in published materials — from family letters in a manuscript collection in North Carolina to the run of LIFE magazine in the 1950s. I come from a family of pack rats, so I had accumulations of scrapbooks and notebooks that included such gems as my elementary school report cards. I also wrote most of this book during COVID and discovered the magic of Zoom, which enabled me to reach out to people who were part of my life many decades ago and learn from their memories and perspectives. PM: Who from your childhood most likely influenced you? Who did you consider a role model growing up? DGF: I had no real role models for life as a woman beyond taking care of a husband and children. I knew no female doctors, lawyers, businesspeople, politicians. But I found role models in books that depicted girls who dare — from Nancy Drew to Anne Frank to Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird. I also began to see young people, including many girls, playing an important role in the world around me — as fighters in the Hungarian Revolution, as students courageously integrating schools. They were inspirations, too. PM: In what way did the civil rights movement, or the changes in society at that time, impact you in college? And today, do you advocate for affirmative action? DGF: Racial justice has mattered to me from the time I wrote to President Eisenhower as a 9-year-old entreating him to support integration. I spent the summer of 1964 with civil rights activists in the South, and in the spring of my freshman year of
14 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024
college I cut my midterms to go to Selma to march for voting rights. I have been a firm supporter of affirmative action and was its beneficiary when it was first implemented in the 1970s. I testified in support of affirmative action at the trial when Harvard was sued, and I attended the Supreme Court oral arguments in October 2022 that resulted in its elimination. I have published a piece about this in The Atlantic entitled “The Blindness of Color-Blindness.” PM: At your Labyrinth talk, you said that the role of a college president is not to run the college, but to preside over the college. That said, what makes a good college president?
DGF: I meant that comment as something of a joke, underscoring how many different constituencies — students, faculty, staff, alumni, and more — have a voice and a stake in university affairs. Presidential power at a university is very much negotiated, and authority and legitimacy are to a considerable degree earned. I would say a college president should be someone who listens well, sees herself serving the institution rather than her own ambition, is curious about every possible field of knowledge, gets energy from engaging with people, and is passionate about advancing learning, discovery, and truth for the benefit of our society and the world.
PM: What do you want to accomplish in the coming years? And, if you write a sequel, what would you want it to emphasize? DGF: I have retired from teaching as of this past spring but will continue to write. I am a contributing writer at The Atlantic, and I have been discussing ideas for a next book project with my editor at Farrar Straus and Giroux. But there will be no sequel to Necessary Trouble!
RUTH J. SIMMONS, AUTHOR OF UP HOME: ONE GIRL’S JOURNEY PM: What prompted you to write a memoir, and what process did you use to remember or research those details from your childhood? RS: Over the decades, I received many questions about my life and about how I came to be the person that I am. It seemed to me that the questions generally implied a certain implausibility to my journey. I grew to believe that the only way to address the persistent questions was to write about the mostly ordinary details of my early life. I believe, and wanted to demonstrate, that every life, even under the most challenging circumstances, holds great promise. While I recalled many details of those years, family members actively and collectively recount these experiences at every opportunity. It was not difficult to retain shared memories that were summoned so often over the years. Still, returning home as often as possible, I felt it important to interview older family members to ascertain additional details and sharpen my own recollections. I also revisited the places of my early life to understand that period better. PM: I kept realizing that teachers played a large role in introducing you to learning new things and opening up your world. Would you say the book, is,
among other things, a tribute to your teachers, and to education in general? RS: This book is indeed dedicated in large measure to the influence of education and teachers. Teachers in particular were the rock stars of my youth. They were the most educated people I encountered, and their lives and personae were immensely inspiring. At the same time, they cared about us, pushing us to be more than we dared think we could be. Without their intervention, my life would have been very different and certainly less satisfying.
future of the university. That may at times put them at odds with different groups, but their unique responsibility for the whole of the university should be understood to be their priority. At no time during my presidencies have I seen my duty differently. I believe my steadfast insistence on this perspective accounts for my longevity as a president.
that change would be possible. Without that glimmer of hope, our persistence would have waned. It should not surprise us that the socio-political reality can be infected by unworthy and self-serving action on the part of powerful groups. But we should always be alert to the need to press unendingly for the fair and humane treatment of all groups. After all, our devotion to holding ourselves accountable for such actions is the measure of our humanity.
PM: In what way did the civil rights movement, or the changes in society at that time, impact you in college? And today, do you advocate for affirmative action?
PM: It has been said that the role of a college president is not to run the college, but to preside over the college. That said, what is your philosophy of a good college president, having been one three times, and from the vantage point of a vice provost at Princeton?
RS: The civil rights movement made all the difference in my life. The fact that brave and righteous people came together to overturn unjust, racist policies empowered our steps and stoked our hopes
RS: A college president has a unique vantage point. Others have the luxury of advocating for particular areas, interests, and constituents. College presidents must advocate for the overall well-being and
PM: You have several new appointments (Rice, Harvard). What are your goals for improving higher education during this next phase of your career? RS: My roles as distinguished presidential fellow at Rice University and special adviser to the president of Harvard allow me time to pursue my interest in building collaborations among different types of universities. I am particularly focused on assisting long under-funded HBCUs that are classified as R2 research universities to enhance their research capacity through partnerships with leading universities.
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MARCH 2-8, 2024 Experience Princeton Restaurant Week is the annual celebration of our community’s vibrant culinary scene. Check out a new spot, catch a bite at a familiar favorite, or enjoy a curated meal at an enviable eatery. Best of all, many participating restaurants will offer not only special Restaurant Week menus, but also prix fixe and reduced pricing during the event. Scan the QR code below or follow Experience Princeton on social media to be the first to find out exactly what’s on the menu for this special week!
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Princeton University Store. (University Archives, Princeton University Library; Colorization by Steven Veach for Princeton Alumni Weekly)
SHOPPING LOCALLY Princeton’s Fondly Remembered Establishments BY ANNE LEVIN PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF PRINCETON
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his past fall, a query was posted on the Facebook page of the group “I Grew Up in Princeton”: Might anyone have special memories to share about local shops they patronized as children? Within minutes, responses began flooding in. Twentyfour hours later, there were hundreds of reminiscences — of candy stores, toy stores, pharmacies, clothing shops, gift shops, and grocery stores, many run by friendly owners who knew these young customers by name. If they were short on cash, the proprietors would often let them leave with merchandise and send a bill to their parents. Until a few decades ago, this was retail in Princeton. Mom-and-pop stores were the norm, catering to local families and Princeton University students. Princeton has a different retail landscape today. The town is as much a tourist destination as a place people call home. Upscale shops — many of which
Nassau Street, circa 1900.
are part of chains — line Nassau and Witherspoon streets, Palmer Square, and the Princeton Shopping Center. Instead of Landau, Bellows, and The English Shop, there are Lilly Pulitzer, Barbour, and the soon-to-arrive Hermés. Where The Wooden Nickel, Stuff ‘n Nonsense and The Country Mouse once captivated
local browsers, stores like Miya Table & Home, Lindt Chocolate, and Arhaus Studio appeal to shoppers who might be visiting Princeton for an afternoon. The Central Business District still boasts some locally owned businesses, including
jaZams, Small World Coffee, Olsson’s Fine Foods, Hinkson’s, The Bent Spoon, and Princeton Corkscrew Wine Shop. The nonprofit organization Experience Princeton, established in 2022 as the Princeton Business Partnership, devotes considerable attention to marketing these and other establishments in town. As a prime location between Philadelphia and New York City, Princeton — despite its small size — has always relied on a healthy merchant community. Advertising in the publication Princeton Whig in the 1840s was Manning & Paxson, which sold “Goshen cheese, dry goods, china, glass and queensware,” according to a collection from the Historical Society of Princeton. Ambrose S. Montgomery offered “razors put in order, clothes cleaned, segars and tobacco, in the basement of the Mansion House Hotel.” Davis & Hunt advertised “wood for sale, dry goods, hardware, crockery, and groceries in the well-known and popular stand recently occupied by J.G. Olden company, nearly opposite the College.” A.W. Sansbury sold “Schenck’s Pulmonic WINTER 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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1. Davidson’s on Nassau Street, 1970. 2. Kopp’s Store at 60 Nassau Street.
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3. Toto’s Market, at 74 Witherspoon Street, in 1982. 4. “Christine” Vanity Parlors.
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5. Leggett’s City Market, 120 Nassau Street. 6. Shops on Palmer Square signage. (Courtesy of Palmer Square Management)
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7. Nassau Street in 1970. Shops shown include the Kuller Travel Agency, The Flower Basket, and Landau. 8. F.W. Woolworth building.
9. Urken Supply Co. at 27 Witherspoon Street. 10. The Farr Hardware Company, at the corner of Nassau and Mercer streets, in the early 1900s.
11. Palmer Square West, 1940s. (Courtesy of Palmer Square Management) 12. Princeton Shopping Center under construction in 1954. (Courtesy of Princeton Shopping Center) winter 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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Syrup, Venetian blinds, brushes, and chairs nearly opposite City Hotel.” Priest’s Pharmacy at 2-4 Mercer Street, was built by Josiah Wright in 1878. The building was moved back 60 feet in 1914. It served as the headquarters of Town Topics newspaper for several decades and is currently owned by Princeton University. By the early 20th century, Frederick William Luttman had opened a harness-making and saddle repair shop in a section of Nassau Street next to Princeton’s horse and carriage stables, according to Legendary Locals of Princeton by Richard D. Smith. That business would become Luttman’s Luggage, a Palmer Square institution until it closed in 2005. E.C. Kopp founded Kopp’s Bicycle Shop in 1891, believed to be the oldest continually operating bike store in America and still located on Spring Street. Paul Urken opened a glass shop, which became Urken Supply Company, in 1936. With its slogan “If we don’t have it you don’t need it,” the store was a fixture on Witherspoon Street until closing its doors in 2002. Patrons with charge accounts included local resident Albert Einstein. Among Princeton’s most accomplished entrepreneurs of the 1930s was Christine Moore Howell, whose Christine’s Vanity Parlor hairdressing salon on Spring Street included a chemistry lab in the back for research and development. Christine Cosmetics Inc. sold “Derm Tone (Deep Pore Cleanser),” “Velvene (Complexion Vitalizer),” “Nourisheen (Helps Growing Hair),” and “Formula No. 85 (Professional Dandruff Remover).” Howell was among the first Black Americans to graduate from previously segregated Princeton High School, and she went on to study chemistry in Paris before opening her salon. During her time, Princeton’s Black residents were not welcome to shop on Nassau Street. The Witherspoon-Jackson neighborhood, where Black families moved after being displaced by construction of Palmer Square in the 1930s, developed its own lively array of shops and services. The neighborhood is now a historic district.
