Central Jersey Homes and Living Summer 2021

HOMES&LIVING HOMES& JUNE 2021 ISSUE

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Businesses survive and thrive By JENNIFER AMATO Managing Editor

owntown Freehold is about seven blocks long by four blocks wide.

In just a half mile by quarter mile space, 1,500 businesses, give or take, enhance the quaint, community-driven area of Freehold Borough. Downtown Freehold has a wide mix of businesses from lawyers, doctors, accountants and many other professions that revolve around the county offices, to photographers, music and dance studios, florists and art galleries. Downtown Freehold has more than 40 restaurants, many hair salons, tailors, dress makers and many other retail shops. There is a community theater and the Monmouth County Historical Association Museum. “We only had two restaurants go out of business during COVID and they were immediately replaced by other restaurants. A number of the music studios are still not fully operational yet. We have also had a boxing gym close but that too was quickly reoccupied by a sign store. A couple other new businesses opened, as well Cohen’s Fashion Optical closed their store in the [Freehold Raceway] mall and bought a small preexisting optical boutique in downtown; an eyelash spa called House of Glam opened, and a salon named Cozmo’s changed hands and is now called Leela’s,” said Jeff Friedman, executive director of Downtown Freehold. One very fortunate restaurant is Federici’s Family Restaurant, which was able to survive the pandemic and prepare for its 100th anniversary this summer. please see THRIVE, page 9

CENTRAL NEW JERSEY HOMES & LIVING | JUNE 2021

THRIVE

been rehired.

continued from page 8

“I’m very lucky, very blessed. Outside of the first three months, our business did not suffer,” Federici said.

Mid-March 2020, restaurants in New Jersey were ordered to halt all indoor dining. Federici’s co-owner Mike Federici said curbside pickup was acceptable, but it cut his business in half.

Restaurants also received PPP loans from the government, and laid off employees received bonus money through unemployment. He said he wanted to make sure everyone had some type of paycheck.

“It was still better than nothing,” he said gratefully. In June the governor allowed outdoor dining, and Federici said because the restaurant had been offering outdoor dining for 30 years, they were ready to go. They already had tables and chairs ready for set up. Then, Labor Day weekend, indoor dining at 25% capacity was allowed – so Federici’s was operating at 25% indoors, 100% outdoors and curbside pickup. “It took our business to a normal level,” Federici said, noting that during the first three months of the lockdown, their restaurant made no profit. He said all of his dining room staff had been previously laid off – bartenders, servers, bus boys, hosts and food runners – but have since

“I kept all of my kitchen staff working, which was very important to me. They all have families,” Federici said. Another business owner concerned about her family is Marlene Rogala, who owns Especially for You Florist with her husband, Stephen Rogala Sr. Her children, Steve Jr. and Laura, work at the shop as well. Their business just had a successful Valentine’s Day before the pandemic closed their store in advance of Easter, Passover and Mother’s Day. Their nine full-time employees were basically jobless at first. But, Rogala said there was a need for community support, either to send people a pick-me-up bouquet, or to send

get well arrangements to those who were sick. “This allowed them to express their sentiments and have some contact with people,” she said. Since they operate a delivery service they were able to reopen, plus they allowed patrons to pick up their orders curbside. “You got creative and you did what you could do,” Rogala said. “It put a little spark in the economy and picked up people’s morale.” At first, only Rogala and her family would come in to do the work, and they reduced their hours. At the time, funerals were not taking place, and there were limited or no flowers ordered for any large gatherings since weddings, Communions, proms and graduations were postponed or canceled. “We just coasted along and let people know we were here if they needed us,” she said. Calling Mother’s Day 2020 a “Mother’s please see THRIVE, page 10

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Day like no other” since people weren’t visiting with family, Rogala said, “We filled the gap for them” with floral arrangements.

