by Brett Ainsworth, Publisher
Inside these pages every week are numerous stories about the issues of our towns, triumphs of our people and, even, our losses. Under appreciated, perhaps, are the businesses that advertise. Not only do these advertisers look to serve your needs, their dollars support this independent, locally-owned newspaper’s service to all of us.
by Brett Ainsworth, Publisher
This issue marks number 1,232 for me as publisher of The Retrospect and each edition still provides surprises. That’s the nature of originally produced and authentic journalism.
by Brett Ainsworth, Publisher
What does $75 buy these days?
Plenty when you sign up for two years of award-winning journalism from The Retrospect.
That’s 104 weeks of original, hometown reporting! (See page 23 for our latest awards haul.)
After five candidate interviews and two executive sessions, the Audubon school board selected Sara Kuhlen to fill the vacancy left by board member Tara Sullivan-Butrica’s resignation at the April 17 meeting.
STUDENT STARS: Audubon’s BOE celebrated students of the month during their last meeting. Pictured above are River Avallone, Catalina LaPalomento, Abigail McCausland, Cory Porvaznik, Emily Roth, Cecelia McCann, Mia D’Angelo, Reagan Goudy, Zachary Thompson, Lauren Hagan, Annabella Grimaldi, Colin Phillippi, Abigail Tole and Ella Martin.
LUKE’S PLANTERS: Luke’s Place of Audubon launched a new program to beautify a borough streetscape. The newly formed Luke’s Place Garden Club is part of the nonprofit’s community inclusion program for neurodiverse young adults. This new club celebrated earth month (April) by planting flowers in the decorative urns on East Atlantic Avenue in Audubon.
Sharp School pre-K students earned the broadcast television spotlight when PHL17 featured their “Our Town” model of Collingswood, displayed annually in The Retrospect’s storefront window on Haddon Ave., during the Weekend Philler show which aired last Saturday and Sunday. If you missed it, don’t worry, go to phl17.
The Collingswood Board of Education’s second referendum info session on April 16 may have yielded a smaller crowd but just as many questions as last week’s session.
Lovers of Haddon Heights trees might soon be reveling in even greater protection for the stalwart guardians of shade as the town council Tuesday talked about expanding its existing tree protection ordinance to include trees on private property. This is in response to mandatory requirements released by the state Department of Environmental Protection last year.
The Audubon commission introduced a $13.2 million budget for 2024 at its caucus meeting held earlier this month via Zoom, the last local governing body to still conduct regular public meetings with the Covid-era procedure.
Kindergartners from J. F. Tatem Elementary School in Haddonfield started shouting guesses before a big reveal of the latest addition to the local zoo. “A tiger!” several youngsters proclaimed.
Indeed, as zookeeper Stuart Harting pulled back a parachute drape, a bronze tiger bared its fangs to squeals of delight. Prescient and precocious, perhaps.
It wasn’t just Haddon Heights teachers who had something to say at last Tuesday’s school board meeting. Tiffany Andrayo, a parent of two elementary school students and an elementary school media specialist in Mount Laurel, asked about the state of the district’s libraries.