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“Many houses in the community were either groceries or candy stores or ice cream parlors,” says historian Shirley Satterfield, who grew up in the neighborhood and founded the Witherspoon-Jackson Historical and Cultural Society. “I remember places like Miss Van’s house on Witherspoon Street, where she’d set up a table with linen tablecloths and napkins.” The area was always diverse. “We did most of our shopping on Leigh Avenue,” Satterfield says. “There was the Billy the Greek restaurant. Next to him was Bolvino’s, our grocery store, and next to that, a candy store, and another one owned by a Jewish woman. They were our stores. That’s where we shopped.” Satterfied continues, “Mr. Mack had a barber shop on the corner of Quarry and John streets. He would come out and talk when I did [heritage] tours of the neighborhood. Another barber shop, with Mr. Graham, was in a little section of the Paul Robeson House. It used to be where men came to relax after they worked on ‘the avenue,’ as we called Nassau Street.” Doris Burrell’s Beauty Salon, Frederick Burrell’s Florist Shop, and several taxi services were in the neighborhood. Howell’s beauty parlor on Spring Street was in one of two buildings owned by her father, who had moved to Princeton from North Carolina. In one of them, he ran an antique furniture store on one side, and sold used clothing on the other. The building next door housed his daughter’s beauty parlor on one side, and the art studio of Black artist Rex Goreleigh in the other. “It wasn’t just in the
20th century — there were businesses way back before any of us were born,” Satterfield says. “Then after we had the businesses and we were laborers and maids and servants, we became educated, as lawyers and doctors. We were like the Black Wall Street. We had everything, because we were not welcomed. We were poor, but we were rich in means.” The query on the “I Grew Up in Princeton” Facebook page inspired more than 600 comments, many of which were conversations between the members. Princeton natives, particularly from the baby boomer generation, are a nostalgic bunch. Holly Westergren described The Country Mouse as “the kind of place where you think the stuffed animals and miniatures will come to life and start talking to you. I think it smelled like bayberry, cinnamon, and fresh orange peel.” Ann Proccacino recalled Edith’s as “every Princeton female’s first bra experience.” Phillip Nollner remembered “running slot cars, buying balsa wood model planes and boats at The Hobby Shop on Nassau; getting candy at Weinstein’s on Nassau near Witherspoon; The Wooden Nickel, Aljohn’s, the roasted peanuts at Cox’s, and the Dino toys at Sinclair gas station.” Elizabeth Campbell Berkowitz’s father owned the Thorne Pharmacy at 168 Nassau Street. “I remember how the three pharmacies would work together to serve the community,” she wrote. Lisa Witt-Pinaire’s father owned Nassau Pharmacy, directly across from Nassau Hall. “His store was always busy, but once coeds were allowed at Princeton [University], sales went up,” she wrote. “This was also directly equated with the new birth control pills. He could not keep them in stock!” Leila Shahbender went to the Cummings Shop to pick out her wedding China pattern. “The saleswoman, who I would
Former Annex Bartenders. (Photo by Alan W. Richards)
Griggs Imperial Restaurant.
Hulit’s Shoes on Nassau Street.
recognize to this day but can’t remember her name, spread out plates on the floor in a huge grid, like she was dealing cards,” she recalled. Lee Beckerman described a perfect day as one that involved biking “uptown (Nassau Street) to hit the hobby shop, Woolworth’s, and Zinders to look at toys. Maybe hit The Country Mouse, ending up at A&S to grab a comic book.” Many members of the Facebook group recalled getting their school shoes at Hulit’s, which opened in 1929 and closed 88 years later. “Back in the day we had many Princeton icons such as Albert Einstein, Brooke Shields, Margaret Hamilton, and Peter Benchley, to name a few,” wrote John Hulit, whose grandfather Warren Hulit opened the establishment. “Business was always booming as we had footwear for the entire family and would fit each customer,” he said. “We got so busy that customers would take a number, like in a bakery, and wait over half an hour to be serviced. We usually had six to eight workers on the sales floor.”
Contractors and plumbers bought their work boots at the Nassau Street store. “Back in the day, there were tons of hardware stores and lumber yards,” John Hulit recalled. “It was a different time. Nobody was open on Sunday. In summer, we closed at noon on Saturday and headed
to the shore. On Saturday afternoon, you could shoot a cannon down Nassau Street, and you wouldn’t hit anything.” Another fondly remembered establishment was Bellows, on the corner of Nassau and Moore streets. “Mrs. Bellows
knew the names of all of the regular customers, and as a child I thought they were our good friends,” recalled Polly Smock. Marnie Maxwell was similarly nostalgic. “Whatever they had in the window, I HAD to have it,” she wrote. “They knew everything about me, and about all my Stuart uniform chums. They knew who had purchased which dress for Barclay dance classes. Then, they opened the Tree House division, which was heaven!” In the late 1990s, Maxwell was visiting someone at the Meadow Lakes retirement community when a woman who had worked at Bellows approached her. “She came up to me and said how much she enjoyed dressing me when I was a girl,” Maxwell wrote. “I told her I loved the Bellows experience. This is the kind of relationship that doesn’t exist anywhere. It made life in Princeton so special.” Several members of the group recalled the kittens up for adoption in the windows of Landau, the “Ivy Style” woolen shop that closed in 2021 after 66 years on Nassau Street. Princeton Council President WINTER 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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A group taking down the sign at the Baltimore Dairy Lunch (“The Balt”) at 82 Nassau Street when it closed in 1963. Above, “The Balt” menu.
Mia Sacks, who grew up in Princeton, has especially fond memories of Landau. When the store had its annual half-price sale, “I honestly think every female in town went,” she wrote. “They cordoned off the back as one big dressing room and my mom would even let me take the morning off of school so we could get there early and spend a few hours!” Others remembered the Nassau Deli in Palmer Square, which had wood shavings on the floor. Cheryl Lehnert Costello wrote, “I have an autobiography from Albert Einstein, signed — he used to come in and chit chat with my grandfather, and gave him the book.” Country Antiques was remembered as a gathering place for artists and creative types. The English Shop, The Prep Shop, and Langrock on Nassau Street sold preppy men’s clothing and were popular with University students. The latter became part of the Princeton University store on University Place in
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1985, operating out of a small section on the second floor for 10 years. Several recalled Mary Watts’ general store and gas station, located on Route 206 for almost six decades. The store stayed open 24 hours a day and carried everything from newspapers and
vegetables to hardware and knick-knacks. It was demolished in 1986 to make way for two office buildings. Amy Greenstein’s fond memories include walking home to University Place from Community Park School with some extra change in her pocket, which
she would spend at Polly’s Fine Candy on Palmer Square before moving on to Skirm’s Smoke Shop. “We’d ask the owner if he had any empty cigar boxes to give away,” she wrote. “It was a big day if you scored a box, especially if it was the coveted wood cigar box! I still have some of those cigar boxes. The candy, of course, was gone before we got home.” Merrick’s, The Betty Wright Shop, The Lodge, Saturn, Clayton’s, Brophy’s Fine Footwear, The Flower Basket, Griggs’ Imperial Restaurant, Toto’s Market — all are on the list of fondly remembered establishments that were so much a part of life in Princeton. “Princeton had a lot of locally owned businesses and very friendly store owners,” wrote Greenstein. Judith Glogau, another Princeton native, summed it up: “It was cradle to grave shopping back then.”
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Rutgers Military Appreciation Game. (Courtesy of Rutgers University ROTC)
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“ WE TRAIN TO LEAD ” ROTC Programs of Princeton, Rutgers, and Penn BY DONALD H. SANBORN III
“If you want to apply the skills and talents you might have developed in high school, be a part of a community and do good in the world, and you wouldn’t mind a free education — then ROTC is definitely an option worth looking at,” says Midshipman Second Class Bryan Suh, public affairs officer for the University of Pennsylvania’s Naval ROTC unit. The point about Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) preparing students to “do good in the world” echoes a comment on Tiger Battalion’s website: “Princeton Army ROTC embodies Princeton’s motto, ‘In the Nation’s Service, and the Service of Humanity.’” WINTER 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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ast May, a few hours after Princeton University’s Commencement, an ROTC commissioning ceremony was held in Nassau Hall. The University’s website reports, “Fourteen members of Princeton’s Class of 2023 became commissioned officers” in the U.S. Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps. The latter two branches comprise NROTC (Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps). The class included the first female U.S. Marine to be commissioned from Princeton’s ROTC program, and the first woman from Princeton’s NROTC to be selected for the submarine officer program. The website notes that the ceremony was “led by former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, a Class of 1980 graduate who himself was commissioned through Princeton’s ROTC program more than 40 years ago … it was the first tri-service ceremony held at Princeton since 2019.” Princeton’s Tiger Battalion was founded a century earlier. “Established in 1919 after World War I with the mission of graduating trained, battle-ready officers who would be able to serve their country in times of crisis, the Tiger Battalion was one of 125 ROTC
units created by the War Department,” explains an article that appeared in The Daily Princetonian last January. ROTC units at neighboring institutions have comparatively recent origins. The University of Pennsylvania’s website notes that the institution “has taught many famous military leaders including Major Samuel Nicholas, the first commandant of the Marine Corps.” However, the NROTC unit there was not created until 1940. Rutgers University’s Black Dragon Battalion was founded in 2012; Princeton University joined the program in 2014. Rutgers’ website explains that the name is a tribute to the USS New Jersey, “the most decorated battleship in the history of the United States,” which shared the nickname of “Black Dragon.”