“It initially knocked us down to nothing,” Page said. “We slowly came back to about 25% with takeout. Last year, I think about this time, when the outside opened up, it allowed us to get back to about 60% normal. We would have an odd weekend where we would be 75%.”

continued from page 9

“It was so heartwarming that we could make people feel good or put a little light in the dreariness,” she said. “Flowers always say everything for people.” Plus, she was able to bring some of her staff back in four-hour shifts to help with the Mother’s Day workload. Fast-forward to Mother’s Day 2021, and Rogala said her staff prepared for a busy weekend. Weddings are up “a tiny bit” Rogala said, though a lot of brides haven’t been able to rebook yet, but that could bring business back soon, too. Plus, Main Street has always been a good location for retail businesses, she said, so being in the view of the public eye from foot traffic and vehicular traffic has helped them sustain their vitality. “This community is one fabulous community,” said Rogala, who followed in her mother’s footsteps of community service, and is a charter member of DowntownFreehold.com and is a twotime former chair. “It’s a really, really good community: good retail, good economic area – and really pretty.” Foot traffic is certainly important to the Court Jester Saloon & Eatery, which sits amongst a series of restaurants along West Main Street. Since 1977, the Jester has offered burgers, sandwiches, wraps and other pub food, along with a selection of beer and cocktails. Mike Page, along with co-owners Tony

Yet after the holidays, without outdoor dining, businesses dropped back down to 50%, he said. All along, the Jester has been offering takeout, curbside pickup, and delivery through a third party. Page said this actually turned out to be a good learning experience, because they had to adapt to better takeout practices. For example, he said, they packaged meals differently for delivery, and figured out how to run the food out to cars. “The things we learned to do – we learned to adapt,” he said. Although about 60% of the staff was laid off last year, the full-time staff remained employed, and many workers have since returned. However, Page said until capacity is back to 100%, they will not be able to be at 100% re-employment. He said the federal PPP loans and a streamlined permit process from Freehold Borough were big factors in their ability to serve their customers continuously. “The Borough of Freehold was wonderfully cooperative and allowed us to expand our outside and use areas not allowed before,” he said. “The town was great. We really appreciate that help, it was tremendous.” Page is optimistic as the weather warms up and people get vaccinated. He said

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people have more confidence and are starting to return. He said customers will come in and announce, “I’m here!” because they are so excited to be back inside the building. “When you have regular customers who are loyal and are your regulars and you’re not around for a month or two, they’re going to go somewhere else and you’re going to lose them,” he said. But he said having a cluster of restaurants is especially beneficial for a downtown area, because it makes the area a destination. He said their neighbors make them stronger, and it has allowed all the businesses to thrive and positively affect each other. Although guidelines are constantly changing, Page does believe the summer will be profitable for the business. “Either way, we’ll have a decent summer,” he said. Rob Kash of Metropolitan Cafe expects the same, especially as Gov. Murphy lessened the prior restrictions in regards to indoor dining capacity. “Last summer I learned what it feels like to own a car wash and be dependent on the weather. I hope for no rain, a country that reopens and to serve as many guests as possible, while we all remain healthy, happy and as close to back to normal as possible,” he said. Kash and Joe Mosco co-own Metro, which has been in business for 22 years. But last year was like no other. “What we thought was going to be a two-week shutdown wound up being months. We initially thought we would pay everyone for the two weeks and obviously we had to turn to unemployment,” Kash said. “We turned to selling groceries, paper products and cleaning products. I spent every day like an old time grocer, adding bills on a calculator, packing bags and delivering to homes. “We remained completely closed for a month until around April 15, then did the grocery thing until mid-June when the governor allowed us to open for outside dining. We did curbside and delivery with the groceries and did especially well for Easter and Mother’s Day catering. Once we opened for outside dining, curbside (to go) became fairly busy,” he said. please see THRIVE, page 11

