Research Scientists Wish They Had More Brains

Mysteries of the Mind Part 1, Wanted: Your Brain

Jeff Stoffer

DEC 17, 2019

American Legion Magazine

Research scientists in Boston wish they had more brains.

One they can expect is that of a former Harvard University football player who wants to know,

preferably before he dies, exactly what happened inside his skull after he was kicked in the head during a professional wrestling match in 2003.

A brain the researchers have already examined came from a Navy Special Warfare veteran who lost his battle with head injuries in September 2018, to suicide.

The scientists, the former athlete and the surviving wife of the 25-year retired Navy chief are making the same uneasy ask. They want anyone who is willing to donate that most complex and mysterious of organs, regardless of its condition or how it functioned during life, so more can be learned to prevent and treat brain injury and disease. While their primary targets are former football players and military veterans, they

will take –

and need

– all the brains they can get because the more they have, the more can be learned to improve chances to save lives in the future.

“It’s not like a normal organ donation, which doesn’t include the brain,” says Nicole Condrey of Middletown, Ohio, who endured her husband’s downward churn through a three-year storm of traumatic brain injury issues – depression, anger, impulsiveness, withdrawal, suicidality – until he shot himself in the chest while holding her hand, in their RV, their service dog nearby, a week before they were supposed to close on their first home together.

Hours after his death, Nicole got a call from former Navy SEAL and author Jason Redman, who asked, on behalf of the Concussion Legacy Foundation (CLF), if she would donate her husband’s brain. “I said, ‘Absolutely. We need to get his brain in.’

“The (CLF) is working to raise awareness that you can pledge to donate your brain separately through

projectenlist.org

. They don’t just need veterans’ brains. They don’t just need athletes’ brains, because in science you need a baseline. They need anybody’s brain. I have pledged to donate my brain to science when I die. You have to tell your family and your loved ones. Ultimately, the next of kin are the ones who have to make that decision … I do know that they do not collect early.”

The CLF was co-founded in 2007 by Chris Nowinski, who played football in high school and four years at Harvard as a defensive tackle before he entered the WWE arena as “Chris Harvard,” a chiseled 270-pound, 6-foot-5 competitor who typically wore an H letter jacket as part of his shtick. Three years of training, heavy travel and regular blows to the head ended his career on the circuit a few weeks after a kick from “Bubba Ray Dudley” put him on his back in Hartford, Conn. “Something was wrong with my vision,” he later wrote of that moment. “I didn’t know where I was, what was happening around me, or why I was staring up at fuzzy-looking lights on the distant ceiling of a gigantic arena – I only knew that something was terribly wrong.”

He wrestled a few more times following that, battling painfully through whatever was suddenly wrong with his head, until it was obvious he could not continue. At that point, he set his rewired mind to a better understanding of concussions and their effects. His 2006 book “Head Games” is now in its third edition and was the subject of a documentary that explored the effects of concussions among football players, which made headlines in

The New York Times

, led to congressional hearings and influenced changes in the game.

“I was fearless,” says Nowinski, who now has a Ph.D. in behavioral neuroscience. “When I give lectures on neuroscience, I show how crazy I was with my own brain. I let people hit me in the head with chairs and objects. The head butt was my move in football. I have two bad shoulders, so I hit you with my head. I did things that I regret.”

He regrets them now but had no idea at the time that multiple blows to the head had probably damaged his tau – a protein that holds certain brain cells together so they can deliver messages that affect executive functions, mood, vision, sleep and other operations among a mind-boggling list of tau-assisted responsibilities. He had no idea then, nor is he sure now, that he was confronting the degenerative brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which cannot yet be detected among the living. Its presence can only be confirmed through laboratory examination of a sufferer’s brain tissue.

Identification of CTE before death is one goal of the Concussion Legacy Foundation and pioneering neuropathologist Ann McKee of VA and Boston University, who runs the VA-BU-CLF Brain Bank at the Jamaica Plain campus of the VA Boston Healthcare System. The bank opened 25 years ago as a two-person lab at the Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Hospital – the Bedford, Mass., VA medical center – and studied donated brains to seek answers about such conditions as Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

Over the past decade, largely due to Nowinski’s persistence, the brain bank has evolved, grown and captured national attention. The brains of former National Football League (NFL) players who suffered severe and often deadly effects of post-concussive syndrome following their careers have been examined, one after another, by McKee and her team. The program has grown to four neuropathologists, four technicians and 20 other staff members, supported by VA. They now have more than 1,100 donated brains in the bank, which are studied for multiple conditions.

In most cases, especially early, the growing number of football player brains came after Nowinski cold-called families to make the uneasy ask. As NFL families agreed to have their loved ones’ brains studied, evidence mounted. Four of the first four had CTE. Now, out of 111 former NFL players’ brains studied by McKee, CTE has been identified in 110. Among them was the high-profile case of former New England Patriots star tight end Aaron Hernandez, who in 2017 died by suicide in a jail cell at 27 following a highly publicized murder conviction and a string of irrational acts. “I was stunned that Aaron Hernandez had so much disease,” McKee said. “For some reason, you think it’s not going to happen. And then it does.”

Traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder have been called the “signature wounds” among post-9/11 veterans. Blasts from improvised explosive devices, crashes, falls and other blows to the head have come with the territory of training and fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. Ron Condrey did not have any one major head injury, his wife explains, but he sustained multiple concussive events over the years, perhaps 20 in all.

“He had a motorcycle accident during his Navy training,” Nicole says. “I think that was the start to a lot of things. After that, he fell down a mountain in Afghanistan on some mission. He had a Humvee roll over. He had a helicopter crash. As an EOD (explosive ordnance disposal) tech, you’re around explosives. Repeatedly, over and over throughout his career. Big ones. Small ones. You have one (concussion) and then the next one compounds itself, and then the next one and the next one. Individually, he might have been OK had he only had one.”

