Go Figure
$17 million — Additional federal funds to be allocated to continue the Delaware River dredging project.
$700,000 — Estimated savings for 17 municipalities that participated in a cooperative bid package with Camden County for trash disposal.
6.7 percent — Drop in median sale price for homes in Burlington, Gloucester and Camden counties, bringing it to $201,000, according to the National Association of Realtors.
60.5 percent — Amount of moves in New Jersey involving residents leaving for other states, according to a recent study. New Jersey ties Illinois for largest outbound traffic.
$300,000 — Donation by the Schlitt family of physicians, of Advocare Haddon Pediatric Group in Haddon Heights, to establish The Schlitt Family Student Lounge and The Schlitt Family Dean’s Executive Conference Room at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University.
$5 million — Budget deficit in Medford, where council is considering cutting services such as the Parks and Recreation department and trash pickup to help close the gap.
24-16, 42-33 — The Senate and Assembly votes, respectively, to legalize same-sex marriages in New Jersey. Gov. Christie swiftly vetoed the bill, as promised, setting the stage for a possible referendum in November.
15th — Anniversary of the Atlantic League All-Star Game that will be held at Campbell’s Field on July 11. This is the second time the Camden Riversharks field has hosted this event.
+15 minutes
Off the Air
You might say that Dennis Malloy (pictured) is an enigma. While he’s known for his sometimes loud and brash take on events beside his on-air co-star Judi Franco on NJ 101.5, a station where they’ve shared their undoubted chemistry together—on and off—for 14 years, he’s also known as a quiet family man who loves the peace that comes with cooking and fishing. Malloy, a Marlton resident, recently took the time to talk with South Jersey Magazine about his double life, what he’s learned over the years in broadcasting, and his love for Chris Christie.
How is on-air Dennis different from off-air Dennis? I’m very, very, very rarely combative with people off air. It depends on my mood, but I can be very reserved in a lively situation and I’ll just sit back and take it all in.
You’ve had moments where people have been pretty offended by your viewpoints. Any regrets? No regrets specifically, but I always feel bad if I’ve lost my cool and argued with someone and then yelled at them. I’m not a combative person by nature, but when someone tries to get the better of you on the air, the defense mechanisms kick in along with my Mediterranean hot-headedness.
You’re known as quite the cook, and you did a live cooking show last year that was extremely popular. What’s your favorite meal to cook? Homemade ravioli and arancini (Sicilian rice balls) are two of my favorite dishes to cook because they are time consuming and detailed but the rewards are great, because my family really enjoys and appreciates it.
As a big Gov. Christie fan, what do you think of rumors he could be a VP candidate? We asked him that question [recently] and he was pretty straight forward, as always, about it. He said he can’t rule it out and he said, as we agree, that there is still more to do here in New Jersey and it would be best for him to stick around as long as possible.
Describe your typical day off. Spring and fall—striper fishing out of Barnegat Light. Summer—puttering around the yard and the lake near my house. Winter—cooking, running errands with the family and praying for an early spring.
Any guilty pleasures? Sneaking out on the lake on my homemade, motorized floating dock and fishing for bass while smoking a nice cigar.
Little known talent? I like to grow things. I have a full-size olive tree and prickly pear (fichi di India) tree and fig tree in my house. It’s my own slice of the Mediterranean in my family room.
Biggest risk you ever took? Going to Italy to find my family and ancestral home. It could have been disastrous or at least a huge disappointment. It turned out to be one of the highlights of my life.
Finish this sentence: If you weren’t on the radio, you’d be… running a vineyard with a nice authentic, rustic Italian restaurant, a fig orchard and the best food and wine in the area; or running a genealogy travel and tours business in Southern Italy.
How To
Make your own brew
St. Paddy’s Day—the one day a year when everyone is Irish—is approaching and bars will be full of crowds drinking green-dyed beer. This year, maybe it’s time to get creative and impress your friends with your own homebrew (green or not). And if you decide not to partake in the festivities, it’s still a great way to get creative in the kitchen any time, any season.
