1. BRIDGEWATER — A few months
short of her high school graduation,
Grace McGeown, a senior at Bridge-
water Raritan, began a crusade to en-
sure girls from Gulu, Uganda, receive
secondary education.
The spring before graduation is
usually a time of year devoted to pam-
pering and elaborate preparation for
senior prom, but McGeown focused
onminimizingtheglobalachievement
gapforgirlsbyraisingfundstoafford
girls’ tuition in Uganda.
“Once I heard the story of the
school girls, many of whom had been
abducted by the Lord’s Resistance
Army and used as sex slaves under
(Joseph) Kony’s leadership, I thought
about how blessed I am to have such a
good life,” McGeown said. “It both-
ered me that these young girls can’t
get what we in this country take for
granted. And I realized I needed to
help.”
Her destiny was set into motion.
SacredHeartSecondarySchoolisa
government-run, all-girls school.
While primary education in Uganda is
free, secondary schooling in only free
in theory to due to a lack of economic
resources. Beyond limited classroom
seats, fees such as those covering tu-
ition,uniforms,shoes,booksandscho-
lasticitemsrequiremoneymanygirls
don’t have, especially those orphaned
by LRA atrocities. This restricts the
nonprivileged from obtaining the sec-
ondary school education they need to
help themselves out of poverty.
McGeown became an advocate of
secondary education for girls in
Uganda by being instrumental in the
SacredHeartSecondarySchoolFund-
raising Project. “She’s always had a
heart for people with less than her,”
said her mother, Susan McGeown.
Grace McGeown recounts the
mixed emotions she encountered
coming of age with a girl from El Sal-
vador sponsored by her mother
through the agency World Vision. In a
small way, McGeown said, it was en-
joyable to see pictures of the things
the El Salvadorian girl bought
through her sponsorship, such as a
bed frame, dresser and dining room
set, but frustration countered that
feeling due to the unaffordability of
these basic items there in comparison
to the United States.
McGeown started by first putting
her own money where she felt her
calling was. She saved her checks
from working part time at Starbucks
as well as her allowances to put to-
ward the fundraising project. “I knew
I would make it back. I would feel
guilty spending it at a clothing store,”
said McGeown. Her $300 donation in-
spired her parents, grandmother and
Pastor Todd Buurstra of North Branch Reformed Church and Grace McGeown (right) listen as Debbie Rokosny, who works to
help fund education for girls in Uganda, speaks during a check-presentation ceremony. PHOTO COURTESY OF LINDA MAYERIK
Bridgewater teenager raises money for Ugandan girls’ education
By Nicole Billingslea
Editorial Intern
See POWER, Page B2
Todd B. Bates writes on environmental, weather
and other topics and their impact on New Jerseyans.
Read his blog on www.mycentraljersey.com.
EnviroGuy
SECTION B FRIDAY, JULY 5, 2013COURIER NEWS :: MYCENTRALJERSEY.COM
ocean&
monmouth
today
central
jersey
Eight area middle-school students
who finished the school year with strong
academic records and noteworthy con-
tributions to their schools and communi-
ties were recently recognized by Somer-
ville Elks Lodge 1068 with scholar-citi-
zen awards. The awards were given in
memory of Frank “Nap” Torpey, a com-
munity and civic leader whose contribu-
tions to the betterment of Somerset
County were numerous.
Thestudents,selectedbytheirprinci-
pals and teachers, each received $100
and certificates from the Elks and local
state legislators: Joshua Clarkson and
Kristin Ferrer, Somerville Middle
School; Ann Brunn and Andrew Simon,
Immaculate Conception School, Somer-
ville; Trisha Kaundinya and Tony Cola-
russo, Bridgewater-Raritan Middle
School; and Olivia Massey and Thomas
England, Branchburg Middle School.
“In addition to their solid classroom
work, these students showed the maturi-
ty, character and leadership that define
good citizenship,” said Somerville Elks
scholarship chairman Ron Czajkowski.