A Notre Dame-educated electrical engineer, Nicole had been a civilian IED countermeasures analyst for the U.S. Army in Afghanistan. Ron, who had been committed to the Navy since 17, was a beloved combat leader and highly trained paratrooper. Their paths never crossed in theater, but they found each other in 2013 when she was trying to get her initial skydiving license in Suffolk, Va. He was an experienced trainer, and they soon discovered they had more than jumping out of airplanes as a common interest. “We both kind of dealt with IEDs in different ways, but we never met each other until later. When we did, we had a lot of similar connections.”

Ron had been jumping for more than 15 years, and pushed Nicole to keep training and working to become a master skydiver. “I was his apprentice, you might say,” she says.

They loved extreme outdoor recreation, and each other. By the time they married July 30, 2015, however, Ron had already shown signs of brain injury, including a suicide attempt earlier that year. “It was a pretty bad one. His buddies came and said, ‘Hey, we need to get him help.’ I’d been trying to get them to understand for a while that there was something going on with his brain. It took a suicide attempt. He was still in the Navy at the time. They said, ‘Yeah, we should intervene.’”

He enrolled in DoD treatment programs in Portsmouth, Va., and Bethesda, Md. Nicole accompanied him to appointments in the early months of their marriage. Soon, it was clear he needed to get out of the Navy, perhaps with a medical discharge, but he had enough years to retire in May 2017.

By that time, she explained, his condition was plummeting. “It was like a roller coaster. I’m sure anyone who has been a caregiver, or a spouse or a loved one – someone going through this – could tell you the same story. One day, he could be doing really great and the next day just in the dumps. Or one hour doing great and the next hour not.”

That’s when they were given Via, a trained service dog. “Ron really liked a lot of the Latin words that are used in the military,” Nicole says of her name. “Via directly translates to ‘road’ or ‘street.’ But it can also have the meaning of journey or path. So we picked that name because she was an important part of Ron’s journey.”

Initially diagnosed with major depressive disorder, “which stems directly from the traumatic brain injuries and the post-traumatic stress,” she explains, Ron’s condition was later characterized by VA as PTSD with some TBI, and he was given a 100 percent disability rating. “Lots of different meds,” she recalls. “And the meds make you gain weight. For a warrior to gain weight, it’s a sign of weakness. He felt even worse, and his view of himself went down the tube even more.”

She says he tried prolonged exposure treatment, but that wasn’t effective because Ron had no single triggering event. “The idea is that there is an event that is really haunting you or bothering you on a regular basis. For Ron, he was a warrior. He expected to see everything he saw. There wasn’t one event. But they really wanted to help him with his post-traumatic stress. Prolonged exposure was the key, or so they said. He got worse. There wasn’t

event for Ron. There were events, but they happened to his brain, concussively, not his psychological state.”

By that time, Nowinski, McKee and the VA-BU-CLF Brain Bank were advancing scientific understanding of the links between concussions and psychological behavior. More and more brains were coming in, particularly from former athletes, and a growing number from veterans who had been diagnosed with TBI and PTSD, which are studied together and separately for the presence, or not, of CTE.

“Traumatic brain injury can be an acute injury – a blow to the head, a subdural or epidural (bleed) – and it can be a major injury with loss of consciousness, amnesia, neurological deficits,” McKee says. “Or it can be a mild injury. There are all types of severities – mild, moderate and severe. Mild TBI is what I am primarily concerned with. You don’t see a bruise. There is no blood on their scalp or anything. It’s a subtle injury, but it can have long-term consequences. What we know from our research now is that if you sustain these mild TBIs – enough of them over a long period of time – it dramatically increases your risk for … CTE. It’s like the brain gradually breaks down, bit by bit.

“A TBI is like a car accident. A car accident can be a big accident. It can be a small accident. A mild TBI, or a concussion, is more like you’ve got a car on a really bumpy road, and you just keep driving on it, and your car slowly breaks down. It’s a long-term consequence – subtle damage that occurs over years.

“PTSD is a complex set of symptoms. They can be sleep difficulties, anxiety, all sorts of things. And it is usually related to trauma. The trauma doesn’t have to be physical. It doesn’t have to be a TBI. It can be psychological trauma. It can be sexual trauma. What we have found is that individuals exposed to trauma – psychological or even physical trauma – develop PTSD, which is this well-defined but complex set of symptoms. So, how does this fit in with TBI and CTE? How can you compartmentalize those? It’s not easy, and we are still working on it. There are people with PTSD and no trauma, PTSD and no CTE, and we also know – because we have a big brain bank here for PTSD – that some of those cases have CTE.”

“For them to stamp PTSD on his medical record, it was all they knew how to diagnose,” Nicole says of her husband’s situation. “The problem is, how do you really diagnose it? The symptoms are so similar.”

One therapy that seemed to work was skydiving. “It was something physical he could repeatedly do,” Nicole says. “In theory, it was supposed to help his brain recover and heal.”

Moreover, she adds, “He was really good at skydiving. He loved it, and he loved giving back.” He had more than 5,000 recorded jumps over his career. He’d also been booked to do demonstration jumps at various venues, including Soldier Field in Chicago – 10 of which he did with Via. “She doesn’t like the plane much,” Nicole says of their skydiving service dog. “But the second she gets out of the plane, it’s like any dog putting its head out the car window.”

The stars were thus aligned for the Condreys to pack up and move to Middletown, home of Team Fastrax, which teaches skydiving, performs demonstration jumps at big events – typically involving huge U.S. flags – and competes against other skydiving teams around the world. It was something they could do together, especially after they saw the team’s annual Warrior Weekend to Remember event where Gold Star Families and disabled veterans gather for a weekend of skydiving and camaraderie.

“If you’re a combat-disabled veteran, you jump for free,” Nicole says. “We were in it to inspire people and be a part of the community, and get people to get outside their comfort zones and do great things.”

Ron’s condition, however, worsened as his neurons continued to misfire. “Ron was in a really bad state the last six months. He actually got to the point where he stopped jumping. He didn’t enjoy anything about it anymore. And this is something you see in people who can be depressed. They don’t enjoy the things they loved to do before. He was a recluse. He didn’t go out at all. He would push everyone away, including me and his service dog … and we were keeping him alive at the time.”

In late August 2018, he checked into a private-sector retreat for veterans. He came home with a sudden appreciation for everything around him. “He was a totally different man. I was euphoric, but I had this feeling in my gut that I couldn’t pinpoint.”

