ATVs & injuries 3/31/05

Why are young people
 

injured so often? * No helmet use. * Carrying one or more passengers. * Lack of mature judgment. * Lack of adequate strength and coordination. * ATV too big for their size/age.
 

Safety tips for
 

all ATV riders * Do not carry passengers. ATVs are designed for one person. * Wear a helmet with eye protection. * Wear non-skid, closed toe shoes. * Wear long pants and a long-sleeve shirt. * Do not ride on public roads or at night. * Never use a 3-wheeler. They are unsafe and no longer manufactured. * Attend an ATV driver's safety course.
 

What can happen? The most common injuries associated with ATV crashes are to the head, face and spine -- skull fractures, facial fractures, brain injuries, coma, paralysis and spinal cord injuries. Some kids have short-term disability, some have a lifetime of disability, and some kids die.
 

-- archildrens.org

Serious accidents involving children riding all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) are a growing problem, with a new study finding hospitalization for such injuries jumping nearly 80 percent between 1997 and 2000.

Close to 5,300 Americans under the age of 18 were hospitalized with ATV injuries between 1997 and 2000 -- an increase of 79.1 percent during that time period, said study author Dr. Mary Aitken, an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Medicine and a staff physician at the Arkansas Children's Hospital, in Little Rock.

"I think we have an alarming problem overall," she said. "This increase is very concerning."

The study appears in the current issue of Pediatrics.

Aitken and her team evaluated data from the 1997 and 2000 Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project Kids' Inpatient Database (KID), allowing them to generate population-based national estimates. According to Aitken, 1997 was the first year KID data was available. It's the only nationwide database of hospital discharge data on children.

About 68 percent of children hospitalized had stays of less than four days, but 10 percent stayed more than eight days. About 1 percent of the young patients died while in the hospital.

Injuries include traumatic brain injury, bone fractures and spinal cord injury, Aitken said. "Not all of them are serious," she added. "There is a wide range."

ATVs are typically four-wheeled machines with motorcycle-style handlebars and a high center of gravity. Their large, low-pressure tires restrict the vehicles to off-road use.

About 884,000 ATVs were sold in 2003, according to Mike Mount, a spokesman for the Specialty Vehicle Institute of America, an industry group. More than 15 million Americans ride an ATV annually, he said.

While the increasing number of ATVs being used is a factor, misuse of the vehicles and a lack of training by many riders also plays a big role in the injury rate, Aitken said. There are excellent training programs, she said, and the industry is dedicated to safety. But "only a small proportion of people who have ATVs take advantage of the training program," she added.

Parents can do much to reduce the injury toll, she said.

"Key to this is that parents (must) have a realistic understanding of the power of these vehicles, and that they obtain training for themselves," she said. Parents should be aware of the manufacturers' instructions and warnings, she added.

In response to the study, the Specialty Vehicle Institute of America issued a three-page statement supporting the American Academy of Pediatrics' efforts to reduce ATV injuries among children and advocating a three-pronged approach to the problem. It should include rider training, parental supervision and appropriate state safety laws, according to the statement.

Among other guidelines, the institute recommends that riders under age 16 use ATVs under adult supervision and not carry passengers. The size of the ATV should be age-appropriate, and helmets and protective gear should be worn, the institute recommended.

Aitken agreed that following these recommendations could make a difference. "Everyone should wear a helmet," Aitken said. "Not a bike helmet, but a standard motorcycle helmet."

"And ATV users should recognize that ATVs are not passenger vehicles, with very few exceptions," she said. They are usually single-rider vehicles, and "many of the injuries we see occur when multiple riders are on an ATV, and that makes them more unstable," she said.

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Health fair in Buena Vista Tuesday 3/31/05

Seniors, area veterans and other residents of Buena Vista Township may want to circle Tuesday on their calendars.

Buena Vista Township will hold its fifth annual community health fair and awareness day from10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday at the Buena Vista Township municipal building, 890 Harding Highway. The event which is hosted by the township committee, will include guest speakers and exhibits from a large number of organizations, including the Arthritis Foundation, the Atlantic County Senior Intergenerational Services, Vineland YMCA and the Atlantic County Veterans Center, to name only a few.

Visitors can also expect advice on wills and estate planning and advice on avoiding elder fraud from an area investigator.

Those who come may enjoy a free light breakfast or lunch, too.

For more information, call (856) 697-2100 or (609 561-5650, press 8. -- From staff reports

BUENA VISTA -- When Dorothy Brown was a young mother of three and working as a healthcare aide, a nurse at the facility noticed her exceptional way with people.