Decide what you want. What type of beer do you want to make? Do your research and consider what you like best. Ingredients are different for each type of beer. “The biggest difference of darker beers to lighter is the malts. Hops are a big ingredient—brown ale or amber will have enough hops to balance the malt,” says Chris LaPierre, head brewer of Iron Hill Brewery in Maple Shade. “Ninety-five percent of homebrewers will make ales.” LaPierre says most homebrewers don’t have the proper temperature control to brew more advanced beers.
Get the tools. “Fermenters and sanitizers are going to be your most important [equipment]. You need four ingredients for it to be considered a beer according to German Purity Laws,” says Brett Mullin of Brew Your Own Bottle in Westmont, where they offer classes, equipment and brew kits to those who wish to brew on or off site. “Hops, yeast, water and barley determine whether the beverage is a beer or not; the other stuff is secondary for taste.”
Get scientific. “When you’re brewing with a beer kit, it’s as easy as making a box of mac and cheese,” says Todd Woodward, president of the Gloucester County Homebrewers club. Aside from acquiring what you need, there are a few steps to actually create the beer. “Boil the water, add the malt extract, simmer, boil again and add the hops. Next is cooling, siphoning and primary fermentation,” he says. “You need to do what works for you. Use this as a guide, but there’s a hundred ways to do it with the same outcome.”
Let it ferment. Just as bread needs to rise, this yeast product needs time to ferment. Your beer should ferment for approximately 10 days to two weeks before moving to the bottles—if you choose to use that method—and should then condition for seven to 14 days in the bottles.
Enjoy. Well you did just create your own special craft beer, didn’t you? Crack open a cold one, share with your friends and enjoy responsibly. —Shannon Caulfield
Did You Hear
Not a chance in hell THIS?BILL is going anywhere. It’s a cop-out.”
—State Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester), during an interview in response to the proposed same-sex marriage referendum for November’s ballot. He says the state’s majority should not decide the rights of the minority.
Street level
Cherry Hill — Residents are protesting a proposed “super” Wawa on Haddonfield Road because they fear it’ll result in 24-hours-a-day traffic in their neighborhood.
Haddonfield — A man was arrested for burglarizing Omaha Steaks after the only clue he left behind, a unique shoe print, led police to connect him to the crime after he was caught skipping the fare at the downtown PATCO station.
Mantua — A Maryland man, working as a roofing contractor at Kohl’s, was arrested on drug possession charges after store personnel spotted him allegedly smoking marijuana on the roof.
Pitman — Preschool staff and students at the First Presbyterian Church were alarmed to see the Gloucester County SWAT Team responding to a nearby home, which turned out to be a drill. The county apologized for not providing adequate notice to the church.
Cherry Hill — The widow of former Democratic U.S. Rep. John Adler, Shelley Adler, announced that she plans to run for his old seat this November.
Cinnaminson — The superintendent, assistant superintendent, and several employees of the Cinnaminson Sewerage Authority were charged after allegedly using public funds to buy personal items and using authority equipment to run their own business on the side.
Mount Laurel — A 16-year-old teen was robbed after advertising his sneaker collection—worth $1,600—on Craigslist. A Philadelphia man was later arrested.
Washington Township — Police are investigating a child-luring attempt after a fifth-grader told police a man got out of his vehicle and chased him when he refused to get in his van.
Book It
The New Normal
How does one move on from a national tragedy that didn’t just change the course of the country, but took away a loving, devoted husband and new father? It’s a tough question examined in Melodie Homer’s memoir, From Where I Stand: Flight #93 Pilot’s Widow Sets the Record Straight, and the only real answer is one day at a time, with the motivation that “there is a better future ahead.”
Homer, a Marlton resident and wife of Fight #93 co-pilot LeRoy W. Homer Jr., hasn’t paused much in the last decade when it comes to honoring her late husband, whose doomed flight crashed into a field in Shanksville, Pa. when the crew and passengers overpowered the hijackers of Sept. 11. She started a foundation in his name that has helped pay for more than a dozen young men and women to obtain their pilot’s license in order to follow their dreams. Now, she takes a step back to examine the intimate details of the last 10 years: the events of Sept. 11, 2001; media calling every time a new story broke; raising children and celebrating their milestones while living with the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder; and standing up to LeRoy’s employer, United Airlines. Don’t read it if you’re expecting resolution or closure; she doesn’t believe that’ll ever be realized. But do read it for a widow’s account of the best way to honor LeRoy and the families of Sept. 11.
