The NIMBY Project: Fort Lee Residents Join Celebrities, Neighboring Activist to Raise Awareness

Students and parents from Fort Lee, Leonia and Edgewater were treated to a complimentary screening of the Warner Bros. film Journey 2: The Mysterious Island on Feb. 9, thanks to Jacquelyn Aluotto, the founder of Break the Cycle, a non-profit organization based in Edgewater that brings awareness to battered women and children across the state.

Fort Lee High School freshman Cole Nelson learned of Aluotto’s organization through his mother and has since donated clothing, toys and other personal belongings to help make a difference.

“Everything I don’t use anymore is donated,” said Nelson. “It’s going to a good cause.”

Leonia High School freshman students Richie Martin, Genella Clark and Sabrina Rivera agreed that homelessness is a real problem in New Jersey.

“Everyone deserves a home to live in to feel warm and safe,” said Rivera. “That’s their number one safe place.” 

Attendees included several leaders in the entertainment industry, who packed into the Edgewater Multiplex Cinemas on River Road, to catch the action-packed adventure film starring Dwayne Johnson, Josh Hutcherson, Vanessa Hudgens, Michael Caine and Luis Guzmán, a spokesperson for Aluotto’s second documentary on homelessness, “The NIMBY Project.”

Guzmán, known for roles in films such as “Carlito’s Way,” “Anger Management,” and “Boogie Nights,” and now the star of the HBO series, “How to Make It In America,” could not attend the screening, but his 20-year-old son, Cemi Guzman, the youngest spokesperson for the NIMBY Project did.

“I’ve always had a passion for charity work, and at a young age I was able to come up with my own events,” said Cemi Guzman, who moderated the event. “We met up with Jacquelyn and she thought I would be a great benefit to her organization and from there we just clicked.”

“She’s teaching me, I’m teaching her. She’s my mentor,” Cemi Guzman added. “We learn from each other.”

Edgewater resident and friend of the Guzman family, Ed Martin, President of Watermark Studios, who sponsored the event with Aluotto and the Guzman family, was introduced to Aluotto through his daughter and became a spokesperson for the NIMBY Project after he was humbled by her efforts to help the battered and homeless.

“I was actually ashamed. I thought I was doing something just writing checks to charities and buying my way through and doing my part in terms of addressing social issues,” explained Martin. “Boy, was I wrong.”

Martin, who is currently co-producing projects with Aluotto, learned she has been addressing social issues for over 10 years, often spending much of her personal earned income as a bartender at Rusty Kale’s Pub in Edgewater and her free time raising funds and awareness through toy, clothing and food drives.

“Once I saw what Jacquelyn was doing, I was all in,” Martin added. “I’m just trying to keep up with her pace and her commitment. We took the access we have to celebrities and use entertainment to not only raise awareness, but a call to action.”

Another attendee, director and choreographer Maria Torres, an Edgewater resident who has worked with celebrities such as Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony and Vanessa Williams, understands Aluotto’s challenges as she promotes the arts in the Harlem school system through her foundation MTEFA, an acronym for motivation, teaching, excellence, fellowship and action. Torres says it’s about giving youth something to aspire to despite their limited resources.

“It’s not about me. It’s about the child I remember from Brooklyn coming back and saying, ‘It’s time to give back,’” Torres said. “Everyone’s got to step up, and it’s really important the parents get involved.”

Another artist in attendance, who is determined to keep giving back, was professional singer/songwriter and producer Lori Michaels.

Michaels, an LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) activist who smashed the Billboard charts in 2010 with her dance club hit “Rebound,” started Reach Out, Inc., a non-profit organization that promoted awareness about the perils of substance abuse, violence, prejudice and life threatening diseases such as AIDS and cancer when she was 16. 

Michaels, who participates in many of Aluotto’s events, also co-manages The Viibe Dance Center in Cliffside Park with esteemed choreographer, instructor and performer Courtney Lynch. Several of their young dance students put on a high-energy break-dancing performance at the cinema prior to the screening.

Aluotto, who was thrilled with the show of support from her friends and the community, believes it's imperative area residents continue supporting programs such as the NIMBY Project to keep shelters sustainable, and to provide the tools necessary to convert underprivileged citizens into contributing members of society.

“The more homeless there are, the more crimes there are,” explained Aluotto. “I’ve met incredible people who have done what ever it takes to feed their children. So our message is, ‘World peace really does begin at home,’ and ‘Activism is sexy.’”

To learn more about the NIMBY Project, visit this website.