A few days later, the euphoria was gone. The roller coaster descended, fast. As for the retreat, “I think Ron got there too late. He had gotten so far into that hole without getting back up, it just took one more bad place, one more bad moment, for him to not see his way out of it. His brain wasn’t thinking logically at that time.”

It was about 4 in the afternoon when he pulled the trigger. “I can’t tell you why that day,” she says. She called 911 and then the Team Fastrax hangar. “They were here for me. I have an extended family that has been through a lot with me.”

The decision to donate his brain to the bank came without hesitation. “Ron wanted to give back to veterans in every way he could, so it was just a clear fit, something that could last.”

“It’s terrible to lose these guys,” Nowinski says. “If we can do anything to stem the tide … so many people are committed to suicide-prevention campaigns, but it still happens. We need to understand how we can do more to help.

“We have learned more about our brains in the last decade than we have in all of human history,” he adds. “The brain is the last great frontier. It’s so complex. We are only beginning to understand its complexity. So sometimes the only way to really appreciate it, since it’s hidden inside of our skull, is to actually look at it under a microscope after somebody has passed away. What’s been amazing, doing this work for a decade now with the most amazing researchers in the world at VA and Boston University, is that we make breakthroughs every year, because this work hasn’t been done before.”

New rules about helmet-to-helmet hits, player suspensions for multiple such penalties, warning posters in locker rooms, research and development of safer helmets, and regulations about returning players to the field after concussions are among the steps football has taken since the CLF was established. “Football is dramatically safer today than when I played it,” Nowinski says. “We are not doing all the stupid things we did back then. (But) the reality is, we are still creating CTE in people’s brains.” He says raising the age limit for tackle football can help by reducing the number of years a player is exposed to repeated blows to the head.

“Football is not the problem,” he says. “It’s too much football. I think the future of football is non-tackle versions until high school.” Adult athletes – as with firefighters, police officers and military personnel who risk head injury but understand the risks, Nowinski says – are different from children who often start cracking heads with one another on the gridiron as young as 5.

The route between head injuries and CTE is different for military personnel, McKee says, but they commonly lead to the same destination. “What I can say about military veterans who have been exposed to either blast or concussive trauma is that it’s not as predictable as football. Football tends to be a relatively stereotyped exposure. They tend to do relatively the same things every time they go out and play. But a military person, a veteran – it’s pretty random. Are they in combat? Are they not? Where are they in combat? What are their exposures? Were they driving down the road where there was a blast? Where were they standing or where were they sitting in relationship to the exposure? There are so many variables. It’s much more complex.”

Scanning and imaging technology can only go so far to detect and understand brain disease, McKee says. More is learned by cutting into brains and carefully studying their conditions after death.

“I could never have seen (CTE) using an imaging technique. You can only find, in imaging, what you are looking for. You have to know what you are looking for, target it and find it. There is exploration and discovery in neuropathology that is not possible with neuroimaging.”

The research, Nicole says, can provide guidance for the military before assignments that may include exposure to head trauma. “Right now, the military is not doing neuro-psych evals on entry for EOD techs,” she says. “We have to have a baseline … when they first get into the military, into sports, whatever it might be. All of our brains are different. Then, throughout someone’s career, if they have had an injury to the brain, they need to be tested again. Regularly. If we were able to do it regularly, we could stop it earlier. Ultimately, the goal is keeping people from getting long-lasting TBI symptoms. The research and the data are extremely important, the end goal being that we don’t get people in that state.”

Nowinski adds, “If we change how we play sports and how we conduct military training, we can create better outcomes.”

Treatment of CTE’s effects depends on seeing it in the first place, McKee says. “The basic cornerstone of treatment is detection … during life. If we can do that – if we have a biomarker, something in the blood or saliva or spinal fluid, or if we have an imaging technique that can pick up CTE – then we can treat it. We would have lots of ideas how to treat it. We have anti-tau therapeutics. There are anti-inflammatory therapeutics. There’s a gamut of possibilities.”

To get there, it’s going to take donated brains, she says. “It’s very important to have the brains. That informs us how to do the detection.”

“I think (the brain) is more powerful than we have any idea about,” Nicole explains. “It’s also susceptible. It’s fragile. We can do great things with our brains, but if we don’t protect it, if we have a concussive incident, we need to be sure to take a timeout and step away from that activity before we go back into it again.

“If we do something else again right away and get another concussion, our brain is going to have a much harder time healing. Learning more about our brains and what can happen to them is extremely important, so we can be those fully functioning warriors.”

“We are now honestly addressing the issue,” Nowinski says. “We have a tremendous opportunity to prevent this problem going forward by changing what we’re doing. But also, there are generations of people dealing with this disease, whether they are athletes or veterans, and we don’t have an answer for them. We need to invest in research so we can create better answers.”

To that end, Nicole says she is driven to help CLF make the uneasy ask. “I am taking Ron’s spirit with me in all of this,” she says. “I would call it a passion because I loved him so much.”

Adding military, veteran and control brains to the bank will “help us solve this problem,” Nowinski says. “Go to

projectenlist.org

and sign up to pledge your brain. Follow the instructions. Hopefully, we won’t get your brain for a very long time, but you will be part of an important mission going forward to cure this.”

There is no cost, he adds, and every family gets a full report of the findings. “We treat every family like our own.

“I now look back and realize I was very lucky to get kicked in the head by Bubba Ray Dudley in that wrestling match in 2003. It has allowed me to do work that I am passionate about. And this work is helping people.”

Jeff Stoffer is editor of

The American Legion Magazine

SAY “I DO” WITH THE KIMMEL CENTER CULTURAL CAMPUS & GARCES EVENTS

– IN THE KIMMEL CENTER’S HAMILTON ROOFTOP GARDEN

Elopement Package with Champagne Toast, Décor, Light Bites, Professional Photography, Officiant, and more Winner of The Knot’s “Best of Weddings” 2-years-running

(Philadelphia, PA, February 6, 2020) – Garces Events and the Kimmel Center Cultural Campus are excited to announce the second consecutive “Vows with a View,” an intimate and all-inclusive elopement/vow renewal package for five lucky couples on Saturday, June 20, 2020, at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts’ Hamilton Rooftop Garden, voted “Best of Weddings, 2019” and “Best of Weddings, 2020” by The Knot. For a modern way to say “I do,” this elopement package is a one-day-only event for friends and family to toast to the newlyweds with bubbles and bites from the award-winning Garces Catering team while overlooking the Avenue of the Arts.

