Joe Bradley doesn’t know how it all began, except for the fact that he was the Scoutmaster for Boy Scout Troop 23 at St. Lawrence Church in Weehawken.
“It was about 25 or 30 years ago that I made my first button, when I was with the Boy Scouts,” said Bradley, a lifelong Weehawken resident. “I was involved in Boy Scouts for over 50 years. We were always looking for something new to try. Once I made the first button, it became a hobby, and it’s been that way ever since.”
The 78-year-old Bradley purchased a button-making machine and has been making buttons of all kinds ever since. A veteran of World War II, Bradley makes historical reference buttons that he distributes to the children of Weehawken to help them learn about veterans and the war.
After the World Trade Center tragedy on Sept. 11, 2001, Bradley and his daughters went to work making buttons to be sold to help the families who suffered losses. Bradley made more than 6,000 buttons and sold them, donating more than $4,000 to the North Hudson Firefighter’s Fund.
“That was a lot of buttons,” Bradley laughed.
Bradley has also been active with the Elks in Lyndhurst, where he has been a member for the last 15 years. He has put his button-making prowess to the test every year, when the Elks hold their annual Friendship Day for handicapped children in May at the Turtleback Zoo in West Orange.
“I take the children’s pictures, and then we make buttons for them right there,” Bradley said. “We have a team of people who snap the buttons together for the kids. We go all day long, making buttons for the children with their faces on the buttons. I’ve been making the buttons on Friendship Day for about 10 years now.”
More than 1,000 handicapped children from all over the state attend the day and Bradley makes sure that every single one has a button.
Last week, the North Central District of the Elks, which covers about 15 Elks lodges in Bergen, Hudson and Essex Counties, honored Bradley as their Citizen of the Year at the Elks’ charity ball in Lyndhurst.
Elk of the year
Bradley was nominated by the Lyndhurst Elks lodge’s handicapped children’s committee, and he was selected among all the other Elks in that North Central district.
“This came as a total surprise,” Bradley said. “It was a good feeling and very rewarding, especially when you don’t expect it.”
Bradley was asked how he was selected for the honor.
“I asked one of the guys in the lodge how I was picked, but no one seems to know the reason,” Bradley said. “I’m not complaining.”
On his plaque, it was inscribed that Bradley was feted for his “dedication and hard work given to special children.”
Bradley doesn’t consider what he does for the children as anything special.
“I just like making the buttons,” Bradley said. “When you see a kid smile, that’s all that matters. Sometimes it gets to you. But when you’re able to put a smile on their face, then it’s a great feeling.”
Bradley said that he sees no reason to slow down from being the “Button Man.”
“I just bought a digital camera,” Bradley said. “I’m trying to figure out how to use it. Maybe it might make things easier.”