b'Matters heart of thematter Thingsthat Matter Since 1990 AnFeaturing Local People, Places and PUBLISHER Unprecedented & EDITOR IN CHIEFEllen Donker PauseASSOCIATEEDITORCheryl SilverADVERTISING CONSULTANTS Navigating our world in a viral ageRene Conlon BY ELLEN DONKERH. Leslie GilmanDina RoskinAudrey Schaefer MARKETING ASSOCIATERachael KingCOPY EDITORS A sIfinisheduptheceptface masks? Thats freaky! Strategizing Nick HumezTia SwansonCONTRIBUTORS the previous is- to ensure adequate groceries to keep Adrianna Donat, Donny Levit, sueofMattersmy family fed? Seriously? Gail Robyn Safian, Abby Sher, Magazine,IwasWhat was once unthinkable has now Julia Maloof Verderosa anxious to sendbecome routine. Still, I find it hard to ac-files off to the printer sothat my most basic assumptions about Rob and I could enjoy a weekliving in the modern world have been proven wrong. away with our family. We were going to our favorite placeInstead, a seemingly far-fetched reality that could form theSanibel, Floridato meet up with our three kids, whoseplot for a compelling dystopian novel has become the new colleges miraculously had scheduled spring break during(if temporary) normal: Were navigating a whole new world.the same week. Coronavirus cases were cropping up in aSo far, my nuclear family has stayed healthy and I cant few places but we werent supposed to worry. In fact, onebe thankful enough. During these weeks, weve had dis-of my acquaintances asked if we were still going to Floridaappointments, lost income, and scrapped plans. But weve and I couldnt imagine why not. I felt the question wasalso found beauty in our new rhythms. More togetherness Please address all correspondence to: somewhat alarmist.(mostlygood),newhobbies(Christianisperfectinghis Visual Impact Advertising, Inc. During the course of our vacation, the true threat ofrecipe for kombucha tea), renewed appreciation for beans P.O Box 198 the virus began to escalate as more people tested positive.(as the pantry has emptied out) and contentedness in a less-Maplewood, NJ 07040 Keeping pace with the news, our kids got a series of mes- is-more existence. 973-763-4900 sages from their colleges. One by one, the schools droppedThrough all of this, the business of Matters Magazine has mattersmagazine.comlike a line of dominoes. By the end of our week, Madeline,continued. Ive tried to imagine what our residents would info@mattersmagazine.com Timothy and Christian had started to adjust to the ideawant to read in the middle of a crisis and it seems pretty Matters Magazine is owned and publishedthat they would be spending the rest of their semester tak- clear: Now more than ever, we need good news about this by Visual Impact Advertising, Inc., P.O.ing classes online from home.remarkable communitywhich happens to be our mission Box 198 Maplewood, NJ 07040. MattersThefollowingMonday,March16,theMaplewood- to begin with. Magazine is free, with editions direct mailedSouth Orange school district began distance learning. AndIts easy to feel blue with so much difficult and negative seven times a year to the residents of Maple-wood and South Orange and distributed toa week after that, I took my last visit to the grocery store.news in our midst. We mourn for those who have lost loved businesses and surrounding communitiesSince then, each member of our five-person household hasones or are on the edge financially; were heartbroken for totaling 16,000. Subscriptions are available to non-residents for $30 (U.S.) $40 (Foreign)staked out his or her own work zone that offers the bestour local business owners who have no revenue coming in. annually. No part of the publication may beprivacy and strongest WiFi signal for streaming Zoom vid- And we pray for resilience for our frontline workers. reprinted or otherwise reproduced withouteos. Correspondingly, the kitchen activity has ramped upAt the same time, though, we must also make room to writtenpermissionfromVisualImpact Advertising, Inc. for continuous feeding 18 out of 24 hours each day. celebrate the positive. As such, we offer you this collection of It still boggles my mind how our existence has shiftedstories. Let them remind you that our community is strong CIRCULATION VERIFIED BYU.S. POSTAL RECEIPTS. so dramatically. Never could I have imagined life would beand creative and resourceful and beautiful. And believe, as we READ & RECYCLE altered in such a profound way. New York City shut down?do, that our collective strength will bring us through this Never! Neighbors strolling in front of my house wearingcrisis. We look forward to being together again soon. 6/ matters magazine / spring 2020'