1-21 TD

downtowner Trenton’s City Paper

January 2021 |

communitynews.org

Welcome to History

Algernon Ward and Trenton officials are transforming an old building and forgotten cemetery into a center honoring Trenton’s historic Black community.

Page 8.

The strange tale of Walter Evans-Wentz, page 6; ‘Women Trenton Style’ at Ellarslie, 10.

Call for a FREE 15 minute consult

Social Distancing  Mask & Gloves  Clean Environment 

PERIPHERAL NEUROPATHY is a condition that affects millions of Americans, commonly resulting in pain, tingling, numbness, and other painful symptoms in the hands, legs and feet. This pain changes your life and affects how you work, how you play and how you live. Some symptoms of peripheral neuropathy are similar to symptoms associated with chronic low back conditions. At AllCure, we will help differentiate between the two and treat either chronic low back conditions or peripheral neuropathy accordingly.

HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU HAVE NERVE DAMAGE? Peripheral neuropathy is the consequence of damage to your peripheral nerves. There are over 100 different kinds of peripheral nerve disorders or neuropathies - some are the result of a disease like diabetes, while others can be triggered by a viral infection. Still others are the result of an injury or compression on the nerves. No matter where the problems begin, it is imperative nerve disorders are resolved as soon as possible to prevent permanent damage. Many People suffer with pain for years, not realizing that their symptoms may be due to Peripheral Neuropathy. Symptoms start gradually, then get worse, including numbness, burning or tingling sensations and sharp, electrical-like a pain. Treatment options have been limited to a small assortment of pain medications, which can lead to further issues. Ignoring the problem or masking the symptoms has never been a viable solution. If you suffer from any of the aforementioned symptoms, we can help.

NEW LASER PAIN TREATMENTS The FX 635 Laser by Erchonia provides patients experiencing musculoskeletal pain with a new treatment option. This noninvasibe, pain free, effective solution targets apinful areas and improves quality of life without surgery. The FX 635 is the ONLY FDA Market Cleared Laser to provide relief for chronic low back pain, neck pain, and plantar fasciitis, as well as multiple other musculoskeletal complaints. The healing powers of this low-level laser technology can return you to an active life once again, without pain or the harmful long-term effects of pain medication.

PAIN MANAGEMENT SPORTS MEDICINE • ACUPUNCTURE PHYSICAL THERAPY • CHIROPRACTIC SERVICES POST-SURGICAL REHABILITATION

100 Cabot Drive, Suite A Hamilton, NJ 08691 609-528-4417 2Trenton Downtowner January 2021

allcurespineandsports.com

UP FRONT

by all his coworkers, clients, friends, family, and everyone with whom he crossed paths, though our lives have been made richer having known Mark.

Community News Service remembers Mark Nebbia Baseball returns to Trenton

M

ark Nebbia passed away on Saturday, November 28, 2020, with his daughters Leah-Michelle and Eva Nebbia by his side. He was born in Hamilton and has been a lifelong resident of the area.

Mark was born on May 31, 1961, to the late Leo and Helen Nebbia. He is a graduate of Steinert High School and The College of New Jersey. A veteran in ad sales, he was a well-loved member of the Community News Service team.

Mark’s favorite thing to do was being with his daughters. He enjoyed playing golf, watching Yankees baseball, going to the movies, listening to comedy shows, and reading about military history. He was a member of the Church of St. Ann in Lawrence.

He is survived by his wife Margueritte Korenz Nebbia, his two daughters, his brother Leo, sister-in-law Margarita, brother and sister-in-law Tom and Ria Korenz, his nephew Matthew and nieces Lauren, Amanda, and Rachel.

A memorial service was held December 5 at St. Ann’s. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Mark’s name to the Hepatitis C Association or Saint Ann School in Lawrence.

Mark had a lively and large personality and always was ready with a joke or one-liner. The Community News office will be quieter and less joy-filled without him. He will be missed dearly

W

eeks after the future of baseball in Trenton was thrown into jeopardy when the New York Yankees announced that they were ending their affiliation with the minor league Trenton Thunder, Major League Baseball has breathed new life into the team.

In late November baseball officials announced a new league, the MLB Draft League, that would include Trenton among its founding teams for the 2021 season.

The league will consist of six teams featuring top Major League Prospects and will play a 68-game schedule from May to August.

Joining the Thunder in the league will be the Mahoning Valley Scrappers, based in Niles, Ohio; the State College Spikes and Williamsport Crosscutters from Pennsylvania; the West Virginia Black Bears; and a sixth team that has not yet been named.

In a statement, Mercer County Executive Brian Hughes celebrated the announcement.

“For legions of Trenton Thunder fans, the development of a new league showcasing up and coming talent will be a real thrill. Major League Baseball’s success is built on a thriving minor league system, and for 27 years Thunder supporters have visited our Capital City, warmly welcoming new See UP FRONT, Page 4

WE FEATURE A WASH DRY AND FOLD SERVICE FOR THOSE TOO BUSY TO DO THEIR OWN WASH. RELAX, WE’VE GOT IT HANDLED. WE HAVE THE LARGEST FACILITIES IN THE BUCKS/ MERCER AREA. THEY’RE BIG, THEY’RE BEAUTIFUL AND YOU’LL LOVE THEM.

