by New Jersey Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin and Port Authority of New York/New Jersey Chairman Kevin O’Toole
View the entire newsletter for more articles: 2020 – NJAC County Biz – September
Now almost a half-year into the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen its disastrous effects on almost every sector of our regional economy, but perhaps restaurants more than any other. While outdoor seating has been authorized for the last month and a half, we know many residents understandably are hesitant to patronize even their favorite restaurants, and unable to eat indoors.
Of course, having restaurant-prepared meals is a luxury many people did not have even before the pandemic, which has now forced many New Jersey residents to make a choice: pay bills or buy food.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell estimated that 40% of U.S. households earning under $40,000 a year lost their jobs in March, underscoring the devastating financial effect of the pandemic on low-income workers, many of whom already relied on soup kitchens and food banks to combat food insecurity.
We are glad to see the CARES act and state legislation supporting funding for food pantries, and thrilled to see so many people step up and volunteer at their neighborhood pantries and food banks, but we know that keeping our economy afloat requires consistent spending. It is also inspiring to see other organizations and apps like Help Main Street and Operation Main Street promote purchasing of gift certificates from restaurants.
We have found that our restaurant partners want to donate their time and skills making nutritious meals for shelters and soup kitchens, but simply cannot afford to donate the ingredients. That is why we’ve partnered with SoupKitchen411 and dozens of soup kitchens and restaurants to launch FeedNJ, a campaign that purchases restaurant-made meals to be delivered to and served at soup kitchens in their area.
To date, we’ve served over 20,000 meals in 11 counties. The funds come from private individuals as well as local, national, and multinational organizations with connections to the Garden State.
Fran Schults, the owner of Long Branch’s Bacon Beach Grille, was one of the restaurateurs who had donated meals and supplies in her area, and was thrilled at the opportunity to make meals at near-retail price for people in need at local soup kitchens.
Bacon Beach Grille was one of the restaurants FeedNJ purchased meals from on August 28, our single-day record for meals served, where we served 2,000 meals at soup kitchens in 4 counties throughout the state.
There are too many people to thank for the success of FeedNJ, especially Ken DeRoberts, the founder of SoupKitchen411, which–as its name suggests–provides contact information for over 150 soup kitchens in the tri-state area, and first approached us about building a coalition to fight Covid-19-affected food insecurity.
FeedNJ plans to continue to reach these numbers on the last Friday of each month. Restaurants unaware of our initiative are encouraged to email info@soupkitchen411.com, as are donors and soup kitchens not currently partnering with FeedNJ.
The road to coronavirus recovery will not be quick or easy, but as long as people are stepping up to do what they can to support local businesses and feed those in need, we will get through this.