TIM McLOONE, ENGINEER OF A NONSTOP TRAIN
At the keyboards, on the radio, coaching runners or in the back room of one of his nine restaurants, Holiday Express founder Tim McLoone is a marvel of achievement. (Photo by Suzy Graham. Click to enlarge)
By DANIELLE TEPPER
Tim McLoone is a man with a dozen hands, all tackling a dozen sizable tasks at once.
He owns McLoones Running Store, his first business, at the Grove in Shrewsbury. He owns nine restaurants, including the Rum Runner in Sea Bright and the recently acquired former CJ Montana in Tinton Falls, rebranded as CJ McLoone’s. Hes a sports announcer for the collegiate basketball games at Newarks Prudential Center. He just launched his own radio show on December 1. He coaches the Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School girls cross-country team. And at the heart of it all is his philanthropic brain child, an idea that blossomed from a one-time gig into a full-scale traveling circus: Holiday Express.
The non-profit organization is its own Christmas miracle: a massive effort on behalf of roughly 300 adult volunteers, 700 child and teenage volunteers, 100 musicians, and one man who brought together their desires to bring smiles to those in need of a little comfort and joy.
Tonight, Holiday Express makes its much-anticipated annual station stop at the grand Count Basie Theatre in Red Bank.