215•295•4402

OPEN 24 HOURS

322 WEST TRENTON AVENUE, MORRISVILLE, PA 24 NORTH STATE ST., NEWTOWN, PA 65 DURHAM RD. , PENNDEL,PA 1128 SUNSET RD., BURLINGTON, NJ BUY 10 pounds of WASH-DRY-FOLD.

GET a second 10 pounds FREE One coupon per person.

Not to be combined with any other offer.

No cash value. Expires 1-31-21.

LAUNDRY-DEPOT.COM 322 WEST TRENTON AVENUE, MORRISVILLE, PA 19067

TA IN TA K KE EI TI T I N TA K E I T I N

DOWNTOWNER Phone: (609) 396-1511 Fax: (609) 844-0180 Website: communitynews.org SENIOR EDITOR Dan Aubrey MANAGING EDITOR Sara Hastings SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Jennifer Steffen (Ext. 113) ADMINISTRATIVE ADVERTISING ASSISTANT Gina Carillo

A publication of Community News Service, LLC © Copyright 2021 All rights reserved.

CO-PUBLISHER Jamie Griswold MANAGING EDITOR, METRO DIVISION Sara Hastings MANAGING EDITOR, COMMUNITY DIVISION Rob Anthes

CO-PUBLISHER Tom Valeri ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Thomas Fritts PRODUCTION MANAGER Stacey Micallef

Community News Service 15 Princess Road, Suite K Lawrence, NJ 08648 Phone: (609) 396-1511 News & Letters: dan@princetoninfo.com Events: events@communitynews.org Website: communitynews.org Facebook: facebook.com/trentondowntowner Twitter: twitter.com/mercerspace 3,000 copies of the Trenton Downtowner are bulk distributed in Trenton 12 times a year.

TO ADVERTISE call (609) 396-1511, ext. 110 or e-mail advertise@communitynews.org A proud member of:

Providing Relief from ENT & Allergy Conditions – Close to Home Providing Relief from ENT & Allergy Conditions – Close to Home

Personalized care for your ear, nose, throat and allergy conditions can now be found

close to care homefor at your Penn ear, Medicine ENT allergy & Allergy.

Our specialists provide expert Personalized nose, Becker throat and conditions can now be found Providing Relief from and ENTtreatment &Becker Allergy Conditions – Close toprovide Home for symptoms to allergy, nose and sinus, close evaluation, to home atdiagnosis Penn Medicine ENT & Allergy.related Our specialists expert voice and swallowing, ears andfor hearing, sleeprelated and snoring, andnose neckand andsinus, thyroid evaluation, diagnosis and treatment symptoms to allergy, Personalized care for your ear, nose, throat and allergy conditions can now be found conditions – all in a safe and secure environment. voice and swallowing, ears and hearing, sleep and snoring, and neck and thyroid close to home at Penn Medicine Becker ENT & Allergy. Our specialists provide expert conditions – all in a safe and secure environment. evaluation, diagnosis and treatment for symptoms related to allergy, nose and sinus,

voice Same and day swallowing, earsavailable! and hearing, sleep and snoring, and neck and thyroid appointments Schedule your appointment by calling 609.436.5740 conditions – all in a safe and secure environment.

Becker ENT & Allergy

visiting PennMedicine.org/Becker Same or day appointments available!

Schedule your appointment by calling 609.436.5740 or visiting PennMedicine.org/Becker

Becker ENT & Allergy

Same day appointments available!

Schedule your appointment by calling 609.436.5740 or visiting PennMedicine.org/Becker

Becker ENT & Allergy

DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL INITIATIVES Joe Emanski

January 2021 | Trenton Downtowner3

UP FRONT, continued from Page 3

players and proudly cheering others on to the big leagues,” Hughes said.

“Mercer County has made wise investments into the ballpark — benefitting both the fans and players — and the new Trenton Thunder team will be developed in a first-class facility. This news is a win for everyone.”

‘My Trenton’ survey collects worker data

Assisted Living and Memory Care with

a whole lotta heart.

NOW OPEN! CALL TODAY TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE AREA’S NEWEST ASSISTED LIVING AND MEMORY CARE COMMUNITY!

1750 Yardville-Hamilton Square Road • Hamilton 609.241.9538 • TheLandingOfHamilton.com License Pending

ENCORE! ENCORE! WEEKEND REWIND

Your Pet Matters Your Career Is Calling Master Your Finances Health 411

T

eachers, policemen, firefighters, and various public sector employees of the municipality of Trenton are invited to participate in a “My Trenton” research survey funded by Prince­ton University.

The survey seeks to determine factors affecting civil servants’ work life and work environment and evaluate work conditions (taking into account the effects of COVID-19) to improve job designs, workers’ mental health, and workers’ overall wellbeing at work.

Findings also will be used to improve future research, public sector organizational practices, and teaching efforts.

A component of the “Organizing Public Administrations during COVID-19 and Racially Challenging Times” project, the study is being conducted

by Nicoleta Acatrinei of Princeton University’s Keller Center for Innovation Martin Luther King Jr. in Engineering Education.

