On target

John McGarity tries to aim a beanbag with his feet, assisted by Cindy LaBar, Matheny director of physical therapy.

“It was a fun day. It was hard using my feet to shoot the beanbag in the target. It would have been much easier if I could have used my hands.” That was the reaction of John McGarity, a student at the Central Elementary School in Great Meadows, NJ, when he experienced what it’s like for children with disabilities to participate in a game or sport. He was one of several students at the Warren County school who played a variety of adapted sports with students from the Matheny School.

The objective of the visit was to promote interaction between the two groups of students, making it possible for them to compete in sports as peers. It seemed to work. “I enjoyed visiting with the children from the Matheny School,” McGarity said. “I would like it if they would come back for another visit.”

Music class at the Matheny School.

The Matheny School is hosting a program on “School Choice” from 6-8 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 29. The event, for parents and educators, will feature a presentation on “Parental Rights in Special Education” by Andrew D. Linenberg of Hinkle, Fingles & Prior, P.C., Attorneys at Law. There will also be opportunities for networking and information about an upcoming conference on transition and two new special education scholarships being offered by the Alliance of Private Special Education Schools of North Jersey.

Educators and/or parents interested in attending should call (908) 234-0011, ext. 234, or email mathenyschool@matheny.org by January 27.

Matheny student works on his math skills.

From left, Anna Spencer, Bryan Zhu, Trisha Kaundiya and Rahil Shah.

When Trisha Kaundinya and three of her friends at Bridgewater-Raritan, NJ, High School formed a string quartet, the idea was to get together every week or so to socialize and practice playing music. But Kaundinya’s father is part of a group from the investment banking firm Goldman Sachs that regularly volunteers at Matheny, helping to spruce up the grounds. “He acquainted me with the special needs of the children,” said Trisha, “and informed me that many, if not most, of them are quite capable of learning and appreciating the fine arts.”

So Kaundinya and her friends recently performed for the students and patients at Matheny and “had a wonderful experience playing,” she said. “We could sense the acknowledgement from several children. Clearly they were engaged, and we felt that they connected with us through music. We walked away with a sense of satisfaction and developed an inner urge to do more. We would love to play again in a spring concert.”

Shane, left, and Josh Szott.

The students and patients at Matheny look forward to the annual visit by the varsity basketball team of the Delbarton School, an independent Roman Catholic learning center in Morristown for young men in grades 7–12. But this year brought a special twist. Delbarton basketball player Josh Szott was able to compete along with his brother Shane, a student at Matheny. Josh and Shane are the sons of David and Andrea Szott of Morristown, NJ.

The physical education and recreation therapy departments at Matheny created an assortment of basketball games designed to level the playing field, and the Delbarton players either competed against the Matheny players or helped them compete against each other. They also tossed T-shirts into the audience in the Robert Schonhorn Arts Center and displayed some of the skills they use against their regular opponents.

The event is always a huge success and, besides being fun, helps the Matheny students and patients improve their physical, emotional, cognitive and social well-being.

Delbarton player Drew Douglas with Matheny student Vraj Desai.

Skanska employees, from left, Lisa Mancuso, Robert Duncan and Kim DeRocco.

Who needs Santa when you can have Skanska instead? During the recent holiday season, employees from Skanska USA’s Parsippany, NJ, office made their annual visit to Matheny to drop off toys collected in the company’s toy drive. Sweden-based Skanska is one of the world’s leading construction groups. This is the fourth year that Skanska employees have visited Matheny during the holiday season.

Bottom row, from left: Pito Walton of Peapack; Frances and Charlotte Steele of Bedminster; Bella Walton, Peapack. Top row, from left: Jane Steele; Betsy Walton; Joan Millard of Toms River, NJ; Ali Millard and Lily Steele of Bedminster; and Mrs. Orr, visiting from Florida. (Also caroling, but not pictured, were Susan, Emma, Ellie and Ryan Palmer of Oldwick).

Jane Steele of Bedminster, NJ, and Betsy Walton of Peapack, NJ, and their families have been visiting Matheny’s students and patients on a regular basis for years. Several years ago, they decided to sing Christmas carols during one of their weekly visits.

“We invited friends to join us,” recalls Steele, “and got a very large turnout. Each year the same friends are excited to return and sing. It is a wonderful reminder of the true meaning of Christmas. One year we brought a very large homemade gingerbread house and the children dipped the hard candies in the gooey icing and stuck them on the house. They loved it!”

The majority of Matheny students and patients are full-time residents, and volunteers are welcome days, evenings and weekends. For more information about volunteering, call (908) 234-0011, ext. 282.

In our aquatic program, students have the opportunity to increase their independence through new individual and group strategies introduced by therapists and educators.

At The Matheny School, our mission is to provide an integrated educational and therapeutic experience for our students, who have a diverse range of abilities and disabilities. Here’s how we do it:

• We enhance the potential of children with multiple disabilities through the development of Individual Educational Plans (IEPs) that focus on tailored, attainable goals and objectives.

• We encourage our students to explore their own interests within a positive learning environment.

• We enrich their daily lives by increasing their gross motor, fine motor, and visual and perceptual skills.

• We help our students learn, without limits, through an interdisciplinary approach combining therapy treatment, social services, psychology and medical care.