"She pulled me aside and asked what I thought of becoming a foster mother," recalled Brown of her experience in the northern New Jersey nursing home in 1980. "I knew that she was one herself. She told me how she admired the love and care that I gave my patients, and thought that I could do the same with children."

The idea stuck in Brown's mind.

In 1984 -- three years after she and her husband moved to Buena Vista -- she contacted the Atlantic County office of the state Division of Youth and Family Services to find out more about becoming a foster mother.

During the past two decades, Brown has raised more than 100 foster children, been a birth mother of four grown, successful children with families of their own, and currently has eight adopted children, ranging from 3 to 19 years old, who live with her in a modest two-story house on Wisteria Drive.

Life with her brood can be hectic, but she said she wouldn't trade it for anything, even though it unraveled her marriage. In 1995, her husband walked out, Brown recalled.

"I just love children ... it's that simple," said the petite, pixyish woman with short, dark red hair and warm brown eyes. "I hate to see children abused and neglected, and when I can take a baby and turn their health around and see them happy and healthy, that's my greatest reward."

Most of the children for whom Brown has cared are the offspring of drug-addicted mothers. Many were born premature with a low birth weight, she explained.

"Being drug-addicted doesn't automatically mean a mother will have an impaired child, but quite a few of them do because some of them don't get any prenatal care," she explained. "Often, the baby has a lot of health problems."

Brown said she gets the babies anywhere from 10 days to six months after birth, and raises them for a year or two until the birth mother or the child's guardians can get back on their feet.

"This has been the situation with most of the children placed with me," she said. "Sometimes the parents are grateful for me taking care of the child, while others are resentful because they felt I was able to do a better job than they could have done. Every situation is different."

Some of the children she raised keep in touch with her and bring their own children to visit, Brown said.

"There's a little boy who moved to Pennsylvania with his family," Brown said. "He was so sick when I got him. I had him for two years, and when he left me, he was very healthy, and now he's doing quite well. The family encourages me to visit him any time I want."

At present, the 55-year-old Brown is concentrating on her adopted children, all of whom came to her as sickly, premature infants.

Her son, Taylor, 14, an eighth grader in a program for gifted children at the Cleary Middle School, had so many health problems Brown is amazed that he came through as well as he did.

Before reaching 1 year old, he developed hydrocephalus and cerebral palsy.

"He had to have shunts put in his brain to drain the fluid," she said. "Then he had to endure a number of operations to stretch his leg muscles and to wear braces. The upper part of his body is fine, but he's got a lot of problems with his legs."

Taylor will have to endure at least two more operations on his legs to straighten out his feet and to keep his calf tendons from locking up, his mother said.

"Once he gets through that hurdle, he should be in pretty good shape," Brown said. "He wants to go to college, play basketball and become either a teacher or lawyer."

Her adopted 6-year-old fraternal twins, John and Joseph, have had their share of ills, too.

"John was a bubble baby, meaning he had to spend the first year of his life in a sterilized room because he had an immune deficiency. He was allergic to everything," Brown said. "He had to be tube-fed."

Joseph had some problems but grew out of them, Brown said.

With the help of her oldest adopted daughter, Crystal, 19, a nursing student at Atlantic County Community College, Brown's household runs smoothly.

"When I keep running after these kids, I feel like 19 going on 45," Crystal said with a laugh as she playfully chased after her giggling 3-year-old sister, Joyce.

"No, I'm only kidding. Everybody who meets my mom envies me for having such a good mother. Some of them ask if they can come and live with us."

Brown said she encourages her children to be all they can be.

"I tell them that they have to get a good education," she said. "If they have that, they can get a good job and they won't have to struggle like you do when you have a limited education."

What keeps this woman with seemingly boundless energy going?

"It's my kids," she said. "If you want to be a foster mother you need a lot of patience, love and faith. I get a lot of support from the people in my church (the First Baptist Church of Richland) and my pastor, Rev. David Mallory. They've been wonderful to us."

When Taylor faced a serious eye operation last year, the congregation prayed.

"A few days later, I took him to the doctor, and he said Taylor's eyes were perfect and that he didn't need the operation," Brown said. "The doctor didn't understand it, and neither did I. It was a miracle."

Brown's work with foster children has not gone unnoticed. Last year, she was recognized by DYFS and by her church with a certificate of recognition.

On Monday, she received the township's Making Buena Vista Proud award at the Township Council meeting.

Mallory, who also serves as manager of DYFS's Bridgeton office, said it was very rare for someone to have had so many foster children.

"I don't know how many people are in Mrs. Brown's category," he said. "But I do know it's a chosen few. She is quite a remarkable woman."

