SPIA Speaker Barnes Calls for Tighter Policies On Immigration 8
Producer of “Inconceivable Truth” Podcast to Discuss Search for Family 9
Princeton Pro Musica Rings In the Holidays 13
Former PU Standout Offensive Lineman
Travis Helped Iowa State Produce Historic Campaign 18
Sparked by Sophomore Dandy’s Finishing Touch, PDS Girls’ Hockey Gets Off to Sizzling 3-0-1 Start 21
Panelists Discuss
“New Era for Syria” And the Middle East
On the morning of December 8, Islamist rebel troops entered Damascus, Syria’s capital. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad ed to Russia, ending his 24year regime, which had followed his father’s 29-year rule. Ahmed al-Shara, leader of the rebel faction Hayat Tahrir alSham (HTS), which was formerly linked to Al Qaeda, has called for their terrorist label to be removed and for the U.S. and others to lift all sanctions on Syria. Many other countries, in addition to Iran and Russia, which withdrew their support for Assad shortly before the coup, are involved in Syria with various con icting agendas.
“We don’t know how that will end,” said one of the experts at a December 17 panel discussion on “A New Era for Syria,” sponsored by Princeton University’s School for Public and International Affairs. That was a sentiment that all could agree on.
Offering a wide range of knowledge and perspectives, the panelists included Princeton’s School of Public and International Affairs Dean Amaney A. Jamal, who also moderated the discussion; Deborah Amos, Princeton journalism professor and a longtime international correspondent at National Public Radio and elsewhere; Zaid Al-Ali, a visiting research fellow and lecturer at Princeton and the Senior Program Manager on Constitution Building for the Arab Region at International IDEA; and Marwan Muasher, who is vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the former foreign minister (2002-04) and deputy prime minister (2004-05) of Jordan.
The hour-long discussion included abundant information and insight about Syria’s current situation and the possibilities for its future. And the four panelists, despite their diverse backgrounds, were in agreement that the sudden fall of the Assad regime was not completely surprising, though the sudden rapid December 8 overthrow was totally unpredictable; that the future of the new regime is also impossible to predict, but more instability in Syria’s near future is likely; and that, as Amos said, “what happens in Syria doesn’t stay in Syria,” or in other words, Syria’s future will affect the future of the entire Middle East, as well as that of the U.S., which will be forced to get involved.
Council Approves PILOT for Seminary Site
At a meeting of Princeton Council on Thursday evening, December 19, the governing body voted to approve an ordinance granting a payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) agreement to the redeveloper of the former Tennent-Roberts-Whiteley campus of Princeton Theological Seminary.
Herring Properties plans to build a 238unit apartment complex, with 20 percent designated affordable, on a 4.8 acre site. The PILOT agreement exempts the developer from taxes for 30 to 35 years, during which 95 percent in special payments are made to the municipality, and 5 percent to Mercer County.
In a letter to Council earlier in the day, Princeton Board of Education President Dafna Kendal asked that money from those payments be shared with the public schools.
“We hope the Council will consider our heartfelt recommendation that PILOT payments for residential development be shared with the schools, in order to help us support additional schoolchildren while lessening the cost to taxpayers of maintaining the high level of teaching and learning, robust programs, and other educational services that are expected by our community for all students,” said Kendal.
Council members defended the terms of the PILOT, agreeing that those terms are necessary for the project to be completed. But they said that they are eager to work together with the school system on their issues.
Council President Mia Sacks commented that under New Jersey’s Mount Laurel framework, municipalities have a constitutional obligation to provide their fair share of affordable housing, and public school districts have an obligation to provide “a free and appropriate education to each
resident student enrolling in their schools.”
She expressed frustration that the state does not provide an efficient mechanism for coordination between housing and schools.
“One of the things that troubles me is that because the state framework is so inadequate, municipal officials and school boards are often pitted against one another,” she said. “We should be working together to advocate for our legislature to provide solutions that are less piecemeal
Robeson House Restoration Near Completion; Construction, Cultural Plans Move Forward
The Paul Robeson House of Princeton (PRHP) is preparing to open its doors to the public in time to celebrate in April of 2025, the 127th anniversary of Robeson’s birth.
Restoration and reconstruction of the house at 110 Witherspoon Street where Robeson was born is approaching thenal stages, and the board of directors of the Robeson House is currently launching a campaign to raise $600,000 to help complete the project.
“From foundational work to the completion of essential walkways, entrances, and gallery windows, each step forward is a testament to the enduring strength of our community,” the board wrote in a recent letter to supporters.
The letter emphasized the importance of Robeson’s legacy and how that legacy strengthens the community in Princeton and beyond. “As we close out the year, we’re reminded of the vital role community plays in sustaining hope during
THE FINISHING TOUCH: Creativity was on display at the Gingerbread House Decorating and Family Night event last week at Morven Museum & Garden. Attendees share their favorite holiday traditions in this week’s Town Talk on page 6.
(Photo by Sarah Teo)
Pennington School Celebrates 30 Years of Helping HomeFront
On Saturday, December 14, the Pennington School welcomed over 100 local families to its annual holiday party for clients of HomeFront, a Mercer County nonprofit organization devoted to ending homelessness and poverty in central New Jersey. Over 150 students, parents, staff, and faculty members volunteered their time to serve as hosts, food servers, playmates, readers, crafters, gift wrappers, and more.
The school’s special relationship with HomeFront began 30 years ago this month. According to Associate Head of School Chad Bridges ’96, the school received an urgent call in December of 1994 from HomeFront founder Connie Mercer. HomeFront’s
that year unexpectedly backed out at the last minute, leaving the organization scrambling for a host venue to help with their annual holiday party.
Upon hearing that news, the Pennington School administration stepped forward without hesitation, hosting the celebration that year and every year since then. They learned the many ways in which HomeFront supports neighbors in need.
The peer leaders were also in charge of organizing a toy drive in the weeks leading up to the festivities. In addition to hundreds of warm hats and gloves, the school community collected over 350 gifts with which to fill Santa’s Toy Shop, a place where parents could go “shopping” and have gifts wrapped while their children
were entertained with games, crafts, and dancing led by Pennington’s student “elves.” Families also enjoyed a turkey dinner with all the trimmings, courtesy of CulinArt, the School’s dining service, and a visit from Santa helped round out the afternoon. According to Bridges, the true magic of this day comes from creating “a space for families to momentarily escape their daily struggles, to experience joy, and to build relationships. The event gives families the power of choice, fosters dignity, and strengthens the bonds of community.” It is a fitting tradition for t he Pennington School, which is committed to compassion, teamwork, and service, and aptly reflects the spirit of the holiday season.
Leighton Listens: Councilman Leighton Newlin holds one-on-one conversations about issues impacting Princeton from 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. on January 8 at Tiger Noodles, 255 Nassau Street.
Winter Clothing Drive: Through December 31, donations of gently used coats, jackets, scarves, gloves, and other winter wear are being accepted for needy families at The Jewish Center, 435 Nassau Street. Collection bins are in the lobby TuesdaysThursdays 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Fridays 9 a.m.-3 p.m.; and Sundays 9 a.m.-12 p.m.
Food Pantry: Arm In Arm’s mobile food pantry is at the Lawrence Headquarters Branch of Mercer County Library System, 2751 Brunswick Pike, on Monday afternoons from 2-4 p.m. Fresh produce, eggs, milk, frozen proteins, and quality baked goods as well as canned and boxed items and personal care items are available for those in need. Sustainable Princeton “Lending Library” : Sustainable Princeton offers residents and nonprofits in Princeton the opportunity to borrow sustainable home items such as electric landscape equipment, induction cooktops, and repair tools, for free, for up to two weeks. Visit sustainableprinceton.org for more information.
Free Rabies Clinic: Open to all New Jersey residents, at Princeton First Aid and Rescue Squad, 1 Valley Road on Saturday, January 18 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Pets must be at least 3 months old. Dogs must be leashed; cats secured in a carrier. All pets must be accompanied by an adult. Visit princetonnj.gov for more information.
A SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP: Pennington’s senior peer leaders and faculty advisors pose alongside the many gifts collected during their toy drive as they wait for families to arrive for the annual HomeFront Holiday Party. (Photo courtesy of Tim Wang ’28}. corporate sponsor
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CELEBRATING AN ANNIVERSARY: The Martin Center for Dance is marking its fifth anniversary with a special open house on January 17. Pictured from left when the school opened are Mary Barton, Maria Youskevitch, Mary
are
Just a few months after opening the Martin Center for Dance in Lawrence five years ago, longtime dancers/choreographers Douglas Martin and Mary Barton were hit with what could have been the worst news possible: the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
But the couple, who are married, were quick to realize the possibilities of online teaching. As a result, the fledgling school has not only survived — it has thrived.
A celebration of its fifth anniversary is planned for Friday, January 17 at 7:30 p.m. at the studio at 11 Princess Road. In addition to getting an opportunity to meet some of the dancers who have studied at the school and gone on to pursue professional careers, those attending the open house will hear live music, experience the art on the walls, and have some refreshments.
business is adults. We have a pretty large community, and they’re really loyal. It’s wonderful to have a place where adults feel like they are a focus.”
For the younger students, the idea has been to concentrate on training, but not necessarily with a goal of performing. “We wanted a school that served everybody,” said Martin. “We have stuck by that. We do give the kids a chance to perform, but it is definitely not the focus.”
TOPICS Of the Town
“We’ll have the whole community there,” said Martin. “We have been really interested in creating community from the beginning, and that’s what we have done. So, we’re celebrating.”
Martin and Barton were star dancers of the Joffrey Ballet in New York before joining American Repertory Ballet (ARB) in 1993. Martin eventually became the company’s artistic director, and Barton was a choreographer and popular teacher at ARB’s affiliated Princeton Ballet School until the couple were unexpectedly relieved of their duties in July 2019. (The company is currently led by Artistic Director Ethan Stiefel and Executive Director Julie Diana Hench).
After recovering from the shock, Martin and Barton quickly moved on and decided to open their own school. They found a 5,000-squarefoot space in Lawrence, and recruited former Princeton Ballet School colleagues Kirk Peterson, Mary Pat Robertson, and Maria Youskevitch to join the faculty. Since then, Erika Mero and Jennifer Gladney have joined the teaching roster. Class offerings at the school include ballet for children and adults, contemporary dance for those 50 and up, Zumba, and a mobility class for older adults that is offered in person and via Zoom. “We have people all over the country who take that class,” said Martin. “I’m really happy to say that a huge portion of our
Among the former students at the party will be Charlotte Fucarino, a Freehold resident who is a trainee with Sarasota
Pat Robertson, and Kirk Peterson. Douglas Martin is seated in front. All
still affiliated with the school.
Continued from Preceding Page
Ballet. Among those visiting and taking classes during the holidays will be Ewing resident Olivia Williams , a Rutgers student. West Windsor resident Jaclyn Owens is studying physical therapy and music theater at Rutgers, and Plainsboro resident Cate Bashore is a student at Emory University. Also visiting will be two Montgomery Township residents , Michalina Jernigan and Sheridan Kragseth. Jernigan is studying pre-law and dance at the University of Utah and Kragseth is a sophomore at Rutgers.
“We have wonderful students,” said Martin. “Every single one has either graduated and gone to college or dance companies or training programs. One of our youngest, who started with us five years ago, is Charlotte, who is in the Sarasota program. She looks great and is doing really well.”
Running a ballet school is significantly less stressful than it was running a school and a ballet company. “It is really nice not to have a board over your head,” said Martin. “We gave it our best shot and everything we had at ARB, for 30 years, with no appreciation. But here, it has really been a pleasure. We know what we want to get accomplished, and we can all bring our own styling, too. For these young kids to have choreographers like Kirk and Mary staging things on them, it’s pretty extraordinary.”
Question of the Week:
“What are your favorite holiday traditions?”
(Asked at the Gingerbread House Decorating and Family Night event at Morven Museum & Garden) (Photos by Sarah
The open house at the Martin Center for Dance is Friday, January 17 at 7:30 p.m. Visit martinbartonarts. com for more information.
—Anne Levin Hogmanay at Trent House Offers Music, Stories, Treats
The Trent House Association presents a program highlighting William Trent’s Scottish heritage by celebrating Hogmanay on Saturday, December 28, at 2 p.m. This free program will be held outside if weather permits.
Indoor space is limited, so pre-registration is encouraged at tinyurl.com/Hogmanay2024. Pre-registrants will be admitted in order of registration if the program is held indoors. All preregistrants will be notified the morning of the event of the program venue and, if indoors, their admission status.
Hogmanay is the traditional celebration of the new year in Scotland and the William Trent House Museum commemorates Trent’s Scottish heritage with a Hogmanay program during Trenton’s Patriots Week. This year the program will feature members of the Greater Trenton Pipes and Drums on bagpipes, a video on making traditional Scottish shortbread, and retelling of Scottish folktales. Scottish and other treats will be provided along with warm cider and chilled eggnog. Visitors will be encouraged to join in singing “Auld Lang Syne” and burning written wishes for the new year.
A National Historic Landmark, the William Trent House Museum is located at 15 Market Street in Trenton. For more information, visit williamtrenthouse.org.
Teo)
Austin: “We see Santa, make cookies, read holiday books, watch holiday movies, and leave carrots for Santa’s reindeer.” — Austin and Kaitlyn Christie, Princeton
Taran: “Presents! M&Ms! And we leave an orange carrot with a bell on it for Rudolph.”
Neve: “I like to make Christmas cookies with my dad.” — Taran and Neve Coulson, Princeton
Kathleen: “We light candles on an advent wreath every year; we’re on our third candle now. It’s so nice and cozy.” — Johanna, Amelie, Katharina, and Kathleen Kraft, Princeton
Anke: “We celebrate Nikolaus on December 6th. The night before, Nikolaus comes and fills boots with small presents, nuts, or mandarins. The kids expect it!” — Eddie, Linn, and Anke Goldschmidt, Princeton
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SPIA Speaker Andre Barnes Calls for Tighter U.S. Policies on Immigration
Immigration policy was a decisive issue in the recent election, as it has been a widely debated issue around the world and is certain to be a controversial topic in Washington and throughout the country when the Trump administration takes office in the new year.
Andre Barnes, the HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) engagement director for Numbers USA, spoke to a group of about 25 at Princeton University’s School for Public and International Affairs (SPIA) earlier this month, discussing how mass immigration impacts Black Americans. NumbersUSA describes itself as “a nonpartisan public policy organization,” though its restrictive position on immigration is strongly favored by conservatives.
Barnes stressed his focus on “the humanitarian dilemma in immigration policy.” He noted, “Helping one category of person deserving compassion can undermine another category also deserving compassion,” claiming that “domestic humanitarian concerns” can clash with “international humanitarian concerns.”
“We are trying to work across partisan lines to create policies that make sense,” he added.
In his presentation to the SPIA gathering, Barnes went on to cite examples from history where prominent American leaders warned that large scale immigration was undermining the efforts of Black Americans to meet their basic needs: Frederick Douglass in the 19th century, Booker T. Washington and A. Philip Randolph in the early 20th century, Eugene McCarthy in the 1960s, and others.
He quoted New York Times columnist David Leonhardt, who emphasized the huge benefits of immigration, but also noted that immigration can hurt workers who already live in the country.
“Social services have been strained,” wrote Leonhardt as quoted in Barnes’ talk, “and many citizens feel uncomfortable with the rapid societal changes that immigration has caused.”
