Theodore Roosevelt Students Raise Money for Good Cause

‘She said the dogs had no towels’

 Kids collect gifts for the needy

Jan 19, 2014 

by Art Schwartz

The children of Weehawken’s Theodore Roosevelt School are a generous bunch. Last month, they participated in two simultaneous projects to benefit the less fortunate: Collecting towels for animals at a local shelter, and donating toys to kids in Haiti.

Spearheaded by the fifth and sixth grade Peer Leadership team – a group of students with an interest in community service – the towel drive was a resounding success, benefiting rescued and abandoned animals under the care of the Bergen County Protect & Rescue Foundation, a nonprofit organization serving Bergen and Hudson counties.

Organized by teacher Jill Barbarise, who oversees the peer leaders, the project was conceived when she adopted a dog from the shelter. “When she went to go get her dog, she said the dogs had no towels,” said student Deanna Mezzina. “So she told the Peer Leadership we can bring towels in to help the dogs.”

“What we’re doing is we’re asking each class to at least donate a few towels,” said classmate Marie Eid. The towels will serve as beds for the animals during their stay in the shelter.

“We collected all the towels into this towel pyramid,” said student Sabrina Perez, “and we’re going to give them to the dogs so they have a nice warm place to sleep.”

Animal care

Animal Control Officer Vincent Ascolese visited the school on Dec. 13 to accept the donation, bringing along a friendly Jack Russell terrier, to the delight of the children. Ascolese provided tips on animal care and lessons on how to care for animals responsibly.

He described the shelter’s mission to “protect and rescue” as many lost, stray, and unwanted domestic animals as possible, advising the kids that “if you see something, say something,” if they come across a situation with an abused or mistreated animal.

The shelter staff also train and coordinate the all-volunteer County Animal Response Team (CART) responsible for responding to local emergencies affecting animals, including disasters like Superstorm Sandy.

Founded in 2010 and licensed in 2011, the volunteer-run shelter operates out of an old ambulance garage that was formerly a plumbing supply shop. A “no kill” shelter, they have expanded rapidly and are looking to relocate to a larger home. The shelter is located at 302 Second St. in Cliffside Park and can be reached at 201-621-4111 or http://www.bchenj.org.

Accompanying Ascolese on his visit to the school were Animal Control Officer Calvin Hale and Assistant Shelter Director Kristi Heller.

Kids helping kids

While the towel drive benefits local animals, 1,500 miles away, a group of kids will receive a different kind of gift from Roosevelt School’s students.

“We’re doing a toy drive for children in Haiti,” explained fifth grade teacher Andrea Eberhard. “It’s through a foundation called Edeyo.com. We feed, educate, and provide uniforms for 300 children. They don’t have to pay for it. We have two schools located in the worst part of Port-au-Prince called Bel Air, so this is a really good opportunity for the children to better their lives through education. We’ve had great support from everybody; all the teachers and a lot of the students have donated toys.”

In addition to teaching at the elementary school and high school, Eberhard sits on the board of Edeyo. “Other businesses around the city and I believe Montclair school district, one of the schools there is having a toy drive as well, so all these toys are going to go on a plane at Kennedy Airport on Monday the 16th,” Eberhard said. “These are Christmas toys. Whatever the toys that our children at the school don’t use, those toys will be given to kids in the community.”

This is the first partnership between Edeyo and the Roosevelt School. “It’s a good effort by the people to Weehawken to show their support and definitely for the children to see how other people live lives very different. And so my class is actually doing a report on Haiti so they can learn about Haiti. It’s so close but very, very different so they’re doing a research project.”

“This is great for everybody and it’s a lot of fun to do,” said student Sabrina Perez about the holiday projects. “Especially with all my friends.”

Among the other Roosevelt School peer leaders involved in these projects were students Fiza Abid, Loen Albuquerque, Andrea Carranza, Kathyuska Carrillo, Leivys Garcia, Sean Guerriero, Natalie Jonas, Marlon Martinez, Misha Nair, Farah Rafiq, Hadyn Roman, Corey Vangelakos, and Ashley Yang.

Weehawken's Molos & Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse Offering Deals During Hudson Restaurant Week (Jan 13-Jan 26

More than 40 restaurants offering deals During Hudson Restaurant Week)

10-Jan-14

Hudson Restaurant Week is celebrating its 10th year with its winter season, which will run from Monday through Jan. 26.

More than 40 restaurants in the Hudson County area will offer discounted meals, including prix-fixe lunch or dinner, for the event.

This year, the event is even bigger, with participating eateries in Jersey City, Hoboken, Weehawken and Bayonne, plus Bergen County borough Edgewater’s HAVEN also joining in on the fun.

Literally hundreds of dishes can be sampled during the two weeks for prices far below what restaurants normally charge.

