Thursday, December 27, 2012
Linda Murphy's daughter came out as a lesbian on Father's Day in 2004. Six years later, Murphy became president of Collingswood PFLAG, and still supports LGBT youth.
Yes, Virginia, an activist can be polite. The mild manners of Minnesota mom Linda Murphy belie a steely conviction that has inspired her work as president of Collingswood PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays). This week, she tells Patch about her personal connection to the LGBT community. Collingswood Patch: Tell me about what PFLAG seeks to accomplish. Murphy: PFLAG is a national organization. Our mission is to provide education, support, and advocacy. Each chapter may be a little bit different as far as what they specialize in. I would say the PFLAG Collingswood chapter, just by the nature of who comes on a monthly basis and the membership, we're really there for support. My personal goal is to increase the availability for …
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Meet Sarah: a training manager, graduate student, purple belt in karate—and, most importantly, mom to 10-year-old Charlie.
Collingswood transplant Sarah Mello has a lot to juggle: a full-time job at the nonprofit mental health agency Resources for Human Development, master's degree classes at Capella University, karate, volunteering and raising her 10-year-old son Charlie by herself. How is she able to do it all? With the support of a great community. Patch: How long have you lived in Collingswood? Mello: I've been in Collingswood for six years. We moved from Seattle. I had taken a job in Moorestown and I didn't know anything about Jersey at all. I was doing all my research about the area online. Somebody from the company that I had been hired to work for said, “Collingswood is this up-and-coming place. You should check it out.” From 3,000 miles away I was …
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Judges say parents go too far if the blow leaves a handprint or bruising.
A parent who strikes a child in the face hard enough to leave fingerprints and bruising has used excessive force and can be put on a list of abusive parents, a state appeals court ruled Tuesday. In their 16-page opinion, judges Victor Ashrafi and Douglas Fasciale reviewed two other cases in which a parent who slapped a teenager and another parent who struck her child on the shoulder were found not to have used excessive force. But in this case, the judges held that striking the child in the face, and with enough force to leave a mark the following morning, crossed the line. "Slapping the face of an eight-year-old child with sufficient force to leave a hand imprint and cause bruising goes 'beyond what is proper and reasonable,'" the court…
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
An editor's personal journey.
This story is not mine to own. It could belong to you. It could belong to your sister, your friend, your neighbor, the waitress at Jersey Boys, the bank president, the school principal, the police officer directing traffic. In New Jersey, the story belongs to all of us. The findings of a federal study released last week show that one in 49 children, and one in 29 boys, are diagnosed with autism in New Jersey. Nationally, one in 88 children are diagnosed annually. Autism is a disease that gives itself freely and without prejudice. There is no way to protect your child from it; no diet or vaccine that will prevent it. It is, as experts will tell you, pervasive. Autism has been an unwanted guest in my house for 11 years. It has attached …
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
We want to know what our mommy readers think—share your opinions in this Mom Talk Q&A.
Collingswood Patch invites you and your circle of friends to help build a community of support for mothers and their families right here in Collingswood. Each week in Moms Talk, our Moms Council of experts and smart moms take your questions, give advice and share solutions. Moms, dads, grandparents and the diverse families who make up our community will have a new resource for questions about local neighborhood schools, the best pediatricians, 24-hour pharmacies and the thousands of other issues that arise while raising children. Moms Talk will also be the place to drop in for a talk about the latest parenting hot topic. Do you know of local moms raising their children in the Tiger Mother's way, and is it the best way? Where can we get …
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Local moms share their feelings about 'Mommy Guilt.'
Whether or not you've been a mommy for very long, you learn more every day about the amazing odyssey that is mommy-hood. And, as on any odyssey, you experience and discover new things on a daily basis, including variations of the following examples which are commonly passed from mother to mother: “There’s no love like the love you have for your child.” TRUE! “You’ll forget how annoying and painful pregnancy was when you see your child’s face.” TRUE! “You’ll find yourself saying things to your child that your mother said to you.” TRUE! “Your body will bounce right back if you breastfeed.” FALSE! Whoever said this must have had better genes than most. “There is nothing more terrible in this world than seeing your child sad, upset or hurt.” …
Kelley Stacy
9:51 am on Sunday, December 30, 2012
Great article about someone making a real difference. I plan on being at the next meeting:) Kelley more ›