June 13, 2018
CATCHING THE BLUE WAVE: Princeton Democrats and others rallied Sunday night in a meeting focused on flipping five New Jersey congressional districts from Republican to Democratic in the November election. From left, nominees who spoke included Andy Kim (District 3), Tom Malinowski (District 7), and Josh Welle (District 4). (Photo Courtesy of PCDO)
By Donald Gilpin
“Catch the Blue Wave: Flip NJ Blue!” was the rallying cry on Sunday night, as a crowd of about 170 enthusiastic Democrats filled the Suzanne Patterson Center and made plans to help Democrats win five New Jersey congressional races that have been targeted by the national Democratic Party in its effort to retake control of the House of Representatives in the upcoming November elections. more
By Anne Levin
With acceptance by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) received last week, Trenton-Mercer Airport is now able to pursue plans for upgrading, updating, and modernizing. But these projects at the increasingly popular Ewing Township airport do not include an increase in the size or number of flights, according to Mercer County Executive Brian M. Hughes.
“This is just to give people a better experience when they travel in and out,” he said Tuesday. “It’s something we’ve been waiting for a long time. The stamp of approval from the FAA allows us to move forward with scoping plans for a new terminal. The one we have now is about 55 or 60 years old and it lacks many of the modern amenities you’d expect from a growing airport.” more
By Donald Gilpin
With a June 30 deadline approaching for renewal of the Princeton-Cranbury send-receive schools agreement, both school boards have been reviewing the current contract and the possibility of extending it through 2030.
The Princeton Public Schools Board of Education (BOE) was planning to address the matter at last night’s meeting, but it was not known at press time whether or not a vote was taken on the issue. more
CADETS OFF TO COLLEGE: Princeton First Aid & Rescue Squad (PFARS) boasts 18 area high school seniors in its Cadet Program, all headed for four-year colleges. Shown here sporting shirts with the names of the schools they will be attending, the group includes three interested in emergency medicine and several others who plan to study science or medicine.
By Anne Levin
The 18 graduating high school seniors in the Princeton First Aid & Rescue Squad’s (PFARS) Cadet Program make up one of the largest groups of students to graduate as full emergency medical technicians (EMTs). All of them are headed for college in coming months. more
DIPLOMACY NOT WAR: About 50 people gathered for a multifaith service and candlelight vigil for peace at the Nassau Presbyterian Church on Nassau Street on Sunday night preceding the June 12 summit between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. (Photo by John Lien)
By Donald Gilpin
As preparations were continuing in Singapore for the summit between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, 50 people gathered at the Nassau Presbyterian Church on Sunday evening for an hour-long multifaith service for peace inside the church followed by a candlelight vigil outside.
Sponsored by the Princeton-based Coalition for Peace Action, the service was organized by the Rev. Dave Davis, senior pastor of Nassau Presbyterian and president of the Princeton Clergy Association, along with CFPA Executive Director the Rev. Robert Moore, and featured contributions from 10 different area faith leaders. more
By Anne Levin
At several meetings of Princeton Council during the past year, a resident expressed concerns about cancellation of a program providing free meals for senior citizens. On June 5, the municipality announced that the initiative is back, based at the Princeton Senior Resource Center’s Suzanne Patterson Building.
Mercer County is now offering nutritionally balanced meals Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., for county residents 60 or older, or married to a resident 60 or older. Participants are encouraged to make a donation toward meals received. more
The Spirit of Princeton Flag Day ceremony will take place this year, rain or shine, on Thursday, June 14 at noon at the Princeton Municipal Complex Plaza, 369 Witherspoon Street.
This year’s ceremony will be dedicated to the life and community spirit of Ray Wadsworth, one of the founders of The Spirit of Princeton. Wadsworth died May 31. more
Terhune Orchards holds its annual Firefly Festival on Sunday June 24, from 4-9 p.m. The farm is kept open late into the evening after dark, and participants can bring a blanket and lay down in the grass to watch fireflies blink in the twilight.
Children can dress up as fireflies after painting wings and making antennas in the craft area. They can also decorate bug boxes to use to catch, and later release, a firefly as the sun goes down. more
I had this dream America.