BUENA VISTA -- The township committee Monday night passed four ordinances intended to conform with new state regulations intended to protect against groundwater pollution.

The new laws:

BUENA VISTA -- Several public officials spoke out this week about the need for emission controls for coal-fired power plants that pollute the air and produce dangerous levels of mercury.

"It's our responsibility to get the word out on the danger of mercury and air pollution and that it is unacceptable," Buena Vista Mayor Chuck Chiarello said Wednesday at a forum sponsored by the N.J. Public Interest Research Group's student chapters at Rutgers University.

Chiarello urged people to carpool and not to buy "big gas guzzlers like sport utility vehicles," and mentioned how planting trees also could help reduce air pollution.

Pittsgrove Township Mayor Peter Voros noted his municipality plans to plant 400 trees by Arbor Day.

"Most of the pollution generated by coal-burning power plants in Pennsylvania and Ohio comes to New Jersey as a result of the way the jet stream pushes air eastward," Voros said.

"Mercury is a highly toxic element produced as a by-product of burning coal," he added. "As a result, we get this form of pollution which causes birth defects plus acid rain-causing sulfur dioxide, which kills trees."

Chiarello called New Jersey the "last stop" for pollution before the ocean.

"When the power plants burn coal, the polluted air pools and collects over New Jersey," Chiarello explained. "It's like sitting in your living room with the fireplace damper closed."

Most of this form of pollution can be controlled, Chiarello said, but the factories burning the coal find it more economically feasible to pay heavy fines than to install pollution control equipment.

"The sad thing is that most of the pollution -- such as mercury -- can be captured at its source," Chiarello said. "But they don't want to spend money on it because it can cost millions of dollars to install and operate."

Merle Weitz, a project director for the Southern New Jersey Perinatal Cooperative of Pennsauken, which monitors maternal and child health concerns, said mercury has been linked to birth defects.

"Pregnant women who eat seafood and breathe air polluted with mercury can pass it to their unborn child," she said. "Children can be born mentally retarded, autistic, or have attention deficit disorder or poor memory, or be affected with delayed gross motor skill development such as walking late."

Weitz said one in 10 pregnant women in New Jersey has a dangerous level of mercury in her blood.

"Those findings indicate that many women in this state exceed safe levels of this element," she said.

Tony Violano, a NJPIRG spokesman, said his organization, along with Chiarello, Voros and Weitz, had joined forces to thank U.S. Rep. Frank LoBiondo for his co-sponsorship of the Clean Smokestacks Act. That bill strengthens the federal Clean Air Act by setting limits on sulfur dioxide, nitrogen, carbon dioxide and mercury emissions.

"This will cut nitrogen by 70 percent, sulfur dioxide by 80 percent, mercury by 90 percent and return carbon dioxide emissions to pre-1990 levels," Violano said.

Rosario 'Butch' D'Amore, 78 Former mayor of Buena Vista 3/26/05

Rosario "Butch" D'Amore, 78, of Richland, passed away Wednesday evening, March 23, 2005, at the Lincoln Specialty Care Center, Vineland.

Butch was born in Bridgeport, Conn., and resided in Richland for the past 37 years. In 1991, Butch retired from his position as a building code supervisor for the State of New Jersey, Department of Community Affairs. Butch, a World War II Veteran, was honorably discharged from the United States Air Force in 1946. Butch served on the Buena Vista Township Committee from 1979-1988. He was vice-chairman of the committee from 1983-1988, and mayor of Buena Vista Township from 1991-1994. He also served on the Buena Vista Township Planning Board from 1991-1994; the Local Assistance Board from 1980-1983 and 1990-1993; the Small Cities Citizen's Advisory Board from 1984-1988; the HUD advisory board from 1982-1985; the Economic Development Board from 1986-1988; the Zoning Board of Adjustments from 1975-1976; and was Civil Defense Director from 1973 to 1975. In year's prior, Butch also served as a member of the Weymouth Township Committee and the Atlantic County Board of Freeholders.

Butch is survived by his wife of 42 years, Rose M. D'Amore of Richland; daughter and son-in-law, Doris and Frank Abruscato of Vineland; son and daughter-in-law, Paul and Nicole D'Amore, of Crownsville, Md.; four grandchildren, Amelia Abruscato, Nicholas, Michael, and Anna D'Amore; brother, Joe D'Amore of Dorothy; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Family and friends will be received from 9 to 11 a.m. Monday, March 28, 2005, at Our Lady of Pompeii Church, 4680 Dante Ave., Vineland. A funeral Liturgy will be offered at 11 a.m. Burial will follow in St. Mary's Cemetery, Union Road, Vineland.

