April 2020
On Monday January 26, the Men’s Club held its annual pre-Super Bowl video event. This year we presented the 1967 NFL Championship game better known as the Ice Bowl won by the Green Bay Packers 21-17over the Dallas Cowboys in a dramatic ending. The Packers were going for an unprecedented third straight title, but the bigger story was the weather conditions. Game time temperatures were 15 below with a wind chill of 49 below by the middle of the game. The frigid weather played a big part in all aspects of the game, from throwing, to running on the icy field as well as even calling signals in the huddle due to the quarterback’s faces being frozen. The strength and fortitude of these teams playing under horrendous conditions, undeniably went down as the most memorable game in sports history. The event which included pizza was enjoyed by many of our members.
At our meeting on February 24 we presented video clips from the 1970’s comedy sitcom, All in the Family. Who could forget Archie, Edith, Gloria & Mike and how they delivered their outrageous blend of comedy and social commentary that shocked us all with its taboo-breaking humor that also captivated us with its humanity.To paraphrase CBS prior to the shows debut, “The show seeks to throw a humorous spotlight on our frailties, prejudices and concerns, by making them a source of laughter, and hope to show just how absurd they are”. Also, at this meeting and through the fund raised from the Men’s Club Calendar, contributions were distributed to the following charities: Embrace Kids Foundation, Children’s Specialized Hospital Foundation, Adler Aphasia Center and the Children’s Hemiplegia and Stroke Association. It was a great night of entertainment and giving for the men’s club. Contributions were also made and presented by members of the men’s club to representatives of the Veterans facilities in Lyons (photo-Don Marino & Marcial Alzugaray) and at Menlo Park (photo-Joe Petraglia & Ed Miller)
Be on the lookout for these future events. March 23 will have the return of Vinnie Bruno. His discussion will be The British Invasion focusing on the rise of British rock on our shores in the sixties. On Sunday April 26 we will host our annual breakfast meeting that will also include the comedy duo of Baker & Mark. We are also planning a trip to Grape Escape (winery) in May, a Trenton Thunder game in June, and a day at the horse races in July. Our June meeting will feature a trivia night hosted by our own Roy Cohen. As you can see, there’s a lot of great events happening for members to enjoy. The Men’s Club is also looking for volunteers to serve on our board as well as our various committees. Elections will be held at the June meeting. If anyone is interested in knowing more about these positions or applying, please contact me so I can pass them along to our nominating committee.
Also, don’t forget to save the date, August 4th, when Men’s Club holds its Charity Golf Outing. Have a great spring
February 2020
On Monday, November 25, approximately 140 members attended the meeting where they received logo tee shirts (photo) in appreciation for their membership and support of the Men’s club. The tee shirt promotion was developed by Fred Block, Membership VP. Those members who have not received their free shirts can contact Fred at (848)-702-3122. Our guest speaker for the evening was Abbas Salim (photo) whose topic was solar energy. Mr. Salim a Stonebridge resident is now retired Principal Engineer/Engineering Fellow-Lockheed/Martin Space Systems. As an advocate for Solar energy usage and working with other community members, overcame Lennars objections on installation of solar panels and by 2015 approval was rendered. He displayed examples of Stonebridge residents having solar panels highlighting costs, means of financing, break even schedules as well as tax credits that can be applied. He is extremely well versed in his field and gave a thorough review on its operation. He ended with fielding questions from the audience.
Also, during this Holiday season of Thanksgiving and Donating, we were proud to distribute contributions through proceeds from The Joe Pavlichco Memorial Charity Golf Outing that was held this past August. Marcial Alzugary, Fundraising VP presented three charities with $2,500 checks. They are Monroe Special Sports, which offers year-round sports for special needs children, Kortney Rose Foundation, which funds research for brain tumors in young people, and Deborah Heart & Lung Center, providing un-insured children with pre-sports physicals. (Photo of recipients) A donation is also being mailed to the Wounded Warrior project as they were not able to attend. They provide outreach to US military veterans suffering PTSD. Also, through funds raised from our 2020 Community Calendar, additional charitable organizations will receive contributions in early 2020. I will identify them in a future article. Also, as in the past we are making donations to two veteran homes in Woodbridge and Lyons. Many thanks to the golf and calendar committees for their hard work in making these fund-raising endeavors a great success. As always, please support our calendar sponsors.
Our holiday party held on December 4 was a great evening of delicious Italian food from Romeo’s of Jamesburg with over 150 of our members attending. (photo) We enjoyed antipasto, pasta, chicken, eggplant rollatini, and sausage and peppers as well as cannoli for dessert. The evening was topped off with our very own Billy (Losurdo) Lawrence entertaining us with a variety of holiday songs as well as song renditions from Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and many others. All in all, a terrific evening of food, friends and entertainment.
Special thanks to Gary Lee and his committee for putting together these and future great events. For those that are not members, please join and be part of this great club. Hope everyone enjoyed a Wonderful Holiday season.
December 2018
On Friday August 31, the Men’s Club for the second year in a row held its monthly meeting at Freehold Racetrack for an afternoon of good food and betting on the trotters. A great turnout of over 90 of our members traveled the short distance for a great buffet in the Renaissance room overlooking the race track. As in the past year the 4th race was named for the Stonebridge Men’s Club. (pictured below) There were winners and losers, but from the conversations I had with many of the attendees, it was a great day of socializing with fellow members and enjoying the thrill of racing from an indoor venue.
On Monday, September 24, history Professor James Kane (pictured below) brought us a memorable evening of fascinating stories on four American icons from the sports, film and entertainment world. Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, John Wayne and Johnny Carson. We all remember them for their accomplishments and their contributions to our enjoyment. However, beyond their accomplishments and what some of us did not know was that their personal lives were fraught with regrets, and that all of them dealt with painful issues with their mothers. He had the full attention of the 120 members attending, which was attested to by the questions and comments presented to him by the members. It was an enjoyable evening that also included ice cream.
Our annual Octoberfeast meeting was held on October 22. A sumptuous Bavarian buffet was enjoyed by our members while listening to traditional Bavarian music. The buffet was topped off with coffee and apple streusel.
All households should have received The Stonebridge Men’s Club 2019 Community Calendar by now. The funds raised from the calendar ads as well as the proceeds from the golf outing are donated to charitable organizations in our community, many of which work with disabled children, as well as events sponsored for our veterans and scholarships for deserving seniors at Monroe Twp. H.S. Approximately $18,000 was raised from both these endeavors. Many thanks to Joe Pavlichko, Chair of the Golf Committee, Tony Guerriero of the Calendar Committee and the volunteers for their hard work in making these fund-raising endeavors a great success. As always, please support our calendar sponsors.
Looking forward to seeing more of you at our future events.