Ray Davies, from “The Great Highway”
By Stuart Mitchner
The fate of this week’s column was decided when I saw a boyhood hero on the obituary page of Friday’s New York Times. The AP photo under the charismatic words St. Louis Cardinal Star shows Red Schoendienst leapfrogging over a baserunner and firing the ball in the direction of the greatest Cardinal of them all, his roommate and close friend Stan Musial. more
On Friday, June 29, the YMCA of Princeton will hold the Youth Summit, for Mercer youth ages 14-18, at the Conference Center of Mercer County Community College in West Windsor.
The goal is to bring diverse perspectives, voices, and ideas together to examine the meaning of service and leadership, and organize a service project that will be led and delivered by the participants. The event is presented by ETS and will include workshops by HiTOPS, one love, Novo Nordisk, and the YMCA. more
Marie Benedict will be the featured author at this year’s Summer Reading Soiree, a festive celebration of books taking place on Tuesday, June 19, at 6:30 p.m. The event is being held in the restored barn at the Historical Society of Princeton’s Updike Farmstead at 354 Quaker Road.
Benedict will discuss and sign copies of her book, Carnegie’s Maid, during the event, and copies of The Other Einstein, her first historical novel, will also be available. Registration is not required. more
“RED SPOTTED NEWT”: Janice Annunziata’s photograph was selected as the winner of the Delaware River Basin’s (DRBC) Spring 2018 Photo Contest. The DRBC’s seasonal photo contest was founded to highlight amateur and professional photography representing the beauty, diversity, function, and significance of the water resources of the Delaware River Basin.
The Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) has announced that Janice Annunziata’s photograph, titled “Red Spotted Newt,” was chosen as the winner of the commission’s Spring 2018 Photo Contest. Twenty-two photographs were submitted by 15 individuals for the contest. more
“THE UNIVERSE IS A GREEN DRAGON”: D&R Greenway Land Trust presents a special exhibition by award-winning environmental artist Cameron (Cami) Davis. “Cosmophilia” will be on view June 21 through July 25 in D&R Greenway’s Johnson Education Center in Princeton. A reception and lecture are on Thursday, June 21, from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
For a limited time only, D&R Greenway Land Trust is presenting a special exhibition by award-winning environmental artist Cameron (Cami) Davis. “Cosmophilia” will be on view June 21 through July 25 in D&R Greenway’s Johnson Education Center, 1 Preservation Place, Princeton. There will be a reception and lecture on Thursday, June 21, 5:30 to 7 p.m. RSVP at rsvp@drgreenway.org. more
By Nancy Plum
Summer brings many traditions to the Princeton area: the P-rade, fireworks on Reunions weekend, and other signs that three months of summer days stretch out ahead. One musical tradition which has become a staple of audience calendars is the Concordia Chamber Players concert which opens the Princeton Festival each year. Concordia Artistic Director Michelle Djokic annually brings an ensemble of refined chamber music players to Miller Chapel, and this year in particular set the tone for the festival with a performance of dramatic late 19th and early 20th-century music. more
By Kam Williams
The original Ocean’s 11 (1960) starred Frank Sinatra and a group of fellow Las Vegas headliners called the Rat Pack. The film was remade in 2001 with George Clooney starring as Danny Ocean along with ten other film stars. The story was again set in Vegas and also was about an elaborate casino heist. The picture was such a hit it spawned a couple of successful sequels, Ocean’s Twelve (2004) and Thirteen (2007).
Ocean’s 8 is a refreshing departure from the original series. In addition to featuring an all-female gang, the film is set in New York City instead of Las Vegas. more
PRO PROSPECT: Ben Gross fires a pitch this spring in his senior season for the Princeton University baseball team. The former Princeton High standout enjoyed a superb final campaign, going 4-5 with 52 strikeouts in 52 1/3 innings and a 4.47 ERA as he earned second-team All-Ivy League honors. Last week, he was selected by the Houston Astros in the 34th round of the Major League Baseball Draft.(Photo Courtesy of Princeton’s Office of Athletic Communications)
By Bill Alden
Coming off a breakthrough junior season in 2017 which saw Ben Gross emerge as a star pitcher for the Princeton University baseball team after two years of struggling with injury, the senior righty got off to a rough start this spring. more
WILD RIDE: Princeton High boys’ track star Nils Wildberg flies through the air in the long jump at the Meet of Champions last Saturday at Northern Burlington High. Junior Wildberg took second in the event with a personal record leap of 23’ 8.5. Wildberg is one of 16 athletes from PHS who will be competing at the New Balance Nationals next weekend in Greensboro, N.C. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)
By Bill Alden
Nils Wildberg was looking for a new activity in his freshman year at Princeton High and made a fateful decision.