The family requests that in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions be made to the American Cancer Society (Atlantic County), 626 N. Shore Road, Absecon NJ 08201 or by calling 1-800-227-2345.

Arrangements are under the supervision of theRone Funeral Service, 1110 East Chestnut Avenue, Vineland, NJ 08360.

BUENA VISTA -- Former Mayor Rosario "Butch" D'Amore is being fondly remembered as a kind, warm-natured man who was a civic-minded penny-pincher with the township's best interests at heart.

D'Amore, who lived in the township's Cedar Gardens section and served as mayor from 1991 to 1994, died Wednesday at Lincoln Specialty Care Center in Vineland after a lengthy bout with cancer. He was 78.

The current mayor, Chuck Chiarello, said D'Amore was a "very thrifty mayor" concerned with what the taxpayers were shelling out.

"His financial conservatism made us think very carefully about each dollar that we were spending," said Chiarello, who succeeded him as the township's leader and said he learned much from D'Amore. "We have to be concerned because we have limited development in this area because of environmental restrictions imposed upon us by the New Jersey Pinelands Commission so we really can't attract much industry, so we have to rely on our property owners to pay the taxes which support our local government."

D'Amore, who once served as an Atlantic County freeholder representing the Weymouth area, worked for the state Department of Community Affairs as a state building inspector based in Folsom for 27 years before retiring in 1990.

"I've known Butch for a long time," Chiarello said. "In 1979, when I was building a home, I had to go to him for a building permit. That's when I first learned what a fine person he was."

Chiarello said D'Amore proved to be a good teacher and example for him when he was a novice township committeeman 13 years ago along with newcomer Teresa Kelly.

"Although he was a conservative Democrat -- and a fiscally conservative one at that -- he encouraged us to pursue projects beneficial to the township," Chiarello said. "Because of his encouragement we were able to get the state police to set up a headquarters on Route 54 (and) break ground for the Martin Luther King community center in Newtonville."

Committeeman Peter Bylone, who knew D'Amore most of his life, said he was a wonderful person.

"He was a great guy with a great personality," Bylone said. "He had nothing but the community's best interests at heart."

D'Amore's son, Paul, who lives in Crownsville, Md., recalls his father as an attentive dad with a wonderful sense of humor.

"Dad was a fun guy, but he had a lot of wisdom," his son said. "Pretty much everything he said to my sister and I was insightful. He was always looking out for us ... he was a good father. He was always looking out for the community. I liked to call him the master of common sense."

Born in Bridgeport, Conn., D'Amore served in World War II as a tailgunner in the Army Air Corps. He was stationed with the armed forces during the occupation of Japan until his discharge from the service in 1946.

After reading an article about the booming poultry industry, D'Amore and his father decided to buy a farm in Weymouth, where they raised chickens and sold eggs. When the egg business declined, D'Amore got a job with the Department of Community Affairs as a state building inspector. He and his family moved to Buena Vista in 1968.

He is also survived by his wife of 42 years, Rose; a daughter, Doris Abruscato.

Events schedule

BUENA VISTA -- An effort to create a centralized location to offer counseling and aid to western Atlantic County's vulnerable children and families was an outstanding success, an organizer said Wednesday.

The Martin Luther King Center in Newtonville soon may become the resource site where troubled families can receive immediate help, according to the Rev. David Mallory of the First Baptist Church in Richland.

Mallory, who also manages the state Division of Youth and Family Services office in Bridgeton, said a forum held here Tuesday to organize a collaboration among community leaders who would create the service was well received.

"We had 165 people attend from all over Atlantic and Cumberland counties who were very interested in learning what they can do to help," said Mallory, who organized the event. "We'd like to start using the Martin Luther King Center as the site of a regional social service collaborative to serve western Atlantic County."

Another meeting has been set for April 7 to move ahead with the plan.

Randy Jenkins, a Detroit-based consultant affiliated with the Annie E. Casey Foundation of Baltimore, led Tuesday's seminar.

Jenkins suggested the group:

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A DIFFERENT VIEW OF WAWA: Can smaller stores survive? As 'Super Wawas' continue to spring up, service station owners tremble 3/26/05

The new Wawa in Upper Deerfield Township is located directly across from a Texaco station on Route 77. Owners of smaller stations look on with trepidation toward Wawas that often have more pumps then they and previous competitors combined.

About Wawa

What's in a name? "Wawa" is a Lenni Lenape Indian word for the Canada goose that was found in the Delaware Valley. That's also why the company uses a goose on its corporate logo.
Source: Wawa

Douglas Rainear, Cumberland County Director of the Board of Chosen Freeholders ( foreground, left), Ken Hill, mayor of Upper Deerfield, and Mike Toner of Tastykake, cut a ceremonial ribbon inside the new Wawa.

