Look who's active with the Suncoast NEA Retired!
This photo and an article about their efforts is on the NJREA Members Facebook page
Our November DEAR lunch was so enjoyable I forgot to take any pictures!
No date was set for the next but it won't be until 2024 (aka sometime in January, hopefully)
Bruce Smith's free Moorestown Band concert is going to be December 1st. All are welcome.
In other news, I saw a Facebook post questioning the middle school's history....when did it change from Chester Ave to Middle School? Was it ever Delran Junior High?
I tried to do some research. I didn't see anything about the high school execpt it opened for the '75-'76 school year. Presumably when that 9-12 building was in place, the Middle School covered grades 6-8. When I started in Delran at Millbridge in 71-72 it was K-6 (and the seond year it was open). I'm not sure when 6th grade moved to the Chester Avenue building and what it was called then.
While the Intermediate School was being built our 5th grade was at the Middle School for two years (Aronson Bell was closed and so was Cambridge I think. Millbridge was K-4 those years I guess). It opened in 1996.
I found this bit of school history for the pre-Intermediate School site on the Delran Historical Society web page: Bridgeboro Grammar School
If anyone has further insight into our school system's history, I would love to hear it! (When did you start and which building? What do you remember?)
One fragment of historical memory I have is the resentment I felt when they budgeted $300 for the Delran bear costume for the HS mascot and we in Millbridge didn't have any yellow construction paper. (That seems pretty petty in retrospect, now that I'm writing it!)
Happy Thanksgiving!
Wow. Time sure is going fast!
Summer ended, school started, we've had Halloween, elections, the NJEA/NJREA convention, and now Thanksgiving is staring us in the face.
That being said, we are looking forward to seeing our fellow retirees and friends Thursday, November 16th at Dooney's at 12:30.
DHS teacher and coach Vic Veston passed away on October 26, 2023.
May he rest in peace. Our condolences to his family and friends.
His obituary is here and also on a page called Delran High School Remembers which lists Delran High School obituaries and memoriams.
Relatives and friends are invited to Victor's viewing on Thursday, November 2, 2023 from 10AM-1PM at the Mount Laurel Home for Funerals, 212 Ark Road, Mount Laurel, NJ 08054. Funeral service to follow at 1PM. Interment private at the request of the family.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the National Kidney Foundation at and American Heart Association at .
Victor's service will be livestreamed at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgqHO67wpBsUSkgPDUxZiBw on Thursday, November 2, 2023 at 1PM.
It is with a heavy heart I inform you of the passing of Frank Gatti, the husband of our Delran colleague Margie.
May he rest in peace. Our sincere condolences to all the Gatti family and relatives and friends.
This is so amazing to me! I just saved my old MailChimp account from oblivion and in the process came across this list of archived messages. I feel like I'm going back in time and observing history. Memories, right? Click here if you want to see the list. and check out DEAR history.
Also here are some photos from our last lunch (Oct. 5th)
So it is Fall 2023, a rainy Saturday... I am working on an eblast for BCREA, promoting the upcoming Fall General Membership meeting and looking through photos of days gone by (so many photos...so little time!)
Here are some Delran folks at the BCREA Spring luncheon in 2013.... (Some of us are still around, some live only in memory....)
Unfortunately the September 13 DEAR lunch has been cancelled due to limited response. It looks like the summer diversions were still in effect for the majority of our Delran Retirees and Friends (DEAR Friends) group members. Hopefully October will prove more workable.
In other news, I bumped into former DIS computer teacher Shari Kauffman...dancing at Prospectors! Do you remember her?
Please feel free to comment below and keep in touch!
Hope you had an enjoyable summer!
I look forward to hearing all about your trips and adventures and changes that took place over the summer at our September 13th lunch meeting at Dooney's Pub (12:30).
If you can't make it, please fill us in on what's been going on with you by posting here and/or replying to my recent email. (Thanks in advance!)
Shout out to Suzanne Iannone: Happy birthday (Sept.9)!
I hope you are having a restful summer! It seems like everyone is keeping busy between moving and vacationing. At our last lunch we decided to skip meeting in August and set our next date for September 7th. Hope to see you there!
 |
| Small but happy group on July 20, 2023 |
Here is one I have of Marcia Konieczka and Hazel Solomon posing in front of Marcia's gorgeous and so impressive garden.
When I was still teaching, July 4th was the signal for the downhill race of summer vacation. Now that I'm retired every day is the same, so I can enjoy the celebration fully.
I hope everyone has been doing well and staying healthy (and, as of recently, staying cool on these hot days).