In a subsequent phone conversation Barnes stated that he and NumbersUSA were not aiming to pit one group against another, but rather pose an ethical question for the consideration of his audience.
“We wanted to look at history and current numbers and answer questions about how we could ethically discuss how massive increases to our population through immigration can have an effect on local communities,” he said.
The past few years, Barnes said, have seen the highest amount of immigration in the history of the U.S., causing challenges throughout the country. “Instead of this just being a problem at the border, in states like California, Arizona, and Texas, this issue has expanded into the interior places like Chicago, New York, and Boston, and now you have more Americans who are experiencing
the challenges of mass immigration,” he said.
He went on, “A lot of these states are having their budgets pushed way past their limits. In New York they say the migrant crisis will cost $12 billion. They’ll have to cut services. In Chicago they spent over $100 million on the migrant crisis, and now they’re talking about increasing taxes. In Boston they’ve spent similar amounts on immigration. And there have been challenges associated with that.”
Noting the impact of rapid growth throughout the country, Barnes called for cutting back on immigration unless communities can plan effectively for ways to accommodate that growth. “If we’re not going to offset the issues with growth, then we’re going to have to scale back the number of people we’re going to let in until we can deal with the growth,” he said.
Barnes expressed mixed feelings about prospects for an improved situation under the incoming Trump administration. He stated that the election showed that many Americans were not happy with the current policies, and he said he felt “some optimism” about new policies in the coming months. He was hopeful that Democrats and Republicans could work together to “get policies that are going to help Americans.”
In commenting on the Trump administration he added, “I do think they will secure the border. I have some optimism, but if hateful rhetoric is spread advocating mass deportations, then people are going to go into their corners again, and it’s going to be hard to get people to the negotiating table.”
—Donald Gilpin
New President and CEO For Community Foundation
The Princeton Area Community Foundation Board of Trustees has named Mathieu Nelessen as the new leader of the organization.
“Our board was unanimous in their selection of Mathieu to become the next president and CEO of the Community Foundation,” said Board Chair Sonia Delgado. “The Community Foundation is an extraordinary organization with an incredible team, and we’re looking forward to Mathieu’s visionary leadership as we continue to grow and make an impact in our region.”
Nelessen currently serves as CEO of the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA). He was CARRA’s first CEO, leading a successful reorganization from a boardmanaged operation to a professional, CEO-managed operation.
“I am elated to join the Princeton Area Community Foundation as the next president and chief executive officer,” said Nelessen. “After 25 years of nonprofit service, it is a distinct honor to return to my home community to drive the incredible mission of the Community Foundation forward, with a focus on growth, innovation, and impact. I look forward to working with
COUNTING THE KINGLETS AND MORE: This female golden crowned kinglet was one of the 35 species of birds tallied over the course of five hours at this year’s Washington Crossing Audubon Society (WCAS) Christmas Bird Count at the Billy Johnson Mountain Lakes Preserve in Princeton. Experienced birders Chrys Wyluda and Mike Lee of WCAS joined seven participants from Friends of Princeton Open Space (FOPOS) for the event. To view the full list, visit ebird.org/checklist/ S205518534.
the remarkable Community Foundation Board of Trustees and professional staff, and I am incredibly thankful to the board for their trust in me to fulfill this important community role.
I look forward to furthering the critical junction between philanthropy and the needs of community and creating sustainable change. Together in Service.”
He was hired after a national search.
“Mathieu is engaging, intelligent, and thoughtful,” said Anthony “Skip” Cimino, the former board chair and chair of the Search Committee. “He has a depth of experience, including a number of high-profile positions, and his roots are in this community. He’s an excellent choice for the organization.”
He is the third leader of the Community Foundation since its founding in 1991. Nancy Kieling led the organization for 20 years until her retirement. Jeff Vega succeeded her as President and CEO, a role he held until his death in January. Nelessen will begin his role in early February.
Library Receives Grant To Boost Digital Literacy
Princeton Public Library has been awarded a $5,000 grant from the Public Library Association to help boost basic digital literacy skills in the community.
The PLA Digital Literacy Workshop Incentive, made possible with support from AT&T, will provide funding and resources for a series of workshops at the library this winter.
Nelessen has strong ties to the region. He previously served in leadership roles at the American Red Cross, both in New Jersey and at the national level.
He led and managed that organization’s Superstorm Sandy disaster response and recovery efforts in New Jersey. He was also deployed to Houston, Texas, to serve as the executive director of the Hurricane Harvey recovery program.
In his last role at the Red Cross, he served as the national vice president of business strategy and planning, biomedical services, where he led a staff of 350 people in the division that is responsible for 40 percent of the nation’s blood supply.
The workshops, which will be offered between January and May, will utilize PLA’s DigitalLearn courses and training materials. Topics will include computer basics, internet basics, email basics and cybersecurity. Available in English and Spanish, the self-directed courses are designed to build confidence along with foundational digital literacy skills.
“Providing an opportunity for members of our community to gain the basic computer skills needed to complete everyday tasks is very important to the library,” said Executive Director Jennifer Podolsky. “We’re delighted to be among the libraries selected to receive this grant.”
Before joining the Red Cross, Nelessen was the executive director of the New Jersey office of the American Diabetes Association, director of Annual Giving at Rider University, and served in director roles at Special Olympics New Jersey. He is a graduate of Rutgers University, with a degree in psychology.
The Public Library Association (PLA) is the largest association dedicated to supporting the unique and evolving needs of public library professionals. Since 2022, PLA has helped nearly 400 public libraries conduct more than 3,800 workshops, training more than 19,000 learners across the country.
Andre Barnes
(Photo by Mike Lee)
Mathieu Nelessen
Producer of Popular Podcast “Inconceivable Truth”
To Discuss Search for Family with
Growing up on Long Island with his mother and stepfather, Matt Katz had little contact with his biological father — or the man assumed to be his dad.
It was later in life, when his future wife took him to meet her grandmother, that he started to wonder. The grandmother commented that Katz, who like his fiancé was raised Jewish, actually looked Irish. Katz was, by then, a well-known journalist. His curiosity was piqued. He decided to take a home DNA test. The results were shocking. He was half Jewish, and half Irish. Since his mother’s first husband, the man thought to be his father, was Jewish, it didn’t make sense.
As documented on Katz’s award-winning podcast, “Inconceivable Truth,” the revelation was the beginning of a search for his birth father that would take Katz across the Atlantic and into the ethically dubious world of 1970s infertility treatments. Along the way, he would meet halfsiblings and family members he never knew existed.
Katz will talk about that search at a program being held on Wednesday, January 8 at 6:30 p.m. at Princeton Public Library. Joining Katz will be his friend and fellow journalist, Princeton resident Charles Stile.
“We’re so pleased to be hosting longtime friends Matt Katz and Charlie Stile discussing Matt’s remarkable podcast,” said Tim Quinn, the library’s director of marketing and communications, who will introduce the speakers. “We hope the community will take time to listen to ‘Inconceivable Truth’ before coming to the program. It is a thought-provoking story that should inspire a fascinating conversation.”
Katz is an investigative reporter who covered Chris Christie, first for the Philadelphia Inquirer and then WNYC radio, winning a Peabody Award for a series about the Bridgegate scandal. He recently became the executive producer of “City Cast Philly,” a daily news and culture podcast and newsletter about Philadelphia. Stile, an award-winning veteran political columnist at The Bergen Record/USA Today Network, will talk with Katz not only about his personal journey, but also about the ramifications of the unregulated infertility treatments of the 1970s.
“There’s a whole generation out there that until ancestry. com came along, wouldn’t know that family members even existed,” said Stile, who was relistening to Katz’s podcasts in preparation for the program. “I think it’s fascinating that he’s helping to redefine what a family is.”
As part of his investigations, Katz was able to track
Fellow
Journalist
down and interview the doctor who had helped his mother conceive by using donated sperm. Used to asking tough questions to track down a story, Katz was a little uncomfortable about asking his mother about her fertility treatments. But he persisted. It turned out that she thought the doctor had used her then-husband’s sperm. That didn’t jibe with what the doctor said to Katz — that he always told his patients he was using donated sperm, which was usually donated by medical students looking to make some extra money.
Katz has talked about his journey at New York University’s audio journalism program, and at the Pen and Pencil Club in Philadelphia. He was also profiled on a Father’s Day segment of the television show CBS Sunday Morning.
“I haven’t spoken specifically to a more general audience, but I have gotten over 1,000 messages from listeners over the past six or eight months,” he said.
The three siblings Katz has met through his search are a big part of his life today. “One of them recently moved to the Philadelphia area, where we live, and we hung out with our kids. The cousins got to be together,” he said. “And our kids kind of look alike. They have similar coloring.”
Katz is putting the finishing touches on a book he has written based upon his experience. But it’s more than that.
“It’s a little bit more of a journalistic take, with other sociological phenomenon, about the changing nature of family over the course of my life,” he said. “It uses my story as a narrative engine.”
While he has come to realize there was a lot of unregulated, sometimes unsavory activity in the early days of the infertility industry, “I’m both grateful to have life and exist,” Katz said. “But what was done in those decades, when it came to the information and the lack of transparency, and sometimes the outright manipulation by doctors, was unethical in the least.”
Stile is impressed by his friend’s bravery and persistence. “A lot of people may have curiosity about their origins, and might dig a little bit, but Matt was relentless,” Stile said. “And having to confront difficult questions about his mother and adoptive father is not an easy task. I think it really shows the skills and talents of a great investigative reporter who is not thwarted by a dead end.”
To find out if Katz ultimately identifies his real father, stream “Inconceivable Truth” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Amazon Music. For more information about the January 8 program, visit princetonlibrary.org.
—Anne Levin
Robeson House continued from page one challenging times,” the letter stated. “At the Paul Robeson House of Princeton, we’re committed to carrying forward Paul Robeson’s legacy as a beacon of strength, resilience, and inspiration for all.”
The PRHP is intended to serve as an education, community, and service center with meeting, event, and office spaces. It will be hosting a wide range of programs for students, community members, and visitors interested in Paul Robeson’s legacy and its relevance in today’s global society.
The Robeson Gallery on the ground floor will be open for the April celebrations, though other parts of the building may not open until later in the year. Robeson memorabilia and artifacts from the historic Witherspoon-Jackson neighborhood will be on display in the gallery.
The first floor will include a meeting room and office space for nonprofit organizations working along with the Robeson House on educational and cultural initiatives and events. The second floor will provide temporary lodging for visiting scholars, service workers, immigrants, missionaries, and students. A rear courtyard has been added as an informal gathering space.
“We see the building as the anchor point for the Robeson story,” said PRHP Board Member Joy Barnes-Johnson. “We think it’s important to have at least the gallery open by April, so we can share some of that story. That will be the interpretive center, a space where people come and see all of the ways that Paul Robeson and the Robeson House anchor the neighborhood.”
Barnes-Johnson noted the section of the WitherspoonJackson neighborhood that includes the Arts Council of Princeton, also known as the Paul Robeson Center for the Arts, as well as the Robeson House, the Witherspoon Presbyterian Church, where Robeson’s father served as pastor, and the Princeton Cemetery, where Robeson’s parents are buried.
“The home where Paul Robeson was born is designed to be a neighborhood resource,” said PRHP Board President Ben Colbert. “I believe very strongly in the continuing presence of that house, and the support of the neighborhood has been crucial to our efforts.”
One recent PRHP enterprise has been its podcast series, which, in each episode, explores “Paul Robeson’s powerful values and principles and their resonance in today’s world,” according to a PRHP missive. The most recent podcast episode, “Black Asian Solidarity,” presents shared
stories between Black and Asian communities, “shining a light on how unity can create meaningful change.”
Featured in the “Black Asian Solidarity” podcast are Mridula Bajaj, assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction for Mt. Laurel Schools; retired technology professional and Not in Our Town board member Sindu Xirasagar; and PRHP Board Member Denyse Leslie.
Barnes-Johnson highlighted other PRHP programs, including the Robeson Tomato Campaign, which will be distributing seeds to community members again this spring; a read-in on Presidents Day in February at the Princeton Middle School; and the Paul Robeson Scholars Program.
There were nine Robeson Scholars selected last April out of 30 high school and college applicants from across the country. Each is doing some kind of community service campaign in their local community or some kind of athletic project promoting health and wellness — all in the spirit of Paul Robeson and his legacy as a scholar, activist, artist, and athlete.
One scholar did a food drive in her community in Texas; one developed a project for young writers and journalists in her community in California; and another is studying abroad and learning how art can be used as a means for community organizing.
Barnes-Johnson expressed her gratification that the program has a wide scope and also serves the local community, including recent PHS graduate Jocelyn Brobbey, and PHS seniors Asma Qureshi and Sheena Ash. The 2025 Robeson Scholars will be announced in April.
“What the Paul Robeson House will represent in the community is 21st century art in a way that says that art can be visual, but it can also be something that you feel that’s connected to history,” said Barnes-Johnson. “Because of the location of the house it will be easy for visitors to say that in this place and in this moment we can relate to the history and also find something spiritual about why it matters to connect to others.”
She continued, “This will be a sanctuary of sorts to say we can gather again and we can gather in honor of a dignified American story that is not really well understood. We want people to understand it, and that’s what we’ll be able to do.”
Visit ThePaulRobesonHouseofPrinceton.org to find more information, to watch the podcasts, and to donate to the development campaign.
—Donald Gilpin
a Princeton tradition!
Two New Jersey Nonprofits Receive Multi-Year Grants
Bank of America has named Bridges Outreach of Summit and Younity (formerly Womanspace) of Lawrenceville as its 2024 Neighborhood Builders for their efforts to provide essential support services and foster safer, more supportive communities.
Bridges Outreach delivers resources and assistance to the homeless, and Younity offers aid for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault.
Both nonprofits take community-led approaches to tackling some of New Jersey’s most persistent issues. According to data from New Jersey’s annual Pointin-Time Count of the Homeless, homelessness increased statewide by a notable 24 percent between 2023 and 2024. Essex County had the highest percentage of unhoused, with 19 percent. Those facing homelessness often do because of domestic violence: in New Jersey, 12 percent of people experiencing homelessness were also victim-survivors.
Younity and Bridges Outreach have each been awarded a $200,000 grant over two years, along with leadership training designed to enhance the skills of each executive director and an emerging leader. This training focuses on strategic planning, financial management, and long-term sustainability, equipping leaders with the tools needed to expand their services and adapt to evolving community needs. Additionally, the honorees gain access to a national network of Neighborhood Builders peers, fostering collaboration, sharing best practices, and building partnerships that amplify their impact.
to support their work in creating brighter futures for vulnerable members of our community.”
Fresh off its renaming, Younity will use Neighborhood Builders funding to expand its reach, broaden its capacity to provide essential services, ensure ongoing, comprehensive support for survivors, and strengthen its presence as a resource for safety and empowerment in the community. This support will reinforce Younity’s role as a trusted resource for safety, advocacy, and healing throughout Mercer County.
“We are deeply grateful to be recognized as a Bank of America Neighborhood Builder. This award comes at a critical time as we address the growing need for comprehensive support for victim-survivors impacted by violence in our community,” said Nathalie S. Nelson, CEO and president of Younity. “The funding will enable us to serve even more individuals seeking safety and stability. Additionally, the leadership development opportunities provided through this award will empower our team to strategically plan for long-term success, ensuring we can continue to make a meaningful impact for years to come.”