In partnership with the Kimmel Center Cultural Campus and Garces Events, NBC10 is hosting a giveaway, including the 10 am “Vows with a View” wedding time slot, along with VIP tickets to the Hello, Dolly!, part of the Kimmel Center’s Broadway series. The giveaway runs through Thursday, February 13, 2020. Go to

NBC10.com/contests

to enter.

“Following the success of last fall’s first-ever ‘Vows with a View’ elopement event, the Kimmel Center Cultural Campus is thrilled to again join our partners at Garces Events to celebrate the love stories of five more couples, this time in the most popular of all wedding months – June!” said Ed Cambron, Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President of the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. “As we combine ovation-worthy weddings with the natural excitement of an elopement, what better way to build this tradition than to give away a free wedding? Thank you to our partners at NBC10, who are hosting this onc

“Vows with a View is a truly unique event for couples looking to elope that affords them the opportunity to celebrate their love with key elements that make a traditional wedding—mouth-watering food and stunning venue—without the long-term planning,” says Chef Jose Garces. “We’re eager to bring Garces Events’ award-winning cuisine to this year’s lucky couples for an unforgettable experience.” Garces Events is the only chef-driven caterer in the city and the exclusive caterer for Kimmel Events, which includes the Hamilton Rooftop Garden, a high tech, multi-purpose space for special events, featuring a 6,200-square-foot hardwood maple floor and breathtaking views of the Philadelphia skyline.

Garces Events is the only chef-driven caterer in the city and the exclusive caterer for Kimmel Events, which includes the Hamilton Rooftop Garden, a high tech, multi-purpose space for special events, featuring a 6,200-square-foot hardwood maple floor and breathtaking views of the Philadelphia skyline. Additionally, Garces Events offers their services in nine exclusive unique locations while integrating their impeccable hospitality and award-winning cuisine.

The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts was selected as a 2020 winner of The Knot Best of Weddings, an accolade representing the highest- and most-rated wedding professionals as reviewed by real couples, their families and wedding guests on The Knot, a leading wedding planning brand and app. This is the third year the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts has been named a winner of The Knot Best of Weddings awards, having received the honor in 2017 and 2019.

In 2020, only five percent of hundreds of thousands of local wedding professionals listed on The Knot received this distinguished award. In its fourteenth annual year, The Knot continues its longstanding tradition of supporting local wedding vendors with The Knot Best of Weddings 2020, an annual by couples, for-couples guide to the top wedding professionals across the country. To determine the winners, The Knot analyzed its millions of user reviews across various vendor categories, including venues, musicians, florists, photographers, caterers and more, to find the highest rated vendors of the year. These winners represent the best of the best wedding professionals that engaged couples should consider booking for their own unique wedding.

EPA Releases 2019 Year in Review Highlighting Accomplishments/Environmental Progress

under President Trump & Administrator Andrew Wheeler

NEW YORK (Feb., 2020) –

Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released the

2019 Year in Review

outlining major accomplishments and environmental progress during the Trump administration.

“Under President Trump, we have fulfilled many promises to the American people to address some of our most important environmental and human health challenges while unleashing the economy and fostering innovation,”

said EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler.

“In 2019, EPA deleted 27 Superfund sites – the largest number of sites deleted from the National Priorities List since FY 2001 – and proposed the first update to the Lead and Copper Rule in nearly three decades. Since the beginning of the administration, EPA has finalized 49 deregulatory actions saving Americans more than $5 billion in regulatory costs and re-designated 35 areas around the country, moving them into attainment with federal air quality standards and lifting major regulatory burdens off local businesses. As we celebrate our 50th year of EPA, I am honored to lead an agency with such a successful record.”

“Our annual report reflects the hard work of the dedicated staff of Region 2 to engage in the broader community to support EPA’s vital mission of protecting human health and the environment,”

said EPA Regional Administrator Pete Lopez.

“While we are proud of our accomplishments to keep air, water and land clean and tackle new challenges across the diverse region we serve, we are committed to redoubling our collective efforts to achieve even greater environmental results.”

EPA accomplishments include:

Finalizing 16 deregulatory actions, saving Americans more than $1.5 billion in regulatory costs.

Inviting 38 new projects in 18 states to apply for WIFIA loans totaling $6 billion dollars to help finance over $12 billion dollars in water infrastructure investments and create up to 200,000 jobs.

Finalizing the Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) rule – replacing the prior administration’s overreaching Clean Power Plan – which is projected to result in annual net benefits of $120 – 730 million along with a reduction in CO2 emission from the electric sector fall by as much as 35 percent below 2005 levels in 2030.

Providing $64.6 million to 151 communities with Brownfields grants, which will provide communities with funding to assess, clean up, and redevelop underutilized properties. 108 of those communities – over 70 percent – had identified sites or targeted areas within Opportunity Zones.

Securing the investment of over $4.4 billion in actions and equipment that achieve compliance with the law and control pollution, an increase of over $400 million from FY 2018.

Signing a directive to prioritize agency efforts to reduce animal testing including reducing mammal study requests and funding by 30 percent by 2025 and eliminating them by 2035.

Advancing EPA’s PFAS Action Plan – the first multi-media, multi-program, national research, management, and risk communication plan to address an emerging contamination of concern like PFAS. In 2019, EPA sent the proposed regulatory determination under the Safe Drinking Water Act for PFOA and PFOS in drinking water to the Office of Management and Budget for interagency review, validated a new test method to identify additional PFAS compounds in drinking water, issued Interim Recommendations for Addressing Groundwater Contaminated with PFOA and PFOS under federal cleanup programs, and announced the availability of nearly $5 million for new research on PFAS in agriculture.

