Freehold Township Helps Bag Hunger

patrons were treated to a cadre of new baggers on Wednesday. Freehold Township officials and employees spent the early morning hours before work assisting cashiers and raising hunger awareness as part of the “Help Bag Hunger” event.

In honor of September’s designation as National Hunger Action Month, governors in New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland declared Sept. 21 as “ShopRite Partners in Caring Day.” Officials in all six states spent time bagging groceries in their local ShopRite to help raise funds for area food banks.

“It’s nice to be able to do something locally to help,” Freehold Township Mayor David Salkin said.

Salkin was joined at checkout stands by Committeewoman Barbara McMorrow, Committeeman Anthony Ammiano, Committeeman Robert McGirr and over a dozen township employees. This is the second year Freehold Township has participated in the event, Salkin said.

Customers were able to add a donation to ShopRite Partners in Caring to their grocery order. Since 1999, the ShopRite Partners in Caring initiative has donated over $27 million to 1,700 charities that provide food assistance throughout the Northeast, according Le-La Cloutier, an employee of Coyne Public Relations, which handles publicity on behalf of the grocery chain.

Nonprofits in the Freehold area supported by ShopRite Partners in Caring include Open Door Food Pantry, New Hope Pantry, Samaritan Center, Feed All Gods Children and the Howell Emergency Food Pantry, Cloutier said.