In The News

Read HERE. Camden County commissioners have approved construction of a $3.1-million facility to address homelessness in Camden. The Multi-Agency Center for the Homeless is intended to consolidate county services in an area with a sizable population of homeless people. This 8,125-square-foot building is to rise off South Broadway and Liberty Street, flanking a tattoo parlor at the intersection. The vacant land currently has a homeless encampment, according to plans for the county project.Waterfront South: Revival planned for South Broadway landmark “In its purest form, this will be an outreach center to prevent and combat homelessness,” county spokesman Dan Keashen said, noting that…

Read HERE. MERCER COUNTY, NJ — The Mercer County Library System’s partnership with Arm In Arm’s mobile food pantry will continue into August to provide assistance to Mercer County residents facing food insecurity. On Mondays 4, 11, 18 and 25, the mobile food pantry will be at the Lawrence Headquarters Branch, 2751 Brunswick Pike, Lawrenceville, from 2:00 p.m. until 4:00 p.m. “It is so important that we bring services into our communities to meet our residents where they are,” said Mercer County Executive Dan Benson, who in November 2024 established the Mercer County Office of Food Security. “The collaboration between the Mercer County Library…

Read HERE. MIDDLE TOWNSHIP — Cuts to state funding could decimate Volunteers of America programs in New Jersey, including some in Atlantic and Cape May counties. A state budget proposal is set to cut millions of dollars that help fund the organization’s work, including a planned $7.4 million cut to funding for the Safe Return program, part of a $243 million reduction in the Department of Community Affairs’ $1.86 billion budget, according to a DCA budget analysis released in April. That’s in addition to a $3.8 million reduction in state funding for the Navigator program through the state Department of…

Read HERE. When William Hacket was asked to host a free event at his Trenton barbershop to help ex-offenders get their criminal records expunged, he jumped at the chance to help. “We are thankful to be a vessel for anything positive for others,” said Hacket, who opened Razor Sharp barbershop in 2001. “If there’s something that we know that could benefit other people, we… want to be a part of it.” On Wednesday, Hacket co-hosted the “Fresh Start: An Expungement Clinic” event at Razor Sharp, 20 Passaic St., with Stono Public Affairs, a Trenton-based lobbying firm, and the New Jersey Office of…

Listen here: https://wmmr.com/episodes/volunteers-of-america-fighting-human-trafficking/ Amanda Leese,  SVP of Program Operations, Volunteers of America Delaware Valley, and Alison Accettola, Senior Vice President for Government Relations,   discussed the Volunteers of America programming fighting human trafficking.    While trafficking can involve forced labor VOA focus on sex trafficking, of women, children and men.  Everyone is vulnerable, through fraud and coercion or by threats of violence to the victim and their family.  They discussed their close work with local law enforcement to protect the victim, and the reentry programming they offer.   They stress that education and awareness is vital for children and their…

Jon Bon Jovi’s JBJ Soul Foundation, Collaborative Support Programs of New Jersey and Volunteers of America Delaware Valley announced Monday they have launched an innovative new program called “Chance for Change” that provides a digital avenue for customers to donate safely and effectively to help those in need. They also announced a new partner in their longstanding effort: New Jersey Transit. The Chance for Change platform will be accessible online and through QR codes available on posters at NJ Transit facilities, digital advertising screens, on social media and on the NJ Transit mobile app. The various platforms will provide a secure platform for NJ Transit…

Forced labor and sex-trafficking are on the rise in New Jersey, and the state now has an independent unit within the state police department handling such cases. “You could say it’s an epidemic in New Jersey, it is growing quite rapidly,” said Detective Sgt. Rick Hershey, who supervises the New Jersey State Police Human Trafficking unit in South Jersey. According to the National Human Trafficking Hotline, 170 human trafficking cases were identified in New Jersey by investigators in 2023 from calls to the hotline, up from 137 cases in 2022 and the largest total since 2019, when 247 such cases were identified. Cassidy Egan,…

NJ Transit, Jersey Shore rocker Jon Bon Jovi’s Soul Kitchen Foundation and two other charities launched a more helpful solution for people in need who are asking riders for spare change. The program, “Chance for Change” allows passengers to donate electronically to charities that will use the money to get help from everyday necessities to substance abuse counseling to housing for the unhoused and others in need. Officials speaking at a launch event at the Red Bank train station Monday called it a better option than giving a person cash for a one time, well-intentioned handout for coffee or food. The program…

https://www.fox29.com/video/1499616