“Homelessness and domestic violence remain urgent challenges in New Jersey, impacting thousands of individuals and families each year,” said Alberto Garofalo, president, Bank of America New Jersey. “Organizations like Bridges Outreach and Younity are critical in addressing these issues—providing emergency housing, connecting families to longterm services, and ensuring survivors have access to safety and stability. We are grateful for their tireless efforts and are proud
CELEBRATING HANUKKAH: First lit at the Annual Menorah Lighting festivities on December 18 on the patio of the Nassau Inn, the Palmer Square menorah is now on Hulfish Street. The dates of Hanukkah this year are December 25 through January 2. (Photo by Sarah Teo)
Council Approves continued from page one and more effective than what we have available to us now.”
Councilwoman Eve Niedergang pointed out that if the project was done without a PILOT, it would not benefit the schools in any way, “because the schools present a bill to the town, and the town pays that bill by taxing the residents,” she said. “We’re kind of talking apples and oranges to say the PILOT is in any way taking money from the schools. That’s really not the case.”
According to a memo by Mayor Mark Freda recommending the agreement to members of Council, the project “will result in significant benefits for the health, welfare, and financial wellbeing of the municipality and its citizens.” In addition to the 20 percent affordable housing set-aside, Freda noted a $200,000 contribution by the redeveloper to the town’s Sustainable Transportation Fund, the enhancement of the gateway into town, and the creation of jobs during the project.
During public comment, former Councilwoman Jo Butler, who lives next to the campus, criticized the Council for passing such important legislation during a time when many people are distracted by the holidays. “I would urge you to postpone this decision for a few weeks to give the public more time to get through the holidays and give this the attention it deserves,” she said.
Resident Wassim Abida, who lives on Ober Road, commented that the decision affects those in all areas of the town. “I haven’t heard a good argument for the PILOT. I’d like to understand why this
is necessary,” he said, adding that the AvalonBay development at the former Princeton Hospital site did not require such an arrangement.
Niedergang said the town “took some lessons away” from that project, in which those who live in the affordable units still are required to pay for some of the added costs charged to those living in market rate units. “With a PILOT, we can inspect the books upon request to the developer,” she said.
Councilwoman Michelle Pirone Lambros urged people to read the FAQ (frequently asked questions) that is available in the agenda packet for the meeting (at princetonnj. gov) to clarify the terms of the PILOT. “It’s complicated, and it’s a lot, but it’s there,” she said.
Commenting further on Friday, Lambros said, “We support doing the right thing for the community in general. This really is a good deal for the town on so many levels. We just want to see it built and do the right thing for the community.”
Council’s next meeting is scheduled for December 30 at 10 a.m.
—Anne Levin
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Panelists
continued from page one
“Nobody could have guessed that the regime would fall now,” said Muasher, but he went on to speculate on the future. “Are we going to see a regime that is going to be inclusionist, and keeping in mind all the components of Syrian society? Or are we going to have an Islamist jihadist regime along the lines of Al Qaeda? The answer is not clear.”
He emphasized that neighboring countries and others would be involved for better or worse, and that the situation provides many opportunities for foreign involvement. “The new regime in Syria does need the international community. It’s a regime that wants to reconstruct Syria, wants its refugees back, wants the sanctions lifted.”
The international community, said Muasher, should “conditionally support” the new regime, with the conditions including that they incorporate armed groups into the army, that they have an inclusionist Syria, with a transitional government that includes all components of Syrian society: Alawites, women, Christians, Druze, and Kurds; and that they have elections in which the people of Syria choose their government representatives.
Amos shared the uncertainty of her fellow panelists. “I don’t have a crystal ball,” she said, and she went on to discuss some of the unusual possible clues in the background of Al-Shara, who was born in Saudi Arabia and whose father was a highly educated oil engineer.
She described how AlShara grew up in the Middle East in a time of chaos, went to Iraq, joined Al Qaeda, was arrested and convinced the authorities he was Iraqi.
“Is he Al-Qaeda in his bones?” Amos wondered. “What jihadi do you know who has a suit in his closet? He wore one to the mosque last Friday. That’s almost unimaginable. There are interesting things to watch about him. I don’t know. I can’t make a prediction. He doesn’t feel like Osama bin Laden. He doesn’t feel like Mr. Baghdadi. But can he navigate a state? I don’t know.”
Also acknowledging the impossibility of making any valid predictions, Al-Ali did offer a more pessimistic perspective on the situation and its possible outcomes.
at TESU, and Eliseo Negron, who completed the Eastern Atlantic States Carpenters Technical Center apprenticeship program.
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“There are a lot of ifs and contingencies,” agreed Jamal. “HTS has never run a state. It is an Islamic militant jihadist group. All outside parties are very skeptical of working with Islamists, even mainstream Islamists, let alone Islamist jihadists. Is reform of this movement possible? Can Al-Qaeda become statesmen to lead and usher in a democracy, a new order in Syria?”
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“I don’t want to start by being a Cassandra, but…” he began and went on to enumerate some of the factors stacked up against Syria and its chances for success. He emphasized the economic hardship, the displacement already of about 50 percent of the Syrian population, the continuing conflict in a country that is still divided with “a plethora of armed groups ready to use force to achieve their aims.”
Al-Ali also noted the new regime’s inexperience in governance, the sanctions currently imposed on Syria, and “a long list of foreign powers that have interests and military forces and proxies in Syria, some of which are still continuing to bomb at will.”
Hopes and fears, opportunities and risks, and a huge measure of uncertainty are rife in present-day Syria, the panelists agreed. As Jamal concluded, “To be determined.”
—Donald Gilpin
Thomas Edison State University (TESU) and the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) have signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to advance workforce development and educational access for high school career and technical education (CTE) students across New Jersey.
The MOU aims to recognize college-level learning achieved through training, credentials, and education provided through secondary CTE programs. Central to this initiative is TESU’s expertise in evaluating and awarding credits for prior learning.
Students utilizing these pathways typically pursue an associate in applied science in construction and facilities support, bachelor of science in construction, or bachelor of science in technical studies programs at TESU.
Federal Perkins Leadership Funds support the pilot program, which has an allocated budget of $250,000. The MOU will support the University’s PLR process, outreach efforts, and curriculum framework development.
To learn more, visittesu. edu/oplr.
Arts Ed NJ Announces Youth Arts Education Summit Arts Ed NJ will host its second annual Youth Arts Ed Summit on Saturday, January 25 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. This free virtual event represents the culmination of work by the organization’s Youth Arts Education Council, which was established to amplify student voices and perspectives and drive meaningful change in New Jersey’s arts education landscape.
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“By bridging the gap between high school and postsecondary education, we are expanding pathways for CTE program completers to enter the workforce with advanced credentials,” said Jeffrey Harmon, vice provost for Strategic Initiatives and Institutional Effectiveness and interim dean of the Heavin School of Social Sciences, Humanities, and Education at TESU. “This latest initiative with the NJDOE leverages our expertise in fostering workforce readiness by recognizing collegelevel learning wherever and however it occurs.”
Under the agreement, the university will implement its Professional Learning Review (PLR) process by evaluating eight to 12 CTE programs offered by institutions across the state for academic credit, focusing on coursework that integrates workplace training, industry-recognized credentials and professional education.
Per the MOU, the pilot program will fund the expansion of the university’s PLRs that grant college credits for completing specific CTE programs.
The tuition savings is good news for participating students and their families, and similarly structured TESU programs are already proving their efficacy. For example, the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America’s Career Connections Certificate program partnership launched in 2023 between the union and the University enables high school students in the state to earn up to 16 credits from their pre-apprenticeship training toward a TESU degree, potentially saving
The s ummit features expert-led panel discussions on effective arts education advocacy, pursuing a creative career via college or alternative pathways, and careers in the arts. Professional participants include Ngozi Anyanwu, playwright; Mark Wong, manager of theater and dance education programs at Ensemble Arts Philly; Reynaldi Lindler Lolong, director of individual giving at Sesame Street Workshop; Nona Ozlu Tunceli, executive director at Americans for the Arts Action Fund, and Louis Henry Mitchell, executive director of character design at Sesame Workshop.
The event begins with a pre-summit preview at 9:40 a.m., and includes exclusive giveaways throughout the program. All interested participants are welcome to attend. Visit artsednj.org for registration information.
well loved and well read since 1946
ADVANCING EDUCATION ACCESS: From left are Jeffrey Harmon, vice provost for Strategic Initiatives and Institutional Effectiveness
Mailbox
The
Growing Hope: 10,000 New Trees Planted to Restore the Sourlands
To the Editor:
On behalf of the Sourland Conservancy’s staff, board, and members, I would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to the residents, volunteers, businesses, and community partners who have dedicated their time and energy to restoring the Sourland forest. This week, we achieved an incredible milestone: planting 10,000 native trees and protecting them from deer browse this year alone. Together, we have planted over 50,000 trees and shrubs since 2020, a vital step toward healing our forest. Our work couldn’t be more urgent. The New Jersey Forest Service estimates that our 90-square-mile region has lost more than one million trees in recent years to the emerald ash borer, an invasive insect. That’s nearly 20 percent of our forest devastated by a single threat. And the challenges don’t end there: overdevelopment, invasive plants, an overpopulation of white-tailed deer, and various pathogens all compound the damage. These threats impair the forest’s ability to filter our air and water, mitigate flooding, and provide food and shelter for wildlife — including the 57 threatened and endangered species that depend on the Sourlands for survival. A healthy forest is essential to our health and well-being. More than 800,000 Pennsylvania and New Jersey residents rely on the Sourlands for drinking water, according to the Watershed Institute. The forest also plays a critical role in reducing carbon emissions and combating climate change. The work we do today will determine the legacy we leave for tomorrow. Restoring the forest is not just an environmental effort — it’s an investment in our collective health and safety. To learn more about our forest restoration efforts and how you can make a difference, please visit sourland.org/act-ash-crisis-team.
Something Must Be Done Soon About Princeton’s Growing Deer Population
To the Editor:
All anyone has to do is drive by historic Maybury Hill on Snowden Lane in Princeton to see the deer herd chomping away daily. They are now eating boxwood, azaleas, rosebuds, acuba, and many other bushes and plants they supposedly hate. The organic sprays used to deter the growing deer population is essentially pouring money into the ground.
Today we are spending more dollars on netting and a gardener to install. The dog barking and yelling at them is fruitless. Soon our lovely garden and grounds worked on for the last 25 years will be a desert. The deer live in the woods and are now in the yard 2 p.m.-7 a.m. They have learned that our three-acre property is most desirable since they can use the sidewalk to return home to the woods (our property as well) and not cross in front of traffic. This route is potentially a threat to school children on the way to school and back. And, the cars carrying them. Cull the heard as in years past, sterilize all or tranquilize and/or move them to a state park. All would be preferable. Sterilizing only the female deer population is costly and time-consuming. Not a viable solution. Many ask who came up with this idea?
Those who feel sorry for the deer and live where there isn’t a problem should come over in the late spring and replace costly plants. We welcome the donations and volunteers. Let’s get with the program, Princeton, before spring creates new growth which can be devoured in a week and the new fawns try everything that they may like or not. The fawns also play games over low boxwoods and break new growth. We have lots of good minds in this town that could potentially deal with the many growing issues we face. Let’s save our tax money and time by not hiring outside consultants and listen to concerned residents. Perhaps we could ask Winterthur how they deal with deer, rabbits, squirrels, and other wildlife. Help!
NANCY AND GUY WOELK
Snowden Lane
Questioning Proposed Tax Break Being Granted to Developer of Seminary Property
To the Editor:
It is astonishing that taxpayers are being asked to support the shortfall (estimated at $48 million by the Princeton Coalition for Responsible Development) that will eventually result from the proposed tax break being granted to Herring Properties for a gift in lieu of taxes for the “development” of the plot that belonged to Princeton Theological Seminary. This seems egregious, especially since we are also being asked to approve a $89.1 million bond referendum in January to help Princeton’s schools. Furthermore, this comes at a time when another group of schoolchildren, perhaps as many as 100 or more (a conservative estimate of incoming children is 150) is arriving — whom we are in effect subventing.
The reasons given in support of offering this break do not carry weight, especially the claim that the gateway into town will be enhanced. How does the placement of a large development near the entrance to the borough adjacent to
historic buildings and a historic district represent enhancement? Or the massive increase in traffic that will result, especially when people go to work? As it is I can hardly cross Mercer Street to walk my dog during rush hours. I question the assumption that people will walk rather than drive to get the necessary items that they need to live, when the nearest shopping center is over a mile away.
How is there a gain in the amount of open space? (My son used to play at the site and went to programs in the gym that was torn down.) As it is, Marquand Park is effectively next door.
My concerns about enhancement extend to the question of water runoff and disruption of underground streams. I have asked repeatedly about this matter, and to date no public study has been made about the potential impact of construction of houses and parking structures on this matter of which I am aware. When the Theology School Library was built detritus including gravel ran off and flowed down into the culvert that runs through my property across Mercer Street and caused it to flood, while neighboring houses were also flooded. As the water comes ultimately from springs located in this area and flows down to be collected again to where it may be treated for usage, this is also a health question that has not been answered.
THOMAS DACOSTA KAUFMANN
Marquand Professor of Art and Archaeology, Princeton University Mercer Street
Note: When asked for a response, the Municipality encouraged residents to research the facts. They also provided a link to further information on the municipal website at princetonnj.gov/DocumentCenter/Index/2403.
Urging Princeton Voters to Approve All Three PPS Referendum Questions
To the Editor:
I attended the school district’s presentation on the PPS Facilities Bond Referendum on December 9 (recording available on the PPS website) and was very impressed with the thoughtfulness of the district plan. I am writing to urge Princeton voters to approve all three Referendum questions on January 28.
Princeton will be welcoming many new students in the next few years. There are over 1,000 units of housing in the pipeline, with more to come. Meanwhile some of our school buildings are already over-capacity and outdated in design. And certain critical infrastructure, such as the HVAC system at PHS, is overdue for replacement.
The district plan to address these issues is both right-sized and right-timed. It will create smart, flexible space that supports excellent educational programming even as we grow. It will maximize the availability of state dollars to reduce the impact on our local property taxes. And the remaining tax impact is largely offset by the reduction in tax in 2021, when a portion of the District’s previous debt was retired.
If the referendum is not successful, the schools will be forced to use precious operating budget dollars for workarounds like modular classrooms and increased bussing. Costly temporary repairs and excessive energy costs will further impact operating funds. Due to the space limitations alone, we can anticipate significant impacts on class size, music, arts and science programs, and disruptive redistricting.
My own kids have graduated, but I believe that our public schools are a core community asset that we all have a stake in maintaining. The choice for our schools and our town is clear!
AMY J. MAYER Overbrook Drive
Writing in Opposition to January Princeton Public Schools Referendum
To the Editor:
Regretfully I cannot support the upcoming PPS referendum. As a lifelong resident whose father and youngest son both graduated from PHS, I wish I could. As a past coach in the district, local business person, and having served on a neighboring school board many years ago, I can’t for numerous reasons.
First and foremost, holding a special referendum costs the taxpayers extra as opposed to holding when voters are already casting their votes in an election. The reasons for this seem obvious, either poor planning or hoping that there will be a low voter turnout where the PPS can promote and push enough to pass it. Wasting tax dollars should never be rewarded.
