RED BANK: DESTIGMATIZING ADDICTION
Monmouth County Drug Court prosecutor Lindsay Ashwal was among a series of speakers to advocate for destigmatizing opioid addiction when she addressed an audience of about 75 gathered to mark Overdose Awareness Day at Count Basie Fields in Red Bank Monday.
LITTLE SILVER: RBR’S ‘SOURCE’ FACES CUTS
The Source provides counseling and other services to hundreds of students and families annually, supporters say. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
The in-school social services program dubbed The Source at Red Bank Regional High School faces extinction if a plan to eliminate state funding is not reversed, supporters said.
Under cuts to 91 school-based support programs statewide, the Source would lose about $277,000 in annual state funding, they said. That’s the full amount provided by the state, and its removal will have “devastating consequences,” Superintendent Lou Moore wrote in an announcement to the RBR community Friday.
RED BANK: KNIGHTS SEEK COAT DRIVE FUNDS
Red Bank Primary School nurse Cathy Reardon with coats donated in 2018. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
Expecting its “most demanding year year yet,” the Red Bank-based Knights of Columbus council #525 is seeking community support for a four-year-old Coats for Kids program.
Under a national Knights of Columbus program, the Red Bank-based council acquires new winter coats at a deep discount.
RED BANK: COTILLION RETURNS FOR 70TH FETE
Three-year-old Heaven Lane of of Red Bank gets an up-close look at royalty as Briana Argant, named Queen of the Monmouth County Cotillion, poses for photos in Riveside Gardens Park Saturday morning.
SHREWSBURY: Y OFFERS WATER SAFETY TIPS
Lifeguards play a key role in ensuring a safe environment for swimmers at pools and public beaches, says the YMCA of Greater Monmouth County. (Photo by Joshua Reed.)
It’s now the busy season at beaches, pools, and lakes, and the YMCA of Greater Monmouth County is reminding parents, caregivers, and everyone in our community to make water safety a priority.
RED BANK: YMCA PIVOTS TO HELP IN CRISIS
Crystal Rubins, membership director at the Red Bank Family YMCA, helps staff a food drive to support area residents served by Lunch Break in Red Bank. (Photo by Joshua Reed.)
The YMCA of Greater Monmouth County pivoted immediately when its facilities shut down in March as the COVID crisis started. The gym floors, exercise spaces and pools were vacant, but employees and volunteers jumped into action to respond to critical community needs.
RED BANK: GIRL SCOUTS OFFER COOKIE RELIEF
Lunch Break clients will enjoy tasty Girl Scout cookies donated by Investors Bank. (Photos by Andrea Plaza.)
Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore delivered a mountain of Thin Mints, Samoas and other flavors of beloved Girl Scout cookies donated by Investors Bank to Lunch Break in Red Bank as part of an initiative to thank local heroes and share comfort with the community during the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic.
Lunch Break team members help unload 1,000 ‘boxes of love’ for Lunch Break clients.
One thousand boxes of the tasty treats were dropped off at Lunch Break on Friday, June 26 and will be shared with families served by the nonprofit, which provides food, clothing, life skills and fellowship to those in need in Monmouth County and beyond. Another 9,000 boxes of cookies donated by Investors Bank are being delivered to five other organizations in support of the Girl Scout Cookie Relief Fund.
The fund was launched to encourage local businesses and other supporters to donate cookies for Girl Scouts to distribute to essential workers, volunteers, and other local causes. So far, more than 90,000 Girl Scout Cookies have been delivered, and with Investors Bank’s donation, the fund will top 100,000 cookies.
Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore is grateful for the $50,000 donation from Investors Bank to share 10,000 “boxes of love with everyday heroes on the front lines of the pandemic caring for our community,” said CEO Eileen Higgins.
“Support for the Girl Scout Cookie Program enables Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore to provide leadership programs and experiences to girls in both Monmouth and Ocean counties,” Higgins noted, adding that Girl Scouts were in the midst of their annual cookie program when the health crisis hit, halting community cookie booths and in-person sales, resulting in a large inventory of cookies.
Gwen Love, executive director of Lunch Break, said the organization appreciates the generous donation of delicious cookies that will be enjoyed by individuals and families.
