Community Corner

Oct. Rummage Sale Accepting Donations Now

It's time to clean out your closets by donating items to be sold at VNA fundraising rummage sale on Oct. 5-7.

Fall is a great time to clean closets, get yourself organized, and — starting this Saturday — bring donations to the Fall Rummage Sale scheduled this year for Oct. 5-7.

And for many people, the best reason of all to get rid of all those unwanted items during the period in which volunteers will be waiting at the Far Hills Fairgrounds to unload donations is to, of course, make room for new stuff to bring home from the giant semi-annual Rummage Sale itself, say organizers from the VNA.

Starting at 10 a.m., Saturday, Sept. 8 will be the first day area residents can start dropping off items at the fairgrounds, located on the corner of Route 202 and Peapack Road, in Far Hills.

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Donations will be accepted every day except Sundays between 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. daily through Wednesday, Sept. 26.
 
The Rummage Sale — billed as New Jersey's largest and oldest — is scheduled to take place on Friday and Saturday, Oct 5-6, from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and on Sunday, Oct. 7, from 12:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Prices are slashed on Sunday, but the best selection is on the first few days. Local scouts offer food for purchase, and onsite parking is free. 

The event is recognized as a place for bargain hunters from throughout the New York area and beyond to come in search of treasures, trinkets and unusual finds at low prices.

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Each April and October, hundreds of volunteers from throughout the area sort the donated items into more than 25 departments of merchandise, where shoppers can find anything from antiques, jewelry and clothes to kitchen ware, toys and sporting equipment.

One hundred percent of the proceeds from the volunteer-run sale support the VNA’s programs and enable the organization to care for those who are uninsured or under-insured in Morris and Somerset Counties.
 
For more information about the kinds of donations accepted or the sale, visit www.visitingnurse.org.  For information on volunteering, call 908-781-6445.

Each year since 1991, the VNA has also relied upon the Rummage Sale and other fundraising events to finance its annual award college scholarships to high school seniors from Somerset or Morris County who planning to receive a degree in nursing.

Earlier this Summer, the Board of Trustees of the VNA awarded its 2012 Nursing Scholarships to high school seniors Dayana Contreras of Dover and Adriana Shubeck of Chatham, NJ. Both students were planning to pursue baccalaureate degrees in nursing and each received $1,000 scholarships to help finance their education.

Dover High School honor student, Dayana Contreras, was planning to attend Caldwell College in Caldwell. She said her interest in nursing was inspired by the care and compassion provided to her grandmother during her two year struggle with cancer, according to the VNA. “I know she would be very proud of me knowing I want to help and care for others just as the nurses did for her,” said Contreras.

Adriana Shubeck, recent Villa Walsh Academy graduate, was planning to attend Villanova University College of Nursing. As a volunteer Emergency Medical Technician with the Chatham Emergency Squad, Adriana’s passion for the profession began when she was a young child and witnessed the remarkable spirit and care given by a homecare nurse to her brother during his battle with Leigh’s Syndrome. “Esther, who herself was a ‘visiting nurse,’ has inspired me to become a pediatric nurse,” Shubeck told the VNA.

“The VNA is proud to assist local students at the beginning of their journey towards a rewarding career in nursing and the healthcare profession,” said Ann Painter, President & CEO, VNA of Somerset Hills.

The Visiting Nurse Association of Somerset Hills and its subsidiaries, established early in the 20th century, provide individuals and families with comprehensive, cost-effective home and community healthcare services, regardless of ability to pay, using partnerships where appropriate, accordiing to the organization.

The VNA is set up as a charitable, tax-exempt home health agency and hospice certified by Medicare, accredited by the Community Health Accreditation Program and licensed by the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services. For more information, visit the VNA website.

Linda Sadlouskos contributed to this story.

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