Second, if timing is due to poor planning, why on earth would we trust the same body to plan better when it comes to the renovations and expansions sought?
This is a large tract and includes classrooms and other structures. If the sale doesn’t go through what will go there? If high density housing, we have even more potential to impact the schools. Certainly, with this open question a referendum is premature.
Fourth, proper planning should consider all we have and what we actually need to comply with state and federal laws. Beyond that, what the voters want. What programs are not required? Are class sizes lower than they could/should be for the age and subject taught? I remember college classes of over a hundred. Should taxpayers cover day care costs for preschool? A complete inventory of space and use should be done.
Fifth, looking at the district’s “success” in managing past capital projects. It wasn’t many years ago a referendum was passed that included items that while approved by voters, were not completed. (My in-district coaching was for the middle school wrestling program that had to practice in the library one year before relocating to the high school, though a previous referendum included a wrestling / PE room passed
and it wasn’t created) The high school gym that was accidentally built 10 feet smaller than per plans and not discovered until they painted floors and discovered the bleachers couldn’t be opened? The football field that was redone over a faulty base and had to be redone again? The fine arts area flooded due to improper grading and drainage. Planning and executions for past construction and maintenance have been poor. Poor maintenance is from poor planning. HVAC systems need to be properly maintained and replacements budgeted for. Absent a superintendent, a knowledgeable director of facilities and grounds should be making the pitch for referendum. What changes have been made to the process to avoid costly mistakes of the past? For the sake of our children let’s not rush into yet more mistakes and instead be prudent with tax dollars. Construction is disruptive but with proper planning this can be minimized. Unfortunately, as shown above, proper planning has not been in our wheelxhouse.
KENNETH VERBEYST Caldwell Drive
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Books
Stephen Hough’s Essay Collection concerts and recordings. He is also a writer, composer, and painter, and has been described by The Economist as one of “Twenty Living Polymaths.”
A virtual program on Friday, January 10 from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. features musician Sir Stephen Hough, a pianist and writer, speaking on his collection of essays, Rough Ideas: Reflections on Music and More, in advance of a performance on February 20 featuring Hough and the Takács String Quartet.
A book group discussion of Rough Ideas: Reflections on Music and More (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, $32.01 hardcover) is offered on January 2 in person (there is a waitlist) at 10:30 a.m. in the Princeton Public Library, 65 Witherspoon Street.
Hough, one of the world’s leading pianists, has won global acclaim for both his
A review by Publishers Weekly states that “Hough’s writings on music are endlessly knowledgeable, illuminating, and accessible . . . music lovers, from professional musicians to casual listeners, will find the book a delight to browse through.”
The event is presented in partnership with Princeton University Concerts in advance of the upcoming performance. To register for the Zoom event, go to princetonlibrary.libnet.info/ event/11321506.
BOOK/FILM REVIEW
Scott Fitzgerald and Jimmy Stewart Give a Princeton Touch to Christmas 2024
One of my most vivid memories is of coming back West from prep school and later from college at Christmas time.
—F. Scott Fitzgerald
who had that very night wished him a Merry Christmas. He was certainly having it.”
My preferred Santa of the moment is the one trudging up the Union Square subway stairs on the cover of the December 16 New Yorker, a heavy red bag slung over his shoulder, one hand on the railing, snow falling. I like the noirish urban darkness of Eric Drooker’s image, the way the Con Ed building is framed, the fading portrait of a beloved city against a blank sky. I also like the touch of mortal menace. Will Santa make it to his next stop before he’s mugged or run down by a drunken driver?
The Poetry of Gatsby
The epigraph I’ve used here comes from F. Scott Fitzgerald and may sound routinely autobiographical, but is actually crucial to The Great Gatsby, which will celebrate its centenary next year. Nick Carraway’s line about coming home from college at Christmas sets the stage for the concluding reference to Gatsby’s dream, “which must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it. He did not know that it was already behind him, somewhere back in that vast obscurity beyond the city, where the dark fields of the republic rolled on under the night.” That’s where the poem that is The Great Gatsby truly ends; the two short paragraphs that follow, about the “orgastic future” and “boats against the current,” are prosaic and workmanlike by comparison.
“Luckless Santa”
Christmas is at the center of one of Fitzgerald’s first stories, written in 1912 when he was 16 and a student at the Newman School in Hackensack, N.J. Published in The Newman News, “Luckless Santa” opens on “Christmas Eve in busy Manhattan” where the title character, a smug, well-to-do “faultlessly dressed” young man, is walking the streets trying to give away 25 dollars, on a dare from his girlfriend. The turning point of the story puts him in the same neighborhood as 2024’s subway Santa: “He was now crossing Union Square, and, after another half hour’s patient work, he found himself with only fifteen dollars left to give away.” Trying to dispense the last of the money to two Third Avenue tough guys who think it’s “a charity gag,” the would be Santa is attacked: “They hit him, they mashed him, they got him down and jumped on him, they broke his hat, they tore his coat,” and “gasping, striking, panting,” he “went down in the slush, thinking of the people
Mugging Santa Fitzgerald’s story reminds me of the hard-rocking, socially aware cynicism of “Father Christmas” by Ray Davies and the Kinks. Recorded in the dark ages of the late 1970s, the song is about the mugging of the title character by a gang of poor kids who don’t want presents, just “Give us some money / Don’t mess around with those silly toys / We’ll beat you up if you don’t hand it over.” They tell him to give the toys to “the little rich boys” (“We don’t want a jigsaw or monopoly money / We only want the real McCoy”). And while you’re at it, “Give my daddy a job ’cause he needs one / He’s got lots of mouths to feed.”
Christmas with Dylan
Some musical favorites closer to the heart of the season are Kate Bush’s “December Will Be Magic Again,” the Shepherd’s Chorus from Berlioz’s L’Enfance du Christ Van Morrison’s Irish Heartbeat LP with the Chieftains. I’m also remembering Bob Dylan’s 2009 album Christmas in the Heart royalties from which he donated to Feeding America, Crisis UK, and the United Nations’ World Food Program. Dylan’s approach is unashamedly traditional, which did not go down well with either his critics or hardcore protectors of the Legend who couldn’t deal with an album of the same songs Dylan was singing with his friends and family long before he ever discovered Woody Guthrie.
Toward the end, a rogue male appears out of nowhere, throws things, swings from a chandelier, crashes through a window and flees into the night, leaving Dylan and Santa side by side looking bemused, like, “Who was that masked man?” The sudden entrance of a manic intruder may reflect Dylan’s awareness of the anything-canhappen reality of post-9/11 America.
Capra’s Christmas Spirit I was an embattled admirer of Frank Capra’s 1946 epic It’s a Wonderful Life before television programmers in the 1980s fashioned it into a holiday standard. By “embattled,” I mean dealing with the scorn heaped on a great movie by “serious film people” (the last straw being Clarence, the tipsy fallen angel trying to earn back his wings). Making my case to the cynics, I mentioned James Agee’s cynicism-be-damned December 28, 1946 review suggesting that in “its pile-driving emotional exuberance,” the picture “outrages, insults, or at least accosts without introduction, the cooler and more responsible parts of the
The quirky, edgy highlight of the record remains “Must Be Santa,” a furious, allbets-are-off polka best seen and heard on YouTube. Driven by David Hidalgo’s buoyant accordion, it’s three minutes of splendid delirium, life kicking up its heels, wild and wanton, a treat for the eyes and ears.
One of the wildest role reversals you’ll ever see is Lionel Barrymore’s move from the genial, philosophical, do-your-own-thing grandfather Vanderhof in Capra’s You Can’t Take It With You to the irredeemably evil Mr. Potter, the epitome of heartless villainy in It’s a Wonderful Life . Potter has truly Satanic dimensions; his evil is an all-consuming plague; in Capra’s simplistic but deeply convincing moral vision, it’s clear that if George Bailey had taken his own life or never been born, Bedford Falls would have become the toxic domain of a rich autocrat.
Jimmy Saves the Day
In his New Statesman review of You Can’t Take It With You , Graham Greene
cites the Dickens standard (“the Christmas Carol all over again,” “in the Christmas Carol tradition”) on his way to describing the essence of Capra’s power, his “genius with a camera,” the way that “his screen always seems twice as big as other people’s.” After summing up the crazy plot reworked from and generally superior to the George S. Kaufman/Moss Hart play, Greene articulates the essence of Capra’s holiday appeal: “We may groan and blush as he cuts his way remorselessly through all finer values to the fallible human heart, but infallibly he makes his appeal — to that great soft organ with its unreliable goodness and easy melancholy and baseless optimism.”
The actor whose passion and energy drive both It’s a Wonderful Life and You Can’t Take It With You is Princeton graduate Jimmy Stewart, whose performance as George Bailey remains one of the legends of American cinema. One moonlit moment that comes to mind is when after a high school dance George asks his future wife, “What is it you want, Mary? What do you want? You want the moon? Say the word and I’ll throw a lasso around it and pull it down!” And when Mary says she’ll take it, he says, “Well, then, you can swallow it, and it’ll all dissolve, see, and the moonbeams’ll shoot out of your fingers and your toes and the ends of your hair!”
I doubt that any other American actor could make those lines soar the way Stewart does, and they follow his no less “emotionally exuberant” pouring forth of a dream that never comes true: “I’m shakin’ the dust of this crummy little town off my feet and I’m gonna see the world! Italy, Greece, the Parthenon, the Colosseum! Then, I’m comin’ back here to go to college and see what they know. And then I’m gonna build things! I’m gonna build airfields! I’m gonna build skyscrapers a hundred stories high! I’m gonna build bridges a mile long!”
The force Jimmy Stewart brings to these speeches he was born to deliver makes the immensity of George Bailey’s despair all the more moving when he loses his faith in himself and “the crummy little town” for which he gave up his dream. For Stewart, the line about going back to college, though he was 38 when he said it, would mean, of course, Princeton, from which he graduated in 1932. Five years after we moved here, my wife and I and our little boy saw him towering above his 50th reunion classmates in the P-rade.
—Stuart Mitchner
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Princeton Pro Musica Rings in Holidays with “A Feast of Carols”
Princeton Pro Musica pulled out all the stops recently for a performance of international music for the season, much of which was arranged by the ensemble’s Artistic Director Ryan J. Brandau. The concert on December 15 attended by a festive full house at Richardson Auditorium brought together chorus, orchestra, and two vocal soloists for an eclectic afternoon of music spanning the globe, multiple centuries, and languages.
Brandau has established a deserved reputation as an arranger and orchestrator, and a significant part of Pro Musica’s program showed off his talents. “Mashups” of two or more musical numbers put together are popular in the choral world, and Brandau included several of his own in the performance. The concert opened with a combination piece of “O Come Emmanuel” and “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen,” as set by Brandau. With supertitles and Pro Musica’s trademark precise diction, Brandau’s composition moved seamlessly between the medieval chant and the 17th-century English carol. Introduced by solo cellist Melissa Meell and delicately accompanied by harpist André Tarantiles, the two selections well demonstrated Pro Musica’s blended choral sound.
Brandau also turned to the British Isles for several familiar tunes from Ireland, England, and Scotland. The traditional Irish “Wexford Carol,” sung by guest soprano Claire Leyden, effectively retained a medieval feeling through Leyden’s clear singing, Brandau’s orchestration and especially elegant English horn playing by Karen Birch Blundell. Guest bass-baritone Brian Mextorf was featured in Brandau’s arrangement of the English “Wassail,” also accompanied by stylistically austere orchestration, including a lower string drone reflecting the carol’s origins in the Twelfth Night of Christmas tradition.
Choral masterworks are the bread and butter of Pro Musica’s repertory, and the holiday celebration included several excerpts from major works showing the chorus at its most comfortable. The ensemble performed the opening movement of Johann Sebastian
Bach’s Magnificat with clean coloratura lines accented by a crisp trio of trumpets. The first choral movement of George Frideric Handel’s Messiah (“For unto Us a Child is Born) was sung with precision and with clarity ingrained in the singers from decades of performing Handel’s entire work. Both pieces were accompanied by refined orchestral playing.
Also singing from Messiah , soprano Leyden performed the show-stopping virtuoso “Rejoice Greatly,” easily handing the long melismatic vocal lines within Brandau’s lilting tempo. This was a lyrical and flowing version, with a pastoral middle section and Leyden’s return to the opening material sung with imaginative ornaments and very strong top notes. Accompanied by a chambersized orchestra, Leyden well conveyed the text of great joy to the whole hall.
Soloist Brian Mextorf also successfully connected with the audience, singing “Go Tell it on the Mountain” and the poignant “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.” Brandau’s orchestration of “Mountain” for winds and strings complemented Mextorf’s voice and provided a translucent backdrop to the laudatory spiritual. Brandau’s orchestral setting of the English folk song “Greensleeves” was lavish, with horns scored against lower strings and a graceful duet between English hornist Blundell and oboist Sarah Davol. The 17th-century “I Saw Three Ships” was sung by the chorus with a relaxed flow and an especially effective shift to triplet rhythms on the celestial text “And all the angels in Heaven shall sing on Christmas Day.”
There was plenty of musical fun to be had on the program as well. With a few sing-alongs mixed in with clever arrangements of familiar tunes, the audience at Richardson was effortlessly drawn into Pro Musica’s cheerful spirit. Princeton Pro Musica’s “A Feast of Carols” concert has become an annual tradition in the area, and the varied repertoire, combined with an audience ready for a bit of relaxation, guaranteed that Princeton will be ready for the holidays.
—Nancy Plum
Princeton Pro Musica will present its next performance on Sunday, March 30, 2025 at 4 p.m. at Kendall Main Stage Theater at The College of New Jersey. This concert will feature Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana,” and is a collaboration with dancers of the Roxey Ballet. Ticket information can be obtained by visiting princetonpromusica.org.
Performing Arts
DANCE, SONGS, AND MORE: Step Afrika! Brings traditional dances, music, and audience participation to State Theatre New Jersey on January 17. (Photo
Stepping and Other Styles
At Step Afrika! Performance
State Theatre New Jersey presents Step Afrika! on Friday, January 17 at 7:30 p.m. The production blends percussive dance styles, traditional African dances, stepping, and contemporary dance and art forms. Much more than a dance show, Step Afrika! also integrates songs, storytelling, humor, and audience participation. Tickets range from $29-$99.
Founded in 1994 by C. Brian Williams, Step Afrika! is the world’s leading authority on the artform of stepping. Under Williams’ leadership, stepping has evolved into one of America’s cultural exports, touring more than 60 countries across the globe and ranking as one of the top 10 African American Dance Companies in the U.S. Step Afrika! blends percussive dance styles practiced by historically African American fraternities and sororities; traditional African dances; and an array of
contemporary dance and art forms. The show promotes stepping as an educational tool for young people, focusing on teamwork, academic achievement and crosscultural understanding. The company reaches tens of thousands of Americans each year through a 50-city tour of colleges and theaters and performs globally as Washington, D.C.’s only cultural ambassador.