BENEFITS OF ROTC Midshipman First Class Elisabeth O’Connell graduated from Rutgers University this year. She says that Rutgers’ Black Dragon Battalion has “challenged me to balance my academics, physical fitness, and leadership skills by creating an environment where we could make mistakes and learn from them.” Suh, a junior at Penn’s College of Arts and Sciences, chose Penn because he “wanted to go to an educational institution where I would be challenged.” He saw
Navy V-12 students on parade in Franklin Field, 1943. (University of Pennsylvania)
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potential for the school to offer a “wellrounded background, so that after my career in the Marine Corps, I could go a lot of different ways.” He chose the Marine Corps because the “big thing I was looking for was a sense of community.” He is impressed by the work ethic, high standards, and willingness to challenge one another that he sees in the Marines. O’Connell recalls, “I learned about the ROTC Scholarship through a seminar for students applying to the [U.S.] Naval Academy during the senior year of high school. As I was already going through the process of applying to the Naval Academy (USNA), I tacked on the Navy ROTC Scholarship application as well, honestly unaware of the amazing opportunities that come with ROTC. When the USNA placed me on the waitlist and later no slot became available, I accepted my admission to Rutgers University with the ROTC program scholarship, thinking I may try to reapply and transfer to the academy.” Asked about the monetary benefit of joining ROTC programs, Suh explains that they offer a “scholarship to a fouryear undergraduate program, in exchange for an obligated period of service.” He notes that the extent to which this covers a student’s expenses depends on the cost of a given institution’s tuition. But both Suh and O’Connell make clear that ROTC membership offers benefits far beyond the issue of scholarships. “Immediately, the rigor, intensity, and motivation of the small Rutgers Navy ROTC drew me in,” O’Connell says. “I chose to continue my path to commissioning through the Rutgers Navy ROTC program primarily because of an insanely motivated and talented group of individuals around me that pushed me to be the best version of myself. With only about 60 students, combined with Princeton Navy ROTC, the program feels very intimate.” Suh echoes O’Connell’s observation about a close connection between ROTC classmates; he likens the experience to that of playing on a sports team. “It’s a communal organization,” he explains. “A lot of ROTC upperclassmen will live together in the same house off-campus (or the same dorms if it’s a smaller college) — it’s a tight-knit community.” He strongly believes that an ROTC program builds more well-rounded
Master Sergeant John Kirby exchanges silver dollar salutes with Princeton Army rOtC commissioning officers. (Princeton University ROTC/ Photo by Sameer A. Khan/Fotobuddy)
Penn Veterans Day nrOtC event. (Courtesy of UPENN NROTC) winter 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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of Princeton Alumni Weekly notes that Milley’s parents “discouraged him from applying to West Point, urging him to get a better-rounded education instead.” So, he “chose Princeton, where he majored in politics ... and served in the ROTC.”
“WE TRAIN TO LEAD”
Military Excellence competition. (Courtesy of NROTC Rutgers)
individuals than the experience of a military academy. “The academies take kids straight out of high school … and they bring them in the summer before they start college,” he says. “They’re brought right into the academy to be given Plebe Summer, which is basically a month or two of boot camp. This boot camp is run by active-duty instructors like chiefs in the Navy, gunnery sergeants in the Marine Corps, and then officers from both — and midshipmen.” New recruits “are taught everything — from how to eat, how to sleep, how to walk — how to do everything. You break them fully down, and then you build them back up into the mold of what an academy midshipman should look like,” says Suh. The result he sees is that “academy kids are good … at the signifiers of the military—uniform, bearing [an attitude of confidence and discipline], and making their bed with perfect hospital corners.” But he posits that moving directly from living at home to an academy setting removes the opportunity to learn essential practical life skills such as finding an apartment, “because the academy does everything
for you. My philosophy is that it’s not discipline if someone has to tell you to do it — and you do it because someone is going to yell at you.” In an ROTC program, “You can do all the same training, and get to the exact same finish point — which is commissioning into the Navy or Marine Corps — while still going to an Ivy League school, or another great institution,” Suh says, adding, “I think there’s a lot more diversity, and a lot of interesting programs you can join, if you do ROTC.” Suh’s comments seem to echo a recollection by Milley. A September 2023 issue
Tiger Battalion’s website emphasizes that the “objective of the Officer Education Program at Princeton is simple: We Train to Lead.” The ROTC curricula described by O’Connell and Suh makes it clear that the battalions at Rutgers and Penn share that mission. Asked how ROTC membership affects a student’s daily schedule, O’Connell replies, “To build camaraderie and uphold the Navy’s physical fitness standard, all of the midshipmen gather for unit physical training three times a week at 0600 [6 a.m.].” Other classes include Naval Science “twice a week; and a leadership lab for two hours on Fridays. The Naval Science classes cover an array of topics including naval history, system engineering, and military law, while the leadership labs focus on developing small unit leadership and exposing the battalion to individuals already advanced in their career.” This generally aligns with Suh’s experiences. “We normally start around 5 or 6 in the morning, every day. Training normally ends by 10 most days. Most academic classes start at 10:15. We have a rich, full day — five hours of academics and sports is already most people’s full day at college; [for an ROTC student there is] a full day — and then you start classes! Then you have time for working out, doing homework, or extracurricular activities.” O’Connell admits that in terms of leadership skills, “the
(Courtesy of Rutgers University ROTC)
(Courtesy of Rutgers University ROTC)
Elisabeth O'Connell at Summer Training in 2019. (Courtesy of Elisabeth O’Connell)
ability to embrace change proved to be my biggest challenge. When I joined the Rutgers Navy ROTC unit my freshman year of college, I initially only focused on what needed to be done based on what was instructed.” She continues, “As I continued in the program, gaining valuable experience holding various billets in the battalion leadership structure, I began to notice some areas in the program that we could improve. Finding a way to address the pitfalls stood as my biggest challenge, because I looked up to the midshipman leadership above me and the active-duty staff, never seeking to undermine them.” “What helped me to overcome this challenge was a discussion in one of our Naval Science classes around the ‘Why,’” she adds. “Once I realized the power behind a leader’s cause and the importance in sharing that cause, it helped me to gain the confidence to confront areas where we could improve as a battalion and learn to accept change as a collective effort rather than an individual effort.”
Suh describes his military coursework. “We have Naval Science — where you learn about anything from the basics of the Navy (an introduction to Naval Science); to Leadership and Ethics, which is a senior and junior seminar … on what ethical leadership looks like — the standards you must uphold. We also have Leadership and Management, which is kind of like a typical business school management seminar, but through the lens of a military organization.” Marines also take Fundamentals of Maneuver Warfare, a technical class that covers, “‘How does the ethos or philosophy of Marine Corps war fighting work?’” Suh explains. The course includes tactical decision-making role-playing games. O’Connell brings up the crucial aspect of physical training. “Physical fitness has always been an important part of my
life, but being around other individuals like myself challenged me in a new way,” she says. “Particularly, the Marine-option students in the battalion who are required to participate in extra training, such as field exercises and long hikes with weighted packs. I could not only watch my comrades push themselves to the limit, I wanted to be right there next to them.” “I participated in all of the required training for the Marine-options, including field exercises at Fort Dix and extra physical training at Rutgers,” she adds. “The physical challenges helped me grow as a leader by exposing me to the USMC culture and develop my mental toughness.” Suh recalls that in addition to the organized physical training, “there is an expectation that you’re also working out during a lot of your free time, to get to where the standards are.” Battleship New Jersey. (Shutterstock.com)
Penn NROTC students on the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. (Courtesy of UPENN NROTC)
O’Connell points out that in addition to coursework during the school year, “Summer training also plays a large role in the midshipman timeline. Over the summer, midshipmen are given the opportunity to spend time on deployed naval ships, submarines, and with aviation squadrons to learn more about the U.S. Navy. Throughout my time as a midshipman, some of my favorite memories occurred during summer training, as it was an amazing time to ask questions, see different geographic locations where the Navy operates, and meet people with a depth of knowledge about the Navy.”
COMMISSIONS AND FUTURE PLANS O’Connell says that upon graduation, “Midshipmen traditionally commission into their respective field and begin their career; however, the Navy allowed me to delay my commissioning to attend a graduate program overseas. I completed a one-year Master of Arts in Government program specializing in counterterrorism and homeland security at the Lauder
38 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024
School of Government at Reichman University in Israel.” She says, “In December 2023, I will be commissioning as a naval flight officer with a MA in government from Reichman University and a BA in chemistry from Rutgers University. My time in the Rutgers NROTC program provided me with numerous opportunities to better myself in every aspect, as well as work with a batch of top-notch students and military members.” Suh says that as a Marine, when he graduates in May of 2025 and receives his commission, he will attend The Basic School for six months. “There, they take you from being a midshipman (or, a newly commissioned lieutenant) to get you to a point where, if needed, you could lead a platoon. That is the point of The Basic School, but it is also where we get our MOS (military occupational specialty),” he explains. He says that the school metes out new officers’ initial career assignments. “You get ranked based on your performance, and you put in a wish list, basically.” Through a complicated process “they divvy it up according to the needs of the Marine
Corps first, and then the wants of the lieutenants at The Basic School.” He adds, “For Navy midshipmen, they actually get their service assignments senior year. They put in a packet that, midway through the semester, they get told, ‘You’re going to be a service warfare officer,’ or ‘You’re going to train to be a SEAL, aviator, or submarine officer.’” Suh has found it rewarding to be able to “bring underclassmen under my wing, and mentor them. On a larger scale, in a peacetime military, that is what you do. You have your people — whether they’re sailors or Marines — and your job is to train them, and eventually bring them back into the civilian world as better citizens.” O’Connell is grateful that, because of Rutgers’ ROTC program “I emerged from the program a stronger leader, which can be credited to my classmates and Navy officers who pushed me be comfortable with the uncomfortable.” She says, “From both the physical and leadership training challenges, I will continue to carry the lessons I learned during my time in the Navy ROTC program throughout my career.”
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SPECIAL OLYMPICS NEW JERSEY EMPOWERING PEOPLE WITH DIFFERENT ABILITIES
(PHOTO COURTESY OF SPECIAL OLYMPICS)
BY ILENE DUBE
42 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024
hen Monica Koppstein helps customers at the checkout at Costco on Quakerbridge Road in Lawrence, most notice her pleasant demeanor and unwavering focus on her work. What they may not know is that she is a three-time Olympic gold medal winner. The 36-year-old has been participating in Special Olympics since she was 12. Koppstein has trained and competed in aquatics, basketball, cross-country skiing, power lifting, soccer, and track. She was one of the original members of the Special Olympics New Jersey cycling team, created in 2012, as well as the snowshoeing team, founded in 2009. Bowling is the sport in which she won her gold medals. “Special Olympics New Jersey (SONJ), based in Lawrence Township, offers year-round sports training and athletic competition in Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities by giving them continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy, and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills, and friendship,” says the nonprofit’s website. “Athletes are empowered to explore opportunities for greater participation beyond sports training and competition, including coach and referee training, as well as serving on committees and spokespeople.” It all began in the 1950s and early 1960s, when American philanthropist, statesperson, social worker, and pioneer Eunice Kennedy Shriver saw how unjustly people with intellectual disabilities were treated. Shriver witnessed this up close — her sister, Rosemary, had an intellectual disability. Eunice and Rosemary’s childhoods were filled with sports: they swam, sailed, skied, and played football. Eunice realized that many with intellectual disabilities did not have a place to play. From her own experience she knew that sports provided common ground to unite people from all walks of life. She knew she had to do something to change this and began by starting a summer camp for children with disabilities in her own backyard. For her work in establishing Special Olympics, Shriver received a U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom.
W
Eunice Kennedy Shriver at a Special Olympics awards ceremony. (specialolympics.org)
By the late 1960s, Special Olympics had come to New Jersey. Bessie Cutter Perlman, a retired teacher at the School for the Deaf in West Trenton, started sports programming for individuals with intellectual disabilities at the E.R. Johnstone Training Center in Bordentown. In 1969, participants from the Bayonne Recreation Department and the Johnstone Training Center represented the Garden State at the Eastern Regional Special Olympics at the University of Maryland.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver with a young athlete.
