b'Matters heart of thematterThingsthat Matter Since 1990 Building with LoveFeaturing Local People, Places and Our playhouse needs maintenancePUBLISHER BY ELLEN DONKER& EDITOR IN CHIEFEllen DonkerASSOCIATEEDITOR N owthatisthebusy visiting us from his house in Wayne. Anne MandellSOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER weatherAtthetime,hewasregaininghis Rachael Entinewarmer,strengthafterhavingendured ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS Imchemotherapyandradiation Rene Conlon turn- treatments for colon cancer. I H. Leslie Gilman i n gknow he worked many days Ryan Nish m ynot feeling his best. Amy Powerattention to my back yard.Ourkidswerefasci-COPY EDITORS Imtrimmingthezebranated as they watched their Charles Hammer grassthathopefullypro- grandpaframethelittle Tia Swanson videdcritterswithshelterhouse,installthewindows during the winter, edging theand door, fashion a tiny front CONTRIBUTORS gardenbedsandcuttingdaf- porch with custom railings, hang Adrianna Donat fodils for indoor enjoyment. I alsoflower boxes and two big letter Ds on Rose Bennett Gilbert have my eye on a playhouse that standsthe dormers and, finally, paint it yellow Donny Levit in the back corner of the yard. It needs some at- with a green door. Ilysse Rimalovski tention. Because the floor was plywood, I covered it in black and Julia Maloof Verderosa Years ago when my triplets were about 4 years old, Iwhite sticky tiles, then painted the walls purple, sewed some showedmyfatheramagazinethatfeaturedplayhousesvalances in a cat-themed fabric, added a tiny ball fringe to that I thought were adorable. I could just picture my kidsthe border, and outfitted the space with a table and chairs having fun in their own little backyard house. I guess myfrom Ikea. The kids loved playing in this special house, zip-father could too, because before I knew it he was askingping in and out of the miniature door. I even slept in it with me which of the three houses I wanted him to build. Hethem a few times. Our sleeping bags fit the houses width intended to order the plans.perfectly.Please address all correspondence to: I hadnt been hinting that he build a playhouse. But IAs the kids got older and no longer played in the house, Visual Impact Advertising, Inc. wasnt going to turn him down, either. My father alwaysit became the repository for our gardening tools and bicycles. P.O. Box 198 liked to have a project going. This one would keep himWithout a concrete foundation, the floor eventually rotted Maplewood, NJ 07040 busy for a while. Although he had owned a business thatand the tiles came loose. Some of the railing spindles fell off, 973-763-4900 kept him behind a desk for many years, my father was aand the roof started growing moss. Still, unlike my house, mattersmagazine.commaker at heart.the roof has no leaks and the windows operate flawlessly.info@mattersmagazine.com Growing up, our first house had a pool. Even thoughRecently, I asked a contractor for an estimate to fix up Matters Magazine is owned and publishedmy father was busy during the week establishing his busi- the playhouse. He remarked on the many custom touches by Visual Impact Advertising, Inc., P.O.ness, he built what we called a screen house. I dont knowmy father had added to make the house special. My father Box 198 Maplewood, NJ 07040. Matterswhere he got the confidence to do so, because he didntpassed away in 2016, but looking at it from my kitchen Magazine is free, with editions direct mailed seven times a year to the residents of Maple- have any experience with construction. But I believe thewindow reminds me of the love he gave to his grandchil-wood and South Orange and distributed tostructure stands to this day. Over time, he built a dogdren, wanting nothing more than to make them happy. businesses and surrounding communities totaling 16,000. Subscriptions are availablehouse, radiator covers for my house, a miniature versionTheyre 24 now. I know they felt special, because who else to non-residents for $30 (U.S.) $40 (Foreign)of his house in Florida, plexiglass Loony Toons charactershad a grandfather who built them a playhouse?annually. No part of the publication may bethat doubled as garden hose stands, and a kit car replicaI still have to decide whether to proceed with the reno-reprinted or otherwise reproduced without writtenpermissionfromVisualImpactof a 1929 Mercedes Benz that he built on the chassis of avations, a hard decision when I have plenty of home proj-Advertising, Inc. Volkswagen bug. My father rarely repeated designs. Whenects to tackle. But I can do some of the work myself (and CIRCULATION VERIFIED BY he finished a project he moved on to a new challenge. enlist my daughter to help). A new paint job could spruce U.S. POSTAL RECEIPTS. Once he received the plans for the playhouse, he startedup the house. Its been a long time since I planted those READ & RECYCLE ordering materials. We had many exciting deliveries comewindow boxes. Ill choose flowers that are yellow, my fa-up our driveway from Home Depot that kept Grandpathers favorite color. I think he would approve. 8/ matters magazine / spring 2024'