Home Grown
Taken Back to Nature
Stefanie Dewysockie was just 16 years old when she started experimenting in the kitchen, making lip balms out of natural ingredients. Her goal was simple: to make a product without all the manmade chemicals and preservatives that have become so commonplace. “I wanted to bring awareness to the fact that what we put on our skin matters just as much as the food we put in our bodies,” the Mount Laurel resident and holistic health practitioner says. “Everything we put on our skin is absorbed into the blood stream and affects us physically, mentally and emotionally.”
With her online company, TakenBacktoNature.com, not much has changed in the production process from the time she began. What has changed is the amount of items she makes. Along with the lip balm, there’s now bath salts and scrubs, hand and body cream, salve and room spray.
Each product has no more than five ingredients, mostly bought from local stores and farmers markets, including grape seed oil, beeswax, raw honey, essential oils, and purified water. “I chose these ingredients because they are local and simple, yet packed with healing properties and anti-aging effects. … The benefits of these products are the natural ingredients, all with immense healing properties that promote healthy skin and a sense of well-being.”
Names to know
Local people making a difference in South Jersey and beyond
Haddonfield’s Ameet Shah, along with 41 other New Jersey residents, was selected as a Leadership New Jersey Fellow. Shah, the CEO of Conigent, Inc. in Haddonfield, was chosen to participate in a year-long seminar program in which Fellows focus on a variety of tasks designed to make New Jersey a better place to live and work. Shah’s achievements in his profession, community and leadership qualified him for this position.
Burlington County College’s head soccer coach Craig Dewar was honored by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. His men’s team was named one of the best teams in the nation, ranking 16th in the Junior College Men’s Division 1 Soccer Poll after winning the Region XIX Division 1 Championships in 2011.
Linda Burns, of Washington Township, has published her first book to raise money for a cause close to home. Her book, Beating the Odds at Autism, One Family's Winning Hand, describes her family's tale of growing up with her 19-year-old son, a Gloucester County College sophomore living with autism. The Burns family has been fundraising generously for the National Alliance for Autism Research and Autism Speaks, and Burns will use proceeds from her book to benefit the Gloucester County Special Services Education Fund.
The Moorestown Service Club Council named Douglas Sell as the 2012 Citizen of the Year. The organization, which is comprised of local groups in the area like the Rotary and Lions clubs, recognized Sell’s dedication to other South Jersey organizations, including Urban Boatworks, his own Camden-based non-profit dedicated to teaching at-risk youth wooden boat building.
Agnes Berger hit a major milestone as a registered nurse with Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center in Camden. Berger recently retired from her post in the O.R. after 61 years of service. She began her career there in 1950 as the very first nurse in the new hospital’s O.R. Upon her retirement, she helped establish an award in her name given to one graduating nurse of Our Lady of Lourdes School of Nursing. The first award, to be issued in May, will go to a graduate who displays excellence in the field of perioperative nursing.
Washington Township Junior Wrestler and pint-sized powerhouse Dom Meglino has pinned the competition, earning the 58-pound wrestler the state championship title in his weight bracket. Meglino is on top of his game, having also recently took first at several other tournaments in the area.
Good
Returning the Favor
Last year, the fourth-, fifth- and sixth-graders of Yorkship Elementary School in Camden decided they had enough of being on the receiving end of the public’s generosity. They decided that it didn’t matter where they came from or what their means were to give; it shouldn’t stop them from finding a way to reciprocate the kindness to their community. With their teachers’ help—and a little determination—they started a “100th Day of School Can Challenge” to bring in 100 cans of food for the Food Bank of South Jersey, only that 100 ended up amounting to 1,800.
With their tremendous success, they inspired the whole school of kindergarten through sixth-graders to help out on the 100th day this year, which resulted in the collection of more than 3,400 cans to help feed the hungry.
“What most touches me is that these children don’t regard themselves as needy. Instead, their focus is outward, toward the community,” says Dan Getman, the Food Bank’s community outreach manager. “If more adults had the same kind of selfless focus as these kids, we wouldn’t have nearly as many hungry people in South Jersey.”
Published (and copyrighted) in South Jersey Magazine, Volume 8, Issue 12 (March, 2012).
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