In The News

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

This great day was a long time coming. In 2020, when the Chamber of Commerce Southern New Jersey saw its first leadership change in 25 years, one of the organization’s new priorities was assuring it was giving back to the community. That came with a shift in its mission, vision, strategic priorities and a renewed focus on recruiting nonprofits and other community-based organizations to its membership base. Another aspect of this new direction was adding programming to the chamber’s already packed slate of more than 120 events per year that encouraged its more than 1,200 member companies to give back and support…

Rep. Christopher Smith (R-Manchester) delivered the following remarks at a Human Trafficking Symposium today in Freehold: “Forced labour in the private economy generates $236 billion in illegal profits per year, a new report (published on March 19, 2024)  from the International Labour Organization (ILO) has found… “Forced commercial sexual exploitation accounts for more than two-thirds (73 per cent) of the total illegal profits, despite accounting for only 27 per cent of the total number of victims in privately imposed labour… “These numbers are explained by the huge difference in per victim profits between forced commercial sexual exploitation and other forms…

A substantially expanded scope of responsibility now being assumed by the Evesham Township Police Department, both as a provider or facilitator of social services through a new three-way partnership and in its having been gifted some cutting-edge crime-fighting capabilities, was outlined at the April 10 meeting of the township council. The department’s recently acquired human and high-tech proficiencies have not only broadened the dimensions of the services it offers but are now making many aspects of its job much easier and more efficient, according to Police Chief Walt Miller, who told the council members that some of these developments are…