Video by: Isaiah Showell, Follow South Jersey Multimedia Journalist/’What’s Good’ Host
Story by: Reney Waters, Follow South Jersey Bridgeton City Intern
MAYS LANDING, N.J. — Earlier this week, the New Jersey Community Food Bank recently partnered with the Atlantic County Community Care Initiative and Atlantic County Council of Education Associations to help distribute free fruit and vegetables to the community during a drive-up event held in the parking lot of Sears at the Hamilton Mall.
“These people… they need our help. We’re paid to do it, but it’s what we’re supposed to do. We’re supposed to help people who are less fortunate than us,” Timothy Reed, Chief Warrant Officer, said.
For two hours, residents received fruits and vegetables from volunteers who helped place the boxes of produce in cars. Atlantic County’s food stores don’t typically promote nutritional food for a reasonable price, according to Brenda Braithwaite, the Vice President of the AC Council of Education Associations. Event organizers prepared enough packages to distribute to 1,000 people, and all of their supply was exhausted by the end of the day.
The packages distributed to community members featured a number of different healthy food options – including apples, peaches, celery, potatoes, broccoli, and plenty of others.
“With COVID, things have not been the same. I have neighbors that don’t have cars and their senior citizens and I can come and get stuff for them and not spend a lot of money,” one Atlantic County resident said during the food distribution.
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This article was produced by a Follow South Jersey news intern thanks to a grant provided by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation through the New Jersey Health Initiatives program to create hyper-local news to meet the informational and health needs of the City of Bridgeton, N.J.
