Welcome, 5K recruits!

Grace Burton, far right, and Sonali Pai, second from right, fifth graders at the Mt. Prospect Elementary School in Basking Ridge, NJ, are planning to run in the 5K Race at Miles for Matheny. So they decided to visit Matheny to familiarize themselves with our mission of caring for and treating children and adults with medically complex developmental disabilities.

Burton and Pai were recruited by three members of the Ridge High School track team, from left, Katie Winter, Karly Koelmel and Hannah Broos, who have formed TEAM Kids to raise funds for Miles. During the trip to Matheny, all five visited with adult patient Jessica Evans. As of April 6, TEAM Kids had raised $1,975.

The 15th annual Miles for Matheny is being held Sunday, April 22, at Liberty Park in downtown Peapack. In addition to the 5K, activities include five Cycling Courses, a Kids Fun Run and the Lu Huggins Wheelchair Walk in which more than 100 wheelchair participants, with walking partners, travel 1.5 miles around town. All funds raised will help support the Matheny Center of Medicine and Dentistry, which provides medical, dental and therapy care to Matheny inpatients and people with disabilities in the community.

Major Miles for Matheny sponsors include: Poses Family Foundation, Affinity Federal Credit Union Foundation, Archer & Greiner, P.C., BP Fueling Communities, WCBS-TV and WCBS Newsradio 880, Partlow Insurance Agency, Peapack-Gladstone Bank and Porzio Bromberg & Newman, P.C.

For more information or to register, log onto www.milesformatheny.org; to support TEAM Kids, click on Search for Participant and type in the team name.

Christina Renna assists Matheny student India Jones in a game of adapted basketball.

Volunteering at Matheny has meant a great deal to Ridge High School student Christina Renna of Basking Ridge, NJ. “It has helped me understand the diversity of my community and has allowed me to enrich the lives of individuals with disabilities,” she says.

Since the majority of Matheny students and patients are full-time residents, volunteers are needed days, evenings and weekends to serve as recreation assistants, classroom aides and just friendly visitors. Matheny’s volunteer office strives to place helpers in positions that meet both their interests and availability. Matheny’s students and patients are everyday people who like the same music, games, sports and movies as everyone else. For those who take the opportunity to discover each person’s individuality, the rewards are great.

For more information and a volunteer application, contact the volunteer services office at (908) 234-0011, ext. 282.

Organizers of T.E.A.M. KIDS, from left, Ridge High School students Karly Koelmel, Katherine Winter and Hannah Broos.

Ridge High School student Hannah Broos has been volunteering regularly at Matheny. She’s also a member of the girls’ track team at the Bernards Township, NJ, high school. She and some of her teammates have been planning to run in the 5K Race at Miles for Matheny, but they’re going the extra mile, so to speak. They’ve decided to train elementary school children to either run or walk in the 5K and help raise money for the event.

In a special flyer they’re distributing to promote this project they are identifying themselves as T.E.A.M. KIDS: Teaching Exercise and Awareness for Matheny. Children are invited to be part of a winning team, the flyer says, and to:

• Have FUN

• Train to run or walk 5K

• Learn about the Matheny School

• Raise money to help kids at Matheny.

To prepare the elementary school kids for the 5K, Broos and her teammates will hold training sessions at the Ridge High School track on March 10, March 18, April 7 and April 14, from 1-2 p.m. They are encouraging families to sign up and participate together. At least one adult will be present at every training session, and parents are welcome but not required to attend.

Anyone interested in participating should contact Hannah at hbroos@optonline.net, Karly Koelmel at karlybellk@gmail.com, Katie Winter at katie19@gmail.com or log onto the T.E.A.M. KIDS Facebook page.

Miles for Matheny will be held Sunday, April 22, at Liberty Park in downtown Peapack. For more information or to register, log onto www.milesformatheny.org or call (908) 234-0011, ext. 260.

Major Miles for Matheny sponsors are:  The Poses Family Foundation, Affinity Federal Credit Union Foundation, Archer & Greiner P.C., BP Fueling Communities, WCBS-TV/WCBS Newsradio 880, Partlow Insurance Agency, Peapack-Gladstone Bank and Porzio Bromberg & Newman P.C.

Since most Matheny students and patients are full-time residents, we need volunteers to serve as recreation assistants, classroom aides, tutors and friendly visitors. Our volunteer office tries to place people in positions that meet both their interests and availability. In addition, we invite volunteer groups to host parties for residents or participate in other special projects, including fundraising activities.

Matheny students and patients have medically complex developmental disabilities. Practically everyone is in a wheelchair and many are non-verbal. Yet, underneath their physical difficulties, they like the same music, games, sports and movies as everyone else. For those willing to discover each person’s personality, the rewards are great.

If you’re interested in more information, contact the volunteer services office at (908) 234-0011, ext. 282, or email volunteers@matheny.org

Above: Centenary College students share a laugh with a Matheny student.

Below: Junior Friends of Matheny help Matheny patients enjoy Valentines Day.  The JFOM volunteers are students at Bernards High School in Bernardsville and Ridge High School in Basking Ridge.