Awarding 36 environmental education regional grants in 25 states totaling more than $3 million.

Launching Smart Sectors program in all ten regional offices covering a variety of sectors including agriculture, forestry, mining, oil and gas, cement, and concrete.

Click here to read the full report: Here’s the link:

https://www.epa.gov/newsroom/epa-year-review-2019

Follow EPA Region 2 on Twitter at

Tweets by EPAregion2

and visit our Facebook page,

http://facebook.com/eparegion2

What Makes A School Great

(NAPSI)—Great learning environments elude easy definitions. They come in all different shapes—traditional public schools, public magnet schools, public charter schools, private schools, online academies, and homeschooling programs. Perhaps the best definition is this: A great school is one in which students are academically challenged, equipped to be a good citizens and persons, and inspired to greatness.

Because children are different, you can best find a great school for your child when you have diverse options to consider. That could mean open enrollment in a public school outside of your “zone” so your child stays connected with an important peer group. It could mean a charter school focusing on classical education or a magnet school that lets students shadow medical professionals. Maybe it’s learning at an accelerated pace at home or through online coursework, or in a private school that shares your values.

It’s parents who really decide whether a school is good or even great, based on their children’s needs and interests. What might be an excellent learning environment for one child might not be a good fit for another.

That’s one reason National School Choice Week, Jan. 26 through Feb 1, 2020, is important. It raises awareness among parents of their K-12 education options. It’s celebrated by teachers, school leaders, parents, students, and community leaders at 50,000 events and activities.

This National School Choice Week, I encourage all families to explore their education options. You can start, and discover the choices available to you, at

www.schoolchoiceweek.com/mystate/

•

Mr. Campanella is president of National School Choice Week and the author of “The School Choice Roadmap: 7 Steps to Finding the Right School for Your Child.”

Philly\’s Signature Sandwiches: Cheesesteaks, Hoagies & Roast Pork

A History & Love Story Between A Proud City & Its Delicious Inventions

PHILADELPHIA PA –Here in Philly, cheesesteaks, hoagies and roast pork sandwiches are civic icons, tourist draws, cultural obsessions — and, most importantly, beloved meals. A visit to the city would be incomplete without a dive into the distinct, no-forks-required specialties that make this “America’s Best Sandwich City,” as

Saveur

magazine declared. Here’s the lowdown on the holy trio of Philadelphia’s between-bread icons:

Cheesesteak

What Is It?

A cheesesteak — always one word — consists of a long, crusty roll filled with thinly sliced, freshly sautéed ribeye beef and melted cheese. The art of cheesesteak preparation lies in the balance of flavors, textures and what is often referred to as the drip factor. For many fans, the definitive cheese of choice is Cheez Whiz

, but American and provolone are widely accepted alternatives. Other common toppings include sautéed onions, cooked mushrooms, ketchup and sweet or hot — “long hots” — peppers.

The History:

The origin of the cheesesteak dates back to 1930, when, during one fateful lunch hour, South Philly hot dog vendor Pat Olivieri slapped some beef from the butcher on his grill. A cabbie driving by sniffed something delicious, leaned out his window and requested his own. It didn’t take long for news of the creation to spread. Other taxi drivers came to Olivieri demanding their own steak sandwiches. Soon after, the vendor opened a permanent shop on 9th Street and Passyunk Avenue,

Pat’s King of Steaks,

to sell his invention to the masses. Pat’s grills now sizzle 24 hours a day. So do the grills at

Geno’s Steaks,

Pat’s across-the-street-rival that opened in 1966. Geno’s late owner claims to have first added cheese to the sandwich. For more than half a century, Pat’s and Geno’s have waged a (mostly) friendly competition, with visitors often ordering from both shops to see which they deem the winner.

Where To Eat One:

Nearly every pizza or sandwich shop on any corner of every Philly neighborhood serves up the casual delicacy. Here are a few notable spots in Center City and beyond, but, first, a lesson on ordering. Those who crave a cheesesteak must first consider two critical questions: What kind of cheese? Onions or no onions? Those who want Cheez Whiz and onions, ask for a “Whiz Wit.” Those who want provolone without onions, ask for a “Provolone Witout.”

Chubby’s Steaks

is a worthy entry in the cheesesteak smackdown that is Henry Avenue near Walnut Lane in Roxborough, where a cluster of cheesesteak and pizza joints rivals those at 9th and Passyunk. Chubby’s has all the variations, plus a full bar. 5826 Henry Avenue, (215) 487-2575,

chubbyssteaks.com

Cosmi’s Deli

has the look of a corner market — and the cheesesteak cred of a champion. The hoagies here are equally lauded. 1501 S. 8th Street, (215) 468-6093

Dalessandro’s

lays claim to the hearts and stomachs of Roxborough and Manayunk residents with its signature steak, chopped much finer than many of its South Philly compatriots. 600 Wendover Street (at Henry Avenue), (215) 482-5407,

dalessandros.com

Geno’s Steaks,

across the street from the oldest cheesesteak joint in town, is a formidable, fluorescent-lit competitor that’s gone roll for roll with Pat’s for more than a half-century. 9th Street & Passyunk Avenue, (215) 389-0659,

genosteaks.com

Jim’s South Street

has been under the same ownership and drawing crowds since 1976. Lines get lengthy on weekends and before and after football games; there’s seating on the second floor — and beer too. 400 South Street, (215) 928-1911,

jimssouthstreet.com

The Marino Bros.

has wit, witout, Whiz and provolone at the ready to drape over rib-eye or chicken inside the food court at the historic Bourse building, steps from Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell. Fries and beer are also on offer. 111 S. Independence Mall East,

themarinobros.com

Pat’s King of Steaks,

the undisputed birthplace and home of the cheesesteak, is still owned and operated by the Olivieri family. 9th Street & Passyunk Avenue, (215) 468-1546,

patskingofsteaks.com

Roxborough Seafood House

adds an extraordinary variation to the cheesesteak game: the grilled salmon cheesesteak, piled with peppers and onions, mozzarella and American cheese. A two-pound version comes with fried shrimp and special sauce. 601 Jamestown Avenue,

(267) 437-2524

Steve’s Prince of Steaks

calls Northeast Philly home with two locations, but also serves its regal sandwiches — and famous American cheese sauce — in Center City, University City and the suburbs. 7200 Bustleton Avenue, (215) 338-0985; 2711 Comly Road, (215) 677-8020; 41 S. 16th Street, (215) 972-6090; 3836 Chestnut Street, (215) 921-6494; 1617 E. Lincoln Highway, Langhorne, (215) 943-4640,

stevesprinceofsteaks.com

Tony Luke’s

approaches national cheesesteak domination, with franchises from the original location in South Philly to the Pentagon, with plans for spots in all six of New York City boroughs. 39 E. Oregon Avenue (215) 551-5725,

tonylukes.com

Hoagie

What Is It?

