Burlington County Food Drive Set For Saturday Amid Pandemic

BURLINGTON COUNTY, NJ — Burlington County will hold its next food distribution event from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Burlington County Emergency Services Training Center in Westampton, officials announced on Tuesday.

The site is off Woodlane Road next to the Burlington County Institute of Technology’s Westampton campus. Residents will enter from Woodlane Road and proceed through the Westampton Campus to the distribution site.

Burlington County and the Food Bank of South Jersey are teaming up to supply free boxes of nonperishable foods and goods to residents in need of assistance.

So far this year, Burlington County has hosted or partnered in more than 15 food distribution events and succeeded in providing an excess of 5,000 boxes of groceries to more than 3,000 food insecure families.

More than $100,000 has been spent on food for county families this year, and the county has secured additional funding to continue the assistance in 2021, according to officials.

“Since the start of the pandemic our Freeholder Board has made it our priority to provide whatever assistance we can to our residents, and food assistance is among the most critical parts of our response,” Burlington County Director Felicia Hopson said. “Two weeks’ worth of food may not seem like much, but for families struggling with less income or living paycheck to paycheck, this assistance means a lot. We know demand for this critical help remains high, which is why our board is committed to continuing to hold these events for as long as they’re needed.”

In addition to the food assistance, Burlington County’s Housing Hub has also provided services for over 1,000 residents during the pandemic and helped distribute more than $128,000 in rental and mortgage assistance, helping to keep hundreds of residents secure and safe in their homes during the pandemic.

Burlington County’s Rapid Rehousing Initiative has helped close to 1,500 families remain in or enter permanent housing.

“Throughout 2020, our board has kept our most vulnerable residents at the forefront, along with those families who have been impacted by the economic crisis the pandemic created,” Hopson said. “That commitment will continue in the new year as we continue to look for ways to help all our families manage.”

Patch has partnered with Feeding America to help raise awareness on behalf of the millions of Americans facing hunger. Feeding America, which supports 200 food banks across the country, estimates that in 2020, more than 54 million Americans will not have enough nutritious food to eat due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. This is a Patch social good project; Feeding America receives 100 percent of donations. Find out how you can donate in your community or find a food pantry near you.