BUENA VISTA -- Kuljit Singh worked hard during the first years after he came to this country, sometimes balancing two or three jobs at a time so he could save enough money to purchase his own business.

His hard work paid off when, 15 years ago, he was able to buy his piece of the American Dream, a small Citgo gas station at the intersection of routes 40 and 54 near the Buena Borough border.

He competed with a larger station down the street owned for more than two decades by Tony Singh, a fellow immigrant who is of no relation.

But both men now look with trepidation to a Wawa on the other side of the intersection, in Buena, knowing that plans are in the works for enlarging the convenience store into a gasoline outlet that will offer more pumps than both of their businesses combined.

Although the intersection is busy on most days, business is seasonal. Summertime tourists and farmer's trucks account for most of both stations' profits, the owners said.

"There's just not enough business to support another station," Kuljit Singh said. "It's tough enough to make it through the winter months right now."

They're not alone in their concern about surviving the arrival of "Super Wawas" as they are known in local lingo, or superstations and prototype stores as they are called by officials from Pennsylvania-based Wawa.

Superstores storm the market

About 40 of the 236 Wawa are larger stores with gasoline pumps. More are on the way, company officials say.

In the next year, Wawa will open 14 new gasoline superstations as part of its plans to offer one-stop shopping for customers, said David Yeager, director of operations for Wawa's New Jersey's stores.

This isn't the first foray into the field of gasoline merchandising for Wawa, Yeager said.

In the 1970s, Wawa added a few pumps to smaller stores, but the scale of the operations never paid off, Yeager said.

In the mid-1990s, Wawa officials decided to revisit the idea, but on a larger scale, he said.

"We thought that building our stores next to gas stations would increase service to our customers, but then decided to just add pumps to our own stores," Yeager said. "And we decided to do it on a scale that would create efficiencies that we didn't have in our previous effort."

The timing was fortuitous.

Gasoline outlets such as Texaco, Sunoco, Mobil and Exxon were looking for strategies to increase customer service and found that convenience stores helped traditional gas-only outlets add to the bottom line, according to business experts.

Exxon added gourmet coffee to some of its larger stores in the Midwest and other gasoline companies began building small convenience stores at their gas stations.

Wawa -- which operates in New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia -- watched the trend and figured it had a leg up on the gasoline stations in expanding into a different business, Yeager said.

"Selling gas isn't easy, but it's not as hard as this part," he said last week as he waved his arm at the bustling inside of a new Wawa superstation that opened on Route 77 in Upper Deerfield across the street from a Texaco station. "The most difficult part is running the convenience store, and we had a lot of experience in that end of the business."

As small mom-and-pop neighborhood stores started to disappear in the 1960s and 1970s, Wawa was well situated to fill their spot in the marketplace, Yeager said.

The company focused on customer convenience, offering carefully selected items including many bearing the Wawa name, in a friendly environment, he said. They added details, such as no-fee ATMs, to set the stores apart from competitors.

Smaller stores cringe

Yeager said the addition of gasoline to its large-scale operations meshed nicely with the company's focus on one-stop shopping for customers.

As far as the competition goes, he believes there is room for all in the marketplace.

"We bring more people to any one given area," he said. "And that's good for all of the businesses in that area."

Some competitors don't agree.

In the highly competitive market for gasoline, consumers are finding more pumps at fewer outlets.

Mergers, superstores and retail operations opened by regional brands have forced smaller gas stations out of business, according to some experts.

Between 1997 and 2004, New Jersey lost 24 percent of its retail gas stations, according to the state Treasury Department.

While consolidation may be good for consumers in the short run, it may lead to limited market choices and higher prices in the future, said Paul Riggins, president of Cumberland County--based Riggins Oil, a regional oil and gasoline distributor that operates a chain of gasoline stations.

Unlike other companies, Riggins Oil isn't venturing out of its core business -- providing petroleum products at the lowest price in the cleanest, most convenient locations, Riggins said.

The key is providing the best bargain, said Riggins said, noting his company usually offers among the lowest price per gallon in the market.

With Wawa going into the gasoline business, Riggins sees "just another competitor."

He said the company's entrance into the market won't change his company's strategy.

"We'll sell as low as we can go without selling below cost," Riggins said. "Nobody can make money selling below cost and besides, it's against the law."

Yeager noted Wawa isn't selling below cost, but he declined to reveal the company's margin on the product because it was "proprietary information."

"It's not a lot," he said. "You have to sell gas at high volume to make any money."