The hoagie is a built-to-order cold sandwich, akin to what people outside Philly typically refer to as a “sub” or “hero.” Here, a long, freshly baked roll typically swaddles Italian cold cuts and cheeses. Hoagies can also contain tuna, roast turkey or roasted vegetables, although fancy, truffle-sprinkled versions of the aforementioned need not apply. Being cold, the sandwich can be garnished with fresh lettuce, sliced tomatoes, hot or sweet peppers and raw onions, and finished with a splash of oil and vinegar and a sprinkle of dried oregano. Mayo is fine too — though some traditionalists don’t agree.

The History:

Accounts of the hoagie’s origin vary greatly. Scholars debate exactly where and when the sandwich, as well as its unmistakable name, was first conceived. Here are just a few of the hoagie’s origin stories:

According to a 1967 article in

American Speech,

the word “hoagie” was first used in the late

19th or early 20th century among the Italian community in South Philadelphia. In those days, the area, around what is now Philadelphia International Airport, was known as Hog Island, and it was the site of a bustling shipyard. The Italian-American shipyard laborers, known then by the slang term

hoggies

, would bring large sandwiches stuffed with meats, cheeses and vegetables for lunch, and the creations closely associated with them would eventually come to be known as “hoagies.”

The

Philadelphia Almanac and Citizen’s Manual

tells of street vendors known as “hokey-pokey men” who sold antipasto salad, meats and cookies. When Gilbert and Sullivan’s opera

Pinafore

opened in Philadelphia in 1879, bakeries produced long loaves called pinafores, which enterprising hokey-pokey men sliced in half and filled with antipasto. The “hokey” salesmen influenced the eventual emergence of the term “hoagie.”

In 1925, a couple in Chester, a city southwest of Philadelphia, opened the A. DiCostanza grocery store, which stayed open past midnight to accommodate gamblers. One night, a hungry card player came into the store, where Catherine DiCostanza was cooking peppers, and asked if she would make him a sandwich. She asked what kind of meat he wanted, and he said, “Put everything you have in the case in it.” She took a loaf of Vienna bread, sliced it open and stuffed it. He asked her to add the peppers on too. He left, and an hour later, DiCostanza’s was full of hungry gamblers wanting the same kind of sandwich, which would later be known as the hoagie.

Where To Eat One:

Every Philadelphia neighborhood and suburb has its go-to hoagie shop. Here’s a look at some of them:

Campo’s Deli,

a family-run institution since 1947, is great for hungry visitors in the Historic District, thanks to authentic hoagies: Italian (salami, cappicola, pepperoni, prosciutto and provolone) or Italian tuna (oil-packed). 214 Market Street, (215) 923-1000,

camposdeli.com

Carmen’s Famous Italian Hoagies & Cheesesteaks,

in the center of the historic Reading Terminal Market, serves eaters who like their hoagies well-made and their hot peppers hot. 12th & Arch streets, (215) 592-7799,

readingterminalmarket.org

Primo Hoagie

has expanded extensively from its South Philly roots, elevating the art form with a long list of variants, including 10 takes on their hot-peppered Diablo, and Mild Italian, Sharp Italian and Mild Sharp Italian Classics. Various locations,

primohoagies.com

Sister Muhammad’s Kitchen

cooks everything on its long menu “daily for your happiness!” That includes a customizable fish hoagie, lamb, beef and fish cheesesteaks and vegetarian options — all halal. 4441 Germantown Avenue, (215) 621-7250,

sismuhammadskitchen.com

T&F Farmers’ Pride

in Upper Roxborough stocks a deep collection of local and Italian groceries that they put to good use in hoagies built on rolls from Conshohocken Italian Bakery. 8101 Ridge Avenue, (215) 487-0889

Wawa

is much more than the area’s preferred convenience store: It’s also known for its made-to-order Juniors, Shortis and Classics; summertime HoagieFest, offering discounted sandwiches; and a record-breaking hoagie served every summer on Independence Mall before Independence Day. wawa.com

Roast Pork

What Is It?

As old as the cheesesteak but less known, the roast pork sandwich has gained acclaim among in-the-know locals as an under-the-radar favorite. The sandwich relies on the same crusty, sometimes sesame-seeded, roll of its sibling sandwiches, but varies its contents when it comes to the flavorful meat inside. The succulent pork is served hot after slow-cooking for hours in a rub typically comprised of garlic, salt, pepper, rosemary, fennel and a little wine. It’s then layered with sharp provolone and a scoop of cooked greens, usually sautéed spinach or broccoli rabe.

The History:

The roast pork sandwich has roots in the cuisine of the Abruzzese region of Italy, whose people emigrated en masse to Philadelphia, settling everywhere, especially South Philly. Domenico Bucci was among them. He left the motherland as a teenager to become one of the city’s first caterers. At first, Bucci simply cooked at home for weddings and special occasions. But in 1930, he built a wooden shack on a sliver of riverside land he leased from the B&O Railroad. There, on Snyder Avenue, he offered stevedores just two menu items: pork or meatball sandwiches (and, on occasion, an old-fashioned combination of the two). Today, his grandson, John Bucci Jr., runs the family business —

John’s Roast Pork,

named after Domenico’s late son — alongside his mother and wife. It was John Jr. who added sharp provolone and his mom’s signature sautéed spinach to the sandwich back in 1987, creating a new Italian classic that, in many estimations, deserves top billing alongside the cheesesteak (which, by the way, the Buccis are known for too).