“I first started track in my freshman year in high school in the winter,” said Wildberg, who had focused on soccer prior to entering PHS in 2015. more
SPECIAL K: Princeton High softball player Kylee Tucholski makes a play in a game this spring. Freshman pitcher Tucholski was a bright spot for PHS as it finished with a 2-18 record.(Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)
By Bill Alden
Although the Princeton High softball team ended the season by falling 10-0 to South Brunswick in the opening round of the Central Jersey Group 4 sectional, it marked an important step for the youthful squad.
“We didn’t expect to make the state tournament; we had a lot of girls on the team that were new to the varsity level,” said PHS head coach Marissa Soprano, whose team was seeded 16th in the sectional. more
CLOSING STATEMENT: Princeton High baseball player Alec Silverman follows through on a swing in a game this spring. Senior catcher and Macalester College-bound Silverman enjoyed a big year, batting .400 with a team-high 19 RBIs in helping PHS go 13-9 and advance to the Mercer County Tournament semifinals. It marked the program’s first winning season since 2001. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)
By Bill Alden
Enjoying its first winning season since 2001, the Princeton High baseball team boasted a potent mix of pitching, hitting, and fielding in going 13-9.
But PHS head coach Dave Roberts will tell you that the key ingredient to his squad’s success this spring was togetherness. more
SPECIAL DELIVERY: Teddy Durbin delivers a pitch last week for the Princeton Post 218 American Legion baseball team as it hosted Trenton Post 93/182. Rising Princeton High senior Durbin produced a superb mound effort in the June 5 contest, giving up a run and striking out 10 in six innings of work as the teams tied 2-2 after eight innings in a game to be completed on June 23. Post 218, which dropped to 0-4 after being swept 5-0 and 8-1 by Broad Street Post 313 last Saturday, will look to get on the winning track as it hosts South Brunswick Post 401 on June 13, plays at Hamilton Post 31 on June 14, and then hosts Hopewell Post 339 on June 15, Lawrence Post 414 on June 16, and North Hamilton on June 17. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)
By Bill Alden
Coming off a superb spring as the ace for the Princeton High baseball pitching staff, Teddy Durbin picked up where he left off as he took the mound for the Princeton Post 218 American Legion baseball last week against Trenton Post 93/182.
The lanky lefty displayed some dominant form, giving up a run and striking out 10 in six innings of work in the June 5 contest. more
TURNING 30: Zavon Johnson goes after the ball in action last year in the championship series in the Princeton Recreation Department Summer Men’s Basketball League. Johnson helped the underdog Packer Hall All-Stars defeat Majeski to earn the title. Johnson and Packer Hall will be back to defend their title in the league, which tips off its 30th year of action next week with opening night slated for June 18. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)
By Bill Alden
As the Princeton Recreation Department Men’s Summer Basketball League tips off its 30th year of action this week, the core of 20-something players will be looking to knock off a veteran outfit.
Last summer, the Packer Hall All-Stars, a team comprised mainly of relatively grizzled former College of New Jersey players, produced an unlikely title run, as the seventh-seeded squad swept top-seeded and defending champ Majeski Foundation in the best-of-three championship series. more
June 6, 2018
WALKING THROUGH FITZRANDOLPH GATE: Princeton University awarded degrees to 1,281 undergraduates in the Class of 2018 and 563 graduate students at its 271st commencement Tuesday on the front lawn of Nassau Hall. (Princeton University, Office of Communications, Nick Donnoli)
Princeton University President Christopher L. Eisgruber, presiding over the University’s 271st commencement ceremony yesterday on the front lawn of Nassau Hall, asked the graduates to become champions of higher education. “The world needs more college degrees,” he said.
A total of 1,281 seniors were awarded undergraduate degrees, three from former classes, and 563 students received graduate degrees. more
By Donald Gilpin
The Princeton Public Schools (PPS) Board of Education (BOE) has withdrawn two of the components of its $130 million bond referendum application to expand and renovate district schools, and will seek to purchase two buildings on 15 acres on Thanet Road rather than a Herrontown Road building previously under option..
Driven by the availability of the 100-101 Thanet Road property for $6.5 million as a more practical alternative to the earlier plan, the new proposal will allow the district to relocate administrative offices to Thanet Road and drop plans to construct administrative offices on school property next to John Witherspoon Middle School. more