And Wawa is selling at high volumes, although Yeager again couldn't provide numbers for gasoline sales for the privately-held company owned largely by the Wood family, which still has major land holdings in Millville from their days as a major force in manufacturing there.

I'm betting everything

While Wawa may not be running other high-volume companies out of business, its impact on smaller operations can be devastating.

One of the area's first Super Wawas was built along Route 47 on the site of a freestanding store in Maurice River.

Across the street, the Campbell family had operated an independent gas station, convenience store and food market for decades.

At the time, they expressed concern about their ability to withstand competition from Wawa but said their longstanding ties to the community and more expansive food-service area, which included sit-down service, would provide an edge.

Wawa officials at the time said the market had plenty of room for two gas stations and food markets.

Less than a decade later, Campbell's Corner is closed while Wawa's superstation thrives with 24-hour traffic.

"It's pretty self-evident what they're doing to the mom-and-pop organizations," said Stuart Campbell, onetime co-owner of Campbell's Corner. "Other than that, I don't have much to say."

Back in Buena, Mayor Joseph Baruffi said business owners at the intersection of routes 40 and 54 have nothing to worry about.

"That's a busy, growing area," Baruffi said, noting the taxes from the growth will do the community a lot of good.

Kuljit Singh looks across the intersection and hopes Baruffi is right.

"I'm betting everything on it," he said.

BUENA VISTA -- Richland Village, the township's plan to revitalize a stretch of Route 40 that once was a thriving business community, is one step closer to reality thanks to a $150,000 grant from the state Department of Environmental Protection.

The money, which the township received Thursday, will go toward construction of the new Village Square Park.

"At the turn of the 20th century, the Richland section of our township was the heart of our town district and a bustling center for business," Mayor Chuck Chiarello said. "Railroad tracks once crossed in all four directions coming through town, and there was a train every hour filled with passengers.."

Chiarello estimates that 25,000 cars a day pass through Richland on Route 40, traveling between Delaware and Atlantic City's casinos. The township wants to divert some of that traffic to patronize the town center's businesses.

"By next year, or 2007 at the latest, we hope to have Richland Village totally renovated," the mayor said of the $2 million plan. "When you count this most recent grant from the DEP, we have gotten $680,000 in grants for the work."

The township will use the latest funds to create Village Square Park, a l.7-acre wooded lot with two large oak trees between Fir and Greenbriar avenues. Within a couple months, the mayor said, the land will be cleared of brush to make way for fencing, sidewalks, walkways, benches and a flagpole.

"It's going to be a trained-themed park," Chiarello said. The township is negotiating to get Cape May Seashore Lines to run trains that would bring tourists to Richland.

At the turn of the century, Richland was a boom community with thriving stores and restaurants lining its railroad tracks, Chiarello said. A rapidly growing farming and poultry industry surrounded it, along with numerous cedar barrel manufacturing companies.

Located in the heart of the business district, the Richland General Store has managed to weather the town center's economic storms during its nearly century-long existence, but some other commercial enterprises have not been so fortunate.

"At present, we have three closed restaurants," Chiarello said. "Right now, there is little reason for people to stop. By next year, we want to change that by reopening the restaurants, and some of the stores and other businesses, along with a model railroad exhibit and possibly a cultural exhibit explaining Richland's past history."

Tom Gill, who owns Richland General Store, said he has started to see some small signs of the work about to get under way.

"I just received a notice that a parking lot will be built by the township next to me," he said. "The other day, I saw workmen putting down small flags and marking other spots with bright orange fluorescent paint."

He also has noticed that a former restaurant and pizzeria are being reopened and that the delicatessen housed in the post office building across the street is under new management.

"I can't say that I've seen any physical construction yet, but you can tell it's coming," said Gill, who sells hardware along with beer- and wine-making equipment. "I'm really looking forward to the renovation of Richland Village -- it's going to be a big boon for us."

Dante Venafro, 8, collects Easter eggs during Saturday's hunt at Michael Debbi Park in Buena Vista Township. "It's fun finding them and having a competition," he said of the egg hunt.

Youngsters around the region celebrated the last day before spring's arrival by hunting for Easter eggs.

Parks in Millville, Vineland and Buena Vista played host to the events Saturday, as thousands of treat-filled eggs awaited eager children.

"It's fun finding them and having a competition," said Dante Venafro, 8, during the hunt at Michael Debbi Park in Richland.

In Buena, the annual egg hunt is scheduled for 10 a.m. this coming Saturday at Bruno Melini Park on Central Avenue in Minotola. The event is open only to borough residents.

At a glance

In addition to the Martin Luther King Center in Buena Vista, three other area sites are targeted to house collaboratives that address child welfare issues:

BUENA VISTA -- The township and other communities in western Atlantic County soon could have their own tool for offering fast, reliable help to children in troubled families.

