The Jersey Shore’s premier cover band Brian Kirk & the Jirks will return to the stage of the Count Basie Theatre on Saturday, December 20, for a concert benefitting Lunch Break of Red Bank. The 8 pm show marks the third annual edition of a “Santa For…” event that began at the Basie in 2012, with a successful Santa for Sea Bright fundraiser presented after Superstorm Sandy.
In 2013, Brian Kirk told redbankgreen that he and the Jirks would like to make the “Santa for somebody or something” concert a December tradition in Red Bank. They did, and they’re back this year. All net proceeds from the performance will benefit Lunch Break, and generous anonymous donors are underwriting the concert.
Kirk first visited the Chestnut Street facility of Lunch Break to talk about setting up a new phone system, as part of his day job as owner of Red Bank-based Key Telecom. What he saw there was “really humbling…these people are so purely good, it’s incredible…whoever you are, you can get behind what Lunch Break is doing.”
In a statement earlier this year, Lunch Break’s executive director Gwendolyn Love said, “Thirty-one years ago Lunch Break began serving hot lunches to Red Bank residents. Today our reach has expanded and we serve our most vulnerable neighbors who come from every town in Monmouth County, and from many in Ocean County. Last year we served over 61,000 hot meals.
“Our food pantry provides, on average, groceries to over 750 needy families every month. Our volunteers deliver meals to the homebound six days a week. In addition, we have a clothing distribution center that includes our Suited for Success Program that provides business attire for job interviewees. We also have an Adopt-A-Family holiday gift program, a Children’s Cooking Class, and a Gardener’s Market every Tuesday morning, year round, that distributes donated fresh produce. We offer internet services, employment information, and social as well as health and wellness resources.”
All that, and more, is provided free of charge to the recipients under the direction of the Board of Trustees along with Mrs. Love, her small staff, and an army of more than 2,000 dedicated volunteers. The work of Lunch Break is supported through the generosity of residents and many organizations and businesses throughout Monmouth and Ocean Counties.
Tickets for the December 20 “Santa for Lunch Break” concert are $35, $45, and $69, and can be purchased right here. Everyone is encouraged to bring non-perishable food items that will be collected at the Count Basie and delivered to Lunch Break.