Step Afrika! has earned Mayor’s Arts Awards for Outstanding Contribution to Arts Education, Innovation in the Arts, Excellence in an Artistic Discipline, and was inducted into the National Association of Campus Activities (NACA) Hall of Fame, the first Dance Company to earn this honor. Step Afrika! headlined President Barack Obama’s Black History Month Reception and performed at the first-ever Juneteenth Celebration at the White House. The Company is featured prominently at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History & Culture with
Sound Journey with Ruth Cunningham
Princeton University Chapel January 8 at 5:30pm
Join Ruth Cunningham, founding member of Anonymous 4 and Sound Healing practitioner, in this time of live music for meditation and introspection.
artists Kareem Fahmy and AriDy Nox, who are continuing to develop the works they began during their residencies last year.
Douglas is a writer, performer, and composer. Her recent work includes The Apiary, nominated for an Outer Critics Circle Award; Tulipa through New York Stage and Film; and hag with co-writer Grace McLean through The New Group. She has been awarded residencies at SPACE on Ryder Farm, Swale House on Governors Island, Rhinebeck Writers Retreat, Millay Arts, and Goodspeed Musicals, among others. Her upcoming projects include Centuries starring opposite her co-writers Matthew Dean Marsh and Raina SokolovGonzalez at Ancram Center for the Arts. She holds a certificate in sustainable garden design from New York Botanical Garden.
into each other’s lives and accidentally open Pandora’s box along the way.
“We are delighted to welcome Kate Douglas and Kate Tarker as this year’s guest artists,” said Gabriel Vecchi, director of the High Meadows Environmental Institute.
“At HMEI, we embrace the humanities as essential to a comprehensive exploration of environmental topics. Through their residencies at Princeton, our Next Forever guests are engaging with climate scientists, geochronologists, astrophysicists, ethicists, and political scientists — to inform their works. And we scientists in turn have the novel opportunity to contribute to the development of works in the performing arts that may inform societal perceptions of our future — literally our Next Forever.”
Douglas and Tarker started their residencies this fall.
journey through several selections from Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Op. 61, including the famous “Wedding March.”
“Last year, the North American premiere of this novel experience was wildly popular and elicited such unexpectedly emotional reactions,” said PUC Director Marna Seltzer. “Of course this is not a replacement for live concertgoing; rather it is an entirely new and exciting way to experience music in an interactive, immediate, immersive, and truly beautiful way. I am excited for this season’s version to take participants through musically narrative excerpts of Felix Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The theatrical nature of this score is thrilling to experience in this new medium.”
the world’s first stepping interactive exhibit.
State Theatre New Jersey is at 15 Livingston Avenue in New Brunswick, for tickets and more information, visit STNJ.org.
“Next Forever” Artist Commissions Announced by Lewis Arts Center Princeton University’s High Meadows Environmental Institute, Lewis Center for the Arts, and The Civilians, a New York City-based theater company, have announced the 2024-25 artists of their collaborative initiative, The Next Forever, Kate Douglas and Kate Tarker. The Next Forever is a partnership that seeks to create new stories for a changing planet, exploring how dynamic storytelling can engage vital environmental subjects and provide the vision and inspiration society needs to navigate the challenges of our planet’s future — the “next forever.”
The two artists will spend time on the Princeton University campus as guest artists, engage with faculty and students across disciplines, and participate in an ongoing series of public events and performances over the course of a year-long residency and two-year commissioning agreement. They join last year’s inaugural
During her residency, Douglas is conducting further research and developing her new work , If I Forget Thee, O Earth, a full-length play that puts the cosmic and the terrestrial in the context of mass extinction events (present and past) through the lens of astrobiology. In the play, an astronaut and a robot are rehearsing a mission to Mars in the Utah desert that is interrupted by the discovery of fossils. When a paleontologist arrives to assess their significance, it sparks a conflict around the question of habitability and sustainability on Earth and Mars: in this age of mass extinction, whose work is more vital, the futurists’ or the historians’?
Tarker is an American playwright who grew up bilingually in Germany. Her plays include Montag and THUNDERBODIES performed at Soho Rep, Dionysus Was Such a Nice Man at The Wilma Theater and FoolsFURY Theater, and Laura and the Sea at Rivendell Theatre Ensemble.
During her residency, Tarker is conducting further research and developing her new play, Topia , a metafictional journey through optimism, pessimism, and two possible climate futures for Providence, Rhode Island. In the play’s rapidly changing city, two very different women imagine their way
African
American Spirituals To Be Sung by Keith Spencer
The Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum (SSAAM) will ring in the new year with “Lord, Write My Name – The Gospel and African American Experience in Spirituals,” featuring baritone Keith Spencer and award-winning composer/ pianist Peter Hilliard.
This concert at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Titusville at Washington Crossing on Saturday, January 18 at 3 p.m. will weave together iconic African American spirituals and powerful narratives, poetry, and letters written by enslaved and free Black historical figures
SSAAM is Central New Jersey’s only museum telling the rich local and regional stories of African Americans from the time of the transatlantic slave trade to the present day. With the support of the Preserving Black Churches grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the organization is honored to continue this important work with its first special event of 2025.
In this collection of song and word, Spencer and Hilliard will perform wellknown spirituals such as “Go Down, Moses,”, “Walk Together Children,” and others exploring themes of mourning, social justice, identity, and the hope that connects us all.
The “powerful, provocative, often-painful historic narrative offered by Mr. Spencer set the stage for each of the spirituals he performed, all with beauty, depth, and pathos,” said the Rev. William H. Stokes, 12th Bishop of New Jersey.
The church is located at 268 Washington Crossing Road in Titusville. Tickets are $25. Visit bit.ly/ssaamgospel-spirituals.
Hearing Mendelssohn’s Music In a Unique, Unexpected Way
On Saturday-Monday, January 11-13, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on the Princeton University campus, Princeton University Concerts (PUC) presents an opportunity for audiences to continue getting to know Felix Mendelssohn’s music in a unique way with a new “Future Presence” program in virtual reality and spatial sound developed by Mahler Chamber Orchestra (MCO).
This interactive experience brings participants on a
With the aid of Meta Quest VR headsets, audiences will be able to move around (or through/over/under) the musicians as a multi-dimensional recording responds in real time. Unlike other virtual reality (VR) musical applications that can be experienced at home, “Future Presence” focuses on 3D sound, recorded with cutting-edge audio technology, that changes as the participant moves around the virtual space. This interactive aural landscape, captured in high-dimension audio, takes precedence within the virtual landscape.
The virtual reality environment will create the illusion that listeners are alone with the musicians, allowing for a remarkably personalized experience of the performance. In contrast to usual concerts and recordings, in which a fixed seating location or an engineer determines the acoustics, Future Presence gives the listener complete freedom to explore, experiencing how the sound changes as they move through the virtual space.
“One interesting takeaway from our experience last year was the camaraderie fostered among participants, despite the experience being essentially solitary,” said Seltzer. “We’re lucky to once again have developers Henrik Opperman and Tim Summers join us and engage in impromptu conversations with patrons about the experience, and because this time we are focusing on a single piece of music, we hope to give participants a real sense of journey with Mendelssohn’s magical A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” Timed-entry tickets, $20 general/$10 students, are now available at puc.princeton.edu or by calling (609) 258-9220. Each time slot is limited to eight patrons ages 10 and up. For answers to frequently asked questions about this experience and a video clip preview, visit puc. princeton.edu. Since its creation in 1997, the Mahler Chamber Orchestra (MCO) continuously keeps shaping its distinct sound, independent artistic identity, and agile and democratic structure. To this day, the MCO is still governed by its musicians in collaboration with its managing office. The orchestra is constantly on the move in search of the next musical horizon. It has, to date, performed in over 40 countries across five continents. The orchestra received its most significant artistic impulses from its founding mentor, Claudio Abbado, and from Conductor Laureate Daniel Harding.
by Sandi Horvat)
Kate Douglas
(Photo by Stephanie Crousillat)
Kate Tarker (Photo by Maura Athari)
Art
“GLAD, HAPPY MEETINGS”: Paintings by Kathleen Maguire Morolda will be featured at the Gourgaud Gallery in Cranbury January 4 through January 26.
Gourgaud Gallery to Present Works by Maguire Morolda Gourgaud Gallery in Cranbury will present a collection of artwork by board member and local professional artist Kathleen Maguire Morolda January 4 through January 26.
Color is the key to Maguire Morolda’s paintings. Inspired by the natural beauty of the environment, she draws most of her creative energies from the natural beauty of her home state of New Jersey. Maguire Morolda awakens the imagination of the observer through the creative manner in which she blends shape and color.
Maguire Morolda studied art in Washington, D.C., for several years. In 1981, she opened up the Cranbury Station Gallery and Picture Frame shop located within a renovated blacksmith shop behind her residence in Monroe. She pursued her painting career as she and her husband raised a family of four. As demand for her artwork grew, she sought other markets and eventually opened three more locations in New Jersey.
Today, Maguire Morolda continues to paint, sharing her love of art through her
popular group evening paint events.
The show is free and open to the public.
The Gourgaud Gallery is located in Town Hall, 23-A North Main Street, Cranbury. Hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, visit cranburyartscounci.org.
“Art and Nature” Exhibit Coming to Trenton Library
The Trenton Artists Workshop Association (TAWA) and the Trenton Free Public Library will present the exhibition “Art and Nature” at the Trenton Free Public Library from January 11 through March 8. This a continuation of the art series that showcases the talent of area artists that is slated to continue as an ongoing series. An opening reception is set for Saturday, January 11, from 5 to 7 p.m.
Artists featured in the exhibition include Jena Burdick, Mary Allessio Leck, and Bonnie Christina Randall.
Burdick is a painter and printmaker and lives and maintains a studio in Bucks County, Pa. Her process involves successive layers of
patterns, textures, shapes and colors, beginning with silkscreen printing and enhanced by drawing, painting, printing and experimental mark-making. Elements of the natural world are magnified, overlapped, and obscured, reflecting the continual growth and change which is the touchstone of the natural world. The resulting images suggest narratives of unfolding life cycles: birth, growth, death, and renewal.
Burdick received her MFA degree from the University of the Arts, Philadelphia, and her BFA from Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, N.Y., and has worked as a textile print designer and arts educator in the West WindsorPlainsboro School District. She is the recipient of awards and honors including a visual artist residency to the Banff Centre, Alberta, Canada; Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation Visual Artist/Educator Fellowship Grant; and a National Endowment Grant as an artist in residence for the James A. Michener Art Museum, Doylestown, Pa. She has exhibited nationally and is included in numerous
corporate, public, and private collections.
Leck is the founder of Friends for the Abbott Marshlands in Hamilton Township and is a member of the organization’s advisory board. She has been studying nature in this area for more than 40 years. She is an emeritus professor of biology at Rider University.
As a professor, she started using photographic projects to illustrate lecture topics for her students. She used these basic scientific techniques of observation and experimentation to give her inspiration for her photographs. She has a bachelor’s degree in botany from the University of Massachusetts and a Ph.D. from the University of Colorado in Boulder
Leck has participated in many shows including Phillips Mill Photography Exhibit, Grounds For Sculpture, The Trenton City Museum at Ellarslie, and D&R Greenway Land Trust.
Randall received her MFA in Drawing at the University of Florida and her BFA in Art Education at the Philadelphia College of Art (now the University of the Arts). She is a past recipient of a grant given by the New Jersey Council on the Arts in Graphics and numerous awards. A few juried exhibits include The Philadelphia Sketch Club, Absolute Abstract; New Jersey Arts Annual at the Noyes Museum as well as the New Jersey State Museum; Lock Haven Art Center, Orlando, Fla., Drawing and Prints; Gulf Coast Art Center, Fla.; and Rutgers National ’81, Works on Paper. Randall travels internationally and gets inspiration from the various locations she has visited.
TAWA is a Greater Trenton nonprofit organization and has a 40-year history organizing exhibits in such venues as the New Jersey State Museum, Trenton City Museum, Artworks Trenton, Prince Street Gallery in New York City, and more.
The Trenton Free Public Library is located at 120 Academy Street in the Creek2Canal Trenton Arts District. Hours are Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Friday and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information on the
library, call (609) 392-7188. More information on the Trenton Artists Workshop Association can be found on the organization’s Facebook page.
Area Exhibits
Art@Bainbridge, 158 Nassau Street, has “Heléne Aylon: Undercurrent” through February 2. Artmuseum.princeton.edu.
Artists’ Gallery, 18 Bridge Street, Lambertville, has “Mostly Small Works” through January 5. Gallery hours are Thursday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Lambertvillearts.com.
Art on Hulfish, 11 Hulfish Street, has “Under a Southern Star: Identity and Environment in Australian Photography” through January 5. Artmuseum. princeton.edu.
Arts Council of Princeton, 102 Witherspoon Street, has “Annual Member Show 2024” through January 18. Artscouncilof princeton.org.
David Scott Gallery, 253 Nassau Street, has “Available Light,” a collection of paintings by New York architect and artist Mark Oliver, through December 31. Davidscottfineart@gmail.com.
D&R Greenway Johnson Education Center, 1 Preservation Place, has “When the Land Calls” through February 28 in the Marie L. Matthews Gallery. drgreenway.org.
Ficus Bon Vivant, 235 Nassau Street, has “Capture the Rhythm” through January 12. Ficusbv.com.
Gourgaud Gallery, 23-A North Main Street, Cranbury, has “Flora, Fauna, and Water” through December 27. Cranburyartscouncil.org.
Green Building Center, 67 Bridge Street, Lambertville, has an art show by the MUGA Group through December 31. Greenbuildingcenter.com.
Grounds For Sculpture, 80 Sculptors Way, Hamilton, has “That’s Worth Celebrating: The Life and Work of the Johnson Family” through the end of 2024, among other exhibits. Groundsforsculpture.org.
Historical Society of Princeton, Updike Farmstead, 354 Quaker Road, has “Princeton Reflected: Stories from HSP’s Collection” and “Einstein Salon and Innovator’s Gallery.” Museum hours are Thursday through Sunday, 12 to 4 p.m. Princetonhistory.org
Mercer Museum, 84 South Pine Street, Doylestown, Pa., has “The Doan Gang: Outlaws of the Revolution” through December 31, 2026. Mercermuseum.org.
Michener Art Museum, 138 South Pine Street, Doylestown, Pa., has “Monuments and Myths: The American Sculptors Augustus SaintGaudens and Daniel Chester French” through January 5 and “Charlotte Schatz: Industrial Strength” through March 9. Michenerartmuseum.org
Morven Museum & Garden, 55 Stockton Street, has “Morven Revealed: Untold Stories from New Jersey’s Most Historic Home,” through March 2. Morven.org.
Russell Marks Gallery at Princeton Windrows, 2000 Windrow Drive, has “Learning Curves: Works from the Beginning Drawing Classes” through December 31.
Small World Coffee, 14 Witherspoon Street, has “Worldling Art Show,” featuring art from past and present employees, through January 7. The exhibition is also at the 254 Nassau Street location through January 7. Smallworldcoffee.com.
“BELL’S WOODLANDS”: This work by Jean Burdick is featured in “Art and Nature,” on view at the Trenton Free Public Library January 11 through March 8. An opening reception is on January 11 from 5 to 7 p.m.
Long Silk Chiffon Scarf
Silk Pocket Square
Silk Tie Square Silk Twill Scarf
TOWN TOPICS | Mark Your Calendar
Wednesday, December 25
12-3 p.m.: Annual Christmas Day Crossing of the Delaware Reenactment, at Washington Crossing Historic Park, 1112 River Road, Washington Crossing, Pa. Washingtoncrossing historicpark.org.