Where To Eat One:

The sandwich that shows off true Philly food cred comes in versions that are classic and creative.

Charlie’s Roast Pork

, conveniently located behind the Pennsport Beer Boutique, serves its sandwich on a Carangi’s Bakery roll. 1301 S. 3rd Street, (215) 336-1308,

charliesroastpork.com

DiNic’s Roast Pork

draws a line around its Reading Terminal Market outpost every day for its signature creation — as well as its rich Italian pulled pork, inspired by owner Joey Nicolosi’s great-grandfather’s recipe. 11th & Filbert streets, (215) 923-6175,

tommydinics.com

John’s Roast Pork

is the family-owned and operated originator of the roast pork — and thoroughly worth the trip to South Philly. John’s is also known for its cheesesteak — and crusty seeded rolls from Carangi’s Bakery. 14 E. Snyder Avenue, (215) 463-1951,

johnsroastpork.com

High Street on Market

in Old City might be the highest-falutin’ of the bunch, but its 100% homemade version, featuring kimchi-like fermented broccoli rabe on an artisan roll, packs just as much of a punch. 308 Market Street, (215) 625-0988,

highstreetonmarket.com

Memphis Taproom –

A Southern comfort food menu that makes room for Port Richmond neighborhood faves like kielbasa sandwiches and cheesesteak pierogi also includes a classic roast pork sandwich dressed in sharp provolone, spinach and, to mix things up, house-made garlic mayo. 2331 E. Cumberland Street, (215) 425-4460,

memphistaproom.com

Tony Luke’s

was founded on its roast pork — which its founders layer with deliciously bitter broccoli rabe instead of sautéed spinach. 39 E. Oregon Avenue, (215) 551-5725,

tonylukes.com

VISIT PHILADELPHIA

is our name and our mission. As the region’s official tourism marketing agency, we build Greater Philadelphia’s image, drive visitation and boost the economy.

On Greater Philadelphia’s official visitor website and blog,

visitphilly.com

and

uwishunu.com

, visitors can explore things to do, upcoming events, themed itineraries and hotel packages. Compelling photography and videos, interactive maps and detailed visitor information make the sites effective trip-planning tools. Along with Visit Philly social media channels, the online platforms communicate directly with consumers. Travelers can also call and stop into the Independence Visitor Center for additional information and tickets.

St. Mary\’s Parish Secretary Dan Spencer Resigning

by CNBNews Staff

GLOUCESTER CITY, NJ (February 10, 2020)—St. Mary\’s Parish Secretary Dan Spencer will be stepping down from his position on April 9 after serving in that capacity for the past 2.5

years.

When asked about a rumor that he was resigning from his mayor position he laughed. \”No, I am resigning from my full-time job as a parish secretary. It is just too much juggling that job with the mayor\’s position. I am going to do some part-time work and focus more time on being mayor. The new parish community center (next to the rectory) will be opening in April and I felt that this was a good time to make a move. I spoke with Monsignor Hodge (pastor) about it and he understood my reasons. I will still be helping the parish in some way once a week.\”

Spencer, who was elected as mayor of Gloucester City in November 2018, began his four-year term in January 2019 succeeding Bill James.

Prior to taking over the mayor position, he was a city councilman.

Five years ago Spencer retired from his job with Camden County with 30 years of service.

published

olive-wolverine-471793.hostingersite.com

January 2019 CNBNews CHEERS AND JEERS

Bill James, The Longest Serving Mayor in Gloucester City\’s History Dies Suddenly

$200,000 Safe Streets to Transit Grant Awarded to Somers Point

AVALON, NJ–Gov. Phil Murphy announced the award of a $200,000 Safe Streets to Transit Grant to Somers Point. This is one of only four grants awarded

Somers Point receives state funding to install sidewalks along Route 9 between Laurel Drive and Somers Point-Mays Landing Road.

throughout the state.

This grant, plus a $200,000 NJDOT grant received in 2018, will allow the city to construct sidewalks along Route 9 between Laurel Drive and Somers Point-Mays Landing Road.

“This sidewalk project has been a high priority for the city,” Mayor Jack Glasser said. “Now, we will have a safer walkway connecting the neighborhoods of the Somers Point-Mays Landing Road area to important destinations to the north of Laurel Drive, including Jordon Road Elementary School.”

The project is being fast-tracked and the city plans to start construction this spring, according to a press release.

“In a state as densely populated as New Jersey, it is important that we encourage the use of alternate forms of transportation, such as biking or public transportation. These grants support biking, walking, and mass transit programs designed to help drive better health and environmental outcomes that make New Jersey a more livable state,” Murphy said in the release.

This is not the first grant that Somers Point has received recently to improve safety for bicyclists and pedestrians.

A $1.75 million NJDOT grant has been awarded to the city to widen and enhance the Somers Point Bike Path from the Linwood border to the Route 52 Causeway.

This very popular bike path will be widened up to 14 feet, new decorative, energy efficient LED lights will be installed, bike racks will be added and flashing beacons will be placed at high-traffic crossings.

Also, the city has secured a $130,000 NJDOT grant to create bike lanes on Somers Point-Mays Landing Road, a county road, between Route 52 and Route 9.

Rutala Associates, a local planning firm, played a key role in obtaining the NJDOT grants on the city’s behalf.

“The Route 52 Causeway is constantly being used for biking and walking and our bike path connects all the city’s points of interest, including the schools and parks. We are striving to make Somers Point the ‘Bikeway Hub of South Jersey,\’” Glasser said.

A state-funded Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan was developed for Somers Point in 2014. The plan has been used to leverage these and other grants to make the bikeway network safer.

“The Department of Transportation does much more than just maintain roads and bridges,” New Jersey Department of Transportation Commissioner Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti said. “Our Local Aid grants, including the Bikeways and Safe Streets to Transit programs, provide funding to communities that develop projects to improve the quality of life for our residents and visitors to our state.”

Somers Point was also one of only three municipalities in New Jersey to be awarded a Bikeway Grant in 2019. This $130,000 grant will fund the addition of bike lanes along Somers Point-Mays Landing Road between Route 52 and Route 9.

