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Community garden lays roots in City By Samantha Sciarrotta
Leah Ducey knew that many of her Bordentown City neighbors would love to tend their own vegetable gardens—if only they had the space. So Ducey, a Bordentown City resident and secretary of the Bordentown City Environmental Commission, recognized the issue and brought it up at a Green Team meeting about four years ago. She suggested starting up a community garden, and other members took to the idea, but the difficulty of finding a location left the concept dead in the water. The same cycle happened in years past, too. This year, though, the garden finally came to fruition, and growing season at Bordentown City’s first community garden opened April 1.
The garden is located on East Burlington Street across from the Clara Barton School playground. Each 6-by-11-ft. plot costs $25, which covers the cost of common expenses, like maintenance and water. Gardeners provide their own tools, plants, seeds, soil amendments and other supplies, and growing season lasts until October. Plot owners are responsible for cultivating and managing their plants, and the Green Team may occasionally ask for volunteers to help mow paths and keep weed growth down. Anything that is grown in the space is meant to be as organic as possible, so no toxic or chemical fertilizers are permitted. “We are small town surrounded by a strong agricul-
tural community so residents are familiar with growing their own fruits and vegetables and having access to them, but many of our yards in the city are too small for personal gardens,” Ducey said. “Bordentown City also has a strong sense of community so the BCEC and Green Team believe there will be good community support and participation.” Ducey, Bordentown City Mayor Joseph Malone and BCEC Chairman Ralph Tolomeo “did some extensive vetting” as far as scouting out a location, said BCEC Vice Chariman Joel Dowshen. “It was difficult to find a large enough and sunny space in the densely populated city, but the field we are using is See GARDEN, Page 6
Powerlifting duo muscles competition By LiSa zoLa-DeLiBero
Bordentown Regional High School presented its production of Sweet Charity at the Bordentown Performing Arts Center April 14-16. Noelle Carr leaps during a number at a dress rehearsal on April 13. For more photos, turn to Page 14. (Photo by Suzette J. Lucas.)
Every day, Carrie Ward and Rebecca Free are up before the sun rises. The women meet daily in the morning’s early hours, Ward training Free in the deadlift. Both World National Powerlifting Federation competitors, the two work and work, gradually increasing Free’s reps and weight progression from session to session. Free can deadlift 255 pounds, the weight of her husband and their two sons combined. Ward competed for the last time—at the WNPF Lifetime All Raw National Tournament of Champions—in February 2013, earning second place. Almost immediately following that showing, a stage 3B colorectal cancer diagnosis brought her brief career to an abrupt halt. But she knew she had the
knowledge and passion needed to use her skills to coach others who shared the same desire to become stronger and healthier. Free was one of those people, and she has taken over the competition reins. Competing never crossed Free’s mind until Ward suggested it in December. Two months later, she entered in her first WNPF competition at the Ramada Inn on Route 206—and won. It was a sweet victory, but one she never would have envisioned prior to a year or two ago. Free just wanted to better herself when she enrolled in classes at Shock It Fitness, which Ward owns. “Taking care of your personal health is one of the most empowering things you can do,” Free said. “Fitness is Carrie’s passion, and it is evident in everything that she does.
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[Free and Ward’s other clients] are mothers, teachers, scientists and homemakers who go from ordinary to extra ordinary for a small part of the day. I am a better mother, wife and employee because of the physical strength I have developed.” Ward and Free spend many of their sessions focusing on the deadlift. The emphasis is on a gradual of progression of weight, starting off with a 10-rep warmup that uses a 45-pound empty bar. The weight gradually increases with weights added to the bar, starting at 135 pounds for eight reps. The eight reps are continued with each weight increase, until Free has reached the weight limit. At that point, the reps decrease to six. The warm down consists of accessory lifts, such as pull-ups, which help work the muscles See LIFTING, Page 5
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