CENTRAL NEW JERSEY HOMES & LIVING | JUNE 2021

THRIVE

continued from page 10

However, during those first few months, almost everyone was laid off. “There was a lot of uncertainty as far as the virus was concerned – literally no business, and unemployment was just too rich for me to ask people to come in and basically stand around and do nothing besides clean, paint and worry,” he said. However, once Metropolitan Cafe opened for dining both outside and inside, they have been doing a decent amount of business, Kash said. “Our customers have been very supportive and wonderful. We did a great deal of retrofitting, outside improvements and inside rearranging to maximize the comfort and safety of our guests while still following the government guidelines,” he said. “The hardest part was the uncertainty when discussions of new strains came along and worrying about staff potentially being exposed.” Kash owns Tre on Park Avenue in Freehold, Nonna’s Citi Cucina and Rosalita’s Roadside Cantina on Route 9 in Englishtown, and Metropolitan Cafe, employing more than 240 employees, in addition to the partners and all their families. “After over 30 years in the restaurant business, these places are my life. I spend way more time here than I do at home, and my employees are not just workers, they are my friends and family. Some have been with me since we opened. Perseverance is not an option – it would be like giving up on your friends, your family, your life,” he said. That perseverance is part of why Metro Cafe has been a mainstay in Freehold Borough. “I have seen a lot of change in Freehold Borough over the years. The restaurants downtown are a small community; rather than being competition, we are friends. We share a lot of the same guests, and often dine at each other’s places. When the pandemic hit, we all knew what everyone was going through and pitched in to help one another any way we could, whether it be grant opportunities, borrowing items or even helping out employing someone temporarily. “This is a small town; most of the play-

ers have been here a long time. It’s nice to have friends who have similar lifestyles and interests right next door. We share the same problems, often the same staff and the same customers. It helps when you tend to work 60-plus hours a week,” Kash said. Laurie O’Kane had quite a unique experience during lockdown, having to move Cohen’s Fashion Optical from the Freehold Raceway Mall on April 30 when their lease expired to 26 E. Main St. in the borough. “During the lockdown, we had many adjustments to adapt to. With a limited staff, we had to reach out to our patients and clients so they could continue to order their contact lenses and glasses, as well as notifying them that we would be moving to a new location. Moving during lockdown had both its challenges and its benefits. Within a month, our team was able to set up the new store in every way from paint to phones. We had plenty of hours during the day to work on the store, but we missed seeing our amazing customers,” she said. While the store was closed, services were quite limited – there were no eye examinations or fitting of patients for glasses or contact lenses. “However, existing patients and customers with their prescriptions were still able to order contacts through us via phone, and we were able to personally sanitize and perform contactless delivery on orders that had been fulfilled prior to us shutting down,” O’Kane said. “Our employees were furloughed during that time, and while no one is back to their full hours quite yet, as business picks up and the CDC provides further guidelines, our staff is moving toward full-time once again.” O’Kane believes her business was successful because of the support of their loyal customers and the local community who focus on supporting small businesses. “We thank you for continuing to patronize us during this pandemic, and we look forward to servicing the Downtown Freehold area. We appreciate you,” she said. “The area is beautiful and quaint with such a positive atmosphere. We love opening our door and seeing people enjoying themselves at the restaurants and shops in the area. “The community is so strong and vibrant, and we love being a part of the Downtown Freehold family.” ■

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BACKYARD IMPROVEMENTS SPRUCE UP LIVING

PHOTO CREDIT: WILL JOHNSTON

By JENNIFER AMATO Managing Editor

ome is where the heart is.

Home is also where the pool is. And the gazebo is. And the backyard bar is. And the swing set for the kids is. Over the past year, many people chose to upgrade their living space due to the lockdown imposed by the coronavirus pandemic. Now, as mandates are being lifted, some residents still want to take advantage of their humble abodes, spending more quality time with family and friends safely in their own spaces. The Johnston family moved into their home in Tinton Falls two years ago. They were considering living in Hazlet but with their daughter Avery, now 3, and their son Dylan, who was on the way at the time, Will and Jess Johnston decided they needed a bigger house. The backyard was a selling point. About 15,000 square feet, there was “a very old in-ground pool that we ended up removing along with the patio around it. We ended up installing a new pool, leveling out our entire front and back yard, top soiling it and seeding,” Will Johnston said.