The survey is anonymous, takes playground reopens approximately 20 minutes, and ayor W. Reed Gusciora and reccan be found at: princetonsurreation and natural resources vey.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/for m/ director Maria Richardson announced SV_3KqQKXD5MrcmBxP. the completion of the newly renovated Martin Luther King Jr. playground Virtual property auction and picnic grove at 679 Southard Street. yields $4.15 million The playground renovations were ayor W. Reed Gusciora completed over five days in mid-Octoannounced the successful com- ber. The park now features brand new pletion of Trenton’s first virtual auc- playground equipment, a new safety tion. The December 9 event sold 49 surface, and new picnic fixtures such city-owned properties for a total of as tables, benches, and grills.

The total restoration project cost $4.15 million in winning bids.

Most of the properties are residen- $117,000 and was funded with a matchtial and require the bidder to commit ing grant under Mercer County’s into living at the property for five years. novative “Mercer at Play” program, The auction included commercial which allocates funds to the City of Trenton for park renovations. properties and vacant lots as well.

M

M

AT YOUR SERVICE For all your pest control needs!

Professional inspection services for Termites, Radon, and Mold.

Catch up on the episodes you missed every Monday through Thursday at 9 a.m.

Listen on air @107.7 FM | Online @1077TheBronc.com On App @WRRC on Google Play and the Apple App store.

$10 OFF Any Service with this ad

609.393.0606

PESTBLASTER.COM 4Trenton Downtowner January 2021

The auction was run by Trenton’s Department of Housing and Economic Development (HED), which partnered with New Jersey-based government software provider GovPilot to develop a new web-based portal for the auction.

While the 2019 auction sold 76 properties for $2.92 million, the online auction attracted 372 registered bidders, exceeding the previous 75-person limit from past auctions in City Council chambers.

There was an average of 30 bids per listing, with some winning amounts coming in 67 percent above tax assessments. The average sale price was $84,760.

The properties were open for physical inspection prior to the auction. All bidders were required to make a deposit of $1,000 that was credited to the purchase or refunded to bidders who do not successfully bid on a property.

Successful bidders are required to make a non-refundable deposit of 10 percent of the successful bid within 24 hours of the day of the auction.

The successful bidder is then notified by the City of Trenton of the date and time to come to city hall to execute the contract of sale. Properties not successfully closed will be put up at the next auction. Further information on the auction’s terms and conditions are available at bit.ly/38UR4Hl.

Advertise for $49 a month. For more information, call 609-396-1511 ext. 110.

SQUE A V Z JR tREE SERVicE

tREE REmoval, tRimming and stump gRinding.

FREE EstimatEs! 609-203-7821

Here’s to

a Healthy New Year, Trenton!

T

here is much hope on the horizon – and we’re all in! Trenton Downtown Association is committed to promoting the health and wellness of the communities it serves – and that starts with you.

Please continue to support our local businesses every chance you can. And don’t forget to take care of yourself. This is the time of year many of us resolve to improve our health and well-being. Be sure to add a little self-care and healing in your notes to self. We could all use it after the past 10 months.

Here are just some of the ways you can Love Local and yourself in the new year: • Arlee’s Raw Blends • Grab a smoothie at Arlee’s Raw Blends – they’re packed with nutrients and flavor!

• Health Is Wealth • Try a black bean burger at Health Is Wealth – they are so delish!

• R. Giaquinto Shoe Repair • Have your shoes repaired – Bob at R. Giaquinto is waiting.

25 S Warren St, Trenton, NJ

242 E State St, Trenton, NJ

115 South Warren St, Trenton, NJ

Call 609-880-1101

Call 609-378-9088

Call 609-599-9090

• State Street Barber Shop •

• I Smile Dental •

• K Weidel Insurance •

Need a haircut? Who doesn’t? – Joe at State Street Barber is open!

Get your teeth cleaned - you’ll be smiling again after a visit to I Smile Dental!

Make sure your affairs are in order – review your insurance policies with K Weidel.

116 S Warren St, Trenton, NJ

14 N Broad St, Trenton, NJ

23 S Warren St, Trenton, NJ

Call 609-392-2211

Call 609-695 4400

Call 609-599-2588

Above all else... Remember that positive things are happening. New businesses are opening in downtown Trenton. The vaccine

is out there. We Are Trenton Strong! Together we can make the capital city a great place to live, work and thrive in the years to come.

NEVER MISS A BEAT!

.com

Sign up for our Weekly E-Blast at Trenton-downtown.com

Visit Trenton-downtown.com for a list of businesses open in the downtown Trenton area.

January 2021 | Trenton Downtowner5

City lore: How a Trenton native brought Tibetan mysticism to the world

By Dan Aubrey

O

ne summer afternoon in the early 20th century a young Trenton man lounging on the banks of the Delaware River had an overwhelming sensation that “this is not the first time I possessed a human body.”

Writing about the experience later, he said this “ecstatic-like vision” produced a realization that “came flashing into my mind with such authority that I never thought of doubting it, a mind-picture of things past and to come” and that “my life was to be that of a world pilgrim, wandering from country to country, over seas, across continents and mountains, through deserts to the end of the earth, seeking, seeking for I knew not what.”

That searching led Trenton-born Walter Evans-Wentz to travel the world, interact with world-renowned philosophers and writers, study at prestigious universities, become an expert in Eastern religion, and producing a line of books on Eastern spirituality that included the English language translation that popularized “The Tibetan Book of the Dead.”

