feature story / 29 Then, while looking at a possible new house to buy, Kaden Dean met Jill Sockwell. Sockwell is a senior sales associ- ate on the Robert Northfield Team at Keller Williams Midtown Direct Real- ty, a single mother, and the co-founder of the Maplewood Divorce Club. She knows firsthand how difficult it is to move forward when it feels like your life has been turned upside down. Sockwell met Suzanne Riss in 2010 when they each separated from their husbands and were going through divorces. “We became friends and wound up going through this time together – tak- ing our ‘walk and talks’ around Maple- wood, sharing the ups and downs, and helping each other keep an optimistic outlook,” Sockwell says. They wanted to offer that kind of support to other women, so they founded the Maplewood Divorce Club about five years ago. “We were surprised that more than 50 women showed up at our first meeting at Coda (Kitchen and Bar),” Riss says. “The group now has hun- dreds of members and it keeps grow- ing every day.” The Maplewood Divorce Club welcomes women from Maplewood, South Orange, and neighboring com- munities in Essex County. According to New Jersey Court data, the county recorded more than 2,000 divorces in 2017, the second highest number in the state behind Bergen County. After hearing so many stories from women in the group, and meeting so many women who were feeling lost and alone, Sockwell and Riss decided to write a book. The Optimist’s Guide to Divorce: How to Get Through Your Breakup and Cre- ate a New Life You Love offers advice from hundreds of women about what helps get you past loss and what keeps you stuck. Lori Lengua was given the book in the spring of 2017 by a woman she met when she was Suzanne Riss and Jill Sockwell, founders of the Maplewood Divorce Club. Photo by Lisa Rayman Goldfarb. Eileen Kaden Dean with children Oliver and Emma. Photo by Jennifer Carbone. HAVE QUESTIONS? We can help. CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS & ADVISORS 300 Executive Drive - Suite 200 • West Orange, New Jersey COUTODEFRANCO, P.A. • coutodefranco.com (973) 325-3370 2018 TAX REFORM Call us today to set up a complimentary consultation for all your tax needs. Nelson Couto, CPA, CFP® and Anthony DeFranco, CPA, CFP® , MS (Taxation) — Partners; Couto DeFranco, P.A. • Info at www.hartshornarboretum.org 973-376-3587 Close to Nature. Close to Home. 324 Forest Drive South, Short Hills Our nature camps are green, fun, and local! Winter Break Camp: February 18th to 22nd Spring Break Camp: April 15th to 19th Summer Camp Open House: March 17th Our nature camps are green, fun, and local! Winter Break Camp: February 18th to 22nd Spring Break Camp: April 15th to 19th Summer Camp Open House: March 17th So what are you doing for break?