MORRIS TOWNSHIP, NJ - The Morris County Park Police want you to join them on Saturday, October 17 for Cops Kick For Kids and kick off at 12 Noon at Loantaka Brook Reservation on South Street, in Morris Township. This Penalty Kick-A-Thon is a charity event open to boys and girls, ages 5 and older, as well as adults! Participants receive T-shirts, goodie bags, and enjoy a DJ, karaoke, face painting, door prizes, and more! Trophies awarded for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners in each division.

Proceeds benefit children of law enforcement families in need and the Morris County Park Police Child ID Program. Donations and sponsorships are welcome. Online preregistration is strongly suggested so please visit www.morrisparkpolice.org. Day-of registration begins at 10:30 AM. Don’t miss Cops Kick For Kids on Saturday, October 17 at Loantaka Brook Reservation! For more information please contact Detective Sal Salafia at ssalafia@morrisparks.net or call 973-326-7632.

MORRIS TOWNSHIP, NJ - Sample tomato varieties grown by Rutgers University and area farmers at The Frelinghuysen Arboretum on Sunday, September 13 from 12 noon to 4 p.m. Learn how to grow healthy tomatoes, save tomato seeds, pick the right variety, and prepare delicious, easy tomato dishes. Chef Cynthia Triolo whips up some simple tomato recipes to replicate in your kitchen. Walks, talks, tastings, and demonstrations are offered throughout the day. Once believed to be alternately an aphrodisiac or a poison and known as the “Love Apple”, the tomato and New Jersey are now inseparable.

Come to Tomato Day at The Frelinghuysen Arboretum in Morris Township on Sunday, September 13 and learn everything you need to know to grow this tasty fruit. Sample a variety of tasty tomato cultivars, including the famous Rutgers Ramapo and many “heirloom” varieties. To register, please call 973-326-7603.

Labels: arboretum, Frelinghuysen, rutgers, tomato

MORRIS TOWNSHIP, NJ-The Great Swamp Outdoor Education Center in Chatham, NJ invites your “tribe” to come to Lenape Day on Sunday, September 20 from 12 Noon until 4 p.m. Experience a real Lenape celebration with members of the Ramapough Lenape Tribe as they present a traditional drum circle, dancers in regalia, handicrafts vendors, real artifacts, and a historical speaker gathered around a model wigwam in the forest. The entire family will enjoy authentic activities and crafts such as molding a clay pot by the fire, making a fire without matches, and playing the real games that Lenape children played to hone their skills. Take a guided walk on the wooded trails to discover how the Lenape used local plants for food, shelter, tools, or explore the interior of a wigwam, set up as it would have been hundreds of years ago.

Lenape Day is a unique opportunity for families to not only educate themselves about New Jersey’s native culture, but to be entertained while doing so. The Lenape are not a thing of the past, but a part of New Jersey’s heritage that is alive and well today. Participants can learn about how these people shaped New Jersey in the past, and also what the future holds for the tribe. Mark your calendars for Sunday, September 20 from 12 Noon to 4 p.m. and spend an afternoon learning about the history of the native people of New Jersey at Lenape Day at the Great Swamp Outdoor Education Center in Chatham Township! For more information call 973-635-6629 or visit www.morrisparks.net.

Labels: celebration, drum circle, great swamp, lenape

MORRIS TWP., NJ-The Lakeland Cross Country has teamed up with the Morris County Park Commission to announce a brand new trail at Central Park of Morris County, available to enjoy beginning, Sunday, September 13, 2009. The Lakeland Cross Country Program has enjoyed their home at Brundage Park in Randolph for the past 20 years. The program had become so successful that a need for a larger home to accommodate the popularity became necessary. The Morris County Park Commission offered Central Park of Morris County to help solve the problem.

With the help of Len Pietrewicz and the maintenance staff at Lewis Morris County Park, a cross country trail was created that is enjoyable for runners as well as those watching. In honor of the new course, the first annual Morris County Park Commission Cross Country Invitational will take place on Sunday, October 4, 2009.

For more information about the Lakeland Cross Country program please visit www.mctrack.org. You can also visit www.morrisparks.net.

Labels: central park, cross country, lakeland cross county, running

MORRIS TOWNSHIP, NJ – The Morris County Park Commission’s Fosterfields Living Historical Farm welcomes you to the 1920s Country Fair on Sunday, September 13 from 12 Noon until 5:00 p.m. for an afternoon of farm animals, wagon rides, and much more! Meet the farm animals including horses, cows, pigs, sheep, and chickens. Hop aboard the open-air wagon for a unique ride into the past.

Hear the clang of the blacksmith hard at work, see a grain preparation demonstration, and learn about the workings of the early gasoline engine and apple cider press. Test your knowledge of Jersey cattle with the Cow Quiz Bowl. Be certain to check out the “latest” in automobiles and agricultural equipment.

The spirit of the 1920s roars back to life through music. Made popular nearly a century ago, the tunes are new again as you tap your toes, snap your fingers, and clap your hands. Learn to dance the Charleston, and enjoy live music by vocalist Linda Russell and the Long Hill String Band.

Visit the farm market tent where food concessions, as well as fresh produce and honey, are available for purchase. In this area, learn how honey is produced at a beekeeping exhibit.

For more information on Fosterfields Living Historical Farm and the 1920s Country Fair on Sunday, September 13 from 12:00 Noon to 5:00 pm, please call 973-326-7645 or visit www.morrisparks.net.

Labels: animals, country fair, farm, historic sites, wagon