By John Tredrea, Staff Writer
Take a break. Stay home and chill with the folks.
Next Wednesday, March 2, is Hopewell Valley’s Night Off.
This community-wide event, now in its eighth year, encourages families to spend the evening with no interruptions — no homework, no work meetings, no sports practice — just family, together.
With the support of local school officials, sports leaders, parents, community and religious leaders, sports practices, classes and homework will be canceled this special evening.
Developed by the Hopewell Valley Municipal Alliance, Hopewell Valley’s Night Off has been designed in response to the increasing demands of work and school on personal and family time.
Heidi Kahme, chairwoman of the Municipal Alliance, stressed the importance of parents spending time with their children.
”Spending quality time together is the first — and most important — step toward establishing a great family support system,” she said. “Young people need love and support to grow up healthy. Take this night to pay attention to them, listen to them and take an interest in what they are doing.”
A decade of research by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University consistently has found the more often kids eat dinner with their families, the less likely they are to smoke, drink or use drugs.
Pennington Quality Market is making this night easy to plan for families by providing a menu created by the chefs at Catered Cuisine for this special family night.
Michael Rothwell, vice president and general manager, said, “As a local family owned business, we are delighted to be part of this special community event to encourage families to be together. By providing a quick and convenient way to pick up dinner, families can spend even more time together.”
The Hopewell Valley Municipal Alliance is a community organization that works in collaboration with local governments, school districts, recreation organizations, police, civic organizations, businesses, faith communities, parents and students to address at risk behavior in Hopewell Valley.
The Municipal Alliance provides funding and support for more than 25 programs in Hopewell Valley’s schools and community, which focus on positive youth development, including drug and alcohol education and prevention and community engagement.
For more information or to get involved with the work of the Hopewell Valley Municipal Alliance, call 609-737-0120, ext. 642.