Thursday, December 26
10 a.m.-12 p.m.: Trenton Battlefield walking tour with Ralph Siegel is the first of several events that are part of Patriots Week in Trenton. For details and a complete list of events, visit patriotsweek.com.
2:30 p.m.: “Jacob Francis: A Free Black Man’s Experiences in the American Revolution.” At the William Trent House, 15 Market Street, Trenton. Author Larry Kidder speaks. Part of Patriots Week in Trenton. For details and a complete list of events, visit patriotsweek.com.
4 p.m.: “Surviving the Winters: Housing Washington’s Army During the American Revolution ,” talk by author Steven Elliott. At the Trenton Masonic Temple, 100 Barrack Street. Part of Patriots Week in Trenton. For details and a complete list of events, visit patriotsweek.com.
Friday, December 27
11 a.m.: Petty’s Run Tour, led by archaeologist Richard Hunter of Hunter Research Inc. The historic site is to the left of the New Jersey State House campus 145 West State Street, Trenton. Part of Patriots Week in Trenton. For details and a complete list of events, visit patriotsweek.com.
Saturday, December 28
11 a.m.: Reenactment of the First Battle of Trenton, at Warren and Broad Streets, Trenton. The reenactment of the Second Battle is at 3 p.m. in Mill Hill Park, Trenton . Followed at 4 p.m. by the Assunpink Firewalk and reading of Thomas Paine’s The American Crisis Part of Patriots Week in Trenton. For details and a complete list of events, visit patriotsweek.com.
12-5 p.m.: Winery Weekend Music Series at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. Wine, light bites, hot cocoa kits, and music from 1-4 p.m. by Chris P. Terhuneorchards.com.
2 p.m.: Hogmanay: A Scottish Celebration of the New Year, at the William Trent House, 15 Market Street, Trenton.
Bagpipes, shortbread-baking, hot cider, and more. Part of Patriots Week in Trenton. For details and a complete list of events, visit patriotsweek.com.
Sunday, December 29
12-5 p.m.: Winery Weekend Music Series at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. Wine, light bites, hot cocoa kits, and music from 1-4 p.m. by Bud Belviso. Terhuneorchards.com.
2:30 p.m.: Music Lafayette Might Have Heard in Trenton , December 1784. At the William Trent House, 15 Market Street. The Practitioners of Musick share music and commentary. Part of Patriots Week in Trenton. For details and a complete list of events, visit patriotsweek.com.
Monday, December 30 Recycling
Tuesday, December 31
5 p.m.: Salute to Vienna New Year’s Concert at State Theatre New Jersey, 15 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick. Featuring the Strauss Symphony of America, international champion ballroom dancers, and dancers from Budapest Ballet. Stnj.org.
8 p.m.: Capital Philharmonic of New Jersey’s annual New Year’s Eve Concert , at Patriots Theater at the War Memorial, Trenton. Works by Bernstein, Gershwin, Strauss, and others, followed by a champagne toast and dessert. Capital philharmonic.org.
Saturday, January 4
9:30 a.m.: Trenton Walks program, starts at the Battle Monument and continues to Mill Hill Park and back. Visit gmtma.org/ trail-happenings for details.
12-5 p.m.: Winery Weekend Music Series at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. Wine, light bites, hot cocoa kits, and music from 1-4 p.m. by Greg McGarvey. Terhuneorchards.com.
Sunday, January 5
12-5 p.m.: Winery Weekend Music Series at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. Wine, light bites, hot cocoa kits, and music from 1-4 p.m. by Allan Willcockson. Terhuneorchards.com.
5-7 p.m.: Pianist David Leifer plays Italian Music from the 18th-20th Centuries , at Dorothea’s House, 120 John Street. Bring refreshments to share at a post-program reception. Dorotheashouse.org.
Tuesday, January 7 7 p.m.: Princeton Symphony Orchestra presents a “Soundtracks” talk at Princeton Public Library, 65 Witherspoon Street, featuring Music Director Rossen Milanov and former executive director Melanie Clarke looking back at favorite moments and celebrating Milanov’s 60th birthday. Princetonlibrary.org.
Wednesday, January 8 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m.: Leighton Listens. Councilman Leighton Newlin is available to discuss current events with members of the public at Tiger Noodles, 255 Nassau Street.
Friday, January 10
10 a.m.-2 p.m. Hunterdon County Rug Artisans Guild holds its monthly meeting at the administration building of the Hunterdon County Complex, 314 State Highway 12, Flemington. Hcrag.org.
5-8 p.m.: Trivia in the Winery , at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. With DJ Mike. Terhuneorchards.com.
Saturday, January 11
12-5 p.m.: Winery Weekend Music Series at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. Wine, light bites, hot cocoa kits, and music from 1-4 p.m. by Sarah Teti. Terhuneorchards.com.
8 p.m.: “Croce Plays Croce: The Jim Croce Birthday Bash” at State Theatre New Jersey, 15 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick. $29-$99. Stnj.org.
Sunday, January 12
12-5 p.m.: Winery Weekend Music Series at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. Wine, light bites, hot cocoa kits, and music from 1-4 p.m. by Michael Montemurro. Terhuneorchards.com.
4 p.m.: The Princeton Society of Musical Amateurs presents a choral reading of Gilbert & Sullivan’s Iolanthe at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 50 Cherry Hill Road. Mini rehearsal at 3 p.m. Vocal scores provided; walk-in singers and listen-only participants welcome. Musical. amateurs@gmail.com
Monday, January 13 Recycling
Tuesday, January 14
10 a.m.: Read and Explore: Gingerbread Man, at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. Kids read “The Gingerbread Man” and decorate a cookie to take home. Register online. Terhuneorchards.com.
Saturday, January 18
10 a.m.-1 p.m.: Native Seed Sowing Extravaganza at Hopewell Valley Central High School. Get a done-for-you jug with soil and native plant seeds, leave outside over the winter, and transplant seedlings in the spring. $5. RSVP for event and educational pre-event at tinyurl.com/HopewellExtravaganza.
10 a.m.-12 p.m.: Free Rabies Clinic at Princeton First Aid and Rescue Squad, 1 Valley Road. Open to all New Jersey residents. Princetonnj.gov.
DECEMBER-
FEBRUARY
10 a.m.: Read and Explore: Gingerbread Man, at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. Kids read “The Gingerbread Man” and decorate a cookie to take home. Register online. Terhuneorchards.com.
12-5 p.m.: Winery Weekend Music Series at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. Wine, light bites, hot cocoa kits, and music from 1-4 p.m. by Brian Bortnick. Terhuneorchards.com.
Sunday, January 19
12-5 p.m.: Winery Weekend Music Series at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. Wine, light bites, hot cocoa kits, and music from 1-4 p.m. by Carmen Marranco. Terhuneorchards.com.
Saturday, January 25
12-5 p.m.: Winery Weekend Music Series at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. Wine, light bites, hot cocoa kits, and music from 1-4 p.m. by Jerry Steele. Terhuneorchards.com.
Sunday, January 26
12-5 p.m.: Winery Weekend Music Series and Wassailing the Apple Trees at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. Wine, light bites, hot cocoa kits, and music from 1-4 p.m. by Spiced Punch. Singing, dancing, and playing of primitive instruments, the Handsome Molly Dancers and Kingessing Morris Dancers perform. Free. Terhuneorchards.com.
Monday, January 27 Recycling
Tuesday, January 28 10 a.m.: Read and Explore: Animal Tracks at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. Kids read books about animals in winter and make bird feeders to take home. Register online. Terhuneorchards.com.
Saturday, February 1
10 a.m.: Read and Explore: Animal Tracks at Terhune Orchards, 330 Cold Soil Road. Kids read books about animals in winter and make bird feeders to take home. Register online. Terhuneorchards.com.
Sunday, February 2
4 p.m .: The Princeton Society of Musical Amateurs holds “Let’s Just Sing: A Choral Reading of Carmina Burana,” at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 50 Cherry Hill Road. Free for students and non-singing guests; $10 for participants. Musical. amateurs@gmail.com
S ports
Former PU Standout Offensive Lineman Travis
Helped Iowa State Produce Historic Campaign
Never in 132 years had the Iowa State football team won more than nine games in a season.
Then offensive lineman
Jalen Travis joined the Cyclones
The 2024 graduate of Princeton University used his final season of NCAA eligibility at Iowa State, and started at left tackle in a 10-3 campaign that saw the Cyclones reach the Big 12 Championship game for the second time in program history and will conclude against Miami in the Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando, Fla., on December 28.
“This season has been everything and more, one of the best situations I could ask for, especially coming in as a grad transfer and helping the team reach our first 10-win season in school history, setting records day in and day out and playing for something I think much bigger than ourselves, was truly selfishly a dream come true,” said Travis. “And I think the cherry on top of that was I got better at football and I think performed very well towards that mission.”
The mammoth 6’7, 340-pound Travis was a twotime All-Ivy League player for Princeton, but missed half of his final season in 2023 with the Tigers due to injury. The injury raised some questions about his ability to play at the next level, and opened the possibility of taking another year of college at a Power 4 school.
“I knew that if I went somewhere and performed and helped the team and did everything I needed to do, I’d give myself a better chance than what I potentially had coming out of Princeton, especially after being hurt for more than half the season,” said Travis.
Travis finished a certificate in education at Iowa State this fall semester. He will gear up for the NFL draft following the bowl game that he expects to
play in to culminate his college career. Some NFL prospects nowadays elect not to play in bowl games for fear of being injured.
“My plan as of now is to play in it,” said Travis. “And Miami is a pretty good team with some NFL-type defensive ends. It’s only going to help me improve.”
Travis had options for using his final year of eligibility, but liked the approach of Iowa State under 13-year coach Matt Campbell, who has promoted an all-around approach of developing both the player and person.
“The culture here is different than any culture I’ve been around as far as football teams and one that’s like family-centered and personal growth-centered first and foremost, and then you know everything on the field follows that,” said Travis. “So it was definitely that pitch by the head coach and his coaching staff here that I think really resonated with me after obviously spending four years at Princeton and being pushed so hard in the classroom. I wanted to be at a program that embraced that and takes it just as seriously as we did at Princeton and was able to obviously compete at a very high level on the football field.”
Travis got a new experience on a lot of levels at his latest stop. The crowds were bigger and the competition was stronger. There were adjustments to both that he handled fine.
“At least through my first couple games, it took me a little bit getting used to, and I also think obviously walking into an opposing stadium is a lot different too, where we’re playing at Iowa second game of the year and people just hate you for wearing a name across your chest,” said Travis. “On top of that, the talent level I think was a lot more consistent that I was facing week in and week out obviously compared to the Ivy League where I’d probably
face a handful of really good D ends who had the chance to play at the next level. But here it’s every single week you are facing someone who’s going to be a draft pick one day.”
His preparation extended into practices as well. Going to Iowa State made the weekdays valuable as well because of who he practiced against daily.
“Similar to what we had at Princeton, we have one of the best defenses in the league and one of the best in the country, and to practice against them I think only allowed my skill to sharpen and become a lot better,” said Travis. “So it’s definitely pretty different.”
Travis hopes his improvements and attributes will enable him to be an NFL draft pick this year. He is currently ranked as the 51 st offensive lineman by nfldraftbuzz.com.
“I do think that based off the way I played this season, having conversations of being able to play at the next level and, hopefully not even as a one- or two-year guy, but someone that can come in and contribute right away and for me, that’s something that I’ve been working my butt off for and something I obviously want to do, given the opportunity where hopefully I end up come this spring,” said Travis.
He enjoyed this year while also raising his level of play. There was a different atmosphere for the Big 12 games than he has been accustomed to, and he embraced the chance to show his abilities each week against the toughest competition in the country.
Travis will pour his energy into training in Dallas after the bowl game. He will be looking to get stronger and more mobile as he looks to impress NFL teams. They now have film on him against other potential NFL players.
“I always felt I could compete with the best of them,
so I do think in part I had to prove it to myself that I could and take this next step in terms of competition that you’re playing week in and week out,” said Travis. “And I think another part of that is obviously proving and answering the questions that the coaches still had or the scouts still had about if I could compete at that level. So the expectations, at least that I put on myself, were pretty high coming into this year and believing in myself and the ability that I do have.”
Outside of his football and school studies, Travis found time to remain committed to public service and social justice. Last year’s Coach Wooden Citizenship Cup winner, given to outstanding role models among college athletes, he found an opportunity to help near his new school. He visited a juvenile detention center with his Iowa State teammates last June, and they would play basketball or throw football together with the detainees, though Travis often found himself gravitating to the kids who were isolating themselves so he could hear their stories.
“I made that a point of organizing guys to go back a
couple more times throughout the summer, knowing the impact and kind of example that we can set for a lot of these people who maybe didn’t get dealt the right hand in life,” said Travis, who was awarded Princeton’s Truman Scholarship in 2023, which provides recipients with up to $30,000 toward graduate school and his plan at that time was to attend Columbia Law School. “They’re working the hardest to make the best of it. It was cool to be around a lot of individuals who are my peers who are 16 to 20 years old that I can just help through my presence or even just sharing a few bits of life advice with them especially during the hard times they are going through.”
Travis also stayed connected to his former Princeton team and appreciated the brotherhood’s support of him too. He watched when they played on off days from Iowa State, and he focused on players that he mentored and friends as the Tigers battled through and up-and-down 3-7 season.
“I was proud of those guys, especially that they were able to continue to show up week
in and week out and fight,” said Travis.
“And you saw that in the last game of the year versus Penn. It was definitely awesome and I stayed in contact with some of those guys throughout the season, just to give them encouragement when needed.”
Travis thought that Princeton would be his last stop for college football, but when a setback hit in his senior season, he looked for another opportunity. Iowa State reaped the rewards of his arrival in a record-setting season that also helped him excel under new challenges.
“It’s been for me partly a culture shock,” said Travis. “But it’s a journey that I’m thankful I took just because I think of how many things that I’ve learned that maybe I wasn’t exposed to during my undergrad years. The environment obviously is a lot different. So I think that part of it has been a huge blessing for me in terms of allowing me to grow and develop through that, especially given an opportunity that most people that graduate from Princeton maybe don’t take advantage of.”
—Justin Feil 5 5 5
COMING UP BIG: Jalen Travis (No. 72) heads upfield this fall for the Iowa State football team.
Former Princeton University football standout offensive lineman Travis starred at left tackle for the Cyclones this fall as a grad transfer. He helped Iowa State, now 10-3, reach the Big 12 Championship game for the second time in program history and earn a spot in the Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando, Fla. on December 28 against Miami. (Photo provided courtesy of Iowa State Athletic Communications)
Ivy League Reverses Field Regarding Postseason Ban, Will Allow its
Football Teams to Play in FCS Tourney
This fall, the Princeton University field hockey team lost a heartbreaking 1-0 nail-biter to Saint Joseph’s in the NCAA quarterfinals while the Tiger men’s and women’s soccer teams both suffered disappointing onegoal defeats in first-round contests in the national tourney.
Although those setbacks stung, each squad knew where they stood on the national scene.
Before the fall even started, though, the Princeton football team knew it had
no chance to play in a national tournament due the Ivy League rule barring its football programs from competing in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) playoffs. That policy has caused much consternation among football programs as the league has allowed all other sports to take part in national postseason play.
That all changed last week as the Ivy League Council of Presidents has approved a proposal to allow league teams to play in the FCS
playoffs starting in 2025 following a year-long process initiated by the Ivy League’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).
