Clinton Township Newsletter

2 2 s e p t e m b e r 2 0 2 3 W W W . C L I N T O N T W P N E W S L E T T E R . C O M l o c A l A u T h o r , D e b b I e r . w e I s s , A n n o u n c e s l A u n c h o f n e w b o o k " O n s e c O n d T h O u g h T , M a y B e i c a n ! " Debut author, Debbie Weiss, is proud to announce the release of her memoir "On Second Thought, Maybe I Can!" After a life of prioritizing everyone else's needs and opinions other than her own, Debbie realized at the age of fifty that this was her one and only life. She didn't want to look back years from now with regret for the things she had never done. She stopped saying "I can't" and replaced it with "Maybe I can". She began by no longer viewing herself as a victim of her circumstances. She stopped allowing her struggles to define her. Recently, she became a widow and feels even more empowered to share her message. She has written her memoir illustrating that regardless of your limiting beliefs of life's circumstances, we all have the power to change our lives. In addition to becoming a writer and speaker, Debbie also fulfilled a life-long dream of owning a store containing only items with hearts on them. Her store, A Sprinkle of Hearts, brings her and her customers great joy. Debbie bravely shares her very personal story with audiences in order to inspire them and highlight that they are not alone. Life is hard, but that doesn't mean you cannot live the life of your dreams. Debbie is now doing just that! Weiss has lived in Clinton Township since 1996, and has had an insurance agency in Phillipsburg since 1995. "I really want to encourage you to read her book. It's really delightfully written. It made me smile a lot and it will teach you a lot of lessons and inspire and motivate you to tackle the things that are stopping you from getting where you want to go." - Jack Canfield, co-author of Chicken Soup for the Soul series. Find "On Second Thought, Maybe I Can!" on Amazon. It is available in hardback, paperback, ebook and audiobook. T e w k s b u r y h A r V e s T f e s T I V A l c e l e b r A T e s 2 5 T h A n n I V e r s A r y ! September 23, 2023, 12:00-5:00 pm The 25th Anniversary Tewksbury Harvest Festival will be held Saturday, September 23 from 12:00 to 5:00 pm at beautiful Christie Hoffman Farm Park in Tewksbury. Admission is $20 per car and benefits the Tewksbury First Aid & Rescue Squad. The festival, which attracted nearly 3,000 participants in 2022, draws crowds from Tewksbury and surrounding communities. This family-friendly festival in scenic Hunterdon County includes food trucks, a beer garden (ABC # 102288), unique art and craft vendors, a silent auction, and live music! Crowd favorite Bonne Boland Band brings a popular mix of classic rock and pop covers to the stage from 12:00 to 2:15 pm. And, at 2:30 pm the Harvest Festival welcomes for the first time the country-rock sounds of Jesse Bardwell and the Noble Brothers! Free activities include a classic car show (12:00-2:30 pm); a scheduled landing of the NorthStar medevac helicopter and Q&A with the crew (3:45 pm); the Kids Zone with a petting zoo and pony rides, games, and more; hayrides; fire trucks; and plenty of other fun activities! Free popcorn and cotton candy will be provided by area Scout troops. Back by popular demand is the pie baking contest (pre-registration required)! For an updated list of vendors and a schedule of events, to download a car show or pie baking contest application, or for more information, see www.TewksburyHarvestFest.com or visit us on Facebook at: tewksburyharvestfestival. Tewksbury First Aid & Rescue (TFARS) is a 501(c)(3) organization founded in 1990 to provide free emergency medical and rescue services to the residents of Tewksbury Township. The all-volunteer squad responds to more than 300 emergencies annually and relies on the surrounding community for its support. Christie Hoffman Farm Park, which is made up of more than 200 acres of preserved farmland and includes horse trails and sports fields, is located at 108 Fairmount Road West, Califon, NJ 07830. It provides a beautiful setting for a day of play, shopping, food, and fun for kids and adults alike. For more information on this perennial Hunterdon County favorite, please contact Georgia Woodruff at harvestfest@ tewksburyrescue.org. "Nothing is impossible, the word itself says 'I'm possible!' " ~ Audrey Hepburn When we did the American Masters – Baby Boomers topic on Zoom (during Covid) one of the top Boomer favorites was Amy Tan. We'd all heard of her, a writer whose wildly successful breakthrough novel, The Joy Luck Club (over 40 weeks on NYT bestseller list) had then become a major motion picture. Amy went on to write many other notable books and literary pieces and become a fixture in contemporary American letters, but it wasn't until her fascinating persona came through in that American Masters documentary that I wanted to know more about her – not just the writer, but the woman and the life that led to all those stories of cultural duality and complexity. Flawlessly composed, extremely intelligent, articulate, prolific and on top of that, possessed of a captivating charm, Amy Tan and her stories promise to be a rich and inspiring topic to delve into. As "Luck" would have it, the timing was pretty good. Amy's last book, a memoir, Where The Past Begins, inspired a documentary film, Unintended Memoir, released in 2021 – the perfect fit for us. This documentary of one woman's journey, at once so heartening and tumultuous, will be viewed and discussed with us by a panel of mental health professionals, garnered (very proud to say) from within our own membership. Taking it a step further, her best-selling book The Joy Luck Club is a great start for the debut of our "boutique-y" IN-DEPTH Discussion series. Patterned after the Zoom sessions which have become a source of deeper and more open sharing, this in- person, small group, occasional gathering, will create an opportunity for book discussions and other conversations drawn from varied resources. And, rounding out our Amy Tan Tribute Month, at our Luncheon (Thursday, September 21, at noon) we'll screen the now classic, major motion picture, The Joy Luck Club. This film adaptation, beautifully and elegantly presented, brings you mothers and daughters, power struggles, heartache, redemption and ultimately "JOY"! Just in case you would like a pre-event read that is quite amazing, Amy Tan's first memoir The Opposite of Fate - A Book of Musings is a fast and fantastic read. Published in 2003, it is Amy unvarnished and her engaging personality comes through loud and clear! One more thing: in mid-August I saw the big new movie Barbie. Among the many ideas and concepts springing forth from this movie, in my opinion, the strongest and most valuable one is the importance of promoting female empowerment to our girls. Especially now, with the assault on their sensibilities that social media is constantly providing. Some of the stories of women we will be exploring over the course of this month's topic are profoundly sad and yet common in far too many parts of the world. And, if you look closely enough, in some cases, in our own country as well. s e P T e m b e r e V e n T s • Unintended Memoir Luncheon: Thursday, September 7, noon. Admission: $20. • Women's Forum In-Depth: Thursday, September 14, 1:30 pm, History Room. Duration: one hour, plus or minus fifteen minutes. • The Joy Luck Club Movie Luncheon: Thursday, September 21, noon. Admission: $20. E m a i l : w o m e n s f o r u m u s a @ g m a i l . c o m f o r registration information and any questions. • Dates for upcoming October events: 10/5, 10/19 See you in September! As always, Evelyn Breheney Glynn w o m e n ' s f o r u m I n s e P T e m b e r ! "You educate a man; you educate a man. You educate a woman; you educate a generation." ~ Brigham Young

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