Today, New Jersey has one of the premier Special Olympics programs in the world, with thousands of athletes participating in more than 260 competitions. The Winter Games start in December with floor hockey and volleyball competitions, followed by basketball and bowling in January.
February brings skiing, snowboarding, and figure skating. “As a high school freshman, Monica began bowling in a Special Olympics Unified Bowling League coached by a parent of a Special Olympics athlete, a neighbor and a Rider University professor,” says Nantanee Koppstein, Monica’s mother. Rider students bowl and compete alongside the Special Olympics bowlers. “Monica especially enjoyed the opportunity to get to know Rider teammates.” SONJ’s “Unified Sports” connects athletes with and without disabilities on the same team. The idea is that through shared training and competition, a quick path to friendship and understanding is formed. Koppstein also took part in SONJ’s first unified indoor rowing program at the Princeton Boathouse, where she won a race in her division. She describes it as a most memorable experience, “rowing with Princeton University crew team members.” SONJ athletes were invited to train on the erg, coached by crew team members. “We practiced rowing on the Boathouse’s tank and we rowed with the crew team on Lake Carnegie.” In 2014, as part of a SONJ fundraiser, Koppstein completed a three-hour spinathon at CanDo Fitness Center in Plainsboro, where she attended spinning classes. WINTER 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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Members of the showshoe team at a previous Special Olympics New Jersey Winter Games, from left, Lisa Kmiec, Tyffany Sukiennik, Megan Clarke, Jackie Applebaum, Becky Scheick, Megan Cloyes, Ashley DiMattia, and Monica Koppstein. (Photo courtesy of Nantanee Koppstein)
Indeed, SONJ has become a social hub for Koppstein. “Most of the people I hang out with are fellow athletes,” she says. “We go to movies and parties.” Through her participation in Special Olympics, “Monica has become healthier and developed good habits with respect to physical activities and nutrition,” says her mother, an economist and disability rights advocate. “She has gained greater confidence and learned to do her best, not only on the playing field but also at work and in everyday life. Working well on a team is an important, transferable, and lifelong skill.” The same qualities that make Koppstein good at her job — handling demanding customers and the rush of fast-paced requirements — are what make her perfectly suited to being an athlete. “She doesn’t melt under stress,” notes her mother. “She is self-motivated to train and exercise in order to stay fit and healthy.” Special Olympics athletes recite an oath at the beginning of each game: “Let me win, but if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.” “Monica knows that winning or losing is not the main point,” says her mother. “Being inspired to do her best, while also
44 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024
enjoying the activities, helps prepare Monica to be a productive member of the community.” When she’s not competing or training, working out at the gym or taking Pilates lessons at Princeton Fitness Center, Koppstein enjoys making art in her notebooks and word search puzzles. She is part of a driven family; her older brother,
Monica Koppstein on snowshoes. (Photo courtesy of Nantanee Koppstein)
David, who lives in Germany, was a competitive cycler while an undergraduate at Yale and earning his Ph.D. in biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Indeed, attending the World Games in Shanghai in 2007, where she won a gold and silver medal, was a highlight of Koppstein’s life. “The trip to China
was different from any other trips I have taken,” she says. “I felt more independent not having my parents with me for long periods of time. All my coaches encourage their athletes to do their best and help them find ways to reach their goals. They make sure that teams stay together, stay focused, and be on time — all while having fun.” Like everyone else, Koppstein had to take a break during the pandemic, but returned to bowling in fall 2022 and has added pickleball to her repertoire. “I restarted cycling this fall but have not returned to rowing because I have to work on Saturdays when practice happens,” she says. She plans to return to powerlifting this season as well. “It’s fun to work out and practice with friends, unified partners, and coaches.” “We are lucky to live in an area where the community embraces and provides opportunities to those with different abilities,” says Koppstein’s mother, Nantanee. And Koppstein is grateful to her parents for all the driving to practices, workouts, and games. They provide the support she needs and “let me quit when I do not want to continue.”
WINTER 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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PHOTOS COURTESY OF SPECIAL OLYMPICS AND SPECIAL OLYMPICS NEW JERSEY
Special Olympics XGames Day. (Courtesy of Special Olympics)
Upcoming Special Olympics New Jersey Events: January 6-7 2024 Winter Games — Volleyball Galloway Township Middle School 100 South Reeds Road, Galloway January 6-7 2024 Winter Games — Floor Hockey Stockton University 101 Vera King Farris Drive, Galloway January 13 2024 Polar Bear Plunge at Wildwood 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Wildwoods Convention Center 4501 Boardwalk, Wildwood January 14 2024 North Basketball League 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Woodrow Wilson Middle School 1400 Van Houten Avenue, Clifton
46 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024
January 14 2024 East Basketball League 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Carl Sandburg Middle School 3439 County Road 516, Old Bridge January 14 2024 South Basketball League 9 a.m.-3 p.m. RiverWinds Community Center 100 Riverwinds Drive, West Deptford January 14 2024 Central Basketball League 9 a.m.-3 p.m. SONJ Complex and Hun School of Princeton 1 Eunice Kennedy Shriver Way, Lawrenceville 172 Winant Road, Princeton January 21 2024 Central Basketball League 9 a.m.-3 p.m. SONJ Complex and Hun School of Princeton
1 Eunice Kennedy Shriver Way, Lawrenceville 172 Winant Road, Princeton February 5-6 2024 Winter Games — Alpine Skiing and Snowboarding Mountain Creek 200 Route 94, Vernon February 5-6 2024 Winter Games — XC and Snowshoe National Winter Activities Center 44 Breakneck Road, Vernon Township February 11 2024 Winter Games — Figure Skating Codey Arena 560 Northfield Avenue, West Orange For more events and information, visit sonj.org.
“It’s fun. I like the whole experience — the athletics, getting to know the guys and my coaches.” — Special Olympics Athlete and Eden Adult Participant Sam Pickett
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EXERCISING
TO AVOID INJURY
How a balanced body can keep you active for the long-term
PHOTOS COURTESY OF SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
BY TAYLOR SMITH
W
PHOTO COURTESY OF ACTIVCORE PHYSICAL THERAPY & PERFORMANCE.
hen people begin to exercise, they may correlate high-intensity and discomfort with physical “gains” and progress. This misleading way of thinking has led to countless injuries. What many people do not realize is that pain is our body’s way of signaling an imbalance and the potential for serious injury. Recovering from an injury can also be a sliding scale of pain in terms of the ability to maintain previous activity levels. Typically, a sliding scale of injury could equate to taking a week off from weightlifting due to some slight tenderness versus being unable to walk after tearing a hamstring in a skiing accident. Surgery is generally the last resort, as most people will choose rehabilitation and physical therapy as their preferred recovery route. Even if a person is meeting with a physical therapist and diligently doing their take-home exercises and routines, it is usually unrealistic to return to a previous “normal” right away. For some severe injuries, full range of motion may never completely return. This is sometimes seen in former long-distance runners who, at one point or another, overtrained and continued to run through injury, resulting in painful strains and tears of pivotal muscles. Another example is extreme weightlifting and body building that places strain on the lower back.
Dr. Adrienne Jensen of Activcore Physical Therapy & Performance.
When considering a person’s notion of an athlete, it’s important to keep in mind new athletes, athletes of different abilities, and senior athletes. As Dr. Adrienne Jensen of Activcore Physical Therapy & Performance says, “I will define an athlete as anyone who is participating in a consistent exercise program [and] working towards a goal.” Jensen is a center director and physical therapist at Activecore, located at 800 Bunn Drive, Suite 102 in Princeton. Upon entering Activcore, visitors are immediately struck by the bright, light, open space and the numerous Redcord suspension systems. “While we are able to address the painful area with manual therapy, stretching, dry needling, and other modalities, we can utilize Redcord suspension and equipment to identify muscle imbalances and movement recruitment patterns to determine and restore balance to the body [and] to eliminate compensation and overuse,” says Jensen. “We are also trained in functional movement assessment, which further helps to identify the cause of a problem rather than just treating where the pain is.” Activcore benefits from a wide array of expertly trained physical therapists. When meeting a new client, Activcore aims to
match that person’s physical issues with an equally knowledgeable trainer. Jensen says, “we have a team that is trained in a diverse set of skills including vestibular and concussion rehab, functional movement, pelvic health, low pressure fitness, strength and conditioning, yoga, and even more.” Physical therapists are commonly referred to as PTs. The phones at Activcore are always staffed so that new clients can start on their own path towards meeting their ideal PT. “We have the time and know-how to address the whole athlete and identify all the contributing factors to a problem, or refer you to the right provider in our community if it falls beyond our scope or practice,” says Jensen. Activcore’s in-house trainer can also introduce whole body conditioning and strength training to someone who has no need for physical therapy but doesn’t yet have their own personal trainer and/or exercise routine. My own experience as a patient at Activcore was that it felt very lively and youthful compared to most PT facilities. Clients ranged in age and issue and all of the equipment looked brand-new and very clean. I went to Activcore because both of my hip flexors and hamstrings were strained and weakened from overexercise, WINTER 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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PHOTOS COURTESY OF ACTIVCORE PHYSICAL THERAPY & PERFORMANCE.
The Redcord system of fabric cords suspended in the air.
to the point where I was having trouble walking. My PT introduced me to the Redcord, which is essentially a system of fabric cords suspended in the air. I was then guided through exercises that forced me to engage areas of muscular weakness while my PT literally “shook” the cords to counteract my attempt to hold a position by myself. My PT also guided me in developing and strengthening my pelvic floor muscles, a key area that I had overlooked throughout my running career. I learned that the pelvic floor muscles essentially
A trigger foam point roller.
58 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024
Strength and mobility training using elastic bands.
stitch you together and reinforce a than your hips (your feet should also be pointing slightly out). Now, begin to lower person’s core and abdominal strength. Pelvic floor muscles also impact hip your body to the ground, so that your posture and positioning. As I worked with tailbone is pointing towards the earth. Bring the arms and hands into my PT, I quickly became aware that I had lost prayer position in between your legs and see how long seemingly all of my lower body flexibility due to my you can hold the pose. It may injury. My hip flexors were be extremely uncomfortable (and humbling) at first, but so tight I could barely walk toe-to-toe in a straight line. the longer that you hold the The importance of hip pose, the more likely you will be able to sink further and flexibility is imperative to Theragun Pro anyone seeking to be a lifelong further into the ground while athlete. Hip exhaling deep breaths. flexibility will aid a My PT taught me about the benefits of a trigger point foam roller (an object that person in any sport, I still use daily). In contrast to a typical at any time in their life. Yogic stretches foam roller, trigger point foam rollers will are a wonderful massage your muscle tissues with greater introduction to effectiveness as they more closely mirror opening up the hip a therapeutic massage. Your PT can show flexors. The majority you how to use the bumps and grooves on the foam roller to apply pressure to of these resemble some form of a squat. your most tender areas. Now, several My favorite pose is years later, I believe that it continues to counteract the onset of injury. the garland pose. To perform it, begin by I was also impressed by the Theragun, standing with your a handheld deep tissue massaging device. feet partially wider My PT used it on both hamstrings, and I
Thankfully, Jensen says that most injuries can be recovered with the right knowledge. In fact, the longer that an athlete stays sidelined, the greater the risk of giving up the sport or activity forever. Traumatic injuries can also be associated with fear of playing again.