Menus are varied and many can be checked on the Internet before you venue out [Full Story]

Here is a list of the local restaurants participating in Hudson Restaurant Week. The list is by municipality. Listed are the eateries, their addresses, type of cuisine, deal information (some restaurants do not have specifically priced prix-fixe meals or offer flexible discount options), and contact information.

Weehawken
Molos, 1 Pershing Rd., Weehawken, Greek/Seafood, Dinner only, $38. (201) 223-1200
Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse, 1000 Harbor Blvd., Weehawken, Dinner $38. (201) 863-5100.

Hoboken
3 Forty Grill, 340 Sinatra Dr., American, Lunch $18, Dinner $38. (201) 217-3406
Amanda’s, 908 Washinton St., American, Dinner only, $38. (201) 798-0101
Arthur’s Tavern, 237 Washington St., Steakhouse, Lunch $15, Dinner $30. (201) 656-5009.
The Brass Rail, 135 Washington St., American, Dinner only, $35. (201) 659-7074
Clinton Social, 700 Clinton St., American, Lunch $15, Dinner $35. (201) 239-0063
Court Street, 61 Sixth St., American, Dinner only, $30. (201) 795-4515
Dino and Harry’s, 163 14th St., Steakhouse, Dinner only, $38. (201) 659-6202
The Fig Tree, 306 Park Ave., American, Dinner only. (201) 420-0444
The Madison, 1316 Washington St., American. (201) 386-0300
Marty O’Brien Social Club, 94 Bloomfield St., American, Dinner only, $25. (201) 420-9222
Cafe Matt and Meera, 618 Washington St., Indian, Lunch $13, Dinner $25. (201) 683-9431
Stewed Cow, 400 Adams St., American, Dinner only. (201) 706-8589
Sushi Lounge, 200 Hudson St., Japanese, Dinner only, $38. (201) 386-1117
Trinity, 306 Sinatra Dr., American, Lunch $18, Dinner $30. (201) 533-4446
Zylo, 225 River St., Italian, Lunch $18, Dinner $38. (201) 253-2500

Jersey City
Bistro La Source, 85 Morris St., American, Lunch $15, Dinner $25. (201) 209-1717
Boca Grande, 564 Washington Blvd., Mexican, Lunch $13, Dinner $30. (201) 626-6646
Box, 176 Newark Ave., Thai/Japanese. (201) 432-1670
Casa Dante, 737 Newark Ave., Italian, Lunch $18, Dinner $38. (201) 795-2750
La Conguita, 351 Grove St., Latin/Cuban. (201) 435-6770
Edward’s Steakhouse, 239 Marin Blvd., Lunch $18, Dinner $38. (201) 761-0000
Fire and Oak, 479 Washington Blvd. (part of Westin Hotel), American, Lunch $18, Dinner $38. (201) 610-9610
GP’s Restaurant, 236 Pavonia Ave., Italian, Dinner only, $35. (201) 418-8800
Hamilton Inn, 708 Jersey Ave., American, Lunch $18, Dinner $38. (201) 839-5818
HopsScotch, 286 Washington St., American, Lunch $15, Dinner $25. (201) 451-4677
Liberty House Restaurant, 76 Audrey Zapp Dr., American, Lunch $18, Dinner $38. (201) 395-0300
Light Horse Tavern, 199 Washington St., American, Dinner only, $30. (201) 946-2028
Maritime Parc, 84 Audrey Zapp Dr., American, Dinner only, $35. (201) 413-0050
Max’s of Manila, 687 Newark Ave., Filipino, Dinner only, $38. (201) 798-2700
The Merchant, 279 Grove St., American, Lunch $15, Dinner $25. (201) 200-0202
PJ Ryan’s, 292 Barrow St., Irish-American, Dinner only, $25. (201) 333-8752
Porto Lounge, 286 First St., Portuguese, Dinner only, $30. (201) 420-9550
Satis Bistro, 212 Washington St., Modern European. (201) 435-5151
Skylark on the Hudson, 25 River Dr. S, American, Lunch $13, Dinner $25. (201) 533-8989
Sky Thai, 62 Morris St., Thai. (201) 333-4311

Other Municipalities
A&W Steakhouse, 456 Avenue C, Bayonne, Dinner only, $30. (201) 436-0800
Chart House, 170 Harbor Blvd., Weehawken, American. (201) 348-6628
GoodFella’s Brick Oven Pizza and Restaurant, 1007 Broadway, Bayonne, Italian, Dinner only, $25. (201) 471-7900
HAVEN, 45 River Rd., Edgewater, American, Dinner only, $38. (201) 943-1900
McLoone’s Bayonne Grill, 400 Route 440, Bayonne, American, Dinner only, $25. (201) 858-0500