Born on February 2, 1878, EvansWentz wrote that he was raised in a small brick cottage standing on “ground consecrated to freedom by the historical Battle of Trenton of the American Revolutionary War.” His father, Christopher Wentz, was a German who arrived in the 19th century and established a real estate business. His mother was Mary Evans Cook, whose Irish Quaker ancestors reportedly arrived in America in the early 17th century.

Evans-Wentz often noted that his mother was a major influence on his life and began using her name as part of his own when he published his first book, “The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries’’ — inspired by his mother’s Irish folk tales.

The future Buddhist was raised a Baptist, but as he grew older the family began to embrace the ideas of spiritualists and freethinkers.

His father became interested in the occult and was much taken with the work of Madame Blavatsky, the founder of the Theosophical Society. Her claim to have been inspired by Tibetan monks also inspired Evans-Wentz, who had disregarded Christianity for religions that espoused rebirth.

Although more interested in an ascetic life, Evans-Wentz used his father as a model and became a successful realtor and used the funds to pursue his spiritual interests.

He was 24 years old when he followed his father to work in real estate in California and enrolled at Stanford University. There he studied with American philosopher and “The Variety of Religious Experience” author William James.

At left, Lama Kazi Dawa with Walter Evans-Wentz circa 1919. Above, Evans-Wentz’ passport photo.

After earning both a bachelor’s and to India but wanted to do so without master’s degrees from Stanford in five war-related interference. He contactyears, Evans-Wentz went to Oxford ed a fellow Oxford student and now a and begin his studies for “The Fairy military agent, T. E. Lawrence, better Faith” by traveling through Wales, known as Lawrence of Arabia.

“Dear Wentz, there is no difficulty Scotland, Cornwall, and Ireland collecting stories about pixies, fairies, about getting to India. To be on the and goblins. Oxford University Press safe side we have wired to ask if they can allow you to wander about as you published the book in 1911. please,” LawDuring his rence wrote — travels in Ireland, allowing Evanshe developed an Sitting on the banks of Wentz to study association with Buddhist spiriIrish poet Wilthe Delaware, Walker tuality and gain liam Butler Yeats, international nowho shared EvEvans-Wentz had an toriety for spurans-Wentz’s fasepiphany that ‘my life ring the early, if cination in Celtic folklore and thewas to be that of a world not first, English translation of the osophy and was pilgrim.’

“Bardo Thodol.” interested in the While the American’s work. name is roughly Yeats, along with the Irish poet known as A.E., is men- translated as “Liberation through Hearing (the sacred text read),” the tioned in the book’s dedication.

Funding himself through his invest- book is more known in the west by ments, Wentz extended his travels to the title Evans-Wentz’ chose, “The TiItaly, Greece, and other places “where betan Book of the Dead” — allegedly great souls of past times have lived inspired by his familiarity with the “Egyptian Book of the Dead.” and thought.”

While Evans-Wentz produced, edHe arrived in Egypt, where the events of World War I forced him to re- ited, and wrote extensive introducmain for 29 month and where he was tions to the book’s several sections, detained in 1915 under the suspicion the actual translator was Lama Kazi Dawa. Born near the India/Tibet borof being a German spy.

Evans-Wentz then decided to head der, Kazi Dawa had been taught the

6Trenton Downtowner January 2021

Tibetan language by his grandfather and trained by the British as an interpreter. He was also a confidant, guide, and translator to the French-born Buddhist scholar Alexandra David-Neel (noted for her intrepid foot journey to the Tibetan city of Lhasa in 1924).

The first edition of the Evans-Wentz “Book of the Dead” was printed in 1927 and then revised to include an essay on Tibetan spirituality and psychology by the noted psychoanalyst Carl Jung — whom Evans-Wentz contacted directly.

While “The Tibetan Book of the Dead” is Evans-Wentz’s most famous book, he also produced “Cachuma and Sacred Mountains,” “Tibet’s Great Yogi, Milarepa,” and “Tibetan Yoga and Secret. He also wrote the preface for “The Autobiography of Yogi.”

During World War II, Evans-Wentz returned to the United States and lived the last of his 23 years mainly at the Keystone Hotel in San Diego — selected because it was near the city’s only vegetarian restaurant. He also had a small house near the Mexican border where he would sometimes visit to practice Buddhist spirituality and write the “Sacred Mountains” book that examined Native America and its parallels to Tibetan Buddhism and Hinduism.

“I am haunted by a realization of the illusion of all human endeavors,” he wrote in one of his late diary entries.

“As (the Tibetan master) Milarepa taught: buildings end in ruin, meetings in separation, accumulation in dispersion, and life in death. Whether it is better to go on here in California where I am lost in the midst of the busy multitude or return to the Himalayas is now a question difficult to answer correctly.”

The question was answered when died in 1965. His body was cremated and his ashes taken to a small temple in northern India — ending a long search that began one summer day on the banks of the Delaware River in Trenton.

SUPPORT COUNSELING

FOR COVID-19 FRONT-LINE WORKERS Through a statewide partnership, Capital Health is addressing the immediate emotional needs of all health care workers and emergency medical services personnel who have been on the front-line of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This includes: … Individual supportive counseling and assessment … Virtual support groups … Mindfulness-based stress relief techniques … Referrals to mental health and substance abuse disorder treatment, if needed.

If you or anyone you know needs to speak with someone, please call our helpline (Monday – Friday, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.):

609.303.4129 This program is a Crisis Counseling Program (CCP) brought to you by NJ Hope and Healing and Capital Health, in collaboration with the New Jersey Department of Human Services’ Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services, Disaster and Terrorism Branch, through a FEMA grant.