Our adaptive physical education program develops ways for Matheny students to participate in traditional sports such as basketball.

Gunnery Sergeant Mario Monaco and Matheny adult patient Shaleena Tomassini.

For more than eight years, members of the L/CPL Robert J. Slattery Detachment 206, Marine Corps League, based in Whippany, NJ, have been making monthly visits to the wounded warriors and their families at the Walter Reed National Medical Center in Bethesda, MD. They bring needed items such as polo shirts, crossword puzzle books and playing cards. They also bring welcome conversation and camaraderie.

Last month, students in Matheny’s adult services program coordinated a drive among Matheny employees to collect items for “virtual” baby showers for the wives of wounded warriors who are at Walter Reed. When the students made holiday cards to be sent to U.S. servicemen and women, they felt there was no better place to send them than to the Marines Care Foundation at the L/CPL Robert J. Slattery Detachment. Gunnery Sergeant Mario Monaco, who had been at Matheny previously to pick up the baby shower items, made a return visit to pick up the holiday cards. He brought personalized certificates of appreciation for each of the Matheny adults, and he spent time regaling them with stories about some of his adventures in the Marines.

“Mitzvah” is Hebrew for “good deed,” and Courtney Ober, a resident of Wanaque, NJ, recently did a mitzvah for Matheny. Ober needed to fulfill a charitable giving requirement for her Bat Mitzvah at the Barnert Temple in Franklin Lakes, NJ. The eighth grader at the Morristown-Beard School in Morristown, NJ, had been volunteering at Matheny since sixth grade, and so it was only natural that she thought of Matheny as a beneficiary.

Courtney Ober, left, and her sister Jordan with the Mitzvah clothing collection.

“When I sent out my invitations,” she said, “I included a request for everyone to bring a new article of clothing to the temple service with them. The day of my service I was amazed at how many clothes people donated! There was a huge box stuffed with goodies.”

The Monday after her November Bat Mitzvah, Courtney and her sister Jordan, a 10th grader at Morristown-Beard, went to Matheny to volunteer as usual, and their mother met them there with the box of clothes. “It really felt good,” she said, “to give these nice clothes to people that mean so much to me.”

The Ober sisters are part of a group of Morristown-Beard students who visit Matheny every Monday to help out with recreation therapy activities and interact socially with students and patients. For more information about volunteering, call (908) 234-0011, ext. 282, or email volunteers@matheny.org.

Friends of Matheny volunteer Lisa Turovlin helps student Benjamin Deffenbaugh pick out some holiday presents.

One of the many holiday traditions at Matheny is the annual Holiday Boutique, held for the students and patients by The Friends of Matheny, our auxiliary group. The boutique is an opportunity for those who live and go to school at Matheny to do holiday shopping for their families without having to venture out to the mall. People throughout the community donate items, and The Friends volunteers price them very reasonably so the students and patients can afford to buy gifts for their loved ones.

This year’s Holiday Boutique was held on December 2 and coordinated by Friends board member and Matheny parent Edana Desatnick, who called it “a truly magical day.”

From left, Melissa Chill, choir member Amanda Kochell and music therapy intern Molly Wilkerson.

The song “True Colors” has been recorded by both Cyndi Lauper and Phil Collins, but no one has performed it with more feeling and sincerity than Melissa Chill, a Red Bank, NJ-based singer/songwriter who volunteers with Holiday Express, an organization that presents 60 performances between Thanksgiving and Christmas at places where they believe people need an extra dose of cheer.

Chill sang “True Colors” with members of the Matheny choir during the Holiday Express Christmas Spectacular benefit concert on December 11 at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark (NJPAC). The band had performed at Matheny on Sunday, December 8, and founder and leader Tim McLoone extended his annual invitation for Matheny Choir members to join the festivities at NJPAC. (The choir is part of Matheny’s music therapy program.)

The choir sang “Let it Snow” and “Joy to the World” to standing ovations before Chill took the stage to lead them in “True Colors.”  “Melissa Chill,” said McLoone, “is one of those amazing performers who can be all rockin’ and bluesy one minute and rip your heart out the next.”

An additional highlight of the Matheny Choir participation in the benefit concert has been a special rapport developed with the Holiday Express dancers, a group of young women from the Red Bank, NJ-based Kathryn Barnett School of Dance Traveling Troupe. Some members of the dance group attended the Matheny Prom last spring and indicated they will be back again next spring.

The Holiday Express dancers with choir member Tony Santia.

From left, adult patient Dion Alston, Salvation Army Morristown CO Walter Droz, adult patient T.J. Christian, adult services instructors Deanna Willard and Claire Torsiello and adult patient Cindy Shanks.

The Salvation Army has been providing social and spiritual services to communities throughout the world since 1886, and it’s particularly known for its food drives. The adult patients at Matheny decided to collect nonperishable food items from Matheny staff members for the Salvation Army New Jersey Division in Morristown’s fall food drive, and Walter Droz, the commanding officer, picked up the donations in late November.

Matheny employees were extremely generous, and the donated food will help many families in Morris County, N.J., enjoy the holiday season. The Morristown Salvation Army office serves 17 communities in Morris and Sussex counties including Mendham, Morris Plains and East Hanover.