Jackson MOMS club busy
collecting school supplies
JACKSON — As summer comes to a close, the boxes in front of Farley’s Ice Cream, Bennetts Mills Plaza, Jackson Fitness Center, Jackson Plaza, and the Jackson library just keep getting heavier.
What’s in them? School supplies that are being collected by the MOMS Club of Jackson West. MOMS stands for Moms Offering Moms Support.
Wanda Matthies, co-vice president of the MOMS Club of Jackson West, said the club’s Service Project Committee headed up the fund-raiser that already collected a substantial amount of school supplies.
"We collected everything you can think of — backpacks, paper, notebooks, pencils," Matthies said.
Members of the committee are Matthies, Kathleen Gray, Elizabeth Hughes, Kathy LaManna, Karen Sonatore and Arlene Watanabe.
The supplies are earmarked for Jackson students who might not otherwise be able to afford all of the school supplies they need. The Jackson school district includes six elementary schools, two middle schools and one high school.
"We are a nonprofit organization, so we have to keep our status and do some form of charity, and what better [way is there] than to help kids?" Matthies said.
The drive began in the middle of July and will run until Aug. 28, when the materials will be delivered to the Jackson schools for distribution.
Backpacks are high on the list of items needed. One school asked for at least 100 backpacks. Matthies said the committee will do its best to satisfy all of the schools’ requests.
Recently, a MOMS Club of Jackson East was formed, and MOMS Club West considers it their sister group. The two clubs work together on certain projects, but are separate organizations.
The MOMS Club West recently celebrated its two-year anniversary in July.
The MOMS Club West is not only active with Jackson schools, but lends a helping hand to the entire community. At Jackson Day, members will be selling cook books. They also collected 45 bags of clothing and donated them to Dress for Success in Lakewood. They also gathered toys for children in hospitals during Christmas. The club members also collected supplies for American soldiers serving in Iraq.
"We are planning a breakfast at the Italian American Club in November," Matthies said.
When asked if the club had collected too much of anything, Matthies replied, "You can never have too much of anything when it comes to children and their education. It’s great knowing that someone is willing to do this. As long as we can do it, we will do it."
Donations have been made by Shop-Rite, which gave a certificate to their store to help purchase materials from their store. The Millstone Township Elks also donated supplies.
There are about 65 members in the MOMS Club West, Matthies said.
"We all work together," Matthies said. "We do a lot of fun activities. It’s the best club ever."