Welcome to Capital Health OB/GYN. We believe your health starts with more than an appointment. It starts with trust.

It starts with doctors who ask the right questions. And then really listen to your answers. Where you spend more time talking through your concerns, than you do feeling concerned that you don’t know the “right way to ask.”

It’s a different approach to women’s health. One that we’ve been taking for over a hundred years. Backed by a world-class medical group, an award-winning hospital with the largest maternity facility in Mercer County, and practices that are expanding to provide more expert doctors that are closer to you.

Mercer | Bucks | Burlington

Because you’d go to the ends of the earth for care like that. And so do we.

Find a doctor near you at CapitalHealthOBGYN.org January 2021 | Trenton Downtowner7

Making Trenton’s past and present Black lives matter

By Dan Aubrey

A

lgernon Ward is hopeful that 2021 will be the year that brings the Locust Hill Project closer to fruition.

Ward, 67, and the 6th Regiment of the United States Colored Troops Civil War organization are leading the charge to develop the lot on Hart street in Trenton’s East Ward into a place that memorializes the resting places of Trentonians of African ancestry.

“We’re excited to get this going,” says Ward recently during a tour of the Hart Street site.

The project focuses on the physical restoration of the Locust Hill African Cemetery and the adjacent building to serve as an interpretive center for the cemetery.

The building will also be used as the office space for the 6th Regiment —the group selected by the City of Trenton to lead the project — and a venue for local history and humanities-related programming.

Ward says the project moving into its third year is part of other efforts designed to accent Trenton’s Black history and attract individuals interested in taking heritage tours.

Other sites include the 1856 Higbee School, the first free school for African Americans in Trenton, and Carver Youth and Family Center, a social and cultural center for Trenton’s Black community. Both are on the National Historic Registry.

Since its site is near the Assunpink Creek, the project is also included as a feature of the currently active Assunpink Park Project.

A 1998 Hunter Research report to the city puts the project into perspective and demonstrates how the cemetery could have been forgotten: “Today, it is hard to imagine that this plot of ground between Hart and Oak streets in East Trenton once served as the city’s principal AfricanAmerican cemetery. There are no visible stones, no statues, no manicured lawn or neatly trimmed shrubbery.

Instead one finds a startk and overgrown urban lot surrounded by a tall chainlink fence.”

After noting that the history of the site was elusive, the report written by the Trenton Historical Society’s current president, Damon Tvaryanas, says, “Its existence is recorded only by a handful of newspaper articles and half-hearted mentions in a few of Trenton’s principal histories.”

What is known is that “the cemetery came into existence in 1860 when the property was purchased by the Mount Zion African Methodist Episcopal Church for use as its burial ground and was put to this purpose for Trenton’s African American citizens for about a half a century before fi-

nally fading slowly into semi-forgotten church maintained its affiliation with oblivion in the first quart of the 20th the grounds. century.”

According to the Hunter report, Incorporated in February, 1811, little is known about the activity of Mount Zion AME was the first Afri- the cemetery through the rest of the can-American religious organization 19th century, including when burials to be formed in the City of Trenton. Al- ceased on the spot. though slavery of people was a thrivAs Ward stands in front of the grassy ing practice at the time, the Trenton lot, he says the cemetery had been so church’s congregation was composed neglected in the first half of the 20th of free Blacks. century that city officials were unsure “After slavery’s abolition, the if one actually existed there. church was principally associated with But neighborhood lore kept its the middle and memory alive, upper social and and city officials economic strata and historians ‘It’s difficult to of Trenton’s Afbecame more rican American involved. Studarticulate how much population,” ies determined the Locust Hill Project notes the report. not only the exAs Ward and istence of a cemhas stimulated a the report make etery but the exclear, the Locust istence of nearly renewed interest in the Hill Cemetery is a hundred graves Locust Hill Cemetery tied to Mt. Zion’s — including sevfirst cemetery loeral who fought and the surrounding cated on Hanover in the Civil War. Street adjoined neighborhood,’ says Ward says he to the Friends’ officially became Ward.

Meeting House involved with the property. The plot cemetery project is noted for being in 2019 after the Trenton’s earliest known burial place City of Trenton initiated a meeting of African Americans — first men- to develop a partnership with a citytioned in a 1779 deed. based nonprofit to develop the site into an historic destination. hen Trenton’s Common CounWard attended as a representative cil forbade the church from of the 6th Regiment — a nonprofit continuing to the use the property organization founded in 2000 to tell for burials, Mt. Zion developed and the story of African Americans’ conexecuted a plan to secure to sell the tribution to the military history of the Hanover Street plot and use the funds United States.

The organization takes its name to secure the new location and to refrom a Civil War unit that comprised inter the bodies.

Mt. Zion managed the cemetery soldiers of African ancestry from the until 1873, when it relinquished opera- Delaware Valley — six of whom were tions to the specifically designed Lo- from Trenton. Members also create cust Hill Cemetery Company. Yet the events to show Black involvement in

W

8Trenton Downtowner January 2021

Algernon Ward points to a print of a painting by Don Triaini for which members of the 6th Regiment served as models. the Revolutionary War and World War I. The group’s Civil War links to the Locust Hill soldiers and its active partnership with the Old Barracks Museum in Trenton proved a winning combination for city partnership.

