The Age of Elegance

                                                         Bettyjean Pace, MS NEW JERSEY SENIOR AMERICA 2022       The story begins at the end, with the crowning of a new QUEEN.  The MS NEW JERSEY SENIOR AMERICA PAGEANT 2022, was a fabulous event, and was held on Thursday, June 2nd at Harrah's Resort Hotel & Casino.  Ten contestants participated, each one hoping to capture the crown, but in the end, it was Bettyjean Pace who emerged as this year's winner.                                                    ...

  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE! Ladies who are 60 and over, this is your chance to show that you are talented, well-informed, and willing to be of service to your community.   Ms. New Jersey Senior America, Inc., a 501c3 non-profit organization, was established to send this message of the value of all senior Americans to the whole community.   Our mission is to produce pageants to showcase talented, productive and active senior women, and to provide services to the entire community.   In addition, we take pride in supporting children in the performing arts and those with special needs. The MS NEW JERSEY SENIOR AMERICA PAGEANT 2022 is seeking senior ladies to participate in the annual event, which will be held at Harrah’s Resort Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City, on Thursday, June 2 nd at 1:00 PM in the Concert Venue Theater.   There are 4 Judging Categories: (1) Philosophy of Life, (2) Evening Gown, (3) Talent Presentation, and (4) Private Judges’ Interview. ...

  Denise Mechan, NJCC Showcase Co-ordinator and MSNJSA, INC., Corresponding Secretary, announced at the July meeting, that Cameo Showcases were to resume. When she passed out the schedule of venues for the rest of 2021, everyone was thrilled and excited about getting back to performing again.   Photo, courtesy Tom Mechan The CLUB got off to a great start, as can be seen in the above photo.  It was a powerful lineup of eager performers at Crestwood Village on July 19th, and the ladies were at the top of their game. Then, when August came, all of the Showcases had to be cancelled due to COVID-19 flareups at the venues they were scheduled for.  For the most part, they were notified ahead of time about the cancellations.  But, on one scarry occasion, they were already in-house and about to begin the show, when the activities director rushed into the auditorium and said one covid case had just been reported.  As a result, she told them to leave the premises imme...

MS NEW JERSEY SENIOR AMERICA, INC., and the NEW JERSEY CAMEO CLUB is saddened by the passing of Mark Meade on August 2nd.  Many friends and CLUB "sisters" visited Terry's home in observance of the Jewish rite of Shiva during the days following his burial, to offer her comfort and condolences.  He will be greatly missed by all who knew him.                                                                                 All photos, courtesy Terry Meade During his lifetime, Mark was a loving husband, father, grandfather, successful business entrepreneur, traveller, volunteer, and lover of the...

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused havoc with many non-profit groups since early 2020, which has resulted in shut downs or long hiatuses.  Fortunately, for MS NEW JERSEY SENIOR AMERICA, INC., it has only been the latter.  Operations have slowed down a bit, especially for its service wing, the NEW JERSEY CAMEO CLUB, but it too, has reestablished a sense of normalcy which began in the Spring of 2021.                                                                                 Photo, courtesy Sherri McGhie To begin, the CLUB assisted Terry Meade, Director of Pageants, by holding a "Meet ...

       Photo, Courtesy Sherri McGhie, MSNJSA'15 The Juneteenth Celebration, a popular African-American holiday, was observed across the United States over the past weekend.  Dorothy Johnson, MS NEW JERSEY SENIOR AMERICA 2021, participated in the Cherry Hill Parade on Saturday.  Juneteenth has been celebrated since 1866, but despite its popularity, it never received national recognition.  That all changed, however, when President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law, on June 15, 2021, and that the date of its observance will remain as June 19th.  The first celebration of Juneteenth dates back to 1866, and originated in Galveston, Texas.  Although President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, which ended institutional slavery, the law took time to enforce in all States.  Such was the case in Texas, where due to a low presence of Union troops, enforcement there was slow,...

After a year's hiatus due to the corona virus pandemic of 2020, Johanne Santori, CHAIRMAN, and Members of the Board of MS NEW JERSEY SENIOR AMERICA, INC., decided to hold the MS NEW JERSEY SENIOR AMERICA PAGEANT 2021. During the past year, restrictions prohibiting large group gatherings were lifted, and this enabled the Board's decision to continue the tradition of a live PAGEANT.  The event was held at the Clarion Hotel and Conference Center in Toms River on June 3rd. There was an air of relief and joy, as people filled the Grand Ballroom to capacity for the afternoon event, because for the first time, they had a choice of whether or not to wear a mask.                                                        ...