Thanks for support
To the editor and Valley citizens:
Cub Scout Pack 556 (Stony Brook Elementary) would like to thank you for buying popcorn from us at the Pennington Market in October. We sent all our profits to the victims of Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana and Mississippi to help them buy back homes and stuff. The total was $613. We appreciate your generosity. We hope someone will do something for us if we need it someday. We’re all Americans.
For the entire Pack:
Ethan Borden,
Webelos Den 1
Noah Ouslander,
Webelos Den 2
PTO seeking camps
for February event
To the editor:
Following a very successful first year, the Hopewell Elementary School PTO will host its second annual Summer Camp Fair on Feb. 1, 2006. The fair is open to camps located in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.
The fair will be held from 7-9 p.m. with light refreshments being served during the event. Last year 15 diverse camps were in attendance and the PTO expects an even larger group this year.
Those camps already scheduled to attend include:
Summer Environmental Education Day Camp at the Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association, offering outdoor nature exploration, pond and stream adventures, canoeing, hiking and more on their 825-acre nature preserve and at the Buttinger Nature Center. Visit: thewatershed.org.
The Clay Garden, Hopewell, offering campers 5-16 an opportunity to create a wide variety of pottery, sculpture and jewelry during morning camp and art activities during afternoon camp in August. Visit : theclaygarden.com.
Mercer County Community College, West Windsor, offering arts, sciences and recreational camping experiences to children 7-14. Visit: mccc.edu.
Rambling Pines Day Camp, Hopewell, offering traditional day camp with aquatics, sports, creative arts, and performing arts to ages 3-14. Visit: ramblingpines.com
Drama Kids International, Pennington (for children 6-17), offering developmental drama including: speech/voice training, group improvisation, dialogue development, character analysis, mini-scripts, creative movement, production techniques and fun.
Camp Mason YMCA, Hardwick, a traditional sleep-away camp for students 7-16.
Hopewell Valley Regional School District is comprised of six schools and a student population of over 4,000. Spaces are $50 per table and are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Registrations close Jan. 20, 2006.
For registration information, contact me at 466-3051 or via e-mail: [email protected].
Carolyn Bender,
Hopewell PTO
Don’t just
think Bin Laden
To the editor:
We are on a perilous road indeed when torture can be blithely endorsed as a pragmatic matter, as it is in John Hein’s letter. I am quite simply appalled at the apparent willingness of some, including those in the highest levels of our elected government, to endorse and protect torture.
Torture is a morally bankrupt, universally condemned, and flatly wrong way for a civilized society to behave. Yes, we face a savage and amoral enemy in Bin Laden and his followers: an enemy who should be contested with all our moral cunning and strength. Descending to his level, however, will only win us the disdain of the rest of the world, corrupt us from within, and put our troops in even more danger. It is counter to everything this country stands for.
The ends will never justify the means. Shame on us.
Ian Burrow
Hopewell Borough
Looking for young
business leaders
To the editor:
The Mercer County Regional Chamber of Commerce officially recently made a call for nominations for the inaugural year of their "Young Business Leaders Council" (YBLC) at their monthly luncheon. The purpose of the council, according to Chamber Chairman Donald J. Loff, is to provide a forum in which future business leaders have the opportunity to enhance their leadership skills, network with colleagues and participate in competitive projects that have an impact on them professionally, while at the same time impacting the Chamber of Commerce and business community.
A selection committee made up of four Chamber Executive Board members and four representatives from the area’s higher educational institutions will select 24 young business leaders to participate in this 12 program. To be eligible for participation an individual must be under 40 years of age or two years in a new career, be nominated (self nomination OK), have corporate approval to participate and commit to the attendance requirements.
The program consists of team meetings (the council will be broken into two teams of 12), networking receptions with legislators and CEOs and continuing education courses in leadership. The two teams will work on two projects over the course of the yearlong program; a fundraising activity on behalf of a Chamber nonprofit member and a marketing plan for a Chamber small business member.
Combining the networking opportunities with the educational opportunities makes this program ideal for young leaders who want maximum exposure. With the support of our educational and corporate partners, our council members will have the experience of their professional lifetime.
The Chamber thanks Sun National Bank, corporate sponsor of this program and the following colleges, which are providing the educational opportunity component to this program: The College of New Jersey, Rider University, Thomas Edison State College, Mercer County Community College and Princeton University.
For more information or to nominate a Young Business Leader, please visit the Chamber Web site at www.mercerchamber.com. Deadline for nominations is Dec. 1, 2005.
Michele N. Siekerka
President, CEO
Mercer Regional
Chamber of Commerce