Dr. Peter Panagakos
Just imagine the emotional impact of falling off a horse or losing consciousness in a wrestling match. Positive encouragement and psychological wellbeing are a part of recovery, as well.
Dr. Peter Panagakos at Princeton Foot and Ankle treats a range of foot health issues. He also shows athletes of all varieties the connection between good podiatric care and athletic longevity. Most athletes use their feet in some way and while runners, tennis players, and basketball players clearly need healthy feet to compete, a good podiatrist can also serve the more typical athlete who suffers from heel pain, arch support, and ingrown toenails. Panagakos prescribes orthotics to help those with foot or ankle deformities. He also works in conjunction with physical therapists and the geriatric communities to prevent falls. When it comes to those living with diabetes, Panagakos says, “We assist the diabetic population in obtaining diabetic insoles and shoes, which can prevent injuries and wounds. We assist in amputation prevention in this specific population.” Surgeries that may help a person who is suffering from significant or worsening foot pain are bunion surgery and ankle arthroscopy with ankle reconstruction. Panagakos remarks, “We see some very
PHOTOS COURTESY OF SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
was shocked by the immediate sensation of it breaking up scar tissue and improving blood flow to both areas. Finally, each appointment included time in front of a full-body mirror where I could practice balance routines. Before leaving the program, I was given access to the exercise routines online. According to Jensen, many of the injuries that walk through Activcore’s doors are preventable. The highest number of injuries are a result of doing something too fast, too quickly, and with a high amount of intensity. Other issues center around poor athletic form causing muscular imbalances. Overuse injuries are also quite common as most people do not want to change or reduce their workout routine even if they are experiencing pain. More serious injuries are referred to as traumatic injuries, which are very hard to prevent because they can happen in a sporting event or some other competition setting. It could be a collision with an opposing teammate, or the turn of a foot, and the athlete is benched for the rest of the season.
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Temporomandibular Joint Therapy
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Lumbar Stenosis
As the population of the world gradually grows, so does the prevalence of back and neck pain in adults, especially in those ages 65 and over. It is estimated that up to 50 percent of individuals 65 and over have some level of back and neck pain. The impact of low back pain is significant and includes physical functional limitations, mental and emotional health issues in relation to depression, and balance deficits with associated fall risk. Spinal stenosis is characterized by a narrowing of the spinal canal resulting in back pain and pain, tension, and/or weakness in one or both legs. This can occur in the neck as well, with pain and weakness noted in the arms.
large bunions that can impede people from wearing shoes, even wide athletic shoes. We perform a new bunion surgery called Lapiplasty, which has excellent results.” Ankle arthroscopy with ankle reconstruction is especially seen on basketball players, but can affect all athletes. “An old ankle sprain or twisting injury can loosen the ankle ligaments and make then weak,” says Panagakos. “This causes the ankle to give out.” His team will tighten and reconstruct the ligaments of the ankle so that athletes can return to performing at their pre-injury level. This is a significant improvement in athletic science and recovery. An obvious concern for athletes who are seeking to exercise long-term, without injury, is choosing the right size and style of athletic footwear. Good footwear can reduce, counteract, and prevent unnecessary blood blisters, loosing toenails, heal pain, plantar fasciitis, and Achilles tendon issues. Going to a specialty athletic store and being fitted in person will ensure an accurate shoe size.
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Depending on the sport, many athletic experts will recommend going a half size up to account for the feet naturally swelling during exercise. It is also necessary to have a wide and comfortable toe box so that your toes are not constantly rubbing against the tops of your shoes — that is a sure-fire way to lose some toenails! For those with the ability to try their new shoes on in person, pay attention to the heel and bring your own pair of athletic socks (which also affects the fit). If the heel of the shoe doesn’t seem to stay in place and is sliding up and down even when walking, that model of shoe is not for you. It’s often said among power walkers, hikers, and runners that cycling and recycling your shoes every six months is ideal. By nine months most people will notice a reduction in cushioning and traction. If you continue to exercise on shoes that are entirely worn out, there is an increased chance of injury or irritation. Another suggestion is to buy multiple pairs of shoes once you find the exact brand, model, and size that you like. This is ideal because you will not have to go through the frequently painful process of trying to break in a new style or model of shoe. Even running around the block with a poorly fitted new sneaker can result in blood blisters and general soreness. So, when it comes to considering how best to exercise for longevity (pain free), rather than immediate muscle gains or weight goals, try to think in terms of how your body was designed to move. We weren’t designed to sit in office chairs and car traffic for upwards of eight hours a day, but we are designed to rotate our hips, sink into deep squats, and roll our shoulder blades down our back. Do what feels natural and think in terms of mobility, and you will definitely prolong your lifespan as an athlete and as an active person.
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PROVIDING ACCESS TO THE “AMAZING WORLD OF THE WRITTEN WORD” FOR 75 YEARS BY DONALD GILPIN 64 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024
“I (PHOTO COURTESY OF LEARNING ALLY)
remember back in elementary school, I was taken out of regular classes and put into remedial classes for English,” said Justin Purvis, who is now a 24-year-old graphic novelist with a college degree. “It was hard.” When Justin was in ninth grade his mother attended a seminar on dyslexia where she found out about Learning Ally. a Princeton-based nonprofit seeking, through audiobooks and other programs, to improve literacy across the country. “I remember I was in ninth grade, and my mother told me to download a book,” Purvis recalled in a conversation at Learning Ally’s 75th Anniversary Celebration in October, where he was a featured guest. Joining Learning Ally, formerly known as Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic, was a turning point in his education and his life. “I was suddenly able to have access magically to all these books that I was using at school. I went back into the mainstream immediately. I was able to participate more and keep up with what was going on.” He continued, “I was able to take an interest in storytelling, and that led me into being able to really write and illustrate a book. I had always wanted to be an author. Learning Ally made my life easier. I particularly liked the human narration, which brought the words and stories to life.” Purvis learned that he was an auditory learner and reader, processing information
differently from the way most others processed information. “I was able to let go of the shame that I had attached to my dyslexia for so long and embrace the gifts that came with being a dyslexic person,” he said. He graduated from Scotch PlainsFanwood High School in 2018 and went on to study for a career in graphic and comic design at Kubert School of Arts. He said his recently published Artwork for the 75th Anniversary of Learning Ally, by Justin Purvis. debut graphic novel was going on and contribute to class. is “like Breakfast Club meets Power That changed his world. That changed Rangers.” everything. Now the sky is the limit for Justin’s mother, Lisa Purvis, described him.” the frustration she suffered as she watched Learning Ally CEO Andrew Friedman her son struggling in elementary school. explained, “What we do is simple, but the She knew he was bright, and many of his impact is massive. Essentially you learn in teachers assured her that he would grow two ways: either you read, or you listen. out of his learning difficulties, but she It’s that simple. If you struggle to read the decided to take action. printed word, we are the only other option The Purvises and Justin’s school you have.” teamed up with Learning Ally, and Friedman cited “staggering” statistics Justin started to work with small cassette that reveal more than 50 percent of tapes that were sent to the school. Soon students reading below grade level in this afterwards the format went to digital, and country, with only 11 percent of educators Justin’s books and assignments could all feeling “completely prepared” to teach be downloaded. reading, and students who have reading “We found out that Justin is what’s deficits in high school four times more called an ear reader,” Lisa likely than average to drop out. Purvis said. “We’re eye “If you read below grade level, readers. Blind people might we are a lifeline to your education,” be finger or hand readers, Friedman added. “Your entire self-worth but Justin is an ear reader. may be built on your ability to read in It’s no big deal, and that our education system. If you don’t read understanding helped with effectively, then listening is your way to how he felt about himself.” gain information.” She continued, “In Hoby Wedler is a California-based Justin’s ninth grade year food and beverage entrepreneur and it was like night and day consultant, chosen by Forbes in 2016 as after he started receiving one of the “30 under 30” leaders in the the recordings. What would food and drink industry and recognized take a typical kid about 20 by President Barack Obama as a 2017 minutes, he would struggle Champion of Change for enhancing with for a couple of hours. employment and education opportunities But by listening he was for people with disabilities. He has been able to keep up with what WINTER 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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(IMAGES COURTESY OF LEARNING ALLY)
HOBYWEDLER.COM
Hoby Wedler speaks at a TEDx event.
“SCIENTIFICALLY, IT’S AMAZING TO HAVE PEOPLE DESCRIBE THE IMAGERY THAT APPEARS IN TEXTBOOKS RATHER THAN JUST SOMEBODY WHO DOESN’T KNOW THE SCIENCE TRYING TO EXPLAIN IT.” —HOBY WEDLER a member of Learning Ally since 1994, when the organization was known as Recording for the Blind. “I can’t tell you how amazing Learning Ally has been for me,” said Wedler, who has been blind since birth. “It has helped me through so much starting with audio books — social studies textbooks mostly — in the third grade. It allowed me to excel in high school, then thrive as an undergraduate student in chemistry, history, and math, and then go and earn my Ph.D. in organic chemistry.” Wedler earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of California, Davis. He explained how he made his way by relying on Learning Ally, listening instead of seeing. “I taught the chemistry department what I could do, not what I couldn’t do,” he said. “They believed in me and trusted me.” He described the experience of hearing his textbooks on tape read aloud by experts. “Scientifically, it’s amazing to have people describe the imagery that appears in textbooks rather than just somebody who doesn’t know the science trying to explain it,” he said. “The nice thing about Learning Ally is that there are
66 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024
Direct instruction that strengthens educators’ instructional capacity. Ongoing, personalized learning experiences deepen the impact of professional learning. Engage educators and elevate their instructional practice by providing opportunities to collaborate, refine, and apply their learning in the classroom.
experts who can describe things fluently and thoroughly.” As the cofounder and a partner in Senspoint Design, the only blind-owned marketing agency in the world, Wedler works as a product development specialist and food scientist, hosting a variety of food and beverage tasting experiences, mostly with corporate clients. “I’m a weird scientist,” he said. “We work mostly with nonprofits to amplify
their story and their message.” A 2022 Forbes article described Wedler as “a man with a mission: solving the problems of the business world in creative ways no one has imagined before.”