“We knew coming in that the yard was neglected and would need a lot of work. The backyard was mostly woods so we removed several large trees and added a fence around the entire property. We had beautiful landscape added as well. “We’re in the middle of doing a paver patio off the pool area so that our kids can have a large area to play as well as a fire pit for s’mores for everyone to enjoy. We really want this to be enjoyed by all our friends and family and for our kids to enjoy this for a long, long time,” he said. Will Johnston said he enjoyed doing the seeding and other products himself, but did have some help leveling the lawn. “My garage is filled with lawn items. I am very into lawn care. It’s definitely a hobby of mine and to talk to neighbors as they pass by and have them compliment it is a very satisfying feeling. I’ve had people say that our lawn looks like Yankee Stadium, even though we are Mets fans,” he laughed. And true to the nature of a hobby, Will Johnston said he is not sure the improvements and upkeep will ever end. “In the past two years we’ve done so much to our house, but it really is paying off. Jess and I both work very hard

for what we have and to be able to enjoy it is very rewarding,” he said. Especially as summer approaches, the family loves their pool area the most. “We had such an old pool that was just painted blue and very plain. Now we have a beautiful 20-by-40 salt water pool with a sundeck for built-in lounge chairs. We added a 12-foot waterfall as well as six LED lights throughout the pool. We have so much more patio space than we had when we moved in. It will be used so much and to see our kids swimming in it is a great feeling. Avery has a mermaid swimsuit and lays on the waterfall and loves to swim. Dylan, who is 1, also loves to stand in the sundeck area which acts as a kiddie pool area as well,” Will Johnston said. Will Johnston said although being at home during the pandemic didn’t impact their decision to improve their outdoor space, since it was something he and Jess planned on doing anyway, “We definitely plan to spend more time out back now once everything is all done.” They plan to add a deck off the sunroom along with the paver area. please see BACKYARD, page 13

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BACKYARD

ment is 75-80% effective in repelling mosquitoes and ticks. “Our technicians are trained to notice where mosquitoes and ticks are likely to reside and feed. They will apply the treatment to trees, bushes and landscaping, creating a barrier around the yard. Once the mosquito lands and feeds on the greenery where the treatment was applied, they are eliminated. I live in a highly wooded area and find

continued from page 12

“Once that is done I think the backyard is good for now. We’re always finding something to work on. But for now, we plan on enjoying everything we’ve worked so hard for,” Will Johnston said.

please see BACKYARD, page 18

In order to keep outdoor spaces comfortable, pest control may be necessary. “Mosquitoes breed and lay eggs all spring and summer when the weather gets warm. Mosquito eggs are very hardy and they can overwinter if they haven’t yet hatched at the end of a season. All that is necessary to facilitate a hatch is warmth and water – as little as a capful. So, when we start to see wet, warm weather in the spring, the eggs hatch and the mosquitoes come out,” said Karen McCulloch, owner of Mosquito Squad of Central NJ.

PHOTOS CREDIT: WILL JOHNSTON

“So, if possible, it’s ideal to start before the hatch. We usually start treating in early April. However, it’s never too late to improve the situation. With a continuous spray plan we can reduce the mosquito population in your yard by up to 90%,” she said.

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Milestone Anniversaries reflect rich history of Downtown Freehold By JENNIFER AMATO Managing Editor

n July 1, 1921, Frank and Esther Federici purchased the Wolcott Hotel in what would eventually become known as Downtown Freehold. Frank was born in 1890 and moved from Castelgrande, Italy, to the United States as a 16-year-old. In 1906 he came through Ellis Island, first living in Brooklyn, New York, before moving to Montclair.

