Mon-Oc Federal Credit Union is collecting donations of new gloves, mittens, hats and scarves and in turn will match each donation and forward all new items to the United Way in Monmouth and Ocean counties. Items will be collected at Mon-Oc branches in Howell, Freehold, Middletown, Neptune, Toms River and Barnegat until Feb. 28.
Local Curves fitness centers will participate in the Curves Food Drive to benefit local food banks. Curves will waive its normal service fee (based on first-visit enrollment with a minimum 12-month program) for any new member who brings in a bag of nonperishable groceries and joins between Feb. 27 and March 11. Others wishing to donate may drop off nonperishable food items at Curves Monday through Saturday during business hours throughout the month of March. Curves has nearly 10,000 locations worldwide, and last year its food drive collected 10.6 million pounds of food for local communities, nearly 3 million pounds more than the year before, according to the company’s press release.
Jersey Shore Public Relations and Advertising Association, a statewide group of public relations, advertising, graphic design, Web development, marketing and communications professionals, will sponsor a networking luncheon March 3 at 11:30 a.m. at Branches, West Long Branch.
The program will feature Bill Schley, author of “Power of 10” and co-author of “Why Johnny Can’t Brand: Rediscovering the Lost Art of the Big Idea.” He will address the elements of branding and why many companies get it wrong. Schley, a graduate of Harvard University, is president, CEO and co-founder of david inc. and has won the industry’s Effie Award for sales-effective advertising.
The cost is $25 for members and $30 for nonmembers before Feb. 28, and $35 thereafter. Register at www.jspraa.com or call (732) 842-3311.
The Western Monmouth Chamber of Commerce will hold its monthly general meeting at 11:30 a.m. Feb. 23 at the Battleground Country Club, Manalapan. The guest speaker will be Gary McLain, marketing consultant for CEPAC Inc.
McLain was a point guard on the 1985 Villanova University basketball team that defeated Georgetown to win the NCAA basketball championship. He was named Most Valuable Player and was drafted in the fifth round by the New Jersey Nets. He will discuss diversity in the business community.
The cost is $35 for members and $40 for nonmembers and includes lunch. For reservations, call (732) 462-3030.
BNI, a business networking group dedicated to the exchange of qualified business referrals, is looking for new members. Meetings are held at the Empire Diner, Route 9, Freehold Town-ship Friday from 7-8:30 a.m. Details: Peter Joffe, (732) 995-8966.
Sonny Fitzpatrick of Marlboro presented a grant on behalf of the McKesson Foundation to the Shriners Hospital for Children, Philadelphia. Fitzpatrick is vice president of sales for the McKesson Foundation.
The grant will be used to support the hospitals’ SWEATY (Strategies to Work on Enhanced Activity for Teens or Youth) program. The program promotes physical activity for children with disabilities.
Fitzpatrick presented the grant to Dean Shacklett, chairman of the Shriners Hospital Board of Governors.
Since 1926, Shriners Hospital for Children has been providing medical care at no cost to children between the ages of birth and 18 years with orthopedic conditions resulting from injuries and diseases of the bones, joints and muscles as well as spinal cord injuries.
Women in Business Committee, sponsored by the Western Monmouth Chamber of Commerce, will meet from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Feb. 27 at the Freehold Gardens Hotel, Gibson Place, Freehold Township. “The Pleasures and Perils of Internet Shopping” will be presented by George Pankewytch of Road King Auctions, a company that sells clients’ merchandise for them on eBay. The cost is $25 for members and $30 for nonmembers and includes lunch. For reservations, call (732) 462-3030.
Gary Anderson of Marlboro has been hired as vice president of print services at Vintage Filings, New York City, an EDGAR filer and financial printing firm. Anderson previously worked as director of operations for St. Ives, where he oversaw a $20 million business unit. He has also served as strategy manager for Bowne, Doremus, Merrill, and was production manager at Rosenbaum.
Dr. Deborah Breitstein of Animal Health Care of Marlboro LLP recently returned from the 20th North American Veterinary Conference in Orlando, Fla. She focused on physical therapy and rehabilitative care for dogs and cats as a way to continue her credentialing toward a certified veterinary physical therapist.