Safe Routes to School winners
Ridewise TMA announced recently
the recipients of the 2013 New Jersey
Safe Routes to School Recognition Pro-
gram. Schools and municipalities ap-
plied for gold, silver, bronze and First
Steprecognitionlevelsbasedoninvolve-
ment in the safety program. In Somerset
County, these applicants received recog-
nition awards for the 2012-2013 school
year:
» Somerville: Van Derveer Elemen-
tary School, Silver Award
» Manville: Roosevelt Elementary
School, Silver Award
» North Plainfield: Somerset Inter-
mediate School, Silver Award
» North Plainfield: Stony Brook Ele-
mentary School, Silver Award
» North Plainfield: West End Elemen-
tary School Silver Award
» Bound Brook: Lafayette Elemen-
tary School, First Step Award
» South Bound Brook: Robert Morris
School, First Step Award
Statewide,58applicantsreceivedrec-
ognition awards. A list of all recipients
can be found at www.saferoutesnj.org.
Somerset County received 12 percent of
all statewide recognition awards and
won 24 percent of all silver awards be-
stowed this school year.
The Safe Routes to School Program
EDUCATION
Somerville Elks recognize eight ‘Scholar Citizens’
Staff Report
See STUDENTS, Page B3
Members of the Union County College men’s and women’s track team were recently
honored with county resolutions congratulating the athletes on their achievements at the
National Junior College Athletic Association (Division III) championship games. At the
presentation (left to right) are college President Margaret McMenamin, county
Freeholders Bette Jane Kowalski and Alexander Mirabella, college athletes Casleny
Augustin of Rahway, Katie Lennon of New Providence and Petra Semelova of
Maplewood, and Tammy Smith, dean of college life.
PHOTO COURTESY OF JIM LOWNEY/COUNTY OF UNION
And, so, the midlife crisis has begun.
I turned the big 4-6 on Monday. Al-
though certain members of my family
(who shall remain nameless thanks to a
large monetary payoff) thought I was
turning 44.
Even after I produced my birth certif-
icate and state-issued identification.
“Are you
sure you’re not
44?”
Yes. Positive.
It’s not that I
don’t want to be
younger. (Al-
though on a
good day I’m
about12 mental-
ly.)
What really
scares me,
though,isIhada
midlife crisis at
23. (You do the math.)
I believe in the afterlife (there better
be, or all these harp lessons are going to
waste). I’m looking forward to eating
whatever I want (just like I do now), and
not gaining any weight (which is not what
happens now). I’m assuming there’s no
necessitytoworkinHeaven,sohopefully,
there’s no income tax, either. I’m one of
those journalists who doesn’t do math.
While I’m certainly not in a rush to get
tothePearlyGates(especiallyifI’mactu-
ally headed in the other direction), at the
risk of paying some sort of karmic price,
I’m anxious to be a fly on the wall at my
own funeral.
I can envision the mourners (or the
revelers, depending on who actually
shows up) now. (That’s because I’m on my
third cup of coffee of the day and already
wired beyond belief.)
A friend of mine likes to tell the story
of when I crashed at his house for a camp-
Welcome
to my
mid-life
crisis
By Brad Wadlow
@BradWadlowMyCJ
See EDGE, Page B2
Brad Wadlow

2. Page B2 Friday, July 5, 2013 Courier News MyCentralJersey.com
manager at Starbucks to
match her contribution.
On the third Sunday in
May, North Branch Re-
formedChurchwelcomed
McGeown to the pulpit.
She gave a speech on the
importance on education,
where she actualized
wealth disparities be-
tween the United States
and Uganda.
“I make more in two
weeks at Starbucks than
these people make in a
year,” she said.
In one of poorest coun-
tries in the world, 38 per-
cent of the population
lives on $1.25 per day. Tu-
ition and supplies for one
year of schooling can cost
about $100 a year.
“It’s really a tremen-
dous example for all of us
… to see her have such a
strong passion around
this issue and want to
stand up for it, and I get
the sense that it comes out
of her faith,” said Mark
Swart, pastor of disci-
pleship and youth
groups of North Branch
Reformed Church.
This school year, four
Ugandan girls will be
able to attend Sacred
Heart Secondary School
for four years, due to the
diligent prodding of
McGeown and the sup-
port of her family, youth
group and NBRC con-
gregants.
The schooling of two
additional girls for one
year is funded by the
Christian Mission Com-
mittee of NBRC.
