Absecon Lighthouse, New Jersey’s tallest and the country’s third tallest, is naming March, “Climb for Our Cause!”  month. For just a $7 admission to climb ($5 for seniors, $4 for children), you can help keep Absecon Lighthouse shining through a challenging financial crisis.  Absecon Lighthouse invites all residents of South Jersey to participate and make this campaign a roaring success. It is possible, through small increments, to raise funds —  one climb at a time. So, join us for a climb in March and have a blast as you get exercise, see the best views of Atlantic City, and support a worthy cause. For more information call  (609)449-1360 or go here. The lighthouse is located at  31 So. Rhode Island Ave. in Atlantic City, and is open to visitors Thursdays through Mondays, 11am-4pm.

Rants and raves about burning topics that have caught my attention midweek, be it greedy corporate shenanigans, frustration or joy in regards to the Philly sports teams, a movie, show or DVD that has fired up my imagination, an intriguing personality, or my on-going battle to lose weight in our fast food world. — Lori Hoffman, Associate Editor, Atlantic City Weekly

By my calculation, I’ve lost six or seven hundred pounds over the years, usually in 50-pound blocks. This means, of course that I have also gained the weight back. Two years ago, I decided to have weight loss surgery and had a gastric lapband placed around my stomach. The idea of the band is to create a small pouch at the top of your stomach. When this egg-sized portion of your stomach is filled, the theory is that you are no longer hungry and therefore you lose weight. The band is tightened with a saline solution periodically, to maintain your weight loss.

That is the theory anyway. It never really worked for me. While it curbed my hunger somewhat, it never allowed me to be satisfied with a small amount of food, and I had complications that led to several emergency room visits.

So here I am two years later and I’ve regained all the weight, fueled by frustration, anger and a WTF-nothing-works mentality. Most morbidly obese dieters have been there, done that.

My knees are killing me and I’m back on diabetes medication (that I was able to stop taking after the surgery), but on a brighter note, I’m finally on the other side of my regain binge. So what’s next? Where do I go from here on my weight loss journey?

Well, for one thing I am going to listen to my doctor. He was happy with the modest 40-pound weight loss that I maintained for two years. Therefore, instead of dreaming of a Biggest Loser-sized 150 pound weight loss, I’m going to shoot for losing 40 or 50 pounds.

My current diet of choice is the F-Plan, a high fiber diet that was popular in the mid-1980s, based on the book by Audrey Eyton. I was on it before and lost weight.

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William J. Marino, chairman of the Board of Directors of the Horizon Foundation for New Jersey (HFNJ), announced on Tuesday, Dec. 29, that more than $1.9 million in grants was awarded to 96 organizations in 2009, including 38 organizations in the fourth quarter.
Among those receiving fourth-quarter grants from the HFNJ were the South Jersey AIDS Alliance in Atlantic City, which received $15,000 to support its Healthy Relationships Plus Program, and the South Jersey Cultural Alliance in Pleasantville, which received $7,500 to support its Arts for Students Project. The Healthy Relationships Plus Program uses intervention in a small group environment to help build the skills needed to disclose HIV status to family, friends and partners, and also teaches safe sexual behaviors. The Arts for Students Project provides disadvantaged students in Southern New Jersey with quality arts experiences, enabling students in grades K-12 to attend symphony concerts, theatre, dance performances, arts and cultural exhibitions.
“I am proud to announce that since the Foundation’s inception in 2004, it has awarded nearly 500 grants totaling over $18 million to charitable organizations across the state,” says Marino in a release to the media.

During the 1960s, ’70s and early ’80s, a group of highly skilled, civic-minded people organized and produced a telethon for the local chapter of the March of Dimes. At its highest point, the telethon was the biggest winter event in Atlantic City, and was billed as the most successful telethon, per capita, in the United States.

Members of that unique team have reorganized to produce a telethon for the Insulin Support Fund, which provides insulin and other diabetic-related supplies to those in the greater Atlantic County region that either do not have insurance or cannot afford the life sustaining medicine and supplies. The Fund is administered by AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center.