Plans are under way to include aqua therapy with an underwater treadmill and designated therapy room to facilitate treatment in the new 8,000-square-foot Animal Health Care of Marlboro facility, scheduled to open in the spring. The goal is to provide a method to aid in return to function for those pets who have had surgical or hospitalized medical needs that require a step-down situation before returning to their normal home environment. The physical therapy options will also allow for controlled weight loss and exercise to better facilitate ideal weights for dogs and cats. Animal Health Care will also include medical boarding for special-needs pets, including senior pets, who can benefit from physical therapy options.
Drs. Abraham Sadon and Jason Vengelis of Sadon Chiropractic and Rehabilitation Center, Marlboro, announced that they are now offering DTS spinal decompression therapy. The therapy uses advanced technology with digital traction to slowly decompress the spine. According to a press release from Sadon Chiropractic, DTS treatments are noninvasive and require no medications, and the patient is fully clothed. Treatment sessions last between 10 and 15 minutes. In DTS, the pressure is taken off the discs and the nerve roots, and the spinal muscles and ligaments are slowly stretched.
DCH Saturn’s staff at the Eatontown and Freehold Township locations have made a commitment to the community this year. In October, all employees were asked to donate toward treats and games for children at the Cancer Center at Monmouth Medical Center. In November, food was collected and donated to Open Door of Ocean County. For December, employees were asked to bring in toys for a foster home, and in January there was a coat drive. For February, a blood drive was held. Other monthly collections are being planned for the two locations for the remainder of the year.
Melinda Salzer of Marlboro, an entrepreneur with a marketing consulting business, has launched her newest company, Renewing Moments, Gifts for Women in Cancer Treatment.
Gifts from Renewing Moments are designed to help deal with the special needs that women experience during treatment: dry mouth, throat sores, dry skin and lips, difficulty chewing and swallowing, lack of concentration, and a poor appetite.
The gifts offer consumers a way to give the right gift at the right time and are designed to help women in treatment feel more like themselves, says Salzer, an eight-year survivor of breast cancer. Gift packages include Renewing Tea Time, Renewing Tastes and Renewing Bath Time. The items include handmade, organic, and natural products.
According to Salzer, the company will donate $1 from every sale to cancer care and research. The company’s mailing address is P.O. Box 403, Marlboro 07746, and can be reached at (732) 972-1505 or www.renewingmoments.com.
Music University opened Jan. 21 in the ShopRite shopping center on Route 9 in Freehold Township.
Owners Paul Sallee and Dimas Santiago have teamed up to create an upscale music school with professional instructors in a facility that is 2,800 square feet and has 16 instruction rooms. Each of the piano instruction rooms has a Yamaha grand piano, the drum instruction rooms have top-of-the-line Sonar drum sets, and each of the guitar instruction rooms has a Fender amp. There is also a group instruction room for young children’s programs and classes in music theory and song- and lyric-writing. Parents can sit in on sessions or view from the hallway, or they can wait in the waiting area that features a 42-inch plasma television.
Music University is open weekdays, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Saturday, 9 a.m to 5 p.m. Visit www.musicuniversity.net or call (732) 303-1100 for more information.
Ginger P. Richman of Marlboro has been promoted to vice president of energy services at NJR Energy Services, the unregulated subsidiary of New Jersey Resources. NJRES provides wholesale energy services to customers in states from the Gulf Coast to New England and Canada.
Richman joined NJRES in 2003 as director of portfolio optimization. Prior to joining the company, she worked for El Paso Corp. in Houston as vice president of transportation. She holds a bachelor of business administration degree in finance from the University of Houston.
Justin M. Klein of Manalapan has become a partner with Gerald A. Marks to form the law firm of Marks & Klein, Esqs. (formerly Marks & Associates), in Red Bank. Klein’s practice focuses on franchise and business law. He has represented franchisees throughout the United States in disputes with their franchisers. He also represents current and prospective franchisees, and local business owners who are franchising their businesses.