Download brochure March 2009 Newsletter Update
The Food Allergy Support Group of Monmouth County is happy to announce our Calendar of events!
New this year is the children's activities, this will be in addition to the adult meetings and group outings.
Membership is $25.00 per annum, the fee helps to cover the cost of materials needed to operate the support group, token gifts for the guest speakers and some portion of some of the events.
The adult meetings are organized for the purpose to e mpower parents through education and to give support and the tools necessary to keep the children safe. The meetings are usually on the last Wednesday of the month from September until June - 7:30PM until 9:00 PM (unless noted otherwise). The meetings are usually at no additional cost.
We have an official "Children's Activities" that meets approximately 4 times per year. The purpose is to provide a fun and safe environment for the children while spreading Food Allergy Awareness. This is a great opportunity for our children to meet and play with other food allergic children, so they too are gaining a support group! Additionally, the parents get a chance to meet share experiences, the best source for resources, as well as potentially gaining some friends along the way!! The dates vary from September until May, as does the time and locations, therefore some months might have two activities occurring, while other months may have no activities planned. There is usually a small fee for each event and the events are food free!
February 2009 Newsletter
Letter from the Leader
As the Holidays quickly disappear almost as fast as they came upon us, the Food Allergy Support Group of Monmouth County is prepared to fill up those calendars with lots of educational and fun events. We are very happy to announce the many new items for the New Year! So find a quiet space and your calendar and take note .
First on our list of “new” is: Dr. Tina Zecca has moved!! Her new location is 200 White Street in the Little Silver commons. Congratulations, Dr. Zecca and THANK YOU!! The other location was getting crowded. This new office is really nice and we think it will better accommodate our needs. We ask that you please help Dr. Zecca keep her patients safe by refraining from bringing in any food or beverage into her office – you can never be too careful!
Angie Francovic, a member of this group for some time, has generously offered her services to create an official Children's Activities portion of the group. We are so excited to have this new aspect for the group; we all know how scary it can be to do things on your own. This is a great venue to have fun in a safe environment while promoting food allergy awareness and a great way to meet parents who share the same concerns. Angie threw a very successful, first ever children's holiday party in December at My Gym in Shrewsbury , which has been a long time friend to food allergic families and was the first sponsor for the Long Branch Food Allergy Walk this past September. We look forward to more fun filled activities in 2009. Thank you, Angie!! In addition to children's activities, Angie continues in making social arrangements for adults. We enjoyed a very lovely evening at Gaetanos's in Red Bank this past January as our adults only “New Year Dinner.” Thank you Angie for arranging, what was another great social outing.
February is membership renewal; membership fees are $25.00 per; year . Please mail your checks to: Ann Houdalis, 37 North Circle, Matawan, NJ 07747. You may also bring your membership fees to the next event. The first 100 members will receive a free Omax Care Leg Buddy; it will given out at the beginning of the February support group meeting. So don't delay, the group has many fabulous events planned for the upcoming year!
Our February meeting topic is nutrition and we will have a professional nutritionist provide some guidance on how we can strike a balance with our food challenges. This event will be free of charge, but we will require registration, as space is limited. It will be held at Dean's Market in Ocean on Feb. 18 at 7 p.m.
In closing I'd like to make a special thanks to Ann Houdalis, our group's treasurer and Ellen Montemarano, our publications and web person. With their continued behind the scenes efforts, we are able to plan these fun events.
Warmest Regards,
Jo Ann Molnar