In July, 2019, J.R. Capasso, the Brownfield coordinator for the City of Trenton Economic Development office, noted the following in a grant application: “The City of Trenton is happy to provide this letter of support to develop a vacant and abandoned property in East Trenton near the proposed Assunpink Greenway and the historic Locust Hill Cemetery for use by the 6th USCT and for the development of a museum and display space that commemorates the commitment of African-Americans to this county’s military efforts through history. The city is especially interested in the 6th USCT providing opportunities to educate all people about the efforts and sacrifices of African-American troops in foreign and colonial wars through the present day.

“In support of this project, the city is currently foreclosing on the former residence located at 73 Hart Avenue ... which allows the city to sell this property to a nonprofit organization for uses that are in conformance with the redevelopment area plan. The future use of the property by the 6th UCST is understood to be as follows: “Meeting space for, and other related uses by, the 6th USCT; Public display space for educational and historic information pertaining to the activi-

ties of the 6th USCT and the involvement of African-Americans and other ‘Colored Troops’ in the U.S. military in foreign wars and during the colonial era wars in North America; and Educational and historic information pertaining to the adjacent Locust Hill Cemetery that contains the remains of at least 94 Trentonians, including at least 10 Civil War veterans.

“Once the city obtains ownership through ongoing tax foreclosure, the property at 73 Hart Avenue can be sold to the 6th USCT for nominal consideration contingent upon approval by the City Council.”

Ward says Capasso’s letter allowed the 6th Regiment to secure an initial grant from the New Jersey Council for the Humanities (NJCH) and develop preliminary architectural and interpretative site plans.

Although the group is ready to apply for NJCH implementation grant and has been in discussion with other funders to begin building renovation, Ward says the group is looking forward to the council approving the sale of the property to the 6th Regiment — with a recession clause.

“It’s difficult to articulate how much the Locust Hill Project has stimulated a renewed interest in the Locust Hill Cemetery and the surrounding neighborhood,” says Ward.

“The City of Trenton has designated the Locust Hill Project as the focal point of a housing improvement initiative for the adjacent streets. Because part of the cemetery abuts the Assun-

pink Creek, its restoration has been incorporated into the existing Assunpink Greenway Project.

“Beyond the seven stakeholders meetings, door-to-door canvassing assured that every resident of Locust Hill was informed and engaged. A survey was distributed to every home in order to gather the input of those who were unable to attend the scheduled meetings. Since it was the residents themselves who have been steadfast in their desire to see this project proceed, our efforts were received enthusiastically.

“Mrs. Ethel Wilkins, the last occupant of the house where the minimuseum will be located, has provided the project with invaluable insights into the historic architecture of the building and the cemetery grounds.

Mrs. Wilkins’ grandson is leading the procurement of a monument for the military veterans.

“Community members have insisted that they organize the acquisition of a monument for the civilians buried in the Locust Hill Cemetery as their contribution to the project. This is a undisputable indication of the level of commitment the community has invested in the Locust Hill Project.

“Another clear indicator of community-wide support for the project is a Joint Resolution from the NJ Legislature. Letters of support came from Brian Hughes, Mercer County executive; Assemblypersons Verlina Reynolds-Jackson and Anthony Verrilli; State Senator Shirley K. Turner; and

Algernon Ward at the site of the former Locust Hill Cemetery, where plans are underway to develop the site into an interpretive center and memorial for Trentonians of African ancestry.

U.S. Congresswoman Bonnie WatsonColeman.”

The historic moment is not lost on Ward, a retired research scientist at the New Jersey Department of Health and one-time city council candidate.

“My mother was the first black operating room technician at Helene Fuld hospital, and my dad worked at various factories — he worked for Trane Company,” he says about his family.

A

lthough he attended Trenton Central High School and Trenton State College (now the College of New Jersey), he quickly turns to how meeting reenactor Fred Minus opened him to a new world.

“I would see (Minus) downtown in uniform. Then he’d ask me to go with him to see the Civil War and Native American collections in Hamilton.

“When he found out that I played the trumpet (in high school and in a band), he gave me a bugle and said, ‘You have to come to reenactment. It was like going into history.

“I went and got a uniform, and I was done. It was like walking into a time machine. I could not believe the dedication that people had.”

Ward says he and the other Black reenactors were so “fired up” that they started they created the all-volunteer 6th Regiment and had experiences

“we couldn’t buy.”

That includes being invited to march during in the parade for United States President Barrack Obama’s second inauguration as well as being in the color guard for various parades, including Veterans and Memorial days and even Miss America.

Yet, during an interview in his Trenton home, he says one of the greatest honors was for the members of the Trenton-based 6th Regiment to be the models for a painting of the historic 6th Regiment in battle rendered by noted military scene painter Don Triaini for the Union League in Philadelphia — the organization that helped fund the Civil War groups.

“We came from obscurity to paintings,” he says, pointing to himself in a print of the painting displayed with his collection of African face masks hanging in his Trenton home.

Turning back to the Locust Hill Project, Ward says he while he had hoped the city council would have approved the group’s control of the property by now, he anticipates it happening soon.

“We promised (the community) that we would get this done, and people want to see it — people in their 80s.

