MANALAPAN — While the December holidays are a time when people typically think about giving of themselves to help those in need, one group is trying to assist people all year.
Kim Rodman and Ron White started a Facebook group in 2013 with the intention of lending a hand to families from January through December. Rodman, who has lived in Manalapan for 10 years, said the group is called Manalapan Helps.
“Our initial plan was to focus on families in Manalapan and surrounding towns,” she said. “The amount of donations and requests we have received was so overwhelming that we expanded to cover all of Monmouth County.”
Rodman said Manalapan Helps assists between 80 and 100 families a month with essential items such as clothes, food, toiletries, toys and small appliances.
She said Manalapan Helps works as a team 365 days a year to help fill all the requests for assistance it receives.
“Steve Cherin, a local business owner, has provided great assistance to us with his generous donations of household items,” Rodman said. “Lyn Foulks and Tricia Rozzo of the Moms Helping Friends in Need Facebook page provide us with a list of families in need of necessities on a regular basis.”
White, who has been a Manalapan resident for 13 years, said the idea behind Manalapan Helps is to have the community come together and contribute a little to make a big difference.
“We started Manalapan Helps after the recession,” he said. “We found that families were still struggling due to loss of jobs and/or having service members overseas.”
The drive to help others continues and Manalapan Helps will sponsor its first holiday party and toy drive to benefit local families and children in need on Dec. 11 at Locals Bar in the Yorktowne shopping center, Gordons Corner Road, Manalapan, beginning at 8 p.m. Classic to current rock music will be performed by Wayne Parsons and the Alter Ego Band from 9 p.m. to midnight, according to a press release. All are welcome to attend the event.
Rodman said that last year, with the help of 1,500 members, Manalapan Helps was able to sponsor four local families with gifts for their children. She said April Nichols, a member of Manalapan Helps, is spearheading the Dec. 11 event.
“We are hoping the community will come out to Locals on Dec. 11 to help us provide holiday cheer to even more families this year,” Rodman said. “Felix Weinstein, the owner of Locals, has been a wonderful asset to the community and is always open to suggestions on how he can give back.”
White said about 1,000 families have been helped by the organization.
“We have shoveled people out of their driveway when they could not, had lawns cut and even figured out a way to jump start a dead battery on a neighbor’s car when (a roadside car service) could not help,” he said.
Rodman said the event at Locals will be an effort to collect toys for needy families around the holidays.
“We are all excited about this event and look forward to enjoying the evening with our friends and neighbors and giving back to those in need,” she said.