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Nature
Bulletin Boards
There
are two Nature Bulletin Boards, one in the Atrium between
the mailboxes and the window to the library, and the other
on the walkway between the Atrium and Court 6. Actually
there are two bulletin boards on the walkway. One is maintained
by Medford Leas Birders and the other is maintained by the
person who does the inside Nature Bulletin Board. The content
and frequency of change of these bulletin boards is determined
by the resident who has the job at the time. 2014 |
Nature
Coordinating - NCC to
index
The
Nature Coordinating Committee (NCC) provides a means by which
the various nature-related activities provide a summary report
to the quarterly meeting of the Arboretum Oversight Committee.
Also, annually the NCC submits a budget request to the MlRA, which
is a consolidation of the requests from the various nature-related
activities. Some of the activities under the NCC “umbrella”
are carried out by individuals, others by groups. Currently there
are nine nature-related activities: Apiary, Courtyard Mapping
Farm, Lumberton Trails & Site, Medford Leas Birders, Nature
Library, Nature Bulletin Boards, Nature Walks, and Woodland/Trails.
Go
to the NCC Committee's webpage which provides
a description of each of these activities and has links to other
pages which illustrate Arboretum-related activities with photoessays,
slideshows, and a video. 2014
Nature
Library \
![](images/2014/CommitteeDescription/NatureLibrary.jpg)
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To
support the Barton Arboretum’s mission
(“to promote the appreciation and knowledge of horticulture
and to emphasize the importance of integrating nature into
people’s living, working and recreational environments”),
the Nature Center Library staff collects and organizes how-to
and reference materials about horticulture as well as materials
about birds and birding, ecology and the nearby Pine Barrens
to support the Arboretum Oversight Committee’s activities.
Most of the Library’s collection can be borrowed by
Medford Leas Residents and Staff. A small Reference Collection
is for use only in the library itself. The Library is open
to residents, staff, and the general public and is currently
staffed by appointment and/or by chance.2014 |
Nature
Walks to
index
Trail
walks for outside groups (Pathways, etc) are provided by the Woodlands/Trails
Group on the Medford Campus and the Lumberton Trails/Site Committee
on the Lumberton Campus.
Additionally
walks are offered to residents once or twice a month from March
through October by the designated leader of the “Nature
Walks” activity. Depending on what’s in bloom or interesting
a nature walk will be identified as either a “Wildflower
Walk” or a “Trail Walk.”
2014
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Needlework
and Crafts to
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All
interested persons are welcome to participate in Needlework
& Crafts on Thursday mornings in the Fiber Arts Studio.
New residents and those on the waiting list have found the
group to be an excellent way to become acquainted. Participants
work on projects for their own personal use and/or to be
donated for fund-raising or to charity. Participants can
also learn new needlework and craft skills from other participants
and from the resources in the Fiber Arts Studio’s
library.
2014
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Nominating
to
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The
Nominating Committee is defined in Section 3.03 the MLRA bylaws
The MLRA Council consists of 11 residents, each
of whose term is for 2 years. Either 5 or 6 residents are elected
each year, the purpose of which is to provide continuity. According
to the MLRA Constitution, a Nominating Committee is designated
to select resident nominees to serve as members of the MLRA Council
for the following two years. The nominee names are submitted to
the residents for approval. 2013
Opera
to
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The
Opera Committee manages the transportation to and from Philadelphia
with the 20 passenger bus. Residents should contact the chairperson
before buying their season tickets to make sure there is a seat
available on the bus. 2013
Philadelphia
Orchestra to
index
The
Philadelphia Orchestra Committee arranges for the transportation
only to the Kimmel Center for residents who are interested in
attending orchestra concerts.
Residents
are responsible for ordering and paying for tickets on their own.
Before ordering tickets, however, the chairperson should be contacted
to make sure there is an available seat on the bus. Bus fees payable
to MLRA are due at the beginning of the season.
When
there are enough interested residents we may run a second bus
to orchestra series B. Times of departure have varied because
of the request of many riders that they would like to arrive in
time for lunch in town. 2013
Plant
Sale to
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The
Plant Sale takes place each year in May on the Wednesday and Thursday
before Mother’s Day. Wednesday evening is for those needing
walkers, wheelchairs,or scooters, as well as for the night staff.
On Thursday, the main sale day,the sale is open to all. The sale
affords our residents the opportunity to purchase a variety of
plants right on campus which is especially convenient for those
with mobility or trnsportation issues.
We
purchase most of our plants wholesale from Russo's in Tabernacle.
We also offer a selection of home-grown herms. Debbie Lux puts
together some beautiful hanging baskets as well as providing a
selection of pottedplants, all grown from cuttings, plugs, and
divisions.
