Christine O'Shea-Realtor Assoc.~ Princeton NJ and Naples Florida

Hopewell Borough Ladies Auxiliary

The Hopewell Borough Ladies Auxiliary meets at the Borough Fire House on Thursday evenings from September till June at 7:30 p.m.

This group of ladies is strictly volunteer and they support the firefighters of the Hopewell Borough. The ladies are the ones that come to the station on a cold winter night when there is a fire and prepare a hot meal for the weary firefighters. They provide blankets and stuffed animals along with coffee and other drinks when there is a fire at the scene.

For the most part they are in the background of the men that they serve. But this group is very involved and very outspoken. They hold many fund raisers and events throughout the year.

They are in need of volunteers and give a warm welcome anyone joining the group. A member can get as involved as they want and if a member does have a "day job" or little children, they will not contact you in the middle of the night to help cook for the men.

Several of the members are mothers and spouses of the firemen. There are some multigenerational members as well.

The ladies are always looking for a new way to raise money. Their largest fund raiser is the Mother's Day Flower Sale that is held at the Hopewell Borough Firehouse on Mother's Day weekend. The community comes out to buy and the ladies gather the day and evening before the sale to get everything organized.

Some of the members also take their time to plant the beautiful flowers outside of the Firehouse.

Among other events that they work on is the Halloween Parade, the Santa Visits and Christmas Tree Lighting along with the Memorial Day Parade and many Mercer County Ladies Auxiliary meetings and State Meetings.

Anyone that has had the pleasure of meeting and working with these ladies will remember their warmth and generosity. VOLUNTEER, it is fun and you make new friends. (September is not very far away)

A drive thru Hopewell Borough, in Central New Jersey today, lead me to the Farmers Market.

Located at the Historic Hopewell Train Station, this market is open on Wednesdays in season carrying local organic produce and products.

North Slope Farm has a stand which includes blueberries and flowers.

Cherry Grove Organic Farm has beautiful greens, including cuckumbers.

There is also the Village Bakery from Lawrenceville, which carries a wide variety of breads including Artisan.

The "Mushroom Stand" specializing in portabella, giving out samples and recipees for "Marvelous Mushroom Soup".

It is a great stop along the way. I like that they are open late, till around 7:00 p.m. so they can catch the crowd returning home and there is plenty of parking too.

Palmer Square, Princeton NJ

Palmer Square, located in Princeton, NJ across from Princeton University is hosting a Summer Fun on the square.

The Summer Music Series is FREE and runs on Saturdays between 2-4 pm. This festive event is featuring the Karl Latham Group on Saturday, August 2nd. The music from these series can be heard thru out Palmer Square and Nassau Street.

Enjoy the fun, stroll the SummerFun on the Square Palmer Square Summer Sidewalk Sales on Saturdays between 10:00 am and 8:30 pm.

Parking is available both metered and garage.

Hope to see you there,

I have the privilege of having horses outside of my home. As I sit and write this post, there are three grazing in the field outside of the window.

Horses are kind, regal, heard and grazing animals. They do not like to be alone and need companionship of other horses or perhaps a mule or a goat.

I did not know too much about horses until about five years ago when we were looking for a property. Every time there were horses at or near the property I was so taken with their beauty that tears would come to my eyes. The "waterworks" got so bad that I started to wear sunglasses when viewing properties, even if I did not need them.

Finally, after much searching, we found a property with horses next door. Shortly after that, I started to get horses. I took a class at Rutgers in Equine management and took some riding lessons.

There is something about a horse that touches my soul and makes my spirit soar. I am far from an expert, but I have learned a lot.

The horse is the New Jersey State Animal. In 1977 two students, one in the fifth grade and one in the eighth were responsible for making the horse the NJ state animal. The horse represents power and strength and is included in the state seal. It has also been very successful in making New Jersey farming successful. A visit to Howell Living History Farm, www.howellfarm.org will show how the horse worked in the past.

New Jersey is home to the United States Equestrian Team www.uset.org.

The Horse Park of New Jersey has a full calendar of events through out the year. There are competitions and auctions and they are open to the public. www.horseparkofnewjersey.com

A good place to adopt a horse is either a Standard bred from the Standard Bred Retirement, www.adoptahorse.org or a retired Thoroughbreds at www.rerun.org

Rutgers is also a great resource for learning about horses and seminars. Dr. Sarah Ralston was my instructor, heads the Young Horse Teaching and Research Program where every year 30 students train and handle young horses. The horses are then auctioned at the annual AG Field Day. www.escrutgers.com

Different municipalities and counties in New Jersey have parameters for number of horses per acre. If you are interested in finding a horse property, please contact me at mailto:coshea@nationsrealtors.com. com I will be happy to help you find that special property so you too can have a horse or two.

Hopewell Boro is a quiet small town within Hopewell Township, Mercer County, NJ

The Boro of Hopewell has been named one of the "10 Best Small Towns in NJ" by New Jersey monthly magazine and one of the "25 Best Places to call Home in the Garden State".

Much of the Boro has been designated an historic district.

The village was originally referred to as Hopewell Meeting House and was home to Jonathan Stout who originally hunted the land with the Lenape Indians in 1706. He then brought his family to the land.

It was home to John Hart, one of the original signers of the Declaration of Independence.

In 1778 General George Washington's Army encamped on the hills above Hopewell Boro. There were meetings in town with Generals Lee, Lafayette and Steuben to name a few.

Today the Boro is home to families, restaurants, shops, antique stores and businesses.

The Hopewell Train Station is used for meetings and functions. It dates back to the 1870's and was originally the Mercer and Somerset Rain Road Company.

In the summer Friday night concerts are held at the Gazebo starting at 7:30 p.m.

Quoits and Horse shoes are held at the Train Station the first and third Wednesday of the month during the summer.

Hopewell Boro is "Home Town USA" a great place to live.