East Brunswick Mourns Loss Of Community Leader & Food Security Advocate

EAST BRUNSWICK, NJ — East Brunswick is mourning the loss of Diane Hutchins, a longtime community advocate and Executive Director of the Aldersgate Outreach Community Center, who died early Monday, July 20.

Hutchins volunteered with the Crisis Room and Aldersgate Outreach Community Center for more than 20 years, most recently serving as its executive director, according to Aldersgate United Methodist Church, East Brunswick.

Subscribe

"A faithful church member and Lay Servant, Diane volunteered with The Crisis Room/Aldersgate Outreach Community Center for over 20 years, most recently serving as Executive Director," the church said in a statement. "She faithfully served our community with unwavering dedication, compassion, and generosity. As the driving force behind our Food Pantry Ministry, she devoted countless hours to picking up food donations, receiving deliveries, organizing supplies, and ensuring that nutritious meals reached our neighbors throughout Middlesex County."

"Through Diane's tireless efforts and servant's heart, countless individuals and families received more than just nourishment—they experienced genuine kindness, dignity, and hope," the church said. "While we mourn her loss, we also celebrate a life beautifully lived in service to God and others."

Details on a celebration of Hutchins' life will be announced by the church at a later date.

The East Brunswick Recreation and Parks Department also paid tribute to Hutchins, crediting her with founding the food drive shed outside its office.

"Diane wasn't just a friend to our department—she was a light in our community, radiating warmth and compassion in everything she did," the department said in a statement. "She poured her heart into making sure no one in our community went hungry, working tirelessly and selflessly to provide not just food, but comfort and hope to those who needed it most. The food drive shed that stands in our Recreation and Parks Office Parking Lot is a testament to her vision and her unwavering commitment to caring for others."

The department is encouraging residents to donate nonperishable, unexpired food items to the shed in Hutchins' memory.

"Diane's presence will be deeply missed, but her spirit—her generosity, her compassion, her belief in the power of community—will continue to live on through every donation, every act of kindness, and every person whose life she touched," the department said.

The trustees of Mayor Cohen's Charity Fund also mourned Hutchins, noting the fund had honored the Aldersgate Outreach Community Center at its annual gala last year.

"Diane embodied what our Charity Fund strives to support: neighbors helping neighbors with compassion, dignity, and an unwavering commitment to serving others," the trustees said in a statement. "Her legacy cannot be measured simply by the number of meals served or families helped. It lives on in the stronger, more compassionate community she helped build and in the many people she inspired to serve."

Have a correction or a news tip? Email sarah.salvadore@patch.com