Proceeds
from the sale allow us to make a generous contribution to the
Employee Appreciation Fund. 2013
Quilt
Interest Group to
index
The
Mission of the quilters is to provide fellowship for quilters
while preparing items for the Residents’ Assistance Fund.
2013
Recovery
Assistance Program
to
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The
Recovery Assistance Program (RAP) was started after Hurricaine
Sandy and will become active again in the event of future needs.
There are many in the Medford Leas Ccommunity who want to give
aid to those who suffer losses during natural catastrophes that
occur in our area. Therefore RAP was created by the MLRA Council
to facilitatate giving assistance. The RAP is a combined effort
involving the MRA and the Medford Leas administration and staff.
![](images/2014/CommitteeDescription/RapWorkers.jpg)
Recreation
to
index
Link
to the Recreation Committee Page
The Recreation and Fitness Committee sponsoras and coordinates
recreational and fitness-related activity for Medford and Lumberton
residentsincluding the provision and maintenance of needed supplies
and equipment. 2013
Resource
Conservation
to
index
for
suggestions on how to save energy and for links to Internet Resources,
visit the Resource Conservation "Committee Room"
HISTORY:
The Resource Conservation Committee began its work in 2005 committed
to work with both residents and management to reduce energy costs
and do our part to stem Global Warming. In 2007/2008 three showings
of Al Gore’s Inconvenient Truth, one at Lumberton Leas,
gave residents an overview of the situation world wide. In January,
a Forum lecture featured the environmental status of New Jersey
with tips on how private citizens might help.
Twice the Committee has sold long lasting CFL Bulbs to replace
incandescent ones and each spring and fall provided written information
on how to use cooling and heating systems most effiently. Posters,
tips in Medford Leas Life as well as articles in the Lumberton
Leas Chronicle provide hints on recycling, water usage, and use
of canvas rather than plastic bags etc.
PRESENT:
The Committee takes a strong position towards implementing Burlington
County’s mission to reduce, reuse and recycle by:
1. Monitoring all recycling being done–both residential
and administrative–on both campuses.
2. Encouraging the reuse of paper when email is not appropriate.
3. Encouraging the turning off of lights and other electric and
electronic equipment when not in use.
4. Encouraging administration towards being ‘green’
on updating existing or new projects.
The Committee’s members include technically trained persons
and other interested residents who wish to do their part. Visitors
are welcome to come to the monthly meetings. 2013
Short
Trips to
index
The
Short Trips Committee provides residents with the opportunity
of taking day trips. The Committee provides transportation to
points of interest, arranges for tickets, docents, restaurants
and identifies any problems for those with physical constraints.
Example trips include: Ben Franklin Museum, Camden Aquarium, Walking
Tour of Haddonfield, Tour of Burlington City, Philadelphia Murals,
etc. 2013
Specticast
to
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The
current schedule of programs (.pdf file)
The SpectiCast Committee arranges for the showing of simulcast
broadcasts by the SpectiCast company to the residents of Medford
Leas. Broadcasts of the Philadelphia Orchestra are shown if available.
Otherwise the committee chooses among other programs provided
by Specticast.
The
Committee accetst as members any interested residents who are
willing to serve. It is desirable to have at least one member
from the assisted living area in order to make sure the interests
of that group are represented, since their relative lack of mobility
makes them the least able to travel to actual concerts in Philadelphia.
The Committee choses a chairperson who will be responsible for
calling meetings. Other responsibilities such as interfacing with
SpectiCast, Dining Services and the Theater Committee may be handled
by the chairperson or shared by committee members. 2013
Symphony
in C to
index
Residents
who wish to attend the 5 concert series, buy tickets directly
from the Symphony in C Box Office Telephone:856- 963- 6683
symphonyinc.org/ The price is determined by the location of
the seat (ranging from $110, $165, to $245, for the 5 concerts).
A seat for the bus which takes the residents to the door of Rutgers’
Auditorium , which is located in Camden. It also picks up residents
at the end of the performances. The bus holds 22 seats and the
cost of the transportation is determined by how many residents
sign up. In 2013 the price was $ 45.00 for the 5 concerts. 2013
Tennis
to
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The
Tennis Committee is responsible for organizing play in the colder
months for residents of both campuses, and assists the Lumberton
Campus Tennis Committee Chair regarding organized outdoor play
on the Lumberton courts.
Indoor
Season: Residents from both campuses play indoors at
the Arrowhead Tennis Club in Medford from November through March.
Doubles play is held on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1:00 to 2:30
p.m. at a reasonable cost per person (negotiated with Arrowhead’s
management.) For details, please contact the Tennis Committee
Chair, who will direct you to the resident who handles scheduling
and assigning partners and courts.
