Everyday people in the U.S. go hungry for reasons ranging from low incomes and rising food costs, to unemployment. It’s a very real issue and it’s happening in our very own neighborhoods. Party Rental Ltd. aims to make a positive impact in the community in many ways: through product donations, corporate sustainability and through relationships in the community where employees can volunteer.
Party Rental Ltd.’s Debbie Barnes, Business Development Manager, gave both her personal and professional time supporting the Community FoodBank of New Jersey’s gala to honor the many milestones reached throughout their years.
In celebration of over 600 million pounds of food distributed and 40 years of service by Kathleen Di Chiara the Community FoodBank of New Jersey hosted an event called “A Lifetime of Help, A Legacy of Hope” on June 4th. Party Rental Ltd. has a long partnership with the Community FoodBank of New Jersey, admires their battle against hunger in the local community and is proud to have supported and volunteered for their milestone celebration.
The Gala took place at the Community FoodBank of New Jersey located in Hillside, NJ. Party Rental Ltd. products pictured: Elite White Square Dinner 10.5″, Elite White Square B&B 5.25″, Lexington (stainless) Flatware, Cypress Amber Goblet Tinted Glassware, 15.5oz, Premier Glassware, Votive Glass Tri-Sided Amber, Rattan White Cotton Premium and White Cotton Napkin.
Pictured in the top left: Debbie Barnes, Party Rental Ltd. and Paul Kapner, C.E.C.,Community FoodBank of New Jersey.
The menu of the event consisted of hors d’oeuvres and a main course of surf and turf, prepped and plated by Party Rental Ltd.’s Debbie Barnes and the culinary teams from Chakra Restaurant, Chris Casey and Company Catering, Escape, Harvest Restaurant Group, Ninety Acres at Nirar, The Park Avenue Club, The Ryland Inn Restaurant, Still Life Fine Design and Sysco. Everything was beautifully plated and presented.
Through Kathleen Di Chiara and the Community FoodBank of New Jersey staff’s years of work, they have created many new programs to meet the growing need in the New Jersey Area.
Some of these programs include:
- Kids Cafes: In these Cafes, the Community FoodBank provides a warm, nourishing evening meal each school night to some 2,700 children at more than two dozen sites.
- Backpack Program: More than 1,600 children in 10 participating school districts receive food to take home on Fridays, to help get them through the weekend when there are no school meals.
- Kids Closet: Packages of five new donated items for children in need are assembled and distributed, with the outfits put together according to the age, gender and size of each child.
- Tools 4 Schools: The program provides free classroom supplies to teachers from eligible schools. The teachers are able to shop twice each school year for supplies.
- Food Service Training Academy: This 16- week culinary training program prepares low-income students to work in restaurants and commercial kitchens, and teaches interview skills and important life lessons. Some 800 students have graduated since the Academy began 15 years ago.
Some other programs include Mobile Pantries, Check-Out Hunger, SNAP (Food Stamp) Outreach, Advocacy and Kathleen’s Closet Thrift Stores.
Party Rental Ltd. believes in the value of giving locally, “Hunger is solvable and is the common thread among the some of world’s most challenging issues like poverty, disease and the welfare of women and children. We feel honored to have had the opportunity to help an organization that works towards such a wonderful cause in our local community” Said Alan Gottlich, Executive Vice President at Party Rental Ltd.