Author: atwiford

The Camden County Environmental Center in Cherry Hill is continuing through Friday, Jan. 9 its Winter Environmental Day Camp for kids of various ages.

The programs range from one to one-and-a-half-hour sessions that began during winter break last month.

Participants were separated into two groups, SnowTop Tots for children from 5 years old and younger on Mondays and Winter Tracks for those age 6 to 12 on Tuesdays and Fridays. Each class has a maximum class size of 15 students.

Each age group was taught about various aspects of the environment and natural world, specifically topics related to winter, and both groups covered seasonal hibernation. The younger group dabbled in winter nature discovery and snowflakes, while the older kids covered winter survival, the science behind snow and winter birds.

Fern Nguyen is one of the center’s environmental educators. She runs the winter program, as well as other environmental day camps in spring and summer. The winter break program is the first of its kind.

“We’ve been trying to put more effort into engaging the community on environmental topics,” she explained. “So we thought it’d be great to have a winter break program, especially for the younger ages, to engage them early on.”

The students also got to do STEM activities, as well as outdoor projects.

“The kids are off break, so it’s perfect to come in and do some fun activities like hiking, creating snow or looking up at snowflakes or exploring winter animals and hibernation,” Nguyen noted.

She said the county’s board of commissioners came up with the idea to get youngsters in the area engaged with the natural world and the environmental mission of the county.

“We really try to emphasize hands-on engagement, fun things for the kids to do,” she said. “The kids seem to be very engaged or very happy to participate in our activities, so we’re trying to get them outside playing in what little snow we have and exploring.”

Participants also utilized outdoor natural resources to make items like pine needle soda or pine cone syrup, and they analyzed the beaks of birds to see how they might seek out food through the season.

“We were having a good response to our winter program …,” Nguyen said. “It’s something for kids to report to while looking for something to do during their time off from school.”

Children in the townshp celebrated the new year 12 hours early on Dec. 31, with a Noon Year’s Eve event at the library.

It marked youth services librarian Katie Helf’s first year hosting and organizing the party.

“The whole idea is just to give the kids a chance to celebrate the New Year in a relatively healthy way, because they’re not staying up past their bedtime or getting off their routine,” she explained.

Held in the library’s lower conference center, the party featured music to dance to and colorful lights for a festive mood. A photo station was set up for families, who were invited to celebrate with their children. Several inflatable pink balls got kids bouncing, throwing – and laying. 

Helf led the children and their parents in games of Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes and freeze dancing, engaging participants in interactive games.

“We had a lot of fun just playing, so that was good,” Helf noted. “And the dancing and the kids were funny, with all the different stuff they were doing, throughout the whole event.”

As noon approached, Helf showed a video of dancing animated animals and a child announcer who led the New Year countdown of 10 seconds, with library participants calling out the numbers in unison.

The free event – while aimed at the youngest library patrons – also included some parents, older siblings and even grandparents on hand.

“It’s wholesome,” Helf observed. “It’s for the whole family. It’s fun, and it’s short, too. It’s not like you’re here for hours, you’re here for half an hour, a good family outing right before lunch.”

To ring in the season and celebrate the holidays, the township held its winter festival on Dec. 7 at Croft Farm.

Activities and vendors were spread throughout the grounds, with a section of games and activities for children and families set aside toward the back of the farm. Food trucks lined up in the parking lot at the front of the main park.

Machines creating fake snow from soap were in place to create the illusion of snowy weather. Across the front lawn, small butane fires in metal firepits were available for visitors to warm themselves or make S’mores from kits sold by Boy Scout Troop 70 to finance an upcoming trip to New Mexico.

Scout leader Mike Lausi said the troop’s idea for the firepits came several years ago.

“We’ve done it as a fundraiser ever since,” he added.

Musical acts at the festival included Cherry Hill West’s chamber choir singers, semi-finalists in the high-school division of radio station B101’s Christmas choir competition. The school’s jazz combo also performed.

Entertainers dressed as various characters walked through, including the Grinch, Olaf and Queen Elsa from Disney’s “Frozen,” Mickey and Minnie Mouse and Stitch from “Lilo and Stitch.”

Nikki Jay – whose voice studio also performed – got a photo with her family and Olaf.

“He’s adorable,” she noted of the Disney character. “The first year we came here, there was only like one guy here, and now there’s like five. And so it makes a big difference. My kids absolutely loved it. It’s been an awesome experience.

“We come every year, and we love this festival,” Jay added. “It’s a great way for all the community to come together and small businesses to support each other. I love it and support the arts more than anything.”

Several of the farm’s small buildings held indoor activities, with one functioning as a place where guests could learn about winter holidays from various cultures, including Diwali, Kwanzaa and Hanukkah. Henna hand art, Diwali decorations and a selection of library books about multi-cultural winter and autumn holidays were also available. 

Another building featured the Robot Foundry, a demonstration of machines and devices and the process of making them. The children’s section of the festival was equipped with a snow globe-shaped bounce house, snow-themed games, balloon animal creators, mini golf and bracelet-making stations. 

Township council’s meeting on Dec. 8 was the last for Carole Roskoph after 12 years of service.

Fellow members took time at the end of the meeting to express their gratitude to the councilwoman.

“We know that this is just the conclusion of this chapter and tenure of your service, but certainly not the end of your service to Cherry Hill or with any of us …” said Mayor Dave Fleisher. “We know this is the beginning of something new, and not the end, but it is with great gratitude that we say thank you for the 12 years that you’ve given the people of Cherry Hill in this role.”

Each member of council said a few words about Roskoph before presenting her with a proclamation. She finished the meeting with some words of her own, reflecting on how she first took her council oath on the same night she and other members of the time paid final respects to former board member Joyce Alexander Walker.

Roskoph also acknowledged her replacement, Rob Connor.

“To the residents of Cherry Hill, thank you for your continued votes of confidence,” she said. “It has been the honor and privilege of my lifetime to represent you.” 

One major issue discussed during the meeting was an ordinance that would increase licensing fees from $250 to $2,000 for massage parlors with more than one therapist. A number of owners expressed their opposition.

Some are sole proprietors who would be exempt from the fee but still had concerns over the wording of the ordinance, fearing other area towns would enact similar measures. One of them is massage practitioner Rena Margulis. She worries the measure would deter other massage and bodywork therapists from moving to the township.

“And while Cherry Hill government could have an understanding that self-employed, licensed massage and body or therapists who do not have employees are not covered by this fee,” she observed, “this understanding is not clear in the code.”

Margulis also recalled that at one point in her career, she broke her arm and had to hire two student assistants to staff her business. She is concerned that a temporary disability could also negatively impact independent massage practitioners. 

The township’s rationale for the fee is the cost of police resources it says are necessary to deter illegal activity at the businesses.

“We recognize the legitimate massage businesses and the right to operate in Cherry Hill, but we also recognize the very unfortunate reality nationwide of illicit conduct and potential sexual exploitation,” Fleisher explained.

“Sadly, that does take place in some organizations – and certainly none of you here tonight – but that is a reality that we recognize statewide and nationwide.”

The mayor then went into more detail about the time it takes to review regulatory compliance, monitor, investigate and enforce criminal statutes when a permit is requested. Council also heard from the public on second reading of changes to zoning ordinances that will allow for solar projects without the need for a special use variance permit.

The changes were approved.

The next township council meeting will be held at 7:30 p.m. on Monday in person and via Zoom.