Haddonfield turns 300 this year. I hope they’re saving me a slice of the cake. As part of its yearlong tercentennial celebration, the township is running a contest asking people why they love the place so much.

It’s National Women’s Month, which seems like a perfect time to reflect about an exceptional South Jersey woman named Mildred Norman Ryder, known to most as Peace Pilgrim.

As Black History Month draws to a close this week, Richard Stockton College is hosting a field trip that should delight Civil War buffs and armchair historians alike.

Growing up I knew that one day I would own a dog. But if you had told me that I would wind up adopting not one, but two of them from rescues, I probably would have thought you were crazy.

Superstorm Sandy is still very present for countless Jersey Shore residents struggling to rebuild their lives, homes and businesses. Now one local author has come up with a great way for literary types to help those in need.

Atlantic City is alive and well – and eager to dispel the notion that New Jersey’s entertainment capital had folded its hand in the wake of Superstorm Sandy.

Dan Barone is no stranger to coastal storms. Still, Barone—an expert on the shoreline environment—was taken aback by Hurricane Sandy and particularly the havoc it created on Long Beach Island.

I find myself caring less and less about the prospects for physical newspapers. And that’s why I’m feeling a little underwhelmed about a new development in the world of South Jersey media.

Have you ever wanted to see dozens of homemade, human-powered flying machines drop from a 30-foot pier, attempt to take flight, and then fall into the Delaware River? If so, you’re going love the Red Bull Flutag, which takes place this weekend on the river in Camden.

The tragedy of the SS Morro Castle is one of the most bizarre and fascinating tales of the Jersey Shore. As we mark the 78th anniversary of the shipwreck, two local experts have published a new book that seeks to shed fresh light on the incident.

Earlier this month I satisfied a longtime yearning and made a two-week trip to Alaska. That’s about as far as you can get from the Garden State without leaving North America, but I just had to share the excitement with my Jersey readers.

A memorial service for Emilio Carranza will take place this Saturday in the Pine Barrens—as it has every year for almost a century. Which might cause many to ask: Emilio who?

I’m a big fan of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, which is just one of the reasons why I’ll be heading down to Ocean Galleries in Stone Harbor this weekend to check out the world’s first showing of Graham Nash’s artwork.

South Jersey is going to have some representation at this year’s 39th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards—and it’s going to be in the form of locally baked cookies.

Whenever I begin to think I’ve heard every story there is to tell about South Jersey, a new tale comes along and startles me. For instance: Have you heard about the time Martin Luther King Jr. was run out of a Maple Shade bar at gunpoint?

I’m a voracious fan of music festivals. Fortunately there are two annual musical shindigs in South Jersey that always scratch my festival itch.

For the last five or six years my father has encouraged me to run for office. Any office. Just run. You’d be so good at it, he says. The opportunity presented itself recently…and I turned it down. I’m not particularly averse to the idea, but as a journalist it just wouldn’t be right.

Revel, the new Atlantic City casino and resort, is not gambling on its opening act. The giant entertainment complex on the Boardwalk will celebrate its debut with three shows (May 25-27) by 16-time Grammy winner Beyoncé.

As a journalist I’ve had the opportunity to meet and interview some fascinating individuals. Add to that list the filmmaker Ken Burns, who spoke this week at Rowan University.

For the past year I’d heard rumblings that it might happen, but earlier this week the state's plans were revealed—Rutgers-Camden is going to become part of Rowan University.

Should a person serving in an official public capacity be held accountable for posts on his or her personal Facebook page? That’s the question in a current controversy surrounding a member of the Camden school board.

It’s been several years since I started teaching magazine writing at Rowan University in Glassboro, but this fall was my first semester at the helm of a course called Online Journalism I. It’s been a great experience.

Recently, a friend of mine who lives in California posted a video to his Facebook page with a caption that read, “Stay classy New Jersey.” Oh boy, I thought. Now what?

Peering into a shop window on Main Street in Medford last week, I was taken aback by a blown-up photograph of what appeared to be my town’s mayor, Chris Myers, lounging in nothing but a pair of blue Calvin Klein briefs. The photo is at the heart of the latest sex scandal to bubble up in New Jersey politics.

You’ve got to love the concept: Bruce Springsteen, Jersey guy, celebrated as an icon of free speech at a new exhibit opening in February at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia.

As you may have read, medicinal marijuana is finally going to be available in New Jersey this winter. But apparently not in the South Jersey town of Maple Shade.

As we pulled onto the dirt path leading to the grass parking lots, the mooing of steers filled the late-summer air. Men and women in cowboy boots and hats strolled through the glow of another setting sun. It’s another warm Saturday night in South Jersey, where the Cowtown Rodeo is an annual tradition.

Let’s hear it for Collingswood. In just over a decade, the borough has transformed itself from a rather forgettable neighbor of Camden’s to one of the most enviable locales in the Garden State, and this month Forbes magazine decided to tip its hat to this inspiring rebirth.