After raising a total
of $2,710 for the project,
partial funding is also
available for another
girl’s tuition.
McGeown shows no
sign of slowing her ef-
forts to empower girls in
Uganda through educa-
tion, as the continuous
campaign for the Sacred
Heart Secondary School
is carried out through
Swart’s office.
POWER
Continued from Page B1
ing trip. The eyelid of my
prosthetic eye doesn’t
close, and when he woke
up in the middle of the
night and passed by the
sofawhereIwassleeping,
he found me “staring” at
him.
Just imagine how
much fun that’s going to
be at my viewing.
Oh, sure, I guess they
could sew it shut. Most
people want to start sew-
ing my mouth up now.
Which is why, in addi-
tion to harp lessons, I’m
learning how to be a ven-
triloquist.
Actually, in all serious-
ness (I know, that’s a rar-
ity for me), I’m not taking
lessons in either. There
isn’ttoomuchofaclamor-
ing for harp-playing ven-
triloquists. Then again,
there isn’t too much of a
calling for off-the-wall
columnists. Yet, here I sit.
Back to my midlife cri-
sis.
I’ve always wanted to
write the great American
novel. Most days, I can
barely manage to write
the great American para-
graph. And, every other
Thursday morning, about
five minutes before it‘s
due, I can barely manage
to fill out my great Amer-
icantimesheet,whichwas
probably made in Taiwan,
with my writing looking
something like Egyptian
hieroglyphics.
I’m hoping this will be
the year I finally kick
things up a notch, and that
things don’t actually kick
me back in the process.
Anyone out there in the
middle of a midlife crisis?
I can’t be the only one.
Whatareyoudoingtokick
things up a notch? What
do you feel stuck about?
Email me at
bwadlow@njpressmedia
.com and let me know.
In coming weeks, I’ll
try to offer suggestions
aboutwaystogetyourself
“unstuck.” I’m going to
start with not soaking my
fingers in rubber ce-
ment anymore and go
back to Palmolive.
Stay with me. Let’s
get through this togeth-
er.
And, please, pass me
the glue remover.
Brad Wadlow:
908-243-6604;
bwadlow@
njpressmedia.com.
Brad Wadlow’s “Over
the Edge” column
appears Fridays. Check
out his “Over the Edge”
blog on
mycentraljersey.com.
Follow him on Twitter:
@BradWadlowMyCJ.
EDGE
Continued from Page B1
To place your announcement visit
NJPressMedia.com/celebrations
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Happiness of
Birthdays!
Your message.
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Your schedule.
Order your Celebrations
announcement online!
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at your convenience.
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*Announcements appear in the Sunday edition of your choice.
AP-5000637278
While I’m away, read-
ers give the advice:
On support at its most
uncomplicated:
When I was deciding to
getadivorce,Ifeltembar-
rassed, ashamed, like a
failure. I will always re-
member how much the
following words from my
father meant to me. He
said, “I don’t know the
whole story, and I don’t
need to know, just know
that I am on your side no
matter what.” It was the
supportandloveIneeded.
Simple and to the point.
Sometimes that is all a
parent needs to say.
Grateful daughter
My parents brought
me to the funeral, my
first, of the father of some
kids on our swim team
when was I was about 10
or 11. I didn’t want to go,
but they dressed me up
smart, and my dad said:
“You have to go. It’s not
about us. It’s about the
surviving family. It’s a du-
ty we all share in life even
though unpleasant.”
When he said “you,” he
meant all of us, not me in
particular.
Itisirrelevantwhether
the kids knew the de-
ceased well or not. Funer-
als are for those of us who
continue on, to show the
survivors that they are
important to us — includ-
ing our children, who may
notunderstand—andthat
we stand with them in
their grief even though
there’s nothing we can do
for them now other than
show up. Showing up is
important.
B.
On being the lone single
at a gathering of cou-
ples:
A number of years ago,
our boss and his wife in-
vited seven of us to their
summer home for a week-
end. They hosted a party
to introduce us to family
andfriends.Theintroduc-
tions went like this:
This is Wendy, and she
is with with Rob, over
there. This is Jane, and
she is married to Tom, on
her right. This is Harry,
and he belongs to Betty,
over here. And next to her
is “Jenny” (me) and ... and
before he could say more,
oneofthewivessaid,“She
belongs to all of us.”
