Weekly Roundup: Pinelands Garden Club scholarship; Eagle Scout service projects; Art, Wine, & Music Festival
Catch up on what happened this week in Medford.
Pinelands Garden Club awards yearly scholarship
The Pinelands Garden Club is a nonprofit that was started in 1971 and has been growing ever since. The club was started by women in the area with a common goal of figuring out how to make plants grow in the Pinelands.
This year’s scholarship will be awarded to Sara Mayer, a senior at Shawnee High School, who will be attending the University of Maryland, College Park in the fall. She will be majoring in animal science and is interested in biotechnology, agriculture and toxicology.
She has completed more than 575 hours of volunteer service at Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge, Medford Animal Hospital and St. Mary of the Lakes Church. She holds a weighted GPA of 5.51 and is active in Shawnee’s organizations, being a member of the National Honor Society, Animal Welfare Club, Biology Club and Culinary Club.
Mayer will be honored at a luncheon event on June 11, where she will receive the $1,000 scholarship.
Medford company donates to Eagle Scout service project
Seneca High School students Andrew Ballinger and Michael Zahradnick, Jr. have achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, the highest rank a Scout can receive.
Ballinger and Zahradnick both started as Cub Scouts, making their way through the ranks of Scout, Tenderfoot, Second Class, First Class, Star, Life and now Eagle. Each rank progresses in difficulty, and an Eagle Scout is required to earn 21 merit badges and complete a service project that benefits the community or another organization.
Zahradnick’s service project was to create two wheelchair accessible picnic tables. He started by researching designs, followed by contacting lumber companies, and DuBell Lumber Co. in Medford donated all the lumber needed for the project.
The picnic tables are now in use at Flora Lee Horse Farm, located at 21 Branin Road in Medford, where Zahradnick has previously volunteered.
Ballinger took his efforts to the Dingletown Baseball and Softball Fields, part of the Indian Mills Athletic Association, where he upgraded the wooden wall used as a pitching backstop and for games such as wall ball.
According to Ballinger, the wall had become a safety hazard since it hadn’t been upgraded in more than a decade. The wood had started to chip and splinter, exposing nails and making it unfit for children to use.
Planning started late last spring, and, once all the paperwork was completed and funds received through GoFundMe, plans were put into action. The existing plywood was torn down and new wood was installed. The new wall was then painted. Sod was placed in front of the wall, creating a better space for activities. The project was completed this fall, and the community has since been welcomed to enjoy the wall.
Medford Art, Wine, & Music Festival scheduled for June 10
The Medford Art, Wine, & Music Festival and Wine n’ Shine Car Show will be held on Sunday, June 10 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Main Street in Medford.
Presented by ShopRite of Medford, the event is brought to you by The Medford Business Association, The Medford Arts Center, The Lakes Corvette Club, and in cooperation with Medford Township, Police, Fire and EMS.
Extending further along N. Main Street this year, the festival will feature a broad array of colorful crafts, jewelry, glass, wood and fabric creations. More than 70 artists, photographers and crafters from the tri-state area will gather to show their treasures.