Twenty-four hours before last weekend’s hurricane hit, I called a friend to suggest we postpone our Saturday-night plans, given the predictions about Irene. He laughed and declared: “Don’t believe the hype.”

You’ve probably seen the recent stories claiming that MTV’s “Jersey Shore” may actually be helping the real Jersey Shore’s reputation. I don’t buy it.

Agriculture is still a big deal down in South Jersey. My own grandfather used to raise Black Angus cattle on the acreage that is now Medford Memorial Middle School. That’s just one of the reasons why I think it’s really cool that the New Jersey Department of Agriculture has recently made more than 2,000 vintage farm photos available through its online archives.

A month has passed since 11-year-old Abiah Jones fatally fell more than 100 feet from the Giant Wheel at Morey’s Piers in Wildwood, and the sad tale seems more divisive than ever.

My South Jersey Facebook friends have been all aflutter lately with opinions about those Atlantic City cocktail waitresses who were fired by Resorts Casino when newer, sexier uniforms were introduced in the spring. There’s plenty of contention to go around.

There’s a report out of Atlantic County that the Galloway Township Public School District is considering a troubling change to its homework policy for next year. According to the Press of Atlantic City, Galloway’s Board of Education will vote this summer on a proposal that would bar teachers from assigning homework to students over weekends or holiday breaks.

As a freelance writer I’ve taken on assignments that range from the extremely fascinating to the maddeningly banal. However, no any article I’ve written had gained international attention—until now.

For almost three years now I have taught magazine writing as an adjunct instructor at Rowan University in Glassboro. As my fifth semester comes to a close this month, I am at once more encouraged and more discouraged about the future of education than ever before.

I’m obsessed with baseball right now. It’s not a newfound obsession—just a deeper one. Luckily, the Camden Riversharks opened their season last week to help satisfy my baseball hunger.

I don’t know why it’s taken me so long to discover the genius of John McPhee, but now that I’ve had a taste of his literary nonfiction, there’s no turning back.

In this digital age, it seems a strange thing to admit, but here goes: I am obsessed with vinyl records.

Spring means open-air rides in my Jeep, planting vegetables in the yard, Phillies baseball and, perhaps best of all, the monthly Main Street festivals that have proliferated around South Jersey.

Earlier this month I turned 30—and received the most shocking and surreal gift of my life. Now I need to figure out whether I’m going to keep it.

When I bought a Jeep Wrangler in September, I knew my vehicle of choice might engender the occasional finger wag from the hybrid-electric crowd. I just never expected it to happen here on Southern Scene.

You might want to think twice before making that down payment on this summer’s shore house. Why? Because—duh—the world is going to end on May 21. At least that’s what one South Jersey resident claims, and he wants everyone to know about it.

Although our winter weather is hanging on, I intend to celebrate spring’s arrival at two events this weekend: the sixth annual Atlantic City Beer Festival and the first Atlantic City Boardwalk Rodeo.

The first time I visited Woodford Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge, my mother and I were on an emergency mission to save the life of a possum.

It’s hardly news that Internet downloading is killing the sales of music CDs, but who knew that this trend would strike a blow to the economy of South Jersey? Yet that’s exactly what’s happening with the closure later this month of Sony’s CD manufacturing plant in the Gloucester County town of Pitman.

The recent decision to allow male and female students to live in the same dorm room at Rutgers’ New Brunswick campus has raised lots of questions—not the least of which is whether this practice eventually also will take hold at the university’s Camden campus.

A new controversy is astir in South Jersey involving a school administrator in Cherry Hill who is under investigation for sending what the town’s mayor suspects is an inappropriate email.

Late February has been quite a tease down here in South Jersey, giving us a cruel, fleeting taste of 70 degrees and sunshine. This, of course, has me thinking about surfing. It happens every late winter. I start getting the itch.

A lawsuit is threatening to put a further chill in this weekend’s 17th annual Polar Bear Plunge in Sea Isle City.

The arts scene is alive and well in Cumberland County. If you doubt that, check out the new undertaking by some folks at Cumberland County College.

Ocean City’s status as a dry town is no secret. And I’m fine with that. If a town wants to keep itself free of bars, taverns and liquor stores, that’s its prerogative. But a recent vote by the Ocean City Council has me feeling a little less cool about the whole situation.

When I bought my Jeep Wrangler back in October, I said to my girlfriend, “Now that I’ve finally got a Jeep, we probably won’t get any snow this winter.” So much for that prediction.

The popularity of HBO’s “Boardwalk Empire” has likely generated new interest in Atlantic City. Now a local exhibit gives visitors to America’s Playground an even closer look at the city’s unique and quirky history.

Down in South Jersey, there’s a small town that is wrestling with a difficult question: How much is historic preservation worth?

