News

Applause Home Care generously supported the NJV Dementia-Friendly Cinema project screening of "South Pacific" on June 11.  Senior Helpers and Regency Memory Care Club co-sponsored the two previous movies…  The dementia-friendly Ridgewood Public Library is co-sponsoring free matinees with screenings of “Carousel” (July 16^th) and “Some Like it Hot” (August 6^th). The Dementia Friendly Cinema project’s monthly Wednesday matinees are only possible because of such support from local service providers!   Thank you!

We are grateful for these sponsors and other advocates who donate resource materials, goodie bags, and interactive handouts for event attendees.  Contributions from Alzheimer's NJ; Abundant Life Reformed Church; Dementia Caregiver Support & Resource Center; HUMC Center for Memory Loss & Brain Health; NJ Brain Health Center; Senior Blue Book; The Cognitive and Research Center of NJ; and the BC Division of Senior Services have added to the success of these events!

Dementia-Friendly Cinema Project team members (who make these events happen!) represent additional service providers: Marlene Ceragno, Caregiver Services & Outreach at Kaplen JCC; Linda Cutrupi at Mainly Special Needs Travel; Jane Galligan and Meghan LaBruno at Senior Helpers; Vivian Green Korner, Dementia Care Specialist; and Jeanne Martin at Bergen Volunteers.

Volunteers (all recognized in the movie matinee Playbills) who join the project through Bergen Volunteers or other outreach, are trained and make the events run smoothly... Some are advocates, some are former caregivers who appreciate what the project offers, and others volunteer for corporate programs - but all leave in awe or deep satisfaction when they experience the joy expressed by guests during the movie and joy seen on their faces as guests leave the theater! 

There were 40 attendees at “South Pacific”, and we captured a few of their happy faces and others after “Grease” - representing the many happy faces leaving the Township and Hawthorne theaters after the last three events! 

For more information about Dementia-Friendly Cinema features and benefits, click here.

WON’T YOU JOIN US? (And, please pass along this invite to others who might want to join!)

If you attended a previous event, we would appreciate your FEEDBACK HERE.

BE A GUEST…               REGISTER to ensure seats at July 16th screening: Carousel at the Ridgewood Library Auditorium

BE A VOLUNTEER…     For details about being a Volunteer

BE A SPONSOR…         Sponsor & Donation information

SHARE RESOURCES…  Arrange drop-off

On April 1, 2025, North Jersey Village (NJV) board members joined over 50 Glen Rockers to celebrate the launch of the Glen Rock Neighborhood Network (GRNN). GRNN is the first "Spoke" in the NJV "Hub." It is the energy and spirit evident at this gathering that will fuel the growth of the GRNN village and the Village Movement in Bergen County!

To the North Jersey Villages founding board members, Janet Chen, George Kuzma, Jay and Terry VanDelden and Tim Luing as well as current board and team members, Columbus Kim, Meghan LaBruno, Shana Seigel, and Eddie Weiner; Liz Brueck, Scott Cavagnuolo, Jane Galligan, Shaurya Madiraju, Chakrapani Nettem, Jill Strassberg and the many past NJV team members - thank you for believing in and working hard to introduce the village concept into Bergen County! And to Berkeley College, the Luing Family Foundation and all others who have supported and encouraged many projects and village development efforts that have brought NJV to this day - welcoming a Spoke into the Hub – THANK YOU! Kathy Kuzma, ED, NJV HUB Village

(Read More...)

Kathy Kuzma, executive director of North Jersey Villages, and Eddie Wiener, a North Jersey Villages board member, made brief presentations at the Sept. 6^th Washington Township Council meeting and a Sept. 28^th meeting of local residents at the public library.

Council member Daisy Velez, also the town's public affairs director, said at the Sept. 6^th council meeting that she is hoping to bring the "Villages" initiative to town to help local seniors age at home and engage older adults and youth as volunteers to assist older residents...  (See meeting video)

Since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, we have heard about so many people who suddenly found themselves in the ICU… Do you wonder if they thought about or planned for a medical emergency such as Covid-19 pandemic- or even a car accident - could precipitate? Does it raise questions about how you could plan in advance  for your care if ever you could not speak for yourself – as a result of an unexpected medical emergency or even deterioration of your cognitive function? (Read more...)

NJV Board members Kathy Kuzma, Janet Chen & George Kuzma (on left), Amiri Hayes (center), Township Mayor Peter Calamari, Councilwoman Daisy Velez, NJV Board member Eddie Weiner (on right)

Janet Chen, North Jersey Villages (NJV) Founding Trustee, presented the President’s Volunteer Service Award to Amiri Hayes for his outstanding volunteer work as a member of NJV’s IT Team under the management of volunteer Columbus Kim. The presentation was made at an NJV event discussing more feasibly “Aging at Home” at the Washington Township Library on September 28^th.

When joining NJV, Amiri wrote in his profile, “I believe in the concept of independent living and socially connecting models – to support seniors. My grandmother is 87... (read more)

The NJV HUB Village is one of the 270 villages cited in a recent New York Times article about options to institutional care…

“Innovations are also occurring nationally at the grassroots level.  A network of nonprofit 'villages' devoted to providing support and a social network to people who want to age in their homes has been growing for years; it has 270 member groups and 70 more in development. Villages typically cover a specific neighborhood or town, but they are virtual support organizations.  ‘It’s really a neighbors helping neighbors approach,’ said Barbara Hughes Sullivan, the network’s national director.” (Read more...) 

Open to residents age 60 and over, the NJV HUB Village can provide this neighborly support and a social network for those who choose to age in their homes in Bergen County. Join us…