He met his future wife, Esther, in Montclair, and they moved down to Freehold Borough. Esther was originally from Foggia, Italy, and immigrated when she was 28. Frank, who spoke English clearly, was a court interpreter in the borough. In 1921, the location was originally a type of bed-and-breakfast. Of the 12 rooms, 10 were rented out for weekly or month stays, and the Federicis occupied the other two rooms as their home. They would cook for the few people staying in the hotel, or sometimes people off the street. In 1932, after Prohibition ended, Frank was granted a liquor license. The sitting room for the hotel became a bar, and is still a bar today. In 1946, Frank’s sons Frank and Dante came home from World War II. Having no job they came to work for their parents, and they introduced tomato pies (aka pizza) to the business. Before then, Frank’s Restaurant and Beer Garden, as it was known, served sirloin steak (for 50 cents), pasta, pasta fagioli, and spaghetti and meatballs (for 35 cents).

In 1979, the expanded kitchen allowed for a more full menu with pizza, sandwiches, seafood and northern Italian cuisine. “When you’re three generations, there is a lot of good history,” said their grandson Michael Federici, who now co-owns Federici’s Family Restaurant on East Main Street with his mother, Patricia, and his brothers David and John. In 1956, Michael Federici’s father Frank and mother Patricia were married. The boys worked in the restaurant their whole lives, Federici said; he started as a 12-year-old bussing tables and washing dishes. He said he was self-driven, and enjoyed being in the restaurant and making his own money; working was much more than a family chore to him. That self-driven nature allowed him and his family to persevere through the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the hardships, Federici did not doubt the future of the business, and knew financially they could/would survive. He knew they would be celebrating 100 years in business. “There’s a lot of pride there. There is a lot of thankfulness for my grandparents, for the community,” he said. “We have been serving the community for 100 years; that’s a really long time.” Living his life in Freehold until about 10 years ago, Federici recognizes how special the area is. As the county seat, the courthouse, hall of records, borough clerk and everything residents need are please see ANNIVERSARY, page 15

CENTRAL NEW JERSEY HOMES & LIVING | JUNE 2021

ANNIVERSARY

in the borough.

So, she went to New York to learn floral design, and coming from a family of artists and creatives, she learned the business aspects and eventually purchased the former Harris Pharmacy at age 50.

Their nine full-time employees were reduced to just Marlene, her husband and her two children, until Mother’s Day 2020 when the staff was able to return part-time.

“If you haven’t come to Freehold, something is not right,” he laughed.

Marlene Rogala was the bookkeeper and office manager for the florist at the time.

“I think part is the history of Freehold, part is the charm of Freehold – I think it’s both. You see how lively it is with bands and lively it is with dining … outside dining took this town to a completely different level,” he said.

In 1988, Marlene and her husband, Stephen Sr., took over the shop when her parents retired, and although their children, Stephen Jr. and Laura, went into separate careers, they eventually came back to the family business.

“It certainly was devastating but we could do a little bit for people and make people feel better along the way,” she said.

For the upcoming 100th anniversary, Federici said there have been raffles and giveaways since January in the hopes of a grand prize invitation to a closed restaurant complete with dinner and drinks.

“It’s been very good to us ever since,” Marlene Rogala said.

continued from page 14

*** Especially for You Florist opened in 1976 by Marlene Rogala’s parents, and will celebrate its 45th anniversary this summer. Marlene Rogala said her mother was very focused and driven, and she wanted to open her own business after working for McGraw Hill in Hightstown.

Freehold Borough was attractive because the family had relatives there. And the corner lot on West Main Street and Throckmorton Street has good visibility, she said. The pandemic brought a reduction in workload, as the absence of parties and celebrations required less floral arrangements. Plus, in the beginning, even funerals weren’t taking place, or flower arrangements were limited, so the Rogalas had to focus on sending bouquets either as a get well symbol, or as a pick-me-up.

Now that Especially for You is back to full-time operations, the staff prepared for a busy Mother’s Day weekend 2021. Marlene Rogala said the thought of closing did cross her mind early on, but she didn’t think her family business would shut down completely because she knew there would be a steady uptrend. “We have history we have here in town,” she said. “After 45 years, you kind of know where you have to be. “In my mind, you have to give to get,” she said, noting the tight-knit community of Freehold Borough that supports each other. “I would go nowhere else.” ■

PHOTOS CREDIT: JAMIE STOW

Especially For You owner Marlene Rogala, daughter Laura and son Steve.

