WESTFIELD — Two representatives from St. Joseph Social Service Center in Elizabeth spoke to the Rotary Club of Westfield on March 5. Corey Wu-Jung is the food program director and Mary Phillips is the development director. The Rotary Club has been helping the St. Joseph center for several decades.
St. Joseph Social Service Center has provided a variety of services to the disadvantaged in Elizabeth since 1986. The center’s mission is to serve the poor with dignity and grace. It operates a thrift shop with clothing, along with three food services: 1. Daily food pickup; 2. Saturday Soup Kitchen; 3. Monthly food distribution to 400 families.
Other programs include literacy, English as a second language, health services, prescription assistance, counseling and therapy, and providing clothing and household items. The “Choice Food Program” allows people to select their own food. The Rotary Club of Westfield helped St. Joe’s purchase a huge refrigerator so that the center can offer fresh fruits and vegetables, along with eggs, milk and cheese. The center also collects and distributes toys at Christmas.
Ms. Wu-Jung and Ms. Phillips shared that Phase One of the center ’s capital- improvement project has been completed.
The Capital Campaign for the St. Joseph Center has enabled it to have successfully raised the necessary funds to construct a new food pantry building; build a new clothing and household goods distribution center; renovate the existing buildings on the property; and reconfigure and repave the parking lot in order to make dropoffs and pickups easier. The center has reached its fund-raising goal of $1.4 million.
Collectively, these projects will transform the facilities of the St. Joseph Social Service Center. This plan will make it possible for the agency to improve services and to accommodate the increase in the number of residents who seek the agency’s assistance. The contractors have completed the stormwater management system and connected the sewer and gas lines. Equipment has been delivered for the food building, and the HVAC has been installed. The assembly of the two new buildings has been completed, and they received Certificates of Occupancy in January of 2024.
Phase Two will include making bathrooms ADA-compliant, redoing the counseling cubicles, improving the adult learning program, upgrading the Soup Kitchen and improving and winterizing the garage.
Last year, the Westfield Rotary Club Foundation awarded $117,000 in college scholarships and $29,978 in community grants. Applications for grants are available on the Rotary Club website. Since 1967, Westfield Rotary has awarded $3.5 million in scholarships to 1,800 students. Scholarship applications for Westfield students are available through the Westfield High School Guidance Department.
The Rotary Club of Westfield meets the first three Tuesdays of each month for lunch at noon at Limáni Seafood Grill, located at 235 North Avenue West, Westfield. Guests are always welcome. For information, check out the website www.westfieldrotary.com or contact Club Secretary Dr. D. Michael Hart by email at drmhart@yahoo.com.