Outdoor
Season: The Lumberton campus tennis courts are available
to Medford Leas residents and their invited guests. Guests must
be accompanied by a member of the host family. The host is responsible
for all actions of their guests. The last player to leave should
lock the gate. Organized tennis time for the residents’
group on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday varies throughout April
through October. Check with the Tennis Committee Chair for specific
times. 2013
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Theater
to
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The
Theater Committee provides technicians and ushers for events
in the Medford Leas Theater. There are currently twenty-seven
ushers and eleven technicians who share the duties every
month.
Technicians
set up and operate all equipment during the programs, including
microphones, the projector, laptop (used mainly for PowerPoint
presentations), DVD/VCR player and lighting.2013 |
Ushers
welcome people while distributing the assistive headsets
to those who need them. They provide water for speakers
and help residents find seats when the Theater is crowded.
During question and answer periods, ushers bring portable
microphones to speakers in the audience.
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Thrift
Shop
to
index
The
Thrift Shop offers residents and staff the opportunity to
dispose of unwanted personal and household items, also the
opportunity to purchase such items. Some 45 residents volunteer
to operate the Thrift Shop. Proceeds go to the Medford Leas
Appreciation Fund.
The
Thrift Shop is open on Tuesdays from 10:00 am until noon
for residents and staff; the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays from
7:00 to 7:30 pm for physically impaired residents and from
7:30 until 8:30 pm for residents and staff. |
The
Thrift Shop is open to receive donations on Monday mornings between
8:00 am and 11:00 am. At other times, contributions may be left
in or near the Contributions Box located next to the Shop door
(located across from the greenhouse). On Mondays volunteers sort,
price and arrange items for sale.
Items
of special value are sold at bid. The Bid Box is on the wall at
the end of the hall (outside of the housewares shop) where one
may place bids during the week. The box is opened at 12:30 pm
on Tuesdays and the winners are notified to pick up their items.
Household goods and furniture which have not been sold are given
to Goodwill Industries.
Items
of exceptional value (i.e. furniture and jewelry) may be sent
to Freeman’s Auction House in Philadelphia.
Special
events (sale, closings, etc) should be announced by flyers posted
on bulletin boards at both campuses, the nurses stations at Woolman,
Haddon and Estaugh and forwarded to the Voice and to the ML TV
information channel. 2013
Transportation
to
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The
primary goal of the Transportation Committee is to provide optimum
transportation opportunities to all residents of Medford Leas
and satellite campuses.
- As
Medford Leas vehicles are replaced, efforts are made to insure
that vehicles are accessible to physically challenged residents.
- The
committee provides current public and Medford Leas transportation
options and schedules.
- The
committee keeps abreast of transportation issues to adapt our
resources to meet changing needs of residents.
A
long range goal is to have public transportation providers make
regularly scheduled trips to the Medford and Lumberton campuses.
2013
Vid-U
to
index
Vid-U
was started by the late Elsie Lisovitch, who bought educational
video-tapes from The Teaching Company for her own enjoyment and
then shared them with the residents. The materials are now on
DVDs rather than video-tapes, but they are still acquired from
The Teaching Company.
Vid-U
is held every Thursday morning at 11:00 am in the Linden Room,
except during the eight weeks each spring when Great Decisions
meetings are being held at that time.
During
the period from August 1, 2013 to March 6, 2014, The 30 Greatest
Orchestral Works are being presented. There is no charge for admission.
Each program in the current series usually takes 45 minutes. Some
programs take a full hour; others are only a half hour, in which
case two programs are shown at a session.
2013
Voice
to
index
There
are two recorded message tapes that are available to residents
24 hours a day. Residents can listen to the tapes by dialing 2
(for activities) and 7 (for menus) on their resident phones.
A
Chair and committee of nine volunteers record these messages every
day. The activity messages included items from the monthly and
weekly calendars with any changes that have occurred, special
event not on the calendar, alerts for special events, and other
items of interest to the community for that day.
Residents
can leave messages for the VOICE in a box at the right of the
mailboxes in the Atrium.
to
index 2013
Walnut
Theater to
index
The
Walnut Theater Committee makes arrangements for residents to attend
theater productions on a subscription basis at the Walnut Street
Theater in Philadelphia. Because the Medford Leas bus accomodates
only about 20 passenters a charter bus company is engaged.and
paid with a MLRA check at the end of each trip and a gratuity
is given to the driver. Current subscribers are first given an
opportunity to subscrite too the next season. Then, pending the
availability of bus seats, subscription is opened to other residents,
with priority to those whose names are on a wait-list.