“I am thrilled that the Ivy League will be participating in the FCS playoffs,” said Princeton football head coach Bob Surace, who was bitterly disappointed along with his players in 2018 when the program’s ninthranked 10-0 squad did not have a chance to test itself that fall in the 24-team FCS tourney. “I am most excited for the players that get
INTO THE FRAY: Members of the Princeton University football team burst onto the field as they hosted Dartmouth on November 8. Last week, the Ivy League Council of Presidents has approved a proposal to allow league teams to play in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) playoffs starting in 2025. The decision, which followed a year-long process initiated by the Ivy League’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), reversed the league’s previous policy of barring its football programs from competing in the tourney despite allowing all other sports to take part in national postseason play.
the opportunity to enhance
in a historic
I know our players and coaches will continue to put all of our effort into doing everything possible to represent one of the most competitive leagues in college football.”
Princeton Director of Athletics John Mack lauded the league’s change of heart.
“This is a tremendous step for Ivy League football,” said Mack. “While winning an Ivy League Championship will always be the primary goal of our football program, the opportunity to compete in the FCS playoff will add an exciting new element to the experience of our football student-athletes.”
The league’s top administrator, Ivy League Executive Director Robin Harris, saw the decision as being in line with both the league’s place in football history and its goal to give its athletes opportunities to excel.
“The Ivy League prides itself on a storied tradition of impact, influence and competitive success throughout the history of college football,” said Harris. “We now look ahead to a new chapter of success and to further enhancing the student-athlete experience with our participation in the NCAA FCS playoffs. I want to commend the students on our SAAC for their thoughtful and thorough proposal as well as their commitment to the league’s legislative process.”
The Ivy League SAAC is comprised of 17 studentathletes from all eight institutions, competing in a total of 12 different sports. The mission of the student-athlete run committee is to advocate for student-athlete well-being and to foster a positive student-athlete experience.
“It’s a monumental day in the Ivy League and a special day to be an Ivy League student-athlete,” said Mason Shipp, a senior football student-athlete at Yale and former Hun School standout who serves as the Ivy League SAAC chair and penned the
proposal. “Thank you to the Presidents for listening and responding to the voices of your students. For the future generations that are fortunate enough to represent the Ivy League in the FCS playoffs, go win us some hardware.”
Instrumental in the foundation and growth of college football, the Ivy League’s role as a leader and innovator in the sport has continued through the present day.
Stemming from the league’s ongoing overall review of concussions, launched in 2010, the Ivy League has pioneered numerous measures to enhance the safety of the game. Two prominent modifications include the elimination of live to-the-ground tackling during regular season practices and moving the kickoff up to the 40-yard line in league games, which has resulted in an increase in touchbacks and a reduction in concussion injuries.
The Ivy League’s history of competitive success has also continued to the present day. In 12 of the past 14 seasons, the Ivy League has posted a non-conference winning percentage of .500 or higher. Since 2017, the league is collectively 119-49 (.708). That success has translated to the next level both on the fi eld and in front offices. More than 20 former Ivy players from all eight institutions earned roster spots on NFL teams. Former Princeton star receiver Andrei Iosivas, for instance, is currently starting for the Cincinnati Bengals and has made 28 receptions for 355 yards and five touchdowns so far this season. An Ivy alum in the NFL has won a Super Bowl in 10 of the last 12 seasons.
The 2024 season culminated with Columbia, Dartmouth and Harvard each earning a share of the Ivy title. Over the next several months, the league will develop tiebreakers to determine how its automatic qualifier will be awarded when there are co-champions in the future.
—Bill Alden
2 PU Women’s Soccer Stars Earn All-ECAC Honors
Adding to their list of awards for a 2024 season that saw the Princeton University women’s soccer team win both the Ivy League regular season crown and postseason tournament, junior forward Pietra Tordin and senior defender Heather MacNab were named as AllEastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) selections, the conference announced last week.
The ECAC named AllECAC first and second teams with players from Division I programs as far south as Virginia and as far north as Maine. Tordin was a first-team honoree while MacNab was on the second team.
Tordin, the Ivy League Offensive Player of the Year and a first-team United Soccer Coaches all-region honoree, led the Ivy in shots per game (4.00), shots on goal (2.60) and goals (10) and co-led the Ivy in points (22) and game-winning goals (three). MacNab led the league in assists, with nine, adding two goals. In addition, MacNab was a first-team All-Ivy League selection and a second-team United Soccer Coaches allregion honoree.
Princeton finished 14-5 overall and 6-1 in the Ivy League, earning a bid to the NCAA tournament where it fell 2-1 to Virginia in a firstround contest.
PU Field Hockey’s Yeager Named 1st-Team All-American Princeton University field hockey junior star Beth Yeager has earned yet another honor in the wake of her sensational season this fall, getting named as a National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) first-team All-American last week.
Yeager, a United States Olympian last summer who was named the Ivy League’s Offensive Player of the Year for the third time, had 16 goals and 11 assists this season while leading Princeton to a perfect Ivy League record and the league championship. She also scored the only goal in Princeton’s 1-0 win over Boston College in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The Tigers fell 1-0 to Saint Joseph’s in the NCAA quarterfinals to end the season with a 14-6 record.
The 5’7 Yeager, a native of Greenwich, Conn., is just the third Ivy field hockey player to be a three-time AllAmerican, along with fellow Tigers Katie Reinprecht and Kat Sharkey. Should Yeager do so again as a senior in 2025, she would become the league’s first four-time firstteam All-American.
In addition to the AllAmerican teams, Princeton also had three players named to the All-ECAC teams, as Yeager was a first-team selection while Ella Cashman and Clem Houlden were second-team selections.
(Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)
PDS Boys’ Hockey Competes Hard in Busy Week, Edging CBA
before Falling to Don Bosco, Now 2-1-1
With the Princeton Day School boys’ hockey team trailing undefeated powerhouse Don Bosco Prep 2-0 in the second period last Wednesday, Jake Harrison seized opportunity.
“They were on the power play, we were short-handed and their defenseman got the puck flat-footed,” said PDS junior forward Harrison. “I jumped him and I got a breakaway. “
Harrison cashed in the breakaway to bury the puck into the back of the net as PDS cut the Don Bosco lead in half. When the Ironmen responded by going up 3-1, Fred Ringblom scored for the Panthers to trim the lead to 3-2.
“I thought we were in good shape there and then we gave up the goal on the next shift, which was kind of deflating,” said Harrison. “We still had life after that but they scored another one.”
Don Bosco kept scoring as it pulled away to a 7-2 win over the Panthers, handing them their first loss of the season as they dropped to 2-1-1.
While Harrison credited the Ironmen, now ranked No. 1 in the state by NJ.com, with being a highlevel squad, he maintained that the score was not indicative of how well No. 5 PDS played.
“These guys are deep, they definitely had structure,” said Harrison. “It was definitely a test for us. That wasn’t a 7-2 game.”
With PDS having passed a major test on Monday as it earned a dramatic win over Christian Brothers Academy, rallying from a 4-1 deficit to pull out a 7-6 victory, Harrison believes that PDS is a top tier team.
“That shows we can compete with anyone, that is going to be important for us down the stretch,” said Harrison.
Having tallied three goals and three assists so far this season, Harrison is competing better this winter.
“Playing for the Rockets, my club team, we are playing against top competition every weekend,” said Harrison. “That has helped me become a better player. For example on the power play, I am playing the point now because we lost two seniors from last year on defense.”
PDS head coach Scott Bertoli knew that his squad needed to play very well to overcome Don Bosco.
“That is a very good team,” said Bertoli. “They are the best team we have played. They are the deepest, the most talented and they have the best group of defensemen.”
Although the Panthers drew to within 3-2 with 6:30 left in the second period, Bertoli realized that the Panthers weren’t necessarily in a good place.
“At 3-2, on the scoreboard, we are still in the game,” said Bertoli. “But just in terms of the game and territorially, we were still chasing it. You have to stick to what you believe in and what works regardless what the opponent is throwing at you.”
Heading into the clash with Don Bosco, the PDS players had extra belief in the wake of their win over CBA two days earlier.
“On a lot of levels a huge win for the program and a big step in the right direction,” said Bertoli, noting that it was the program’s first-ever victory over the Colts. “Just from a purely team and culture perspective, to be down 4-1 on the brink of seemingly getting blown out and to just slowly chip away and stick with it and stay positive, it was awesome. It was such a good moment for our kids. From a belief standpoint and a buy-in standpoint, there is no question it helped.”
The Panthers have displayed their buy-in by edging Bergen Catholic 4-3 in their season opener and then tying Delbarton 1-1, sparked by their core of veterans.
“We have been resilient, we have been down in games and we continue to fight back,” said Bertoli. “We stay positive on the bench, we are able to shift momentum and create opportunities. I give our older kids a ton of credit. The older kids that we lean on like Wyatt [Ewanchyna], Jake, Fillip [Kacmarsky], Max [Guche], and Fred [Ringblom] have been exceptional in those big situations.”
Bertoli credited Harrison with giving PDS some smart play.
“He is a very cerebral player,” said Bertoli. “He and Wyatt really think the game well. They play together.”
Junior forward Ringblom has raised his game, tallying four goals this season, including the game-winner against CBA.
“In the years past, Fred has been in more of a third, fourth line role,” said Bertoli. “I think his skill set is more suited to playing on a top two line role. He is doing that and he is having success, which is awesome to see. He has grown as a player.”
Another player who has shown growth is senior forward and assistant captain Colton Simonds as he has done the dirty work to emerge as an unsung hero.
“Colton has been incredible, he has been that third line guy that can play on our top two lines,” said Bertoli. “He has been really great on the penalty kill. He is physical. He has done a really nice job from a leadership perspective, buying in and representing what PDS hockey stands for and what we expect from our kids. When they go out on the ice, we want them to lay it out there.”
In reflecting on his team’s play in the 2024 portion of the schedule, Bertoli likes what he is seeing.
“It has been a tremendous start to the season, both from an execution perspective and a results perspective,” said Bertoli, whose squad returns to action by hosting La Salle College High (Pa.) on January 2. “The programs we are playing are huge. Our older kids have generally been the best players on the ice and we needed that. We needed
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them to produce and they produced. They played a lot of hockey here and at club so this will be a nice little break to re-set.”
Harrison, for his part, believes that the Panthers can do some big things when they start play in 2025.
“I think the start of the season has been great for us, it showed us that we can be a top team in the state,” said Harrison. “We just need to work on getting tighter as a group and getting the culture of this team better.”
—Bill Alden
FAST START: Princeton Day School boys’ hockey player Jake Harrison races up the ice in action last season. Junior forward Harrison scored a goal for PDS as it fell 7-2 to Don Bosco Prep last Wednesday. The Panthers, now 2-1-1, are on a holiday break and will return to action when they host La Salle College High (Pa.) on January 2.
(Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)
Sparked by Sophomore Dandy’s Finishing Touch, PDS
Girls’ Hockey Gets Off to Sizzling 3-0-1 Start
Sammy Dandy helped spark the offense this fall for the Princeton Day School field hockey team, emerging as the squad’s leading scorer with five goals.
This winter, sophomore star Dandy has brought her fi nishing touch to the ice for the PDS girls’ hockey team, piling up six goals to pace the Panthers as they have produced a 3-0-1 start.
For Dandy, juggling the two sports has helped her excel at both.
“They are defi nitely really similar; I was an ice hockey player before I was a field hockey player,” said Dandy. “It is easier to transition from one to the other since they are kind of the same. It definitely helps both ways.”
Last week, Dandy helped PDS overcome a 1-0 defi cit against Trinity Hall, scoring two straight goals to give the Panthers the lead, and they never looked back on the way to a 4-1 win.
“In practice we usually screen the net and get off as many shots as possible to try to beat the goalie; that was what was going through my mind there,” said Dandy, reflecting on her first goal. “On the second goal it was the same kind of situation, just getting a shot on net, trying to get a rebound.”
Even though PDS is only playing with nine skaters with two players currently sidelined by injury, it was not fazed by falling behind early in the December 17 contest.
“We knew they were going to be strong, we knew they had more numbers than we did,” said Dandy. “We have good players on our team and we work well together. We just needed to pull through and get this win.”
Coming into this winter, defender Dandy was primed to assume more responsibility at the offensive end.
“I am trying to be more offensive this year, last year we had players like Logan
Harrison,” said Dandy, who tallied two goals and an assist as PDS defeated defending New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) state champion Pingry 7-3 last Thursday. “I have definitely improved a lot since last year. My hockey IQ has improved. I am looking out for passes; it is a team sport. You have got to pass the puck.”
PDS head coach Jamie Davis liked the way his team battled back against Trinity Hall.
“We didn’t change anything about it,” said Davis, who also got goals from Della Gilligan and Layla Sosner in the win. “We were down 1-0. It is a hockey game, someone is going to score first. We did not give up. We pushed right back and we got four unanswered.”
The Panthers kept pushing as they controlled possession in the second and third periods.
“We started to really push the pace to keep it in their zone halfway through the game,” said Davis. “We probably could have gotten a couple of more goals but their goalie played great and they have some good players too. It was a good game.”
The Panthers got a very good game from Dandy as she excelled at both ends of the ice.
“Sammy is a great player, she can take a game over when she chooses,” said Davis. “It is nice to have someone back there who can block plays down in our defensive zone and also create a lot of offense.”
Davis credited junior goalie Kelly Stevens with being in the zone.
“Kelly has been great,” said Davis. “She is locked in. She likes to compete, she works hard. It was a very good game for her.”
Supporting Stevens, PDS produced a solid defensive effort overall.
“Our centers and D did a great job of just keeping the play to the outside,” said Davis. “We kept it down at their end most of the time, that is how you win a hockey game. It was all-around great play.”
As the Panthers head into the holiday break before returning to action by hosting Immaculate Heart on January 7, Davis is proud of how his short-handed squad has persevered and succeeded so far this season.
The Princeton Area Community Foundation makes
“I am happy that they are working hard, we are not getting rattled by having a small bench,” said Davis, whose team is currently without senior Eibhleann Knox and Dandy’s older sister, junior Brynn, due to injury. “It is keep rolling. It is a lot of ice time. They are high school kids, they have energy they don’t think they do but they do. They are going good but we will need our players back. It is a long season.”
Dandy, for her part, is thrilled with how things have come together early on.
“I am really happy with the way we have started, playing Mo-Beard and tying them was huge for us,” said Dandy, referring to a 1-1 opening game tie with perennial powerhouse Morristown-Beard.
“Sometimes it takes us a while to get going since we have such low numbers. Usually one or two people on the team really step up and say, ‘Hey guys, we know what to do’ and just execute it.”
— Bill Alden
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ice for the PDS girls’ hockey team. Dandy has piled up six goals to pace the Panthers as they have produced a 3-0-1 start. PDS, which defeated defending New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) state champion Pingry 7-3 last Thursday, hosts Immaculate Heart on January 7.
FINE AND DANDY: Sammy Dandy goes after the ball in action this fall for the Princeton Day School field hockey team. Sophomore Dandy, who led the Panthers in scoring in 2024 with five goals, has brought her finishing touch to the
(Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)
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Hun
Boys’ Basketball: Luke Wafle starred in a losing cause as Hun fell 83-68 to the Germantown Academy (Pa.) in overtime last Wednesday. Wafle scored 19 points for the Raiders who dropped to 4-5 with the defeat. Hun is next in action when it plays at the Westtown School (Pa.) on January 7.