The Insulin Support Fund 2010 Diabetes Telethon will take place Saturday, March 27, from 10am-10pm at the East Tower of Trump Plaza Casino Hotel, Mississippi Avenue and the Boardwalk. The telethon will be produced and directed by marketing executive Richard Helfant and entertainment executive Michael Tully. When not wearing their “telethon hats,” Helfant is executive director/CEO of Lucy the Elephant, and Tully is vice president of Specialized Productions, Inc. — a full service media company located in Allentown, Pa. (more…)

Last month the area’s four Island Gym & Fitness locations — Ventnor, Absecon, EHT and Northfield — collected donations for the Food Bank of NJ through special promotions. This month the organization is channeling its energies toward helping the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves’ annual Toys for Tots Foundation.
Throughout December, each Island Gym location is offering a free class to a non-member if that person brings a new, unwrapped toy. The Toys for Tots campaign collects new toys to be distributed to economically disadvantaged children at Christmas.
All four fitness clubs will offer the “bring-a-toy, take-a-class” option from Monday through Friday, Dec. 7-11. On Tuesday, Dec. 15, the Northfield location will host a two-hour (6-8pm) “Zumba for the Children” fitness class in which all new-toy donors can attend the class for free. Those who do not bring toys will be charged $15, and that money will go toward buying new toys. (more…)

Atlantic City Weekly and its parent company, Review Publishing, will be a Bronze Sponsor for the 51st Running of the Atlantic City Marathon, scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 15. As a Bronze Sponsor, Review Publishing will provide listings in the “online events calendars” section of the Atlantic City Weekly, Philadelphia Weekly, and South Jersey Review publications; provide blog postings on all three papers’ Web sites, and provide regular updates on the Atlantic City Central blog site. Additionally, AC Weekly will shoot, edit and run a four-minute video of the highlights of its Web site and on YouTube.com after the event.
Pick up a race application at the Milton and Betty Katz Jewish Community Center, 501 N. Jerome Ave. in Margate, or click here for an online registration form. All races start 8:30am Sunday, and include the Marathon (26.2 miles, and a qualifying event for the Boston Marathon), the Half Marathon (13.1 miles), the 10K (6.2 miles), the 5K (3.1 miles), the Maria Berenato Kugel Walk to benefit the Alcove Center for Grieving Children and The Fred Spano Kids Fun Run.

On Monday, Sept. 14, employees of aviation-related activities at Atlantic City International Airport (ACY) will give of themselves at the airport’s annual blood drive in partnership with the American Red Cross.

Employees working at the airport, the Federal Aviation Administration Tech Center, the New Jersey National Guard 177th Fighter Wing, the United States Coast Guard Air Station and the Transportation Safety Administration Training Center will donate blood from 10am-4pm.

“The annual blood drive is our way of remembering the tragic events of September 11th, and providing a way for personnel at the airport to do something positive in honor of those who died and those who worked to save victims,” says Bart Mueller, executive director of the South Jersey Transportation Authority (the owner/operator of ACY), in a release to the media.

Pamela Grites, executive director of the American Red Cross Southern Shore Chapter, said that her organization’s goal is to increase collection from this annual event by 25 percent.

“This event is a meaningful way to commemorate September 11th and contribute something positive to our region,” says Grites in the release. “We value the commitment and contribution of the Atlantic City International Airport and employees of all of the aviation facilities there.”

La Fontana Restaurant in Margate will be hosting a dinner concert featuring singer/songwriter and NBC-TV 40 news anchor Michelle Dawn Mooney (pictured left) this Sunday, Aug. 30. The event begins 7pm and a donation from the proceeds will benefit Gilda’s Club of South Jersey — a cancer support group based in Linwood. The cost is $44.95 per person, and guests will have their choice of entrees that include Chicken Marsala, Veal Scallopini, Tilapia Livornese, as well as several delectable appetizers, pastas, soup or salad, a beverage and dessert. For reservations or more information, please call (609) 822-7460.

Charly’s Dream and Striding 4 Strength are banding together in the fight against breast cancer. The two non-profit groups are sponsoring a “Family Fun Day” on Sunday, Sept. 13, at Christina’s Restaurant & Bar, inside the Vienna Inn, 920 West White Horse Pike in Absecon. The event will include arts & crafts, face painting, games, good food and music from KOOL 98.3 FM. “We are reaching out for support, and we are asking if you will help us in our fight with a donation,” says Jacqui Brown of Charly’s Dream. “All proceeds will be donated to the Susan G. Komen Foundation for the Cure, and the National Philanthropic Trust Breast Cancer Fund.”
The event will take place from 11am-5pm. Call Brown at (609) 204-8493 or Mary Stamelos of Striding 4 Strength at (609) 404-9083 for more information.

On Oct. 3 & 4, 2009 the 29th annual MS City to Shore biking event will take place to raise funds for the National MS Society’s pledge to make the world free of the disease.

Interested cyclists can register through Aug. 27 for$45 and for $50 until Sept. 18.

For more on what the MS City to Shore biking event is all about, check the Web site here.