The Rev. David Mallory of First Baptist Church of Richland, who also serves as manager of the state Division of Youth and Family Services office in Bridgeton, is trying to organize a collaboration here to address the problem. The goal is to use the

Artist Joanna Rivera, 55 of Richland hangs the blue ribbon she won next to her entry after she was named the 2005 Delaware Duck Stamp competition winner on March 9 at the Delaware Agricultural Museum in Dover, Del. Rivera's painting will grace the permit needed by duck hunters.

Joanna Rivera's winning entry featured mergansers flying by Fenwick Island Lighthouse in the 2005 Delaware Duck Stamp competition.

BUENA VISTA -- A Richland woman's design recently beat out those of 33 other artists and will now adorn a collector's edition stamp aimed at preserving wetlands and hunting sites in Delaware.

Joanna Rivera, 55, painted her vision of common mergansers, which are a type of duck, cavorting near the landmark Fenwick Island Lighthouse in Delaware. The state chose her rendering as the top one in the 26th annual Delaware Duck Stamp competition last week.

"It'll be reproduced on 2,000 stamps that I'll have to sign," said Rivera, who also won $2,500 for her depiction. "But it's for a good purpose."

Rivera said she does not hunt, but supports the duck stamp program, which since 1980 has raised about $2 million to restore wetlands and waterfowl habitats in Delaware and breeding grounds in Canada. The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control sells the stamps.

The panel of judges that evaluated the entries included experts on art, wildlife, lighthouses and natural habitats.

The stamp doubles as a Delaware waterfowl hunting permit, and sometimes becomes a hot collectors' item.

"If you win, you're the featured artist for the stamp," said Rivera's husband, Buena Vista Township Committeeman Michael Rivera. "Sometimes they could get a couple hundred dollars a stamp aftermarket from collectors."

State Division of Fish and Wildlife Director Pat Emory said the stamps' popularity with collectors adds to revenues from the several thousand duck stamps sold each year.

Gannett News Service contributed to this report.

The Buena Historical Society, on Wednesday, will hold a lecture, explaining state regulations regarding archaeology and detailing recent projects.

Ian C. Burrow, vice president and principal archaeologist with Hunter Research in Trenton, will explain how the regulations and laws in New Jersey ensure that the prehistory and history of New Jersey are recorded and studied, even in the face of development.

Topics also will include the archaeologist and recent projects and discoveries.

The lecture will be held at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Buena Vista Township Municipal Building, 890 Harding Highway, Buena.

Admission is free.

Free refreshments will be provided.

For more information, call (856) 692-5227.

Buena Tavern was busting at the seams Sunday, as Buena resident Stephanie Perkins was crowned Miss Buena Vista Township 2005.

"I am overwhelmed," the 16-year-old Buena Regional High School student said. "I really can't believe it."

Stephanie was awarded a $500 cash prize as well as a $100 gift certificate to Dondero's Jewelry in Vineland, roses, a trophy and, of course, a crown.

Stephanie said she would be saving her prize money to put toward college tuition.

The daughter of Debbie and Steve Perkins, wore a bright green, sequined gown and performed "I Dreamed a Dream" from Les Miserables.

"My intention was not to win the title," she said. "It was just to come here and have fun."

Fellow Buena resident and BRHS student Andrea DeKlerk took the runner-up prize of $300.

Andrea, daughter of Joyce and Daniel DeKlerk wore a black velvet, strapless evening gown.

In addition to her prize, Andrea learned about the things she could accomplish.

"I learned a lot about myself," she said. "I learned how to take pride in what I do no matter what."

Sara Stavoli walked away with the second-runner-up prize of $200.

The 15-year-old Our Lady of Mercy student wore a long, red gown and hopes to study business in college. She plans to use that business know-how to open a gymnastics school.

Stephanie Perkins will reign as Miss Buena Vista Township for two years as the pageant moves to a format allowing for more varied talent presentations.

Dolores Comparri, township chairwoman of special events, was pleased with this year's pageant.

"I think they are a wonderful bunch of girls," she said. "They are dynamic and they have a lot of great confidence."

On Sunday, one of nine young women will be named Miss Buena Vista Township. The pageant will be held at 3 p.m. at the Buena Tavern on Harding Highway. Thi nine contestants are Diamond Betterson of Collings Lakes; Andrea DeKlerk of Vineland; Jennifer Guzman of Newtonville; Stephanie Perkins of Buena; Tiarra Rogers of Collings Lakes; Mary Ann Ruga of Vineland; Sara Stavoli and Jennifer Trask of Buena According to Buena Vista Township special events chairwoman Dolores Comparri, the winner will reign for two years, allowing hopefulls to prepare for a new format that allows for more varied talent performances. The winner will walk away with a $500 cash prize. First- and second-runners up will receive $300 and $200 respectively.