The African American Heritage Museum of Southern New Jersey is a little-known treasure – a small, unassuming and remarkable exhibit space tucked into the backwoods of Newtonville in Atlantic County.

Feel like taking a swim in the Atlantic Ocean this month? No? Well, what if I told you it was for a good cause? Perhaps you’d reconsider?

Do you know a New Jersey businessperson who deserves recognition for advancing women’s equality in America? If so, the Alice Paul Institute wants to hear from you.

There’s good news for Camden as the New Year rolls in. The city is getting a new (and much anticipated) Salvation Army Community Center—and it’s going on top of an old landfill.

Feeling hard hit by the current economy? If you live in South Jersey, you are not alone.

It may be too bloody cold this weekend for a stroll on the beach, but Saturday night the Food Network will bring a gem from the Shore right into your living room.

My house is, in a word, old. We’re talking 1860, pre-Civil War construction old. In the five years I’ve lived here I’ve engaged in more than my fair share of renovation projects—and I would have been lost without the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Cinnaminson.

Even if you’re already familiar with New Jersey’s most southern shore point, you’re missing out if you haven’t yet experienced the town’s month-long Christmas In Cape May festival.

And now for something completely different: The return of the Miss’d America Pageant to Atlantic City’s historic Boardwalk Hall.

With all the bad press that Camden receives, it’s particularly pleasing when there’s good news to report about the troubled (albeit slowly recovering) city.

Fascinated by Jersey history? Interested in Jersey authors? A library in Gloucester County’s Washington Township has a new collection you should check out.

HBO’s series Boardwalk Empire has inspired a lot of conversation and at least two rap songs, one by an aspiring hip-hopper from Egg Harbor.

Think you might be strapped for cash this holiday season? Well, one South Jersey town has a solution—they’re going to be giving away $40,000.

Lawrence Olivier once said that William Shakespeare was “the nearest thing in incarnation to the eye of God.” This week you can get a glimpse through that eye at a local Cape May theater.

Like many budding artists, Alexis Hochgertel is anxiously awaiting her first gallery showing. The twist is that this South Jersey talent is only 7 years old.

The ad campaigns would have you believe that summer is the season for beer—but I don’t buy the hype. For my taste, late autumn and early winter is the prime time for sipping suds, especially those seasonal varieties offered by craft brewers such as Flying Fish Brewery in Cherry Hill.

Last month, I wrote a Southern Scene post about my disappointment over the recent vacancies plaguing Medford’s Main Street. Now I’m very pleased to deliver some positive news about that very same street.

If you’ve got a favorite New Jersey diner, now is your chance to give it the props it deserves.

South Jersey has once again upped its standing in the world of alternative energy. In a recent Southern Scene post, I wrote about a natural gas station that opened this fall in Atlantic County. Now it looks like South Jersey is going to be home to the largest solar energy farm on the East Coast.

It’s fair to say that South Jersey is a birder’s paradise, but for those of us who are not experts in spotting our avian friends, it’s sometimes a challenge to know where to set up a tripod and binoculars. That’s why the New Jersey Audubon Society has just published Important Bird Areas of New Jersey.

A few posts back I wrote about some of my favorite small live music venues in South Jersey. This time around I’d like to put on my highbrow hat and bring your attention to a different kind of music, and one of my favorite South Jersey organizations: Symphony In C.

Here’s an interesting dispatch from the world of clean energy: South Jersey is now one of just two places in the country where folks can fill up their cars with natural gas.

I finally did it. After years yearning, I recently purchased my very first Jeep Wrangler. Naturally, I immediately began looking for off-road events and found one in South Jersey that promises to be fun and rewarding.

As locals know, the South Jersey dining scene is as diverse and delectable as any up north. A great way for you to explore the culinary creations we have to offer is the upcoming South Jersey Restaurant Week.

It is every New Jerseyan’s birthright to adore Bruce Springsteen; but down here in South Jersey we like to claim at least a little piece of the legend for ourselves.

It may seem macabre, but a favorite South Jersey spot of mine is the Clara-Glenn Pet Cemetery in Linwood. And what better month than October for such a visit?

Live music is an obsession of mine, especially when performed in small, intimate venues. Granted, there are not a lot of cozy concert halls in South Jersey—unless you know where to look.

If you’ve yet to tune in to Boardwalk Empire, the new HBO drama about Atlantic City, it’s time to roll the dice. I finally got around to watching the series premiere, and was instantly hooked.

The nights are getting cooler, the days are getting shorter, but I’m rejoicing. For my money, autumn is where it’s at, and in South Jersey there are some pretty sweet ways to enjoy the season. Here are a few of my favorites:

I’ve recently noticed a disturbing scene on my regular morning walks through downtown Medford. It’s starting to make me rather anxious about the town’s economic health.

It’s not easy being from New Jersey. As one who was born, raised, and continues to reside here, I have suffered the slings and arrows of outrageous stereotypes. It’s a reality with which you, dear reader, are probably all too familiar.