Local Heros

Supporting Essential Workers and Local Restaurants

Millburn/Short Hills FLAG Group Raises Over $100K During Pandemic

Short Hills residents Shannon Cross and her daughter Sydney, a senior at Millburn High School, went above and beyond during the pandemic to not only support essential workers but to support local restaurants too. The women established a group called Front-Line Appreciation Group (FLAG), which brought the Millburn/Short Hills community together in a very short period of time to raise over $100,000 and serve over 9,000 meals from April through August 2020.

If all goes well, the women hope to initiate another push through April 2021, via a $100K—$200K grant they applied for that will help keep local restaurants afloat, since they are still operating at 35 percent capacity and are unable to offer outside seating until it gets warmer.

“The experience was phenomenal,” says Shannon, who got the idea for the initiative after learning that morale was poor among the essential workers, from her son, Tyler, who was home from Cornell and volunteering as an EMT. Noting this and that there were a few grassroots FLAG groups popping up on Facebook, Shannon and Sydney went to work. They created a website, Facebook page and set up ways to handle donations. They also worked with local restaurants to create hearty $10 meals that provided a good margin for the establishments.

“The money raised didn’t come in large chunks, although at times, a few local neighborhoods pooled funds together to donate $1,000 at a time,” says Shannon. “Rather, we received many donations of $25 and $50 at a time, which really began to add up, as well as donations from PTOs, synagogues, churches, the Scouts and more.” “It was heartwarming,” says Shannon. “The whole community came together. Some of the chefs even wrote encouraging messages on the bags they sent out.”

Shannon, who is on the board of Overlook hospital, began contacting local hospitals and quickly realized that while the larger ones were receiving meal donations, many of the smaller, under-represented institutions including University Hospital, in Newark, the VA hospital in East Orange, Clara Maas in Belleville and Mountainside in Bloomfield, were not. So, she and Sydney set their sights on sending them 100 - 200 meals a day. They also sent meals three times a week to Millburn’s first responders. “The recipients were grateful for FLAG’s support,” says Shannon. “One head nurse at the VA hospital burst into tears when I contacted her.”

Shannon says the meals not only supported doctors and nurses, but the respiratory therapists who were running bed to bed, the housekeeping and maintenance staffs, EMTs, First Aid Squads, 911 dispatchers, Kessler, and even the staff at the staging areas outside of the hospitals.

“It was a lot of work, but so worthwhile,” says Shannon, who says she will hear any day now as to whether or not FLAG received a grant to help get restaurants over the winter hump. Then she and Sydney will get back to work.

Teen Sells Art to Stock Safe Food Aisles at Interfaith Food Pantry

Jake Garza of Madison paints to raise money to stock safe food aisles at the Interfaith Food Pantry in Morris Plains.

Jake Garza, 17, of Madison, has been on a mission throughout the pandemic to help keep the food sensitive shelves stocked at the Morris Plains Interfaith Food Pantry. To do so, he created the Allergy Advocacy, Art, and Action initiative where he sells his art to purchase food for the pantry.

“This project addresses the lack of awareness and often overlooked need for safe foods in pantries,” says his mom, Jan Garza.

While homebound at the onset of the pandemic, Jake took up painting to help pass the time. After creating many works of art, his initiative was born.

During middle school, Jake and his dad volunteered at the pantry and Jake “realized that if he ever needed assistance, he’d only be able to receive fruit and water because of his allergies.”

Jake donated 476 lbs. of food after selling his first 12 paintings, 350 lbs. with the next batch, and is now working on a third batch of paintings.

In March, 2020, Jake went to Capitol Hill to lobby for the Food Allergy Safety, Treatment, Education and Research (FASTER) Act, and says he plans to study food science and genetics, as related to food allergies, at college.

“This initiative is very personal to Jake because his food allergies impact his everyday life, says his mom. “To see him trying to make a difference makes me really happy and proud.”