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Community partnership provides access to food, vaccines for Freehold Borough residents

By JENNIFER AMATO Managing Editor

n the Freehold Borough School District, close to 80% of the students are eligible for free/reduced lunch. While schools were closed in March 2020, Superintendent Rocco Tomaciz provided meals to roughly 1,650 students in grades pre-kindergarten to grade eight through a pick-up program at the Park Avenue complex. However, there were no funds budgeted for meals during spring break last year, so Freehold Borough Administrator Steve Gallo and Councilwoman Annette Jordan reached out to the Freehold Borough Educational Foundation to see if the foundation could make a financial contribution to help fill the gap. “A quick poll of my board garnered a majority consensus to assist with a large financial commitment by redirecting funds we had allocated for now-cancelled cultural arts programming for our schools and to organize a food drive and help raise additional funds,” said Jean Holtz, chairman of the education foundation, current chair of Downtown Freehold and a member of the Food Safety Network representing the education foundation. “Subsequently, the foundation partnered with Downtown Freehold, Neighborhood Connections to Health and Freehold Borough to raise funds to pay local restaurants to provide 3,200 meals a day during spring break (April 10-17, 2020).” In less than a week, $27,000 was raised. “In a little community like Freehold, that means a lot,” Holtz said. “The volunteer coordination of this was a really important stepping stone,” said Linda Brown, executive director of Neighborhood Connections to Health.

Brown said 75-105 meals were delivered weekly on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from April through June. Most meals were delivered to those who were homebound, elderly, high risk or couldn’t drive. “It is certainly something we are really proud of,” Brown said. As an added benefit, four participating downtown restaurants – Metropolitan Café, El Meson, Court Jester and Mateo’s Italian Cuisine & Pizzeria – were paid for the meals in a concerted effort to help keep downtown businesses afloat as well. “It was really important for us to ensure we were thinking about the community … and hopefully maintain as many jobs as possible,” Brown said. In addition, Pomptonian Food Service, the school district’s cafeteria contractor, donated 1,000 cookies for distribution, and CVS in Manalapan donated its inventory of Easter candy to give out to the families, Holtz said. Meet the Need learned of the plans and distributed an additional 800 packaged lunches. There were donations from Rotarians and Optimists, teachers and administrators, Democrats and Republicans, the clergy, local grocery stores, elected officials, school board members and regular folks from throughout the community, Holtz said. The educational foundation was also able to donate Amazon gift cards to 165 teachers in the district in order to get something for their classroom or their Zoom room at holiday time. Teachers bought bilingual books for ESL students, webcams or cameras, or a stylus pen for modeling math problems, for example. “From our perspective, and my interactions with the superintendent and some administrators, our students are coping well and teachers really stepped up,” Holtz said. Moving forward, the Freehold Borough please see COMMUNITY, page 17

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Educational Foundation is planning to rent a tent for the eighth graders for the morning after graduation so they may have breakfast together, which is a tradition. Holtz said money usually earmarked for cultural programming in the schools will be reallocated to the breakfast. Also in June, the educational foundation will hold its annual Fourth Grade Bicycle Education program for all fourth graders and also fifth graders who missed out on the activity last year. “About 25% of our fourth graders don’t know how to ride a bike, but they can after this 4-hour program, Holtz said. “Everyone receives a helmet, this year courtesy of Neighborhood Connections to Health.” The foundation also provided $12,000 in mini-grants to teachers in January for several science projects and speciality library books regarding equity and diversity. Another grant was for “We The People,” a project proposed by the three eighth

grade history teachers. The funds are geared toward increasing the media center resources in the U.S. History of Government and Civics, teaching eighth grade students research skills, and encouraging the students to create video presentations of their research. Also, Freehold Intermediate School was offered $5,000 in funding to underwrite their Participatory Budgeting project. The students voted to purchase sustainable outdoor furniture for their courtyard. “The collaboration that has come together and grown so that individual needs are being met … is really about taking care of the individual,” Holtz said. “It can be small or large; we’re taking care of everybody. “It’s been really impressive how restaurants, businesses, volunteers, community organizations and churches have come together to support each other through a crisis to keep everyone afloat. It’s very impressive for a small town with limited resources,” Holtz said. In addition, this partnership has moved forward from providing meals to providing access to COVID vaccinations.