Admission to the pageant is $15 or $10 for students.

SEE B3 for photos of contestants. -- From staff reports

Tyrone Hart Sr.'s art reflects "the strength of the family." His work will be on display at the African American Heritage Museum in Newtonville through April.

Where: The African-American Heritage Museum of Southern New Jersey, 661 Jackson Road, Newtonville
 

When: Through April 30. Opening reception 2 p.m. Sunday
 

Hours: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays, closed Sundays and Mondays
 

Telephone: (609) 704-7262
 

Admission: Free
 

Web: www.aahmsnj,
 

www.folkart.com/thart

Any artist would tell you that he uses his craft as a way of expressing what he feels.

That much is true for Tyrone Hart Sr., but he has other goals, too.

Hart's art reflects the importance of the traditional family.

"(What's important is) the strength of the family; it doesn't really matter where they are. The father is the leader. The mother is the teacher, the ruler," he said.

In his painting, "Nomads," on display at the African-American Heritage Museum in Newtonville through April, Hart, 48, shows a family traveling through the Egyptian desert.

"This shows their struggles in the desert," he said. "The father is the leader. The lesson is (for men) to be that leader, be that strength."

His own experience growing up wasn't exactly traditional.

"My father was never there, that's why I can cherish it even more. I was raised by six strong women. I had the love, but sometimes you need a man's hand," he said.

Museum founder Ralph Hunter Sr. invited Hart to display his work in honor of Women's History Month.

"He emphasizes the strength of black women. He tells the marvelous story of the black woman," Hunter said.

Looking over "Nomads," Hunter notes that the father is leading the family into the desert, his long staff conjuring an image of Moses.

The mother is in the foreground, using her body to shelter the children from whipping sands.

Most of Hart's work consists of portraits of black women. The images range from classical strength to modern sensuality.

Some are more playful, such as "Flavors," a portrait of three women. "That is strawberry, cinnamon and chocolate. I wanted to show the different flavors of black women," Hart said.

Other portraits are deadly serious and seek to show centuries of oppression.

"Emotions" shows a black man from the shoulders up. His mouth makes an exaggerated grimace while his eyes seem soft.

"This shows the unfairness of society. Just because you're a different color, you are judged before anyone even knows what you are about," Hart said. "I wanted to show the kindness in his eyes, but also the power."

Hart began painting as a boy, but put it aside to enter a career in garment sales. He later found his way back after working as a sign painter.

He began creating art after a car accident in 1993. A second wreck in 2000 left him unable to return to his job, but offered the opportunity to focus on his art.

Entirely self-taught, Hart has been a full-time artist since the 2000 accident that still forces him to wear a leg brace.

He works out of a studio in his Pleasantville home, where he lives with his wife and the three youngest of his four children.

The African-American Heritage Museum will hold a reception for Hart and Lennox Warner, whose sculptures also are featured.

The reception will begin at 2 p.m. Sunday and is open to the public.

Warner is an Atlantic City artist who specializes in African and Egyptian-styled wood sculpture.

BUENA VISTA -- A 32-year-old Vineland man was injured Thursday afternoon when his car collided with a freight train at a rural crossing at Weymouth-Malaga Road and Walnut Lane, about a half-mile from the Hamilton Township line.

Serhiy Lytvynyuk, of Brewster Garden Apartments at Chestnut Avenue and Brewster Road was flown to Cooper University Hospital in Camden. State Police Lt. Kevin Rehmann said Lytvynyuk suffered a head injury that did not appear life threatening.

Lytvynyuk was traveling west on Weymouth Road and apparently did not see the flashing lights at the railroad crossing. His car was struck by a Norfolk Southern freight train that was pulling four coal cars on a Conrail line. The train was heading to the Beasley's Point generating station, Rehmann said.

The scene of the crash is in a section of Buena Vista east of Route 54 and about three miles east of Buena Borough.

"A lot of people use that road as a shortcut from Route 322 to Route 54," said Richland Fire Chief Tony Monfredo. Railroad gates do not protect the crossing but flashing lights and a warning bell were activated when firefighters arrived, Monfredo said.

"He was hit broadside by the train and about 15 gallons of gasoline were spilled from the car," Monfredo said. "Anytime you have gasoline, you have danger."

The crash occurred about 2:30 p.m. and firefighters returned to their station at 4 p.m., Monfredo said.