It was a fabulous week-
end with great friends.
Wonderful friends
On thin people who
complain about their
weight:
One response may be,
to suggest her true beau-
ty, “If only you could see
what I see.”
L.
If these women are
talking about themselves
like this now, almost cer-
tainly they will continue
after they have children.
And once their bodies
change, it is likely the
self-hate will increase.
From adolescence into
early adulthood, I went
from a little chubby to
seriously overweight.
My mother has always
been slender, and grow-
ing up, I frequently
heard her talk badly
about herself and her
looks.Whatwasthemes-
sage I got from that? If
she wasn’t good enough
the way she was, then I
definitely wasn’t.
She still doesn’t know
how her words and ac-
tions contributed to my
poor self-esteem. She
never knew that I strug-
gled with bulimia at a
few points in my life.
I still don’t have the
best self-image, but I’m
learning to appreciate
myself, flaws and all.
And one promise I have
made to myself is that I
will never speak about
myself that way in front
of my kids when I have
them.
S.
Email Carolyn at
tellme@washpost.com.
Support matters more than we know
Carolyn Hax
TELL ME ABOUT IT
FRANKLIN (Somerset) —
In 2012, the Somerset
Bears managed to get to
theBigEastFootballFed-
eration playoffs for the
second time in three
years, only to have lost in
the first round for for the
second time in three
years. But with the 2013
season on its way, new
head coach Lucio Morra
believes that it’s champi-
onship or bust in 2013.
“We’ve been close
enough to the champion-
ship every single year
that now is the time for us
to go up and over the hur-
dle to achieve what we’ve
been missing those years
this year,” Somerset
Bears Coach Lucio Morra
said.
“We got into the play-
offs last year, and a week
prior to game day, we’ve
only had 10 guys coming
to practice,” he said. “You
can’t do that.”
Morra’s coaching ca-
reerbeganfortheSomer-
set Bears as an offensive
coordinator in 2010. Since
stepping into the role as
head coach, Morra has
been teaching his current
players in OTA’s to re-
main focused on the
game, learn from previ-
ous mistakes and to guide
the new recruits coming
in.
“We do have a lot of
new faces this year who
are going to be a big help
to us and those veterans
who haven’t been coming
toOTA’swillsoonfindout
that their jobs are in jeop-
ardy due to the impres-
sive younger talent we’ve
seen,” Morra said.
One of those veteran
players is embarking on a
new role. James Estrella
will be the starting quar-
terback in 2013 — a posi-
tion Estrella got a chance
to feel out last year. He
said he feels a lot more
confident in being the
team’s leader.
“After starting the po-
sition last year, I was out
of shape, and it took me a
while to get back into bet-
ter physical condition-
ing,” Estrella said. “But
this year, I’ve been in the
best shape since high
school.”
“James is a very intel-
ligent quarterback; he
knows how to read de-
fenses, make adjust-
ments on the fly, he’s cool
under pressure and I
have all of the confidence
in the world with him,”
Morra said.
The Somerset Bears
went 6-4 last year ,rank-
ing third in the league for
most points scored (197),
and also ranked third in
most points given up,
with 163. That’s some-
thing that doesn’t sit well
with the team, and they
knowthere’sroomforim-
provement.
“This season thus far
has been taken a lot more
seriously than others
since day one,” said
BearslinebackerJonWil-
son. He led the Bears’ de-
fense last year with four
interceptions for 77-
yards and four touch-
downs.
“Coaches can talk to
the players until they’re
blue in the face, but when
you hear it from your
peers, that’s what make
you open your eyes and
realize it’s time to step
your game up,” he said.
“It’s plain and simple,
we want nothing less than
a championship this
year,” Morra said.
New head coach preps
Somerset Bears for season
By James McNamara
For the Courier News
In mid-June, the Rutgers Master Gar-
deners of Somerset and Hunterdon
counties completed their Seeds to Salad
program with third-graders at Whiton
Elementary school in Branchburg. The
second year of this program at this
school exceeded everyone’s expecta-
tions and resulted in two giant salads,
which fed all nine third-grade classes,
teachers and master gardener volun-
teers. Due to an excess of produce, dona-
tions were also made to the local food
pantry twice during the growing season.