EARLY DAYS OF RFB In the aftermath of World War II, the GI Bill of Rights guaranteed a college education to veterans, but there were
(PHOTOS COURTESY OF LEARNING ALLY)
Anne T. MacDonald, one of the first volunteers, receives an award.
Volunteer Walter Cronkite, circa 1950s.
many soldiers who had lost their sight in the war, were unable to read braille, and needed access to audio recordings of textbooks. The Women’s Auxiliary of the New York Public Library took up the challenge, and Anne T. MacDonald, the wife of a Wall Street financier, was one of the first volunteers. She had served as an Army nurse and a Red Cross volunteer and had worked with veterans, and as the demand for recorded materials grew, she founded Recording for the Blind (RFB) in 1948. The textbooks were recorded on dictating machines in the attic of the New York Public Library then transferred to vinyl phonograph disks. As demand grew, RFB incorporated as the country’s only nonprofit organization recording textbooks, and under MacDonald’s leadership RFB set up recording studios in seven more cities across the country. “Education is a right, not a privilege,” MacDonald stated repeatedly, and she also asserted, according to encyclopedia.com, “The quest for knowledge has no limits, and RFB has a forever expanding future.” The organization made its first recording tape in 1957, and production increased rapidly as more and more textbooks were recorded and distributed to a growing number of students — the visually impaired and others who had
Braille is a tactile writing system used by people who are visually impaired.
disabilities that made reading difficult or impossible. That same year the United Nations loaned six soundproof recording booths, and about 60 U.N. staff members became RFB volunteers. In 1958 new studios opened in Princeton and other towns across the country, where RFB often operated in affiliation with colleges and universities where they could recruit volunteer readers who were experts in the subject of the textbooks they read aloud. In addition to university scholars, a number of celebrities, including Walter Cronkite, Loretta Young, and Alistair Cooke, were among the early volunteer readers. Other noteworthy RFB volunteers in the following years, according to encyclopedia.com, included Steve Allen, Ed Asner, Anne Bancroft, Mel Brooks, Cher, Rita Hayworth, Gene Kelly, Mary Tyler Moore, Paul Newman, Gregory Peck, Barbara Walters, and Robert Young. In the 1960s RFB studios continued to proliferate throughout the country, and newer more effective recording technologies took over. Reel-to-reel tapes replaced vinyl disks and then cassette tapes that could hold as much as four hours of recorded material replaced reelto-reel tapes. In 1983 the RFB headquarters moved to Princeton. With operations
computerized and new high-speed duplicating machines in place, RFB tripled the number of books circulated to members. Then, in the 1990s, new digital books provided a major advantage over cassette technology. Instead of many tapes for each book, with frequent winding and rewinding necessary to navigate the text, players used digital books that were contained on a single compact disk, which had convenient searching and bookmarking features. in 1996 RFB, with a membership of more than 50,000 and more than 200,000 books in circulation, became Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic (RFB&D), recognizing that most of its members were individuals with learning disabilities. As the organization’s 50th anniversary approached in 1998, the transition to digital technology advanced, with the launching of a website and digital recording that made possible the consolidation of all the textbook files into a single computer archive. The 21st century has seen exponential leaps forward as new technology has helped to bring the organization into 23,000 schools across the country, serving more than 600,000 educators and more than two million students. WINTER 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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(shutterstock.com)
“MY VOCABULARY DEVELOPED WITH LEARNING ALLY, AND I BEGAN UNDERSTANDING THE BEAUTY OF A WELL WRITTEN STORY.” —JAKE SPORLEDER
Some of the many offerings on learningally.org.
68 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024
“Our mission continues as we seek to drive sustainable and transformational impact, so that all children have equal opportunity to read, learn, and achieve to their highest potential,” said Friedman on the occasion of the organization’s 75th anniversary. Friedman, who in 2009 had joined what was then RFB&D, explained how the name change to Learning Ally in 2011 reflected the growth and transformation of the organization. “We did research on people who were blind and people who were dyslexic,” he said, “and we started considering the needs that they had. They were broader than just audio books, so we decided to expand our services. This is really about helping to educate kids and helping kids to understand how they learn.” He also discussed the stigma that had become attached to the labels of “blind” and “dyslexic.” He continued, “It really came down to the lack of understanding of how they learn, and the stigma attached to the labels, so we shifted the name to remove the stigma and to support the people we serve. They need allies in education. Learning Ally is about learning. It’s about being partners with kids and teachers to help with education.” Friedman pointed out that Learning Ally now offers a wide range of services to teachers and schools, as well as to parents and students. “We train more than 10,000 teachers a year,” he said. “We offer a lot of work around community, and most
(IMAGES COURTESY OF LEARNING ALLY)
BROADER NEEDS
(IMAGES COURTESY OF LEARNING ALLY)
of our distribution comes from schools.” Learning Ally’s focus is on kindergarten through 12th grade, where the blind population is relatively small, only about 80,000 out of 50-60 million school children in the United States. For the past 10 years Learning Ally has offered professional development for teachers, helping to raise awareness of dyslexia, and providing strategies for recognizing it and supporting it in the classroom through differentiated instruction and other means. In 2015 Learning Ally launched its annual Spotlight on Dyslexia conference, a nationwide online symposium for parents and teachers. Other successful initiatives include monthly webinars, literacy leadership podcasts, and the fostering of an educator community sharing collective intelligence and a supportive learning environment. In his remarks to a festive convocation of employees, members, and supporters at the 75th anniversary celebration at Learning Ally’s headquarters on Roszel Road, Friedman emphasized the theme of change. “One of the incredible assets of this organization is that we have embraced change,” he said, not just from vinyl recordings to tape to CD to digital, but change and expansion “have touched uncountable lives and brought hope and success to the educators and students we serve.” Friedman also highlighted the accomplishments of leaders and volunteers, describing Learning Ally as “a volunteer-driven organization for its 75 years.” “Understand that the impact you have is massive, by understanding how kids learn and making sure that they have access to the format that’s working for them,” he told the gathering. “That’s why we do what we do. That’s why we’ve been around for 75 years, and that’s why we’ll be around for 75 years more.” Learning Ally, on its website, shared some success stories. “I was no longer confused or ostracized, because I began reading stories alongside my classmates,” said Jake Sporleder, a student in California. “My vocabulary developed with Learning Ally, and I began understanding the beauty of a well written story.” New Jersey student Ylia Thumann described, “When I was introduced to Learning Ally, I had known about
audiobooks for some time, but they never really clicked with me. But humannarrated audiobooks were different. With the Learning Ally app, I felt like I had control over how fast I was reading and when I was reading. If I wanted to follow along or just listen, I had the option. For me audiobooks are exactly the same thing as visual CEO Andrew Friedman with Learning Ally prize winners at the U.S. Capitol. reading, except that it’s reading via the ears.” the past all volunteer readers had to be in Yukima Vannoy, secondary English a studio,” he said. “They had to come to language arts supervisor in the East us, which limited the number of people Orange School District, noted the success we could get.” All the volunteer readers of Learning Ally in her district. “The now record remotely and many of the program has brought fun back into readers are professional voice actors, who reading. Reading frequency has increased volunteer their time and work from home. across the district. We are proud to be a “There’s a wide swath of people who work Learning Ally school district.” with us,” he added. Learning Ally’s Vice President Friedman emphasized the rapid of Educator Initiatives Terrie Noland development of technology and its ability to deliver interactive audio content. “I think it will continue to expand significantly,” he said. “If you think about the population, what’s not fully appreciated is that most kids until eighth grade can’t comprehend through reading to the level they can comprehend through listening.” He continued, “Kids gain background knowledge and information in interactive conversation through their parents. We can replicate some of that. We can help build kids’ background described the power and importance knowledge if they don’t get it at home. We of Learning Ally’s mission. “At the have huge opportunities here. It’s really intersection of art and words there is a exciting for us.” colorful realm of visual storytelling that Wedler, at Learning Ally’s 75th opens possibilities and the imagination anniversary celebration, offered some to extraordinary worlds and endless advice to the visually impaired or anyone narratives that bridge students to a vision else who might be having difficulty of what they can contribute to the world,” reading. “Find a way that you can have she said. access to the amazing world of the written word,” he said, “because there’s so much INTO THE FUTURE to learn out there. Don’t worry if you can’t read it yourself. Whatever works Pondering what the next 75 years for you, whether it’s listening to it with might bring for Learning Ally, Friedman Learning Ally audiobooks, magnifying emphasized the advantages in being able texts, reading braille — whatever it is, get to offer all their services remotely. “In yourself access to the written word.” WINTER 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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Celebrating 75 Years of Equitable Access to Reading and Learning Learning Ally, formerly known as Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic (RFB&D), is proud to serve over 2.3 million students with learning differences through the use of assistive technology such as audiobooks. Volunteerism and philanthropic support has been at the core of our success since the organization was established in 1948.
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70 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024 Princeton Speech Princeton Magazine 2-2023.indd 1
2/8/23 8:59 AM
Comforting + Nourishing Soups for a Cozy Winter BY MARY ABITANTO
72 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024
SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
Soup’s On!
PHOTO BY MARY ABITANTO
C
Colder weather is upon us, which means cozy, woolly sweaters; warm puffy coats; tall leather boots; snuggling by the fire with hot cocoa loaded high with marshmallows; and making more soups, stews, and other delicious meals.
According to the Farmer’s Almanac, we are expecting a chilly and snowy winter, so my soup recipes can help nourish you with healthy, nutrient-dense ingredients that will keep you warm all winter long. It’s like a big hug in a bowl. Winter is the coldest time of year because it is when the Northern Hemisphere points away from the sun. It is also the season with the least amount of daylight hours. One of the many things I love about New Jersey is that we experience the four seasons. Winter is one of my favorite times of year — everything is quiet and still, the snow covers the ground like a blanket, the trees are bare, and the garden is empty, but soon we will see the early
signs of spring emerging, representing hope and new beginnings. It’s a metaphor for life — now is the time to focus on a healthy new year and a commitment to maintain our health through mindful eating and good nutrition. Growing up, my mom was the best soup maker. It was an inherent skill that has fortunately been bestowed upon me. Some of my soup recipes are featured in my books. My cookbook Food That Will Gather Your Family features Beef Barley Soup, Chunky Rustic Tomato Soup, Chicken and Dumpling Soup (a family favorite), and Potato Leek Soup. Food From My Heart & Home includes Gazpacho (a Spanish classic), Spicy Moroccan Chickpea Soup, and a Chunky Vegetable Soup. There are plenty more delicious soups on my blog like Corn and Chickpea Soup (a personal favorite) and my newly developed Creamy Lentil Soup with Crispy Mushrooms. My newest cookbook, NOURISH: Celebrating Nature’s Harvest & A Healthy Lifestyle, will feature Creamy Cauliflower Soup, Shredded Chicken and Leek Soup, and my classic Butternut Squash Soup. Call the family — soup’s on! WINTER 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP Serves 6
My classic Butternut Squash Soup is on repeat all winter long in my house. I change it slightly each time I make it. Sometimes instead of sweet potato, I will add pumpkin. I make a big batch of this soup and store it in large glass mason jars in the fridge for easy eating throughout our busy week. Serving it with crusty Italian bread makes this a hearty meal that the whole family will love.
