ellencdonker
AN UNCOMMON HOLIDAY TRADITION by Rick Gilman
Some might call it ingenious When I was 12 years old, my stepmom entrusted me with the job of watering our Christmas tree. Little did I...
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STORIES
Our stories are all about the interesting people, places and things in Maplewood.
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ellencdonker
Nov 26, 20216 min read
BUILDING BRIDGES, AND SCHOOLS, IN AFRICA by Tia Swanson
Morrow Church looks to lessen the divides between rich and poor Like many congregations, Morrow United Methodist Church in Maplewood has...
ellencdonker
Nov 26, 20213 min read
WHAT MATTERS THIS SEASON by Ellen Donker
Honoring our traditions even as they shift As the holidays are upon us, I’m looking forward to any excuse to be with family and friends...
ellencdonker
Nov 26, 20215 min read
FROM THE NBA TO FULL-TIME WRITER by Ellen Donker
Ken Gagne’s memoir chronicles his youth, home and family Ken Gagne’s father had a lot of pithy sayings. They were nuggets of wisdom –...
ellencdonker
Oct 1, 20216 min read
THE SNOWBALL EFFECT by Tia Swanson
Changing the world, one child at a time Lorraine Kerry Barnett grew up poor in the Central Ward of Newark during the dark period that...
ellencdonker
Aug 13, 20215 min read
PARENTS GO BACK TO SCHOOL By Malia Rulon Herman
New language program teaches more than just English For a parent in the South Orange-Maplewood School District who was born in the U.S....
ellencdonker
Aug 13, 20216 min read
SOLVING A CONUNDRUM By Sara Courtney
A CHS student collaboration creates a video-game hit When Wesley Sappington got the idea to create a video game, he did what any budding...
ellencdonker
Aug 13, 20215 min read
SAYING GOODBYE TO ONE OF THE BEST By Cassandra Ratkevich
Beloved CHS teacher Jon Campbell retires after 25 years Visitors to Columbia High School, found Jon Campbell’s classroom easy to spot...
ellencdonker
Aug 13, 20213 min read
THE JOBS OF SUMMER By Ellen Donker
They’ll have value past August This summer, my kids gave me a gift: All three of them found employment. I exhaled a big sigh of relief...
ellencdonker
Aug 13, 20214 min read
INTO THE WILD BLUE YONDER By Adrianna Donat
How the SOMA Community Helped One Young Man Find His Wings Stanley Finlayson graduated from Columbia High School this past June. But on...
ellencdonker
Jun 11, 20213 min read
SAYING GOODBYE TO OUR HOUSE, WITH LOVE By Tami Steckler
Thank you for these 21 years Dear House, I remember the first time I saw you. To be honest, I didn’t love you then. I thought your rooms...
ellencdonker
Jun 11, 20215 min read
HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS TAKING COLLEGE CLASSES? By Malia Rulon Herman
Maplewood author Tina Kelley’s newest book demystifies an exciting new education model Imagine being able to complete the first two years...
ellencdonker
Jun 11, 20214 min read
A HOME FOR ALL SEASONS By Tia Swanson
While the pandemic raged, houses of faith reached out to their most vulnerable members In the months before the pandemic, Ben Hack, who...
ellencdonker
Jun 11, 20213 min read
IS BASEBALL CALLING MY NAME By Ellen Donker
I’m learning to read the signals It’s baseball season and I think this may be the year to throw myself into the sport. That’s what...
ellencdonker
Mar 12, 20213 min read
A YEAR OF HOME LOVE By Cassandra Ratkevich
Positive domestic outcomes of a time of pandemic The Year I Didn’t Go to School by Giselle Potter was once a favorite bedtime picture...
ellencdonker
Mar 12, 20214 min read
TAKING THE MYSTERY OUT OF EEGS AND EPILSEPSY by Malia Rulon Herman
A teacher in search of a book ends up writing her own When the doctor told Danielle Perrotta that her daughter, Bella, would need to have...
ellencdonker
Mar 12, 20215 min read
BOTH SIDES NOW By Tia Swanson Photography by Julia Maloof Verderosa
A restoration lends a carriage house purpose 125 years later When New York native Christine Llewellyn Ohemeng and her husband, Kwame...
ellencdonker
Nov 27, 20203 min read
QUARATINE DOG by Sara Courtney
Down and out with man's best friend So you got a dog. Not just any dog. A quarantine dog. A dog to shelter in place with. A dog to...
ellencdonker
Aug 14, 20204 min read
A PLACE FOR SPACING OUT by Ellen Donker
Columbia High School’s astronomical observatory is restored Humanity has long been enthralled with observing the cosmos in an effort to...
ellencdonker
Aug 14, 20204 min read
MAKING WAVES by Kristen Ryan
The CHS boys’ swim team helps to net a strong season For the Columbia High School swim team, time in the water is private, focused and...
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