It took many weeks of preparation to
reach the much-anticipated “Harvest
Day.” In early spring, volunteers — in-
cluding parents, employees from Home
Depot and master gardeners — doubled
the gardening capacity of the school by
planning and installing an additional
vegetable garden. This garden, along
with the raised beds created the previ-
ous year, allowed all third-grade classes
to visit their plots once a week instead of
every two weeks, enriching their gar-
dening knowledge and experience.
Not only did the children plant vari-
ous types of lettuce, radishes, beets, aru-
gula, Swiss chard, carrots, spinach and
onions, but they also were instructed in
how and why it is important to weed, thin
and transplant their crops as the plants
grew. Master gardeners also presented
weekly lectures about several topics
such as soil and soil temperature, “good
bugs/bad bugs,” worms, tropism and
more.
For many children, “Harvest Day”
was a highlight as they pulled up all the
vegetables they had grown, and shortly
after they enjoyed consuming them at
the “Salad Extravaganza” party. The
program was a hit with third-graders,
their teachers and volunteers alike. The
Rutgers Master Gardeners of Somerset
and Hunterdon counties are looking for-
ward to educating and inspiring next
year’s batch of students.
Rutgers Cooperative Extension is an
equalopportunityprogramproviderand
employer. Contact your local extension
office for information regarding special
needs or accommodations. Contact the
state extension director's office if you
have concerns related to discrimination:
848-932-3584.
Staff Report
Rutgers Master Gardeners Bob Schwartz (kneeling) and John Hosmer (standing) help the
Whiton students weed their gardens.
PHOTO COURTESY OF RUTGERS MASTER GARDENER MARYLIN HULME
‘Seeds to Salad’ team harvests bountiful crops
The Somerville Family
YMCA branch of the Som-
erset Valley YMCA is ex-
panding its child care pro-
gram to meet the commu-
nity’s changing needs,
addingahalf-daylearning
program and modified
full-day programs geared
toward teachers and shift
workers, with prices ad-
justed to the number of
hours their children need
care, according to an
agency news release.
Today’s tough econom-
ic climate has had an im-
pact on families, with
some parents losing their
jobs and others seeing
their hours reduced, ac-
cording to Robin Mc-
Clure, parenting book au-
thor and contributor to
About.com Child Care.
While they may not need
full-day extended care,
many still want their
young children in a quali-
ty, learning environment.
“We have found there
is a trend in our communi-
ty toward families need-
ing more flexibility to
meet their child care
needs. We are offering as
many options as we can to
meet those needs,’’ said
Kathleen Keane, director
of Children Services at
the Somerville YMCA.
Whileitwillcontinueto
provide full-day, extend-
ed care, which is from 7
a.m. to 6:30 p.m, the Som-
erville Family YMCA will
now also offer care from
8:45 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at a
reduced rate; afternoon
care for infants and tod-
dlers, from 11:45 a.m. to
6:30 p.m.; and a morning
program for toddlers
through preschool from 9
to 11:30 a.m. or 9 a.m. to 1
p.m. All have the option of
full- or part-time enroll-
ment to accommodate
parents who work part-
time, said Keane.
The Hillsborough
Family YMCA, a branch
of the Somerset Valley
YMCA, will continue to
provide full-day, extend-
ed child care.
The Somerville Fam-
ily YMCA is at 2 Green
St. For more informa-
tion on the program, call
oremailKathleenKeane
at 908-725-4567, ext. 622,
or kkelleyeane@ymca
somersetvalley.org.
The Hillsborough
Family YMCA is at 19 E.
Mountain Road. For
more information on the
earlychildhooddevelop-
ment program, contact
Lee Santaromita at 908-
369-1866, ext. 718, or
lsantaromita@ymca
somersetvalley.org.
‘Y’ responds to economy
Staff Report
YMCA teachers Silvana Bucciero and Carley Schoonover
with (left to right) Hitesh Hariharan, Nylah Patterson,
Collin Keane, Lily Galloway, Jeremiah Baker, Peyton
Akins, Arthur MacNeill. COURTESY OF SOMERSET VALLEY YMCA