Chef tip: Use only good quality extra virgin olive oil. To test the olive oil, dip some bread in it. It should be smooth to the palate and have no aftertaste. It will make or break your soup. Same holds true about your stock. Just avoid tomato-based vegetable stock for this soup. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place cubed squash onto a parchmentlined baking sheet. Roast in the oven for about 40 minutes until fork tender. Roasting the squash will slightly caramelize it, which offers another layer of flavor that you would not get by simply boiling the squash. Cooking tip: If you are buying a fresh butternut squash, pierce it multiple times, and cook it in the microwave for 5-6 minutes until slightly softened. Then, using a good chef’s knife, cut a piece off the bottom so it lays flat on the cutting board. Be extra careful. Alternatively, many local markets sell the butternut squash cubed, which saves time. Cubed frozen squash is an option as well. In the large pot, drizzle a small amount olive oil and add a sprinkle of sea salt. Add the sage leaves. The sage will infuse an amazing flavor base into your soup. Next, sauté the diced shallots until translucent. Set the sage leaves aside or save a few as garnish. In the meantime, cook a sweet potato (or yam) in the microwave until a fork can
74 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024
pierce through it easily. Alternatively, you may roast the sweet potato when you roast the butternut squash, if you are not pressed for time. Let it cool. Scoop out the potato and measure about 1 cup, adding it into a small bowl. In the high-speed blender (mine holds 6 cups), add the cooled squash, along with the shallots and 1 cup or more of the chicken stock. Blend until the ingredients are puréed, and no lumps are present. Then add in the cooked sweet potato. Blend until smooth, adding more stock as needed to loosen. Feel free to add some crispy sage as well. Transfer the purée back into the large pot and add more stock. I will typically use ¾ of a 48-ounce container for this recipe. As the soup thickens, you will add more, so keep it on hand. Refrigerate leftover stock for the next day. Next, add a few sprigs of thyme bundles or any fresh herbs (you may discard after 1 hour or so). Add salt and pepper to taste and a drizzle of olive oil, tasting as you go. A tiny pinch of nutmeg is always a good idea. Simmer on low heat for about 1 hour and
serve with warmed bread. Try the absolutely delicious Olive Loaf Bread from Terra Momo Bread Company, or visit the Bread Boutique for any of their well-crafted loaves like the Seeded Baguette. You could also get the Seeded Spelt Loaf from Mistral (made by Elements) or pick up the Sourdough Baguette from Jen at LiLLiPiES Bakery in the Princeton Shopping Center. Whole Foods Market also has a wonderful selection of artisanal breads. Supporting our local bakeries is always a good idea. As a garnish, you may add the sautéed sage leaves to the top of the soup, or top with pumpkin seeds for added protein. Feel free to swirl in a little cream into each bowl (or coconut milk). Seal any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. A fun idea is to plan a potluck dinner with neighbors or your book club friends and have everyone bring a warming soup (or stew), with some bread from one of our local bakeries. Everyone can write down their recipe and share it with others.
Bundle up your herbs to impart flavor and aromatics. Simply use kitchen string to tie up the thyme in this recipe (or other herbs such as parsley, bay leaves, and dill for other recipes), and let them “swim” in the soup. Then fish them out and discard them. This way you get the flavor without all the herbs. In the case of thyme, the leaves will fall off, but not the sprig sticks. On the other hand, some soups I make are packed with chopped herbs, in this case, don’t discard the stems of parsley — when finely diced they have lots of flavor.
PHOTO BY MARY ABITANTO
Ingredients: 2 pounds butternut squash, diced A good quality extra virgin olive oil 6 fresh sage leaves, whole 1 large shallot, diced (or more) 1 cup sweet potato or yam (about 1 medium potato) 1 (48-ounce) container chicken stock (or vegetable stock), homemade or store-bought 2–3 thyme sprigs, bundled Sea salt and black pepper to taste A tiny pinch of freshly grated nutmeg A splash of cream (optional) Large pot High-speed blender
MINESTRONE SOUP Serves 6
To achieve depth of flavor in this Italian classic, start by sautéing the vegetables (or sofrito as it’s known in Italian cooking, which includes garlic, onions, carrots, and celery) in olive oil — or rendered bacon fat, even better! Next, bundle the herbs like thyme and add them to your soup — pulling them out at the end will infuse further flavor. Using good quality chicken stock (homemade or store-bought) and a good quality extra virgin olive oil are also important building blocks to any soup. Simmer time is important too — that’s when the flavors all come together. Adding the pasta to the Minestrone Soup will thicken it and add flavor from all the starches in the pasta. Another tip, I only buy Goya beans — they are the best in my opinion, so choose your beans wisely and always rinse well.
PHOTO BY MARY ABITANTO
Ingredients: 3-4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced 1 small onion, diced A good quality extra virgin olive oil 3 medium carrots, peeled and chopped or sliced 2 medium celery stalks, peeled and sliced 2-3 tablespoons tomato paste (I use tomato paste in a tube) Salt and pepper to taste 2 (32-ounce) containers chicken stock (or vegetable stock) 1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained 1 cup fire roasted crushed tomato sauce Dried bay leaves Fresh thyme, bundled Red chili flakes (optional) Rendered bacon fat or pancetta (optional) ¼ pound bag of spaghetti or linguini, broken into bite-sized pieces (or any pasta) Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, freshly grated Chopped parsley for garnish Kitchen string Sauté the thinly sliced garlic and diced onions in olive oil (or rendered bacon fat) until translucent. Add the chopped or sliced carrots and celery. Sauté for 10 minutes on medium-low heat. Add the tomato paste, salt, and pepper and heat for 5 minutes on low heat. Add 1 container of stock (reserve the second container) and add the beans and mash with a potato masher (or keep the beans whole). Next,
add the crushed tomato sauce. Bundle the thyme sprigs and toss them into the soup. Add the bay leaves, about 2-3. Bay leaves provide such an aromatic flavor to soups, stews, and sauces. Red chili flakes will give this soup a little spicy kick. Note: If tomatoes are in season, you can use chopped tomatoes instead of crushed canned tomatoes. Let the soup simmer until the liquid cooks down a little and the veggies are tender, then toss the broken pasta right into the soup and cook for 10 minutes. Feel free to use any type of pasta. Take out the bundled thyme sprigs and bay leaves and discard. Have extra stock on hand to loosen the soup. If it sits on stovetop, it will start to thicken from the starches in the pasta. This soup should be more brothy
than pasta fagioli, but both are similar. Garnish each bowl with chopped parsley. Using fresh herbs to brighten and awaken flavors is the way to go! Add a heavy shaving of the ParmigianoReggiano cheese. Be sure to serve with one of the breads from our local bakeries. My newest cookbook, NOURISH, will be published in early spring. It’s packed with healthy and nutritious meals including vegetablebased meals with legumes and lean meats. There are plenty of gluten-free recipes in the book as well. All my books can be found on Amazon. You can also follow me on Instagram @marioochcooks for great wellness and cooking tips and more delicious recipes.
To keep your immune system in tip-top shape this winter season, try these immuneboosting spices and herbs: ginger, turmeric and black pepper, cinnamon, garlic, cayenne pepper, sage, thyme, oregano, coriander, and cumin. Many of these can be added to soups (and even morning shakes!). Storing them in food-safe glass jars and labeling them is a good idea. WINTER 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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LEFT, PHOTO BY MARY ABITANTO; RIGHT, SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
COMMUNITY + CONNECTION One of the guiding principles in my life is if one hurts, we all hurt. My experiences as a volunteer chef at HomeFront in the teaching kitchen, as well as feeding at-risk preschoolers a warm lunch on a rotating basis (in my community), have taught me that the one meal they are served may be the only meal they get that day. Volunteering to participate in serving a warm, nourishing meal at the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen (TASK) is a wonderful activity for the whole family. My kids loved volunteering in the teaching kitchen, and it taught them empathy and compassion, something that they will carry with them for a lifetime. According to TASK CEO Joyce Campbell, “TASK and our partners are leading the way. We are providing a holistic approach to our fight against hunger, particularly in our ability to offer a full resource hub to those seeking aid. We not only provide a meal, but we also provide our community with the tools they need to thrive. With your support, we can
76 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024
continue to nourish the mind, body, and soul while working to drive out hunger and its underlying causes.” Michelle Wexler, chief development officer at TASK, says, “To volunteer on site at TASK, you must be 13 or older. Although our original location was a church basement, now we are a secular organization, and our dining room is located at 72½ Escher Street in Trenton. Volunteer shifts are available six days per week for either lunch (Monday–Saturday) or dinner (Monday–Thursday). Volunteers do not need any prior experience, just the desire to help our neighbors in need. Most volunteers help to plate and serve the meals, prepare salads at our salad bar, serve coffee or tea, or provide meals to go. We are careful to ensure that our meals are not only nutritious but calorically dense, so that it provides enough sustenance on days when it is someone’s only source of food.” For more information, visit trentonsoupkitchen.org or email volunteer@trentonsoupkitchen.org.
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| BOOK SCENE
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A Mid-Century Modern Book Tour
T
BY STUART MITCHNER
Kardiel Dream bookshelf
The Johnson Wax Building tower, Racine, Wisconsin. (U.S. National Register of Historic Places)
he most surprising stop on the tour of Midwestern cities my father treated me to when I was 12 was Racine, Wisconsin, home of the headquarters of Johnson Wax. Looking forward to Chicago with its skyscrapers, I wanted to drive on. “Just wait, you’ll see,” my
father said. What I saw and was amazed by was a city of the future created by Frank Lloyd Wright. After Wright’s otherworldly Research Tower, skyscrapers seemed temporarily passé, so very 1950s. I left thinking of architects as writers whose works are big enough to live in.
