For Immediate Release:
Fulfill FoodBank Receives NJBIA’s Prestigious Award
March 25, 2021, Neptune, New Jersey – “Fulfill FoodBank is proud to announce that we have
received NJBIA’s ‘Collaborative Approach Award’ for our partnerships with local hospitals and
restaurants which have been critical in helping us feed the 215,000 of our neighbors in need at
the Jersey Shore during the pandemic,” said Fulfill CEO and President, Kim Guadagno, the former
Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey.
“During these challenging times, nonprofits must look to opportunities for greater collaboration
with the for-profit sector to achieve efficiencies, increase effectiveness and leverage their efforts
to be most impactful,” NJBIA President & CEO Michele Siekerka said. “Fulfill FoodBank has been
doing an amazing job engaging and partnering with businesses to achieve the best possible
results for the community.”
NJBIA’s Collaborative Approach Award was presented to Fulfill recently during NJBIA’s “Bridging
the Gap” Summit to connect Not-For-Profit and For-Profit Businesses. The goal of the summit
was to promote the exchange of ideas, resources, and networking between both sectors to
achieve greater success.
“The work being done at Fulfill by Kim Guadagno and her team is a prime example of the kind of
inspiring ‘change-maker’ collaborations that we’re talking about,” added Siekerka.
Fulfill’s Hospital Partnership Program with Hackensack Meridian Health and CentraState helps
us find people in Monmouth and Ocean Counties who are having trouble putting food on the
table due to COVID-19 through illness, loss of income, and other hard times. Specifically, hospital
employees, new and expectant mothers, and patients with severe COVID-19 cases, cancer, and
other long-term illnesses who are struggling, are being identified by professionals at local
hospitals and connected to Fulfill through this partnership so they can receive much needed food
and social services.
Since Fulfill’s Hospital Partnership Program started in November 2020, more than 100 families
have been identified from local hospitals for food and social services. To date, 18,000 meals have
been provided by Fulfill through this program. Families also receive assistance from Fulfill’s
Resource Connections Team with applications for SNAP (food stamps), affordable housing,
affordable healthcare, senior services, utilities assistance, and more, with the goal of getting
families back on their feet.
Fulfill’s Restaurant Partnership Program was started at the onset of the pandemic on March 16,
2020. When many pantries and soup kitchens suddenly closed, Fulfill immediately partnered
with local restaurants to meet the growing demand for food.
Restaurants were given a five-dollar stipend per meal, increased later in the year to seven
dollars. The process has kept restaurant employees working, while feeding those in need. To
date, Fulfill has served 350,000 meals in Monmouth and Ocean Counties through a network of
more than 30 participating restaurants at the Jersey Shore!
About Fulfill FoodBank, formerly The FoodBank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties
Pre-pandemic, Fulfill was feeding 136,000 people, including 50,000 children. Today, Fulfill is
feeding 215,000 people, including 70,000 children. Fulfill has served 3.4 million more meals
since the coronavirus crisis affected the Jersey Shore.
Fulfill has been providing food for families in Monmouth and Ocean Counties for more than
thirty years. We were there to provide food and comfort during economic storms, Superstorm
Sandy, and now the pandemic. During the current coronavirus crisis, the demand for food has
grown 40%. We expect the demand to grow as more businesses close and families exhaust their
savings. Feeding America estimates the demand for food in our area will rise to 56%.
Fulfill feeds children, seniors, veterans, and the working poor. Fulfill serves pantries, shelters,
and soup kitchens, provides hot meals for children after school, and sends food home for those
same children over the weekend. Fulfill also provides job training with our Culinary Training
Program which just started up again with social distancing and other COVID-19 precautions in
place.
Fulfill has earned a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator for more than ten consecutive years.
This distinction means Fulfill, a 501 (c)3 charitable organization, outperformed most charities in
America in areas of efficiency, fiscal integrity, and effectiveness. In fact, 95 cents of every dollar
donated to Fulfill goes directly to feeding the hungry in our community.
Follow Fulfill on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube, and share our posts to
help raise awareness about hunger. To donate or volunteer, go to fulfillnj.org. Sponsorship
opportunities are also available.
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Contact:
Karla Bardinas
Think Media Communications
732.996.9789