2013
Website(s)
to
index
In
2007 the MLRA Website Committee, under Helen's leadership, decided
on the name "Window on our World" and adopted policies
which provide guidelines for the webmaster, Maggie, to follow
in managing this website (mlra.org), which
she'd established for MLRA in 2004.
With
policies and guidelines in place, the committee no longer meets,
however Helen continues to take care of the administrative work
-- submitting the annual budget request (about $100 year) and
the annual report to the MLRA.
The
next paragraph isn't about an MLRA Activity, but it is about websites.
The last paragraph is about the future of this site.
In April 2013 Ann moved to Medford Leas and, wonder of wonders,
into a home on the Lumberton Campus just across the street from
Maggie. In the spring of 2013, with the approval of the Estaugh's
Arborertum Oversight Committee, they built a site for the Barton
Arboretum and Nature Preserve (bartonarboretum.org)
with Maggie providing content and Ann doing the coding. In 2014
Ann and Maggie began assisting management with the development
of "Around the Leas" a blog for Medford Leas (medfordleas.org/blog/)
and with the redesign of the Administration site (medfordleas.org)
which will become available in March.
When
she has time, Ann will take over the coding of this site and,
like the blog and the reworked administration site, mlra.org
will have "responsive design" which means that the site
knows what kind of a device (computer, tablet, or smartphone)
is accessing it and it does the right thing depending upon the
device.
2013
|
Heros
of the Trails - a photo essay.
The
Woodlands and Trails Group meets at 8:30 AM on Tuesdays
in the Nature Center to plan the maintenance of five miles
of marked walking trails in the 60 acres of woodlands of
the Nature Preserve and also the control of invasives in
the woodlands.Each member of the group is responsible for
monitoring a part of the trail system and time is spent
at each meeting on trail reports. Regular maintenance along
the trails includes the control of poison ivy, the trimming
of multiflora rose bushes, weedwhacking underfoot grass,
and lopping off intrusive branches. Sometimes there is a
trail or bridge maintenance activity that requires the combined
effort of several members of the group. When needed maintenance
is beyond what volunteer residents can handle, there is
report to the maintenance department – for example
for the removal of heavy limbs or trees or for the repair
of a bridge.
Upon
request the group provides a Trail Walk for outside visitors.
2013 |
|
The
Workshop Committee accepts requests from residents to build
or repair furniture, rewire lamps, repair jewelry and undertake
other jobs within the ability of its members. Medford Leas
property (dining room chairs, etc.) are also accepted. Under
special circumstances, Medford Leas staff members my be
accommodated, but no work is undertaken for individuals
or organizations outside the community. Residents are asked
to pay for repairs or other work at the cost of materials
plus $4 per hour for labor. |
The
Workshop is open to residents of Medford Leas, male or female,
for their own work at no charge except for materials used.
We try to supervise such residents and instruct them in
the safe use of the equipment.
The
workshop is well equipped with a variety of hand and power
operated tools including table saws, radial, band and scroll
saws, drill presses, routers, a lathe, and miter saw. We
also have a central dust collection system.
In
each of the past two years, 2011 and 2012, the Workshop
contributed $2500.00 to the Appreciation Fund and made significant
contributions to the Residents Assistance Fund. Recent activities
have included:
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Worship
- Friends Worship to
index
The
Friends Worship Group Activity has oversight of the Friends Meeting
for Worship which convenes every Sunday morning in the Holly Room.
The Committee consists of five or more residents who regularly
attend meeting of worship; the Clerk, who is chosen from this
group, should be a Friend.
At
the Committee meetings, any concerns with the Meeting of Worship
are discussed, and any matters needing attention, are assigned
or otherwise taken care of by the Clerk. Whsen requested by the
family of a deceased resident, the Committee will help or take
charge of a Quaker memorial service. An outline of the procedure
is filed with the Director of Resident Services. 2013
Worship
- Vespers to
index
The
Sunday afternoon Vespers Service at Medford Leas was instituted
around 1976, although evening worship services and events featuring
speakers on religious subjects had been held before that. The
goal of the Vespers Committee is to provide an opportunity for
regular worship for residents who are no longer able to leave
the campus or do not have a local house of worship. Services are
non-denominational and all residents are invited to participate.
A
Vespers Service is held every Sunday afternoon in the Activities
Room at 3pm. The services are routinely listed on the Medford
Leas monthly and weekly calendars and on the Medford Leas TV channel.
From time to time notices appear in Medford Leas Life and every
few years individual notices are distributed to all residents.
It
has been customary for the Vespers Committee to arrange for an
annual service of carols and scripture readings on Christmas Eve.2013
Writers
Group to
index
The
Writers Group is dormant, pending resident interest.
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Lumberton Committees
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