We can’t disappointment them. This is honoring our ancestors — something pretty straightforward for the city to accomplish.”

January 2021 | Trenton Downtowner9

TCM celebrates women artists

By Dan Aubrey

T

he Trenton City Museum opens its new exhibition “Women Trenton Style” this month.

Showcasing work by several noted women artists from the Greater Trenton region, the work was designed and curated by nationally recognized Trenton artist Mel Leipzig.

The artist/curator made the following statement about the exhibition that will be on view through spring 2021:

T

he idea of this show began with a show I curated for the Center for Contemporary art in Bedminster, New Jersey, of Trenton area women artists who were involved with the arts in Trenton. The show included Priscilla Algava, Princeton; Elizabeth Aubrey, Bordentown; and Marge Miccio, Trenton.

Joan Perkes, the president of the board of trustees of the Trenton City Museum at Ellarslie, then kindly asked me at some point to revive the show at Ellarslie.

I gladly agreed. I decided to add several more artists: Nora Chavooshian, Cheryl Eng, Tracey Jones, Dallas Piotrowski, Tamara Torres, Khalilah Sabree, Aundreta Wright, and Mary Yess.

Several of these artists were also

noted art teachers. Cheryl Eng, who is still teaching during the pandemic and Khalilah Sabree, who is now retired, were important teachers in the art department of Lawrenceville High School.

Aundreta Wright taught the History of African-American Art, a course which she created at MCCC. She also taught art to my children when they were young and attending the Joyce Kilmer School in Trenton. They both still remember her with great fondness.

The late Priscilla Algava, whose works always has a poet quality, was also a highly inspiring teacher and strong advocate for artist in Mercer County. We are grateful to her husband and two daughters for the inclusion of her works in this show.

The Trenton-born sculptor Nora Chavooshian, daughter of the late noted watercolorist Marge Chavooshian, shows in New York where she is presented by the Denise Bibro Gallery.

Tracey Jones, I believe, is one of the finest abstract painters in the state.

She and her husband, the painter/ pianist Geoff Dorfman, founded the Milton Resnick Foundation, located in Manhattan. Their home/studios are located in the Mill Hill District of Trenton.

Also living in Mill Hill is the won-

derful painter March M i c c i o .

Along with her husband, Chuck Wagener, Marge founded Artifacts Gallery in Trenton, which was a source of Trentoniana.

Dallas Piotrowski is noted for her beautiful paintings of flowers and animals.

She participated in the founding of the Trenton Artists Workshop Association, was the gallery curator at the Chapin School in Princeton, and exhibited at the Trenton City Museum.

Mary Yess, who the New York Times art critic Peter Schjeldahl fondly called “a quirky artist,” was president of the Trenton Artists Workshop Association. She eventually became the president of the Princeton Art Association (PAA) and is largely responsible for moving the PAAA to the warehouse in Trenton which eventually became Artworks.

The highly individualist painter, Elizabeth Aubrey, who paintings border between abstraction and reality, is the present president of TAWA. It was she who arranged for TAWA artists, including the graffiti artists of Trenton, to have a show of their work at a gallery in New York.

Khalilah Sabree recently moved from Trenton to Columbus, New Jersey. But she still maintains her studio at Artworks, where she creates her beautiful works often with Islamic

‘Silent Enough to Listen to Fragments of Your Soul’ by Tamara Torres is part of the upcoming ‘Women Trenton Style’ exhibit at the Trenton City Museum.

Themes.

The high inventive photographer/ printer Tamara Torres has shown her work at the New Jersey State Museum and at galleries in Europe. Like Sabree, her studio is at Artworks.

The artists in the show were chosen for the high quality of their art and their devotion to art. Their achievements deserve to be seen.

Please note that community programs are being organized under changing social distancing protocols and will be presented as both hybrid and online events.

For more details and updated information, visit www.ellarslie.org.

FELTUS INSURANCE SERVICES BETH FELTUS EMPLOYEE BENEFITS SPECIALIST Specializing Small 50 Employees Licensed in NJ ·inNY · PABusinesses · KY · TN · of OH2 ·- WV · GA · LA · IN Phone (609) 393-1556 • Fax Email Beth@BethFeltus.com (609) 393-1556 O. (877) (609)393-0996 233-4113• C. (609) 498 7900 F. 104 Jackson St., Trenton, NJ 08611 Email Beth@BethFeltus.com www.bethfeltus.com www.BETHFELTUS.com 10Trenton Downtowner January 2021

Mercer County Curbside Recycling Information All recyclables must be in official buckets and at the curb by 7:00 a.m. • NO ITEMS IN PLASTIC BAGS WILL BE COLLECTED

2021 MERCER COUNTY Curbside Recycling Schedule MONDAY Lawrence

TUESDAY Ewing

Princeton

July 12, 26 Aug. 9, 23 Sep. 11, 20 Oct. 4, 18 Nov. 1, 15, 29 Dec. 13, 27

Jan. 11, 25 Feb. 8, 22 Mar. 8, 22 Apr. 5, 19 May 3, 17 June 5,14, 28

Jan. 4, 18 Feb. 1, 15 Mar. 1, 15, 29 Apr. 12, 26 May 10, 24 June 7, 21

WEDNESDAY

July 5, 19 Aug. 2, 16, 30 Sep. 13, 27 Oct. 11, 25 Nov. 8, 22 Dec. 6, 20

Entire City of Trenton July 7, 21 Jan. 6, 20 Aug. 4, 18 Feb. 3, 17 Mar. 3, 17, 31 Sep. 1, 15, 29 Apr. 14, 28 Oct. 13, 27 May 12, 26 Nov. 10, 24 Dec. 8, 22 June 9, 23