Five other organization receiving the remaining 9,000 boxes of cookies donated by Investors Bank are:
• Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of New Jersey, based in New Brunswick. CASA of NJ is part of a national network of nonprofit programs that advocate for children removed from their families because of abuse or neglect.
• Disabled American Veterans Department of New Jersey has 34 chapters and is dedicated to helping create better lives for veterans. They work alongside other nonprofits and advocacy organizations to fulfill their promises to all the men and women who have served.
• HomeFront of New Jersey in Lawrenceville, whose mission is to end homelessness in Central New Jersey by harnessing the caring resources and expertise of the community.
• Ocean Mental Health Services, Toms River, which offers a comprehensive continuum of mental health services that promote full participation in community life.
• RWJ – Barnabas – Community Medical Center Campus in Toms River, which is working to advance innovative strategies in high quality patient care, education, and research to address both the clinical and social determinants of health.
Anyone interested in supporting the Girl Scout Cookie Relief Fund can visit, GSFun.org/CookieRelief.
About Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore
Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore serves more than 10,000 girls ages 5-18 in Monmouth and Ocean counties, providing a time-tested leadership experience that inspires and motivates them to take action for themselves and their communities. For 108 years, Girl Scouts has helped girls become women of courage, confidence and character, who make the world a better place. For information on how to join, volunteer, partner, or donate, visit gsfun.org or call (800) 785-2090.
ON THE GREEN: BUC BRIGADE CHEERS SENIORS
Clad in their graduation caps and gowns and surrounded by family and neighbors, Red Bank Regional High School seniors got a loud and literally moving sendoff Wednesday evening.
LITTLE SILVER: RBR SENIORS GET THEIR DAY
Superintendent Louis Moore, seen with Sophie Wright, wore his gown for eight hours as he individually walked each senior down a red carpet “Walk in Greatness.” Below, newly graduated Tyquann Crawford.
The sun was certainly shining down on the Red Bank Regional High School Senior Class on Friday, June 12. The staff, administration, senior advisors and parent volunteers planned a “Senior Day” event that was filled with moments of celebration for this resilient class.
RED BANK: YMCA OFFERS COVID-19 TESTING
VNA Certified Medical Assistant Ali Robles provides a COVID-19 test kit to a local resident at the Red Bank Family YMCA. (Photo by Joshua Reed. Click to enlarge.)
YMCA of Greater Monmouth County has joined forces with the Visiting Nurse Association of Central New Jersey’s Community Health Centers (VNACJ CHC) to offer COVID-19 testing at the Red Bank Family YMCA.
FAIR HAVEN: KNOLLWOOD’S ROLLING SEND-OFF
Rory Buckley, a member of the eighth-grade class at Fair Haven’s Knollwood School, received her diploma at home Wednesday as part of a multi-day, rolling graduating ceremony.
RED BANK: STEWART TO HOST FUNDRAISER
Jon Stewart in a lunch truck preparing food for construction workers and employees at the Count Basie Center for the Arts in 2018. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
Comedian and filmmaker Jon Stewart is set to host a virtual fundraiser for Red Bank’s Lunch Break, the food and social services organization announced Monday.
RED BANK: BASIE PLANS DRIVE-IN CONCERT
Jersey shore favorites Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes will play for an audience watching from parked vehicles. (Video by Basie Center. Click to enlarge.)
Darkened by the COVID-19 pandemic, Red Bank’s Count Basie Center for the Arts is taking its act to the track.
The storied venue plans to host a July 11 drive-in concert by Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes at Monmouth Park in Oceanport on July 11.
RED BANK: 5K CLASSIC RESCHEDULED
Red Bank Classic participants will have more time to train for the 5K, rescheduled for October 10 due to the coronavirus pandemic. (John Vitollo)
Organizers for the Red Bank Classic 5K have rescheduled the downtown community event due to uncertainty surrounding the continued impact of the coronarvirus pandemic.
RED BANK: STUDENTS LEAD FOOD NONPROFIT
Compañeros de Comida includes, from left, Catherine White, Charlotte Stant, Katherine Busch, Brooke Bosonac, Julia Lazarescu, Charlotte Shenman and Margot White. (Not shown: Brett Cetnar Garrett.) (Click to enlarge.)