“With the growth in biking throughout the region, these improvements will provide yet another reason for people to reside in and frequently visit Somers Point,” Glasser said. “All these projects will be completed by this summer.”

The city is also urging NJDOT and the New Jersey Turnpike Authority to complete yet another bike and pedestrian path – one that will connect Somers Point to Upper Township over the new Garden State Parkway bridge.

The city is committed to making sure that there is a safe connection between the existing bike paths and the new bridge, according to the release.

Plans call for improvements to the intersection of Route 9 and Somers Point-Mays Landing Road, a bike path on the south side of Route 9 and a bridge to take bikers safely over the Parkway exit ramp and onto the Parkway bridge.

A crowd attended a state public hearing in January 2019 to show support for the bike connection, but the state has yet to start construction on the project.

*Gloucester City\’s Feral Animal Society Fundraiser

source: The Feral Animal Society, of Gloucester City

Gloucester City, NJ–The Feral Animal Society of Gloucester City is a non-profit 501(c)(3) foundation, established in 2019.

Our primary mission is to manage the population of feral animals in Gloucester City and to provide humane education about feral animals to our community.

We strive to create humane, safe communities for feral cats and dogs through Trap-Neuter-Return and Colony Health Maintenance. Our goals are to reduce the suffering and birth rate of these animals, the number of cats and dogs entering shelters, and the number of healthy cats and dogs being euthanized.

Through community partnership and volunteerism, we promote animal health and the significance of the human-animal bond in the well-being of our community.

Our Trap-Neuter-Release (TNR) Program, an ongoing endeavor, is scheduled at regular intervals in conjunction with our contracted partners.

Our Colony Health Maintenance activities include providing daily feedings, and building small outdoor shelters and feeding stations. Whenever possible, we attempt to socialize these animals to humans, and foster them toward adoption.

The Feral Animal Society of Gloucester City Community Humane Education Series,

Activities Workshops and Volunteer Program,

Map of the Gloucester City Cat Colonies,

TNR Statistics and Cat and Dog Census.

How to Help.

FUNDRAISER

THE FERAL ANIMAL SOCIETY of GLOUCESTER CITY, NON-PROFIT 501 (c) (3) Foundation, TNR (Trap, Neuter, Return)

FUNDRAISER Thursday, February 20, 2020

* Gift Baskets Raffle * 20% of all food and drink sales between 4p-9pm will be donated by Pat’s Select to the Feral Animal Society of Gloucester City Foundation, NON-PROFIT, 501 (c) (3).

Date: 2/20/2020 04:00 PM – 2/20/2020 09:00 PM

Location: PAT\’S SELECT 400 South Broadway, Gloucester City, NJ, USA (

Map

)

More Info: 856-456-1111

Gloucester City, NJ, USA

856-375-8556

– The Feral Animal Society of Gloucester City

GCFASF@yahoo.com

source

https://www.fafgc.com/

‘I Heart Haddonfield’

HADDONFIELD, NJ –The second annual ‘I Heart Haddonfield’ continues on

Valentine’s Day with selfies and special events at the “Open Heart” sculpture at Kings Court. From 5-9 p.m., officiants will be onsite to ‘make it official’ for couples interested in renewing their vows, getting married (official NJ documents required), getting engaged, or making partnership commitments. Couples will receive flowers, chocolates and official signed certificates.

Enjoy live music from Sam Caruso under romantic pink lighting, and be entered into a drawing for prizes including dinners from Denim and Mare Monte, goodies from King’s Road Brewing Company, and much more. Share your best selfies during this celebration of love on social media, post on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter tagging @host08033 and use the hashtags #IHeartHaddonfield and #DowntownHaddonfield. Everyone can take their own pictures at “Open Heart” and post – parents with babies, school friends, pet friends, anyone you love.

Rutgers-Camden’s Hilt earns second NJAC weekly track & field honor

CAMDEN CITY, N.J. (Feb. 10, 2020) – Rutgers University-Camden track star

Emily Hilt (Mickleton, NJ/Kingsway Regional)

is a threat to break the program shot put record at every meet she competes, and her success rate has been phenomenal so far this season.

For the fourth time in her five meets this winter, Hilt established a new Rutgers-Camden women’s shot put record while competing at Saturday’s Frank Colden Invitational at Ursinus College.

That accomplishment has earned Hilt her the second New Jersey Athletic Conference Women’s Indoor Track recognition this season as the NJAC Field Athlete of the Week. She also won that honor on Dec. 16.

In her latest outing, Hilt produced a shot put of 12.30 meters, beating the mark she established on Jan. 25 of 12.22 meters. That mark also was set at Ursinus College, during the Collegeville Classic.

Hilt came to Rutgers-Camden this year after a stellar two-year career with Rowan College at Gloucester County. A junior academically, she has sophomore eligibility for indoor track and will have junior eligibility in outdoor season.

Hilt set a Rutgers-Camden indoor shot put record during her first meet as a Scarlet Raptor, finishing fourth of 29 performers at the Fastrack Opener Dec. 6 with a distance of 11.58 meters. She also set the program’s weight throw record the same day, placing third of 24 with a throw of 14.43 meters. Both distances were ECAC qualifiers.

At the Seahawk Shootout on Dec. 13, Hilt had another ECAC qualifier in the weight throw, finishing sixth of 23 with a 14.20-meter toss. She also competed in the shot put, finishing 10th of 30 that day (11.00 meters). Ever since then, Hilt has raised her program shot put record in each meet, while recording three more ECAC qualifiers in the event. She finished first of 18 (11.84 meters) in the shot put at the Dutchmen Invite (Jan. 17), was fourth of 47 with her 12.22-meter shot put on Jan. 25 at the Collegeville Classic and finished first of 55 shot putters Saturday at the Frank Colden Invitational with her latest mark of 12.30 meters.

During her career at RCGC, Hilt set the program’s indoor track record in the shot put (13.12 meters) and earned All-American honors in that event. She also competed two seasons with the Roadrunners’ outdoor track program.

Hilt is a Childhood Studies major at Rutgers-Camden who has a double minor in Psychology and Philosophy.