Girls’ Basketball: Jayla Williams posted a doubledouble as Hun defeated Tower Hill (Del.) 64-46 last week. Freshman Williams tallied 15 points and 11 rebounds in the December 17 contest to help the Raiders improve to 11-2. Hun will be playing at the Pennington School on January 8.
Boys’ Hockey: Unable to get its offense going, Hun lost 4-0 to the Hill School (Pa.) last Wednesday. The Raiders, now 1-6-1, return to action when they host Notre Dame on January 8.
PDS
Boys’ Basketball : Losing a nail-biter, PDS fell 42-41 to Nottingham last Thursday. The Panthers, who moved to 1-1 with the defeat, are next in action when they face Barnegat High on December 27 and Bishop Eustace on December 28 in a holiday event being played at Cinnaminson High.
Girls’ Basketball : Sparked by Briana Camp, PDS defeated Nottingham 46-22 last Thursday. Camp tallied a game-high 12 points as the Panthers improved to 1-1 and won their first game under new head coach Pat Reddington. PDS returns to action when it faces Hightstown on December 27 and Steinert on December 28 with both games to be played at Mercer County Community College.
Pennington defeated Middletown South 49-33 last Thursday. The Red Hawks, who improved to 4-2 with the win, will return to action when they play in the Haddonfield Holiday Classic from December 27-28 at Haddonfield Memorial High.
PHS
Boys’ Basketball: Michael Bess Jr. led the way as PHS defeated WW/PSouth 53-40 last Thursday. Junior guard Bess tallied a game-high 22 points for the Tigers who improved 1-1 with the victory. PHS will be taking part in a holiday event at Montgomery High where it will face Montgomery on December 27 and North Hunterdon on December 30.
Boys’ Hockey : Brendan Beatty tallied two goals and an assist as PHS fell 6-5 to North Hunterdon last Thursday. The Tigers, now 1-5, are next in action when they face Paul VI on January 3 at the Flyers Skate Zone in Pennsauken.
Girls’ Hocke y: Cassie Speir scored three goals but it wasn’t enough as PHS lost 7-6 to Randolph last Wednesday. The Tigers, who moved to 0-2 with the setback, face Newark East Side on January 8 as the Ironbound Recreation Center Rink in Newark.
Boys’ Swimming : David Brophy and David Xu each won two events to help PHS edge WW/P-South 86-84 last Thursday. Senior star Brophy placed first in the 200-yard freestyle and the 100 butterfly while classmate Xu won the 200 individual medley and 100 backstroke. In addition,
Brophy anchored 400 free ‘A’ relay to a first place finish while Xu anchored the 400 free ‘B’ relay to second place as the Tigers needed a one-two finish in the relay, the final event of the meet, to pull out the win and remain undefeated. PHS, now 6-0, has a home meet on January 9 against WW/PNorth.
Girls’ Swimming : Nina Zagar starred as PHS fell 91-79 to WW/P-South last Thursday. Junior Zagar placed second in both the 200-yard individual medley and 100 butterfly as the Tigers moved to 5-1. It marked the first loss for PHS in a regular season Colonial Valley Conference meet since falling 93-77 to WW/P-South on December 17, 2019. The Tigers will look to get back on the winning track when they host WW/P-North on January 9. Wrestling : Coming up big in its first dual of the season, PHS defeated WW/ P-South 44-23 last Thursday. Forrest Rose won by a pin at 106 pounds for the Tigers as did Arjun Monga at 132, Matthew Ocampo at 138, and Colin Fitzgerald at 144. PHS will be competing in the Sam Cali Invitational from December 27-28 at the Morristown National Guard Armory.
TOWN
Stuart
Basketball : Taylor States came up big as Stuart defeated the Wilberforce School 42-18 in its season opener last Wednesday. Junior forward States tallied 21 points and 14 rebounds in the win for the Tartans. Stuart will be competing in the Sacred Heart Basketball Tournament from January 3-4 at the Stone Ridge Academy of the Sacred Heart in Bethesda, Md.
Pennington
Boys’ Basketball : Jonathan Benka-Coker led the way as Pennington defeated Holy Cross Prep 51-45 last Wednesday. Benka-Coker scored 13 points for the Red Hawks, who improved to 4-3. Pennington is next in action when it competes in the Wildwood Boardwalk Classic from December 28-29 at the Wildwood Convention Center.
Girls’ Basketball : Posting its third straight victory,
MAIN EVENT: Princeton High girls’ basketball player Sephora Romain, middle, goes up for a shot in a game last season. Last Thursday, junior guard Romain scored a game-high 19 points to help PHS defeat WW/P-South 51-38 and improve to 2-0 under new head coach Joe Smiegocki. The Tigers will be playing in a holiday tournament at WWP-South with games on December 27, 28, and 30.
(Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)
Obituaries
Dawn Cooper Rosso
Dawn Cooper Rosso, 72, of Skillman, NJ, died peacefully at Princeton Hospital surrounded by her loving family after a short illness.
Born October 12, 1952 in Schenectady, NY, to the late Rev. Dr. Jack Cooper and his wife Jean, Dawn spent her youth in Belle Mead, NJ. While attending Princeton High School Dawn met her future husband, Mark Rosso. Dawn graduated from Dickinson College in 1974 with a B.A. in English and from Rider University in 1978 with a master’s degree in business administration.
Dawn pursued a career in marketing in the telecommunications industry for 30 years, retiring as Sr. Vice President of InterSearch Marketing Research Corp in 2008.
Dawn valued time with family, regularly visiting her parents in Pennington, NJ, and siblings in upstate NY, Virginia, and Texas. She enjoyed activities with her many friends and kept in close contact with her extended family of Coopers, Ritchies, and Rossos.
A great lover of the arts, especially live theatre, Dawn spent many weekends in New York city enjoying every cultural adventure time would allow. She was also an avid traveler, having visited all seven continents which included a very eventful boat ride in Antarctica with Mark.
After retirement Dawn kept busy not only with the arts and travel, but also with classes in music and languages as well as
volunteering with the Dickinson Admissions Volunteer Society and Princeton University Art Museum.
Dawn is survived by her beloved husband of 50 years Mark Rosso, her sisters Deborah Kruesi and Ruth Sawin, her brother John Cooper, nieces Larissa Kruesi and Elizabeth Sawin, and nephew Austin Kruesi.
Memorial contributions to S.A.V.E. Princeton are appreciated.
A memorial service celebrating Dawn’s life will be
Ted S. Strempack
Ted S. Strempack, 81, of Princeton, NJ, passed away peacefully on December 15, 2024.
Born and educated in Millville, NJ, Ted graduated from Millville HS, Stockton University with a degree in art and advertising design, and a Master’s in Education from Seton Hall University. He was a gifted athlete whose ability earned him football scholarships to the University of Memphis and Louisiana College. After
college, he played professionally for the Philadelphia Bulldogs.
Ted joined the NJ State Police in 1967, retiring as a Captain after 30 years of service. A talented artist, he worked for many years as their composite artist.
Ted had so much talent and many varied interests and accomplishments. He owned several antique stores in Atlantic County, he built and ran his marina, and was an active volunteer and board member for several organizations for many years. He had an undeniable presence and was our family’s and everyone else’s go-to guy, always willing to help with any project — plan it, build it, fi x it, or whatever it took to get the job done. Great advice was dispensed along the way, but only if one asked.
He loved visiting art museums as well as traveling extensively.
Predeceased by his parents Stanley and Katherine Strempack and his sister Joan Meinzer, Ted is survived by his wife, Susan, his daughter Kymberly Clark, his son Guy Strempack (Joy), and his three beloved granddaughters, Taylor Clark, Cameryn Clark, and Mia Strempack as well as his brother-in-law, Rob Murphy, numerous cousins, and lifelong friends.
Arrangements are being handled by the MatherHodge Funeral Home. A Celebration of Life will be held in the spring. In lieu of flowers, the family asks for memorial contributions to The Michael J. Fox Parkinson’s Foundation (tribute.michaeljfox.org/tribute-page. php?id=3049).
Obituaries Continued on Next Page
We pride ourselves on being a small, personal, and service oriented family business. With five generations of experience, we are here to help guide you through the difficult process of monument selection. We encourage you to make an appointment, with no obligation, to discuss the many options available to you.
personal, and service oriented family business. With five generations of experience, we are here to help guide you through the difficult process of monument selection. We encourage you to make an appointment, with no obligation, to discuss the many options available to you.
We pride ourselves on being a small, personal, and service oriented family business. With five generations of experience, we are here to help guide you through the difficult process of monument selection. We encourage you to make an appointment, with no obligation, to discuss the many options available to you.
ITS EASIER THAN YOU THINK TO MAKE THE PERFECT MEMORIAL
We pride ourselves on being a small, personal, and service oriented family business. With five generations of experience,
We pride ourselves on being a small, personal, and service oriented family business. With five generations of experience, we are here to help guide you through the difficult process of monument selection. We encourage you to make an appointment, with no obligation, to discuss the many options available to you.
We pride ourselves on being a small, personal, and service oriented family business. With five generations of experience, we are here to help guide you through the difficult process of monument selection.
We pride ourselves on being a small, personal, and service oriented family business. With five generations of experience, we are here to help guide you through the difficult process of monument selection.
ITS EASIER THAN YOU THINK TO MAKE THE PERFECT MEMORIAL
ITS EASIER THAN YOU THINK TO MAKE THE
We pride ourselves on being a small, personal, and service oriented family business. With five generations of experience, we are here to help guide you through the difficult process of monument selection.
with no obligation, to discuss the many options available to you.
ITS EASIER THAN YOU THINK TO MAKE THE PERFECT MEMORIAL
ITS EASIER THAN YOU THINK TO MAKE THE PERFECT MEMORIAL
We encourage you to make an appointment, with no obligation, to discuss the many options available to you
We encourage you to make an appointment, with no obligation, to discuss the many options available to you
Barrie Joan Kale
Barrie Joan Kale passed away peacefully on December 10, 2024. Born on November 29, 1942, in Lawton, Oklahoma, she grew up in Princeton, New Jersey, and lived most of her life in Lawrenceville.
Barrie graduated from Princeton High School and worked at Opinion Research Corporation and Princeton Radiology for many years. She was a longtime member of the Nassau Club and Present Day Club, where she held various roles.
One of Barrie’s many talents was bringing people together; she had a unique gift for building meaningful relationships and inspiring a sense of belonging among everyone.
Barrie was a member of the Lawrenceville Presbyterian Church. Growing up, her family was active in the church, and she continued this tradition by participating in many programs and serving on countless committees.
Barrie was a loving, kind, and generous person to everyone. She thoroughly enjoyed meeting new people and nurturing old friendships. Above all, she adored her family. Her grandchildren were the light of her life. Known to her grandchildren as “Emmy,” Barrie was overjoyed when her greatgranddaughter was named Emmeline “Emmy” Jane in her honor.
Barrie was predeceased by her parents, Herbert and Elizabeth Kale, and brotherin-law, Ed Morris.
Surviving are daughter Lynn Brown (Jeff) and son Rob Chibbaro; grandchildren Eric Brown (fiancé Suzannah), Elizabeth Comisac (Michael), and Caroline Brown (fiancé Joseph),
Newsstand Town Topics
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Princeton
McCaffrey’s
Kiosk Palmer Square
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Wawa (Universit y Place)
Hopewell Village Express Rocky Hill Wawa (Rt 518)
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Derek and Alex Chibbaro; and great-granddaughter Emmeline “Emmy” Jane Comisac. She is also survived by a sister, Mary Beth Morris, a brother, Doug Kale (Wendy), and several nieces and nephews.
Barrie will be greatly missed by her family and countless number of friends.
A memorial service is scheduled at Lawrenceville Presbyterian Church on Saturday, January 18, 2025, at 11 a.m.
If you wish to donate in Barrie’s memory, a fund has been set up to benefit the NICU at Sacred Heart Hospital in Spokane, Washington, where her great-granddaughter received excellent care. Please visit give.providence.org/inw/ nicu and add Barrie’s name in the “tribute information,” or make a check out to Providence Inland Northwest Foundation, 101 W 8th Avenue , Spokane, WA 99204.
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DIRECTORY OF RELIGIOUS SERVICES
Wednesday, December 25
10:00 am: Holy Eucharist with Choir & Carols Sunday, December 29
8:00 am: Holy Eucharist Rite I 11:00 am: Service of Christmas Lessons & Carols at Princeton University Chapel
The Rev. Paul Jeanes III, Rector
The Rev. Canon Dr. Kara Slade, Assoc. Rector 33 Mercer St. Princeton • 609-924-2277 www.trinityprinceton.org
904 Cherry Hill Rd • Princeton, NJ 08525 (609) 466-3058
To advertise your services in our Directory of Religious Services, contact Jennifer Covill jennifer.covill@witherspoonmediagroup.com (609) 924-2200 ext. 31
Princeton Area Baha’is Welcome You
“When a thought of war comes, oppose it by a stronger thought of peace. A thought of hatred must be destroyed by A more powerful thought of love.”
For more information go to: https://princetonbahais.org www.bahai. org/beliefs Mother of God Joy of All Who Sorrow Orthodox Church
`Abdu’l-Baha
Principles of the Baha’i Faith: One God- the Mover of the Universe Oneness of Religion
All People are members of One Human Family Equality of Men and Women Elimination of all forms of prejudice
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HOME HEALTH AIDE: 25 years of experience. Available mornings to take care of your loved one, transport to appointments, run errands. I am well known in Princeton. Top care, excellent references. The best! Call (609) 356-2951 or (609) 751-1396.
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LOLIO’S WINDOW WASHING & POWER WASHING: Free estimate. Next day service. Fully insured. Gutter cleaning available. References available upon request. 30 years experience. (609) 271-8860.
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PART-TIME HOUSECLEANING AND LAUNDRY. Help with the holidays! Experienced, with excellent references. Please call Ruth at (609) 924-9654. 12-25
(609) 227-9873. 12-25
APARTMENT FOR RENT
Nassau Street, 1 bedroom, 1 bath, recently renovated. Available January 1, $2,500 monthly plus utilities. Inquiries: sts15@verizon.net. 12-25
BUYING: Antiques, paintings, Oriental rugs, coins, clocks, furniture, old toys, military, books, cameras, silver, costume & fine jewelry. Guitars & musical instruments. I buy single items to entire estates. Free appraisals. (609) 306-0613. tf
TOWN TOPICS CLASSIFIEDS GET TOP RESULTS! Whether it’s selling furniture, finding a lost pet, or having a garage sale, TOWN TOPICS is the way to go! We deliver to ALL of Princeton as well as surrounding areas. (609) 924-2200 ext. 10; classifieds@towntopics.com
ESTATE LIQUIDATION SERVICE:
I will clean out attics, basements, garages & houses. Single items to entire estates. No job too big or small. In business over 35 years, serving all of Mercer County. Call (609) 306-0613. tf
WE BUY CARS
Belle Mead Garage (908) 359-8131
Ask for Chris
Your
mean so much to me.
May your Christmas be filled with love, laughter, and cherished moments with your loved ones. Here’s to celebrating the joys of the season together in spirit and community.
Interior Painting, Exterior Painting, and Drywall Repair