I have a picture from our last DEAR lunch and an invitation to all to our next one on July 20th.
Hope you can make it!
I also had the opportunity to attend the DEA Retirement lunch that same week. So many people I didn't know. I mostly concentrated my photos on our DEAR Friends group members and special people like Becky Smith and Kathryn Schneider.
Here's my photo collection from that day.
Just a few news bits. Congratulations to Bruce and Rosemary for finding their new home. Condolences to Ron Caracci for the passing of his ex-wife.
Please feel free to add any photos or news bits that you have to share by commenting on this post or writing to me.
This is a photo of our retired colleague Mary Anninos with her husband, Peter. I think it is from 1995, possibly at her retirement. (?)
Sadly, Hazel wrote to me today and asked me to let you know that Peter passed away on May 13th.
Our condolences to Mary and her family. May he rest in peace.
 |
| Peter and Mary Anninos |
A good time was had by all!
 |
| Marcia, Jimmy and Rosina, Susan, Ginny, Karen, Judy, Roberta, Bruce and Rosemary |
Found photo:
I'm looking forward to seeing everybody at our next lunch on May 4th.
Meanwhile, I recently checked in with Marge Gessmann and she shared a photo from Florida -
with this comment:
Nancy Fanelli lives in the same complex we do. Barb Doreste and Ruth Feldman live nearby. Ruth is still teaching but her husband retired and lives here full time. He’s waiting for her to retire.
We met at Dooney's in Delran for the first time in 2023 on April 5th. It was good to see everyone and share greetings from those who couldn't join us as well.
Here are some photos- the first since the shutterfly share site shutdown.
We had the Smiths, the Anthonys, the Ianonnes, Judy Harrington, Kris Minnix, Marcia Konieczka, Ginny Morales, and me.
First I had stopped at a nearby pizza place to say hi to Ron Caracci and Kathryn Schneider (on her earlier lunch break).
We had a good time catching up and eating.
Happy Passover and Easter. May the fourth be with you! (That's our next meeting date - Thursday, May 4th. Hope to see you there!)
We finally have a lunch date set after all these months and we are looking forward to getting together at long last.
Please note that many of the links on former posts on this blog will not work, due to the closing of Shutterfly's share sites. :-(
How's your winter been? Although I remember snow here in April once years ago, I think I am safe to say that here in the Delran area this winter has been basically snow free and I am not sorry about that.
Guess what I got a few days ago? The NJ ANCHOR $1500! You? Nice surprise. (For those of you not involved anymore, that's the latest version of property tax relief in our state).
How are you all doing? Feel free to comment below and catch us up on you!
Jennie Wallace wrote asking if I remembered the name of a "short Italian woman" who used to teach at Millbridge.
Are you surprised that I had photos? Check out these four "Picture Day teachers group" pictures. Some of you were there! :-)
https://photos.app.goo.gl/KUnAt5FEDNpdvuVT6
I hope that helps her!
Meanwhile, hello and happy 2023. I was sorry to have to miss the last DEAR friends lunch, but I heard you all carried on happily without me....but no photos to prove it! :-(
No date has been picked for next time....possibly late February when tax season slows down a bit....
What's been going on with all y'all?
If you're stuck at home during the winter months and are looking for something to do or learn about I have information to share! The State of NJ has partnered with a program called "Get Set Up!" that offers FREE! (because NJ is paying!) sessions on a variety of topics...live and "encore videos". It's definitely worth checking out, in my opinion!
Here's a photo from the past....
I just found out purely by accident that my friend and former BCEA officer, Rose Muriel Rains, passed away January 9, 2021. I hadn't seen her in years and it re-emphasizes to me why it is so important to keep in touch with our former colleagues and friends.
Muriel taught in Burlington City. She was soft-spoken, sweet, kind, a caring teacher, and a strong Association advocate.
I have very fond memories of working with her. May she rest in peace.
With the new year comes sad news - the passing on Christmas Day of our friend and colleague Louise Aldrich. May she rest in peace.
I hope all of you are staying safe and healthy and happily looking forward to good things happening in the coming year.
I hope for some of you the good things include lunching with us at our monthly gatherings.
This month it is Wednesday, January 11th, 12:30 p.m. at Dooney's Pub in Delran. Hope to see you there!
For everyone out of the Delran area these days, we are with you in thought and would love to hear about how you are faring.
Here's a recent sample of DEAR friends getting together in Florida.
Janet Pilvalis and Marge Gessmann
Anyone else have photos to share?