Hamilton Zones 1 and 4 Jan. 13, 27 July 14, 28 Feb. 10, 24 Aug. 11, 25 Mar. 10, 24 Sep. 8, 22 Apr. 7, 21 Oct. 6, 20 May 5, 19 Nov. 3, 17 June 2, 16, 30 Dec. 1, 15, 29

FRIDAY

HOLIDAY COLLECTIONS

Hamilton Zone 3

Jan. 2,15, 29 Feb. 12, 26 Mar. 12, 26 Apr. 9, 23 May 7, 21 June 4, 18

If collection day falls on a holiday (Christmas, New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day and Thanksgiving) collection will be the following SATURDAY.

July 2, 16, 30 Aug. 13, 27 Sep. 10, 24 Oct. 8, 22 Nov.5, 19 Dec. 3, 17, 31

Hopewell Township Hopewell Boro and Pennington

Jan. 12, 26 Feb. 9, 23 Mar. 9, 23 Apr. 6, 20 May 4, 18 June 1, 15, 29

July 13, 27 Aug. 10, 24 Sep. 7, 21 Oct. 5, 19 Nov. 2, 16, 30 Dec. 14, 28

THURSDAY

Hamilton Zone 2

Jan. 14, 28 Feb. 11, 25 Mar. 11, 25 Apr. 8, 22 May 6, 20 June 3, 17

July 1, 15, 29 Aug. 12, 26 Sep. 9, 23 Oct. 7, 21 Nov.4, 18 Dec. 2, 16, 30

July 6, 20 Aug. 3, 17, 31 Sep. 14, 28 Oct. 12, 26 Nov. 9, 23 Dec. 7, 21

Jan. 5, 19 Feb. 2, 16 Mar. 2, 16, 30 Apr. 13, 27 May 11, 25 June 8, 22 West Windsor

Jan. 7, 21 Feb. 4, 18 Mar. 4, 18 Apr. 1, 15, 29 May 13, 27 June 10, 24

SPECIAL RECYCLING EVENTS Household Hazardous Waste Collection and Electronics Recycling Events Dempster Fire School (350 Lawrence Station Road) March 27, June 05 and September 11 / 8AM - 2PM

July 8, 22 Aug. 5, 19 Sep. 2, 16, 30 Oct. 14, 28 Nov. 11, 27 Dec. 9, 23 OPEN TO ALL MERCER COUNTY RESIDENTS!

Document Shredding Events Lot 4/651 South Broad Street (across from Mercer County Administration Bldg.), April 10 and October 9 / 9AM - 12PM

Get the FREE ‘Recycle Coach’ APP!

NEVER MISS ANOTHER COLLECTION DAY! Scan the code for instant access to all your recycling needs!

MUNICIPAL RECYCLING AND PUBLIC WORKS: Ewing / 882-3382 Hamilton / 890-3560 Hopewell Boro / 466-0168 Hopewell Twp / 537-0250 Lawrence Twp / 587-1894

Pennington Boro / 737-9440 Princeton / 688-2566 Trenton / 989-3151 West Windsor / 799-8370

East Windsor, Hightstown, Robbinsville: Call your Recycling / Public Works Office for your recycling schedule

Scan here or download from your favorite App Store

Mercer County Participates in MERCER COUNTY

RECYCLES

SINGLE STREAM RECYCLING; ALL Recyclables EITHER Bucket!

No more separation anxiety!

Mercer County Improvement Authority / 609-278-8086 / www.mcianj.org January 2021 | Trenton Downtowner11

Truth in numbers

1

Average New Jersey household credit card debt.

Take charge of your debt with a fixed-rate Lifestyle Loan.

As low as

6.24% APR2

for 36 months.

No payments for

90 Days3

Apply today at gocunj.com/lifestyle or by calling (609) 538-4061.

1 Data regarding 2018 credit card debt in New Jersey households was pulled from ValuePenguin: (https://www.valuepenguin.com/average-credit-card-debt#by-region).

2 Annual Percentage Rate (APR) effective as of July 1, 2018. Subject to credit approval. Financing available up to 60 months. Rates as low as 6.24% for 36 months, 7.24% for 48 months, and 8.24% for 60 months. Rates are based on credit worthiness. Payment amount is determined by APR and term. The loan payment is $30.54 per $1,000 borrowed at 6.24% for 36 months. The loan payment is $24.07 per $1,000 borrowed at 7.24% for 48 months. The loan payment is $20.40 per $1,000 borrowed at 8.24% for 60 months. Rates subject to change at any time.

3 Each personal loan closed during this promotional period will make no payments for 90 days. Accepting the terms of "no payment for 90 days offer" will extend the maturity of your loan for at least 90 days but less than 110 days. If accepting the delayed first payment, you will not be eligible for any other skipping/delaying your payment during 2020. Interest will accrue during this period. Loan amounts of up to $25,000 are available. Processing fee of $35 will apply.

Federally insured by NCUA. Equal Housing Lender.

12Trenton Downtowner January 2021