New Lenox, Manhattan Businesses Serve Over 2,000 Free Lunches

Sometimes things don’t turn out as planned. True words when considering the current situation. And sometimes they turn out to be so much greater than expected. This is exactly what happened with the Free K-12 Hot Dog Lunch event sponsored by State Farm agent Kevin Molloy and White Wave Properties, Inc., owner Jen Fuessel.

What was expected to be a three, maybe four-week Free K-12 Hot Dog Lunch event to keep kids busy during E-learning, where maybe 500 to 600 hot dog lunches would be served, turned into one of the biggest events the town of Manhattan has ever seen. The Free Hot Dog Lunch Event ended up lasting 11 weeks and a total of 2,645 hot dog meals served up by the owner of the Manhattan Creamery, Jordan Sisk and his team.

“We began discussions with Jordan and his father Larry in mid-March, when the school closings were announced, and we agreed to start slowly with limited advance notice and run it as long as schools stayed closed or until summer, whichever came first,” stated Fuessel. “Who would have ever thought it would run this long? But it did, and we had hundreds of happy kids.”

Molloy, who has his hand in many community efforts such as the Free Monthly Veteran’s Breakfast, a very successful Micro Pantry and various blood, shred, food and toy drives, felt this might have been the most rewarding of them all. “While I love them all, to stand out there and have Joey Martin in the State Farm Neighbear costume interacting with the kids as they drive thru with their parents was priceless. The smiles were ear to ear and the comments on how much this meant to the kids each week melted our hearts.”

When Jordan Sisk was asked how much the event cost the sponsors, a big smile came across his face and he simply stated that he has seen a lot over time, and this was one of the biggest events he’s been involved in. The sponsors went above and beyond what he’s experienced. “These two business owners are quality people and I’d love to continue this is one way or another,” Sisk said. “This event also allowed me to keep my team on the payroll during this pandemic.”

What’s next for this event? “Various options are being considered and Jordan is going to be part of whatever we do. I’m looking at perhaps something over Christmas break,” Molloy said.

Molloy is a Manhattan resident and operates his State Farm office at 816 West Laraway Road in New Lenox. Fuessel, also a Manhattan resident, operates White Wave Properties, Inc., at 114 South State Street in Manhattan.