WRIGHT’S VISION Wright’s cover design for Modern Architecture: Being the Kahn Lectures for 1930 would have charmed me then much as it does now fronting a new edition introduced by Neil Levine (Princeton University Press 2008). Truth be told, I still have an adolescent’s love-at-firstsight response to the blending of soft greens, oranges, and yellows in a work that turns geometry into poetry; it could be the template for another much more elaborate city of the future. According to the publisher, Modern Architecture is “a work of savvy self-promotion, in which Wright not only advanced his own concept of an organic architecture but also framed it as having anticipated by decades — and
78 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024
bettered — what he saw as the reductive modernism of his European counterparts.”
ROCKWELL MEETS SAARINEN Another book from Princeton with a striking cover design is Kristina Wilson’s Mid-Century Modernism and the American Body: Race, Gender, and the Politics of Power in Design (2021). If the wordy subtitle sounds somewhat uninviting, the graceful, stylishly dressed woman offsets it, the same way the sample of Norman Rockwell Americana facing the author’s introduction offers a disarmingly humorous point of entry. Taken from the cover of the Saturday Evening Post (May 16, 1959), “at the end of the period under consideration,” the scene is centered on a sheepish, disheveled man in a red robe, striped pajamas, Marcel Breuer, Wassily chair
on applied arts; “Houses and Interiors,” featuring 20 seminal homes and their furnishings; and an “A-Z of Designers and Makers,” complete with 13 specially commissioned essays by renowned experts.
MARRYING MCM
and slippers, slumped in an Eero Saarinen Womb Chair, keeping a low profile while his wife, son, and two daughters “file out of the house” on their way to church. The photograph of the stylish woman on the cover originally appeared in Ebony, the African American Life, a connection stressed in the text by contrasting the two magazines’ differing presentations of the same products to White and Black audiences. On architecturaldigest.com, Katherine Burns Olson notices overtones “both radical and racial” as Wilson makes “heretofore largely unexplored connections between race, gender, and modernist decor.”
PAINTING ON A GLASS CANVAS One of the best illustrations of the architectural synthesis of man-made material and nature is the cover of Cristina A. Ross and Jeffrey Matz’s Midcentury Houses Today (Monacelli Press 2014), from a photograph by Michael Biondo and a design by Lorenzo Ottaviani. The visual music that trees and glass make in this piece of architectural cinema is sustained throughout, with autumnal colors beautifully in evidence. The 16 houses, all located in the architect’s mecca of New Canaan, Connecticut, were both conceived and occupied by Philip Johnson, Marcel Breuer, Eliot Noyes, Landis Gores, Edward Durrell Stone, and others.
Following my marriage to a Los Angeles girl, the West Coast sequel to a bohemian Union Square wedding reception was held in a Mid-Century Modern ranch house in Mandeville Canyon, complete with a swimming pool and a spectacular global survey of more than 400 midview of the city through enormous century homes from more than 290 sliding glass doors. Flash forward to architects, including work by Marcel fall 2023, and my wife and I are binging Breuer, Richard Neutra, Alvar Aalto, and on films and series with LA settings, Oscar Niemeyer as well as noteworthy but notably Netflix’s The Lincoln Lawyer. virtually unknown houses in Australia, Even though I have an undaunted New Africa, and Asia. York City lover’s instinctive Also edited by Bradbury, resistance to the MCM style, Mid-Century Modern I find myself admiring the Design: A Complete title character Mickey Haller’s Sourcebook (Thames house on El Mirador Drive. & Hudson 2020) is a Every evening Haller (Manuel hefty, if more compact, Garcia-Rulfo) comes back to compendium of MCM his Baldwin Hills sanctuary design and architecture, and sits down to dinner with with examples of everything the lights of the city spread out from furniture and lighting in the distance, I think “I could Platner dining chair to ceramics and textiles to live in that house.” The work graphics and posters to interior design of Kemper Nomland Sr. and Jr., designers and architecture. There are over 1,000 of the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and the illustrations representing classic designs Museum of Contemporary Art, Haller’s and rarities, as well as entries on nearly house is a showcase of the Nomlands’ 100 major innovators. An additional architectural style: built of concrete, illustrated dictionary features hundreds glass, and wood, it has a spacious open more influential mid-century designers, floor plan and minimalist decorative manufacturers, schools, and movements. furnishings, with numerous sustainable The book is organized into three parts features, such as solar panels and a —”Media and Masters,” with six sections rainwater harvesting system.
AN ATLAS AND SOURCEBOOK Dominic Bradbury’s Atlas of Mid-Century Modern Houses (Phaidon Press 2019) is an immense WINTER 2024 PRINCETON MAGAZINE
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qualities: private front facades, open floor plans, secluded bedroom wings, walls of glass, and an easy-living lifestyle. There are updated homes with highend Italian kitchens, terrazzo floors, and modern furniture as well as homeowner renovations.” The 25 homes showcased in Atomic Ranch are the subject of “before and after shots, designtip sidebars, and a thorough resource index.”
ATOMIC RANCH Given my wife’s distinctive sense of style, I knew right away which interior she’d respond to in Atomic Ranch: Design Ideas for Stylish Ranch Homes (Gibbs Smith 2006) by Michelle Gringeri-Brown, with photographs by Jim Brown. True to form, she connected with the “Kitchen Kollectibles” chapter, which features a colorful and imaginatively arranged display of Fiesta and Bauerware like the pieces she had collected in the past. Gringeri-Brown’s introduction (“Architecture’s Underdog”) promises a book that shows “there’s more to
America’s architectural stepchild than meets the eye.” According to the publisher, Atomic Ranch is “an indepth exploration of post-World War II residential architecture in America. Midcentury ranches (1946-1970) range from the decidedly modern gable-roofed Joseph Eichler tracts in the San Francisco Bay area and butterfly wing houses in Palm Springs, Florida, to the unassuming brick or stucco L-shaped ranches and split-levels so common throughout the United States.” Founders and publishers of the quarterly Atomic Ranch magazine, the authors “extol the virtues of the tract, splitlevel, rambler home and its many unique
RETURNING TO WRIGHT While cleaning out a closet full of memorabilia, old letters, photos, scrapbooks, and manuscripts dating back to the summer my father took me on that tour of Midwestern cities, I found a junior high English paper about the powerful impression Wright’s artistry made on me during our visit to the Johnson Wax headquarters. In the paper’s lone compound sentence, I wrote: “The amazing thing about this building is that its tower, which rises 15 stories from the ground, is supported completely by one central core which is only eight feet in diameter.” Next to that stunning sentence, the teacher wrote “very good,” and the paper received an “A.” When Frank Lloyd Wright was given mixed grades on his design for the Guggenheim Museum in New York, with some artists claiming that the design would distract from, rather than display, their art, he said, “I am sufficiently familiar with the incubus of habit that besets your minds to understand that you all know too little of the nature of the mother art — architecture.” Additional titles: 1000 Design Classics (Phaidon Press). Bauhaus Style (Assouline). Eero Saarinen: Buildings from the Balthazar Korab Archive, edited by David G. De Long and C. Ford Peatross (W. W. Norton & Company).
80 | PRINCETON MAGAZINE WINTER 2024
Eames molded plywood lounge chair
Cheers to the incredible staff Cheers to the incredible staff Cheers to the incredible staff at Princeton Windrows at Princeton Windrows at Princeton Windrows
As we begin a new year, the residents of Princeton Windrows to celebrate ouryear, exceptionally talented and dedicated staff. wish As we begin a new the residents of Princeton Windrows toservice celebrate ouryear, exceptionally talented and dedicated Their hard wish work to this community keep all residents of us thriving. We consistently amazed by staff. the performance Asand we begin a new the of are Princeton Windrows of every member of our staff, from senior management to front desk attendants who know all of us by name and greet Th is is to service celebrate our exceptionally talented dedicated staff. wish Their hardwith work and this community keep all us thriving. We who are and consistently amazed by the performance everyone a smile, to the to housekeeping, culinary, andoffacilities teams keep our community running smoothly.
Deborah Andy.
of every member of our staff, from senior management to front desk attendants know us by name and greet Our professionally trained employees are always striving to improve who the lives ofall ourofresidents. Their hard work and service to this community keep all of us thriving. We are consistently amazed the performance everyone with a smile, to the housekeeping, culinary, and facilities teams who keep our communitybyrunning smoothly. of every member of our staff, from senior management to front desk attendants who know all of us by name and greet We acknowledge and congratulate our staff members and thank them for being true pillars of this community. Our professionally trained employees are always striving to improve the and lives of our residents. everyone with a smile, to the housekeeping, culinary, and facilities teams who keep our community running smoothly. We acknowledge andthem congratulate ourastaff members andstriving thank them for being pillars this thank for bringing smile to everyone at Princeton Windrows every day.community. OurWe professionally trained employees are always to improve the true lives of single our of residents. Travelers | Musicians | Kayakers
We acknowledge andthem congratulate our staff members and thank them being pillars offar)this community. We thank for bringing a smile to everyone at Princeton Windrows single day. He hasfor written more true thanevery ten books (so on finance and travel and gives lectures on au
Here’s to our staff! Here’s to our staff! Here’s to our staff!
Henry James—as Henry James. She has cycled from Boston to Vancouver. When they are
not playing their daily harpsichord and recorder duets, you will find them on the tennis cou We thank them for bringing a smile to everyone at Princeton Windrows every single day. Andy and Deborah believe in following their passions in life—and retirement. That is why th are making beautiful music together at Princeton Windrows.
Stylish villas, townhomes and apartments. Enriching programs. Thoughtful amenities and gracious hospitality. Join the creative, fascinating people who’ve chosen to retire where they own their homes, their wellness and their This is Princeton Windrows. A resident-owned and| Resident managed 55-plus futures — a place called Princeton Windrows. Resident Owned Run | Resident Loved
independent living condominium community
AStylish resident-owned and managed 55-plus villas, townhomes and apartments. Enriching programs. Thoughtful amenities and Scan to learn more about life at Princeton Windrows Realty, LLC | 2000 Windrow Drive, Princeton, 08540 gracious hospitality. Join the creative, fascinating people NJ who’ve chosen to retire where th independent living condominium community homes, their wellness and their futures—a place called Princeton Windrows. Princeton Windrows. 609.520.3700 | www.princetonwindrows.com |own Alltheir homes are located Plainsboro Township. A resident-owned andinmanaged 55-plus Princeton Windrows independent Realty, LLC | 2000 Windrow Drive, Princeton, NJ 08540 Set up your visit by calling living condominium community 609.520.3700 | www.princetonwindrows.com | All homes are located609.520.3700 in Plainsboro Township. Princeton Windrows Realty, LLC | 2000 Windrow Drive, Princeton, NJ 08540 A resident-owned and managed 55-plus independent living condominium community 609.520.3700 | www.princetonwindrows.com | All homes are located in Plainsboro Township. Princeton Windrows Realty, LLC | 2000 Windrow Drive, Princeton, NJ 08540 princetonwindrows.com | All homes located in Plainsboro Township.
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