Community pulls together to support MTEF

From the Press of Atlantic City, May 19, 2010-Lee Procida, Staff Writer

Dave and Steve Ruberton, owners of Rocco's Townhouse on 3rd Street in Hammonton, didn't need anyone telling them the Mullica Township School District needed help before they hosted a fundraiser Friday.

Both Mullica residents' wives work for the district, but are among a dozen employees who will not return next year because of a budget that cuts back on staff as well as field trips, computer support and extracurricular programs.

That made it a no-brainer when the brothers agreed to hold the Mullica Education Foundation's spring fundraiser at their restaurant, since the organization funds much of the things the district itself can no longer afford.

"It's nice to see the foundation picking up some of the slack," Dave Ruberton said in between cooking pizza, mussels and green beans for the event.

The foundation raised about $6,000 from about 80 people who packed the bar and back room of the restaurant - money that will go to purchasing equipment and fund the types of things that are first cut when budgets are scaled down. In the past, that has included field trips, computer labs, projectors and video cameras, as well as scholarships for Mullica residents attending college.

"They're not absolutely necessary, but they're great learning tools," foundation President Ralph Leek said.

Among the crowd were teachers, parents, students and other people from the community supporting the foundation's efforts through their donations and 50-50 ticket purchases.

Many said they had been coming to the annual event for years, but also said this year was particularly important, because of how much funding has been reduced.

"There are no bells and whistles here," said John Falciano, of the township's Devonshire section, a former school board member. "There's not a lot of splurging here."

Falciano's children both have worked their way through the district already - one now attends Oakcrest High School in Mays Landing and another graduated Friday from Rowan University - but he said he still wanted to support the district.

Melinda Matos, of the Devonshire section, and Judy Martinez, of the Wharton Park development, both made this year their first at the fundraiser, and said they were thinking about how the foundation's efforts could help their children.

Matos, who has a second-grader, fifth-grader and eighth-grader in the district, said her children were upset about cuts to music and field trips, saying, "The one's who are going to suffer are the students."

Martinez has children in kindergarten and first grade. One has special needs, and Martinez said she has not heard yet how cutbacks eventually could affect special needs programs in the district.

"It's hard on everybody," Matos said.

While there were obvious concerns, the crowd appeared to enjoy the event - saying they loved the food, applauding raffle winners and cheering when the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team rallied from a 3-0 deficit to defeat the Boston Bruins and advance to the next round of the NHL Playoffs.

Parents also said that despite budget cuts, they were confident their children were getting a quality education.

"It's not too much that people are worried," said Daphne Critelli, a Columbia Road resident with a son in fifth grade attending the event with her husband, Lou, "because Mullica's always been a very good school district."

One of the reasons for that is the MTEF, Principal Kevin Dugan said, and he praised the Leek family for their work over the years and to make Friday night a success.

"You need a driving force," he said, motioning in Ralph Leek's direction, "and if you don't have someone with that passion, it loses momentum."