There is an exciting new community collaboration in Red Bank. Several weeks ago, Lunch Break introduced a community grant program offering families financial assistance during the COVID Pandemic. At that time, Itzel Perez of American Friends Service Committee, Isabel Escalante, a parishioner at St. Thomas Church, Charlotte Stant, a rising senior at RFH and Risa Clay, Tinton Falls councilwoman and retired Red Bank Regional High School principal began working with the Greater Red Bank Women’s Initiative (GRBWI) Immigration Committee to help identified families complete their applications.
RED BANK: STEWARTS DONATE YEAR’S HARVEST
Comedian Jon Stewart and wife Tracey Stewart have donated this year’s harvest from their Colts Neck farm to Red Bank’s Lunch Break to help the nonprofit meet the rising demand for food assistance in COVID-19 crisis. (Video and photo courtesy of Lunch Break. Click to enlarge.)
ON THE GREEN: SENIORS BLANKETED IN LOVE
Teams of teachers and volunteers fanned out across the three sending towns of the Red Bank Regional High School district and beyond to shower surprise love and best wishes on the housebound members of the senior class Friday morning.
LITTLE SILVER: DALPRA RETIRING FROM RBR
Louis ‘Del’ DalPra on the sidelines in 2010. (Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank Regional’s man of many caps, Louis ‘Del’ Dal Pra, is retiring.
This time, unlike his last attempt to leave a decade ago, it’s for real, he said.
RED BANK: FRESH TAKE ON FOOD INSECURITY
Kitch Organic, on Leighton Avenue, is offering donation-powered “Kitch Kares” deliveries of organic groceries, below. (Click photos to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Kitch Organic in Red Bank plans to roll out a new offering to help fill a void in the COVID-19 crisis: food packages that emphasize fresh vegetables and fruits rather than non-persishables.
The idea: to address rising food insecurity with healthy, organic produce and dairy products, said borough Councilwoman Kate Triggiano, who hatched the idea with Kitch owner Joe Durso.
RBR SENIOR PHOTO SHOW GOES VIRTUAL
‘Unless,’by Gus Rojas of Red Bank. Below, the poster for the event, by Chloe Rosen of Little Silver, lists the participating students. (Click to enlarge)
(Press release from Red Bank Regional High)
The Red Bank Regional commercial photo majors are holding their annual senior show as an online exhibit through Instagram and Facebook.
RED BANK: CHEERING TRINITY HALL SENIORS
A procession of vehicles made its way through Red Bank Tuesday morning, stopping outside the homes of all seniors from Trinity Hall high school in Tinton Falls to cheer them on with horn toots and lawn signs.
On board a school bus in the parade was the school mascot, practicing social distancing like the students themselves, kept home by the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
RED BANK: GETTING FED, AND HELPING TO FEED
The kitchen at Lunch Break remains busy preparing grab ‘n go meals as well as meals for delivery to the homebound. (Photo courtesy of Lunch Break. Click to enlarge.)
With job and income losses in the COVID-10 crisis, food insecurity is spreading, and Red Bank-area charities are stepping up to help ensure no one goes hungry.
At Lunch Break in Red Bank, for example, volunteers have distributed 65 percent more meals and 56 percent more groceries since March 16 than in the comparable 2019 period, said executive director Gwen Love.
Here’s a starter list of charitable efforts to feed the hungry in Red Bank, with links to make monetary donations. This list will be updated periodically.
RED BANK: FREE MEALS AT BOYS & GIRLS CLUB
Staffers and volunteers at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Monmouth County unit in Red Bank drew an uplifting chalk mural on the pavement before handing out free meals to community members Wednesday evening.
RED BANK: LUNCH BREAK HELPS FEED PETS
Lunch Break executive director Gwen Love, left, with officials from the Monmouth County SPCA. (Photo courtesy of Monmouth County SPCA. Click to enlarge.)
Red Bank’s Lunch Break has teamed up with the Monmouth County SPCA to help feed the pets of local residents hard hit by the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.