In March, Freehold Borough Mayor Kevin A. Kane arranged 80 Moderna vaccinations per day through the Visiting Nurse Association. Holtz said many residents of the borough don’t have access to a laptop, so volunteers would make vaccination appointments on Tuesdays and Thursdays. She estimates more than 3,000 residents have gotten their vaccines through a VNA clinic at St. Rose of Lima Community Center since March. The YMCA of Greater Monmouth County on East Freehold Road also provided meals to the community through a partnership with Open Door. The community food bank is usually open five days per week, but was limited to two days per week because of the pandemic. So, the Y partnered with Fulfill, the food bank for Monmouth and Ocean counties, to offer a crisis box three days a week. Each box would contain two to four meals, and about 17,000 meals were distributed, according to Jo Ann Rountree, please see COMMUNITY, page 18

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association director of community outreach for the Y. Through the Food Safety Network, the Y also benefited from restaurant meals which were included with the crisis boxes. In addition, about 75 boxes of produce were handed out per week as well. Panera Bread on Solomon Way donated bread and pastries three times per week, which volunteers picked up, Rountree said. In addition, through grant funding from Fulfill, dairy and produce were made available to those in need. “It was amazing. It’s been so rewarding,” Rountree said. “People lost jobs, had health issues, lost family members – this was their primary source of food. … We were able to make sure everyone has food. Food is a need. The Y was in a position to jump right in to supporting that need.” The YMCA also hosted Thanksgiving dinner, where Fulfill donated 400 precooked frozen meals. Dessert was provided through funding from the Y. Rountree said the crisis box distribution will continue until there is no longer a need, and she hopes that community dinners will continue. “The support we get from the community is amazing,” she said. “We pulled together to make sure access to food is 5-7 days a week. We are thrilled the Y is part of that.” The Greater Freehold Clergy Association has also played a role in pandemic relief, bringing together representatives from Catholic, Protestant, Jewish and Muslim faith communities from Freehold Borough, Freehold Township, Manalapan, Englishtown, Howell and Adelphia as part of the Food Safety Network. “Our response during the pandemic was immediately to raise funds for hot meals for the school district when school went into spring break last April,” said the Rev. Jonathan Elsensohn, convener (president) of the Greater Freehold Clergy Association and pastor of First Baptist Church of Freehold. “Spring break really coalesced a lot of the efforts and brought us together.”

He said the role of the 19 members was to generate volunteers to staff food distribution events, collect material donations, and fundraise. The Cousins Maine Lobster truck was periodically parked outside of the Co-Cathedral of St. Robert Bellarmine in Freehold Township, with a portion of proceeds donated through St. Robert’s to the Food Safety Network. St. Robert’s also manages the Blessing Bag Brigade, and the SRB Help group was added to the Food Safety Network. A Little Food Pantry at the First Baptist Church in the borough, conducted like a Little Free Library, was a stop-gap measure on days Open Door couldn’t provide food, Elsensohn said. On April 18, the little pantry was discontinued because the Food Safety Network has been so successful providing food on days Open Door is closed, the pastor said. Any leftovers from the pantry were given to the Food Safety

Network, he said. The clergy association is also collecting diapers and feminine products, which are in great demand, as well as maseca corn flour and cooking oil. Elsensohn explained that each faith explicitly calls on its followers to care for their neighbors. “The care is for society that has either been left behind or overlooked,” he said. “All our traditions have these teachings that ask us to care for our neighbors.” He said the basic need of ensuring a child is fed has shown better performance in school, which leads to better career success. “The clergy association has devoted its time and its efforts to build an interfaith network … when all communities can function across all spectrums … and have the greatest effect on our communities in the most pressing way,” Elensohn said. ■

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