Home COVID-19 8 Happy Local News Stories to Warm Your Heart

8 Happy Local News Stories to Warm Your Heart

by Corinne Batsides
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As you’ve probably heard by now, things are really starting to look up in the country-wide battle against COVID-19 — so much so, that government officials across the country are getting ready to set into motion plans that could mean starting to roll out the reopening of businesses. While we’re all home and antsy for the soon-to-come days where we can go back to our lives again — living by the “new normal” standards of sanitation measures and modified social distancing, of course — there are plenty of things going on within our own community that can give you a dose of positivity to hold you over until then.

There’s a lot of positivity circulating Hudson County; enough to pull us all out of our social-distance-induced funks. Read on to get inspired by the heart-warming actions of our community members, and get excited for all the good to come as our country fights back harder than ever against COVID-19.

Jersey City Medical Center Sends Off Patients with Music

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Club Pilates 2023

{Photo credit: @RWJBarnanas_health}

Tsujita

The Jersey City Medical Center is still tirelessly battling COVID-19, so every recovered patient serves as a huge source of encouragement to the staff and patients. Nurses in the hospital are now playing The Beatles song “Here Comes the Sun” for every single patient they discharge from the hospital in celebration of beating the virus. It’s not only an intense moment of relief for patients but an inspiration for the staff. Each and every recovery from COVID-19 is certainly a feat to celebrate.

Hobbs Inc

Rock City Pizza and Co. Starts ‘Be Awesome Feed Somebody’ Campaign 

ani ramen

{Photo credit: @beawesomefeeds}

Last week Ani Ramen’s new pop-up restaurant, Rock City Pizza and Co, started a campaign called Be Awesome Feed Somebody aimed to give back to front line workers. From 4:00PM-10:00PM on Sundays through Thursdays, and again from 4:00PM-11:00PM on Fridays and Saturdays, Ani Ramen is offering delicious take out and delivery at a lower than normal price point. The idea is to encourage customers to donate the extra money to Ani Ramen, which will then be donated to frontline workers in the form of delicious pizza pies. On the first day of the campaign, Ani Ramen donated 1,000 pizza pies yesterday and delivered them to local frontline workers.

AXIS School of Dance

A Young Hoboken Resident Gets Creative in Order to Give Back

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{Photo credit: Etsy}

Fifteen-year-old Hoboken resident Lily is making clay earrings, handmade jewelry, and custom-drawn portraits and selling them on her Etsy account. Lily is giving 50% of her proceeds to The Spa Diner in Hoboken, which is accepting donations to make sandwiches for the homeless shelter in Hoboken. She has already raised over $200 to donate toward food for the homeless, and she hopes to keep donating more over the next few weeks. Shop her beautiful hand-made collection on Etsy here

Team Walker Gives Back During the COVID-19 Crisis

Team Walker is a 501{c}{3} non-profit organization that seeks to improve the quality of life for the children of Jersey City by nourishing their minds, bodies, and souls with year-round academic and enrichment programs. The team is now accepting all food, toiletries, and essential item donations in order to help those in need in Jersey City. 

Jersey City’s Team Walker, Inc. has been making sure no one goes hungry during the current COVID-19 crisis. The team has donated food and essentials to Jersey City seniors, students, families of JC’s After School Program, and community members facing hardships during these times.

The team recently received a generous donation of food items from Farmers Against Hunger — an organization in Jersey City that feeds 400 families every single week — which was then hand-delivered to local senior citizens by the CEO and president of the team, Jerry Walker, and other staff members — all while adhering to safety guidelines, of course.

The Common Market and Valley National Bank, with the help of Jersey Cares, also donated over 100 food boxes filled with fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, yogurt, and bread to Team Walker, who distributed the donations to over 100 local families.

Founder of FLAG Hoboken Finds More Ways To Give Back

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{Photo credit: @flag_hbkn}

Amy Frank Goldman is the president and founder of AFG Wealth Management — and the founder of FLAG, Front Lines Appreciation Group in Hoboken. FLAG is a charity organization that has been consistently giving back to the frontline workers battling COVID throughout the pandemic. Amy stumbled upon the idea for FLAG while home sick with coronavirus. She created a Facebook page to get the idea rolling, then enlisted treasurer Lisa Farrell Sprengle to start tracking the money and councilwoman Emily Jabour to coordinate communications. Within three weeks FLAG grew into a 30-person grassroots organization that is 100% volunteer-based. 

Currently, the group hosts weekly fundraisers for frontline workers. Some events FLAG has hosted include House of ‘Que Country For a Cause where 100% of proceeds went to FLAG, FriYay Night Concert featuring Corey Feldman from Songs for Seeds, where 50% of proceeds went to the Hoboken Food Pantry, and Mojito Madness, where 50% of the proceeds went to the Hoboken Shelter. FLAG has become a staple in the community for aiding health care workers during this unprecedented time and will continue to give back until the stay at home orders are lifted.

See More: A Virtual ’90s Dance Party Benefit: LIVE on Instagram at 7:00PM on 5/2

Chief Ken Ferrante Creates a Video to Celebrate Hoboken Birthdays 

Hoboken Police

{Photo credit: @hobokennj}

All around Hudson County, residents are celebrating their birthdays — quarantine style. Just because your birthday is spent within the parameters of social distancing guidelines doesn’t mean it can’t be a great day, and Hoboken chief of police Ken Ferrante and the rest of the Hoboken Police department are saying just that with this new up-lifting message. The @HobokenPD provided a Birthday Wishes video to share at all the quarantine birthday celebrations around the community on each resident’s special day — certainly making it a birthday to remember. There are tons of ways to keep the birthday celebrations high during this lockdown, such as video chats with loved ones, sweet treats delivered to your door, and now this heart-warming video from the men in women in blue protecting us all.

Hoboken Custom Craft and Avid Handyman are Supporting the Efforts of Frontline Workers

frontline signs

The team at Hoboken Custom Craft has teamed up with Avid to support the efforts of frontline responders with customized signs. The two teams are working together to fabricate “Hoboken Strong” signs to sell to not only raise funds for FLAG, but to promote solidarity throughout the community. To find out more about purchasing these one-of-a-kind signs and showing support for the community during these challenging times, email contact@hobokencustomcraft.com.

Keller Williams Hoboken Will Celebrate Red Day on May 14th

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Each year, on the second Thursday of May, Keller Williams internationally celebrates Red Day to make a difference in the lives of others and to better the community. Red Day stands for Renew, Energize and Donate – it’s a global day of service which mobilizes the company’s 179,000-plus associates in 1,000 offices to select a charity organization and dedicate the entire day to serving its recipients. Red Day is in its 11th year of servicing the community, but this year— on May 14th— will mark the first year that Red Day will be celebrated virtually. 

Due to COVID-19, the Hoboken Homeless Shelter can no longer service hot meals out of their kitchen and must follow social distancing rules when providing beds. The shelter needs more help than ever before, as this has put major constraints on their operation, limiting the amount of guests that can seek shelter there nightly. 

All proceeds of Red Day will be donated to local restaurants that are partnering with Keller Williams to prepare and deliver delicious, hot meals to the Hoboken Shelter. A donation as small as $5 to $15 can make a huge difference — it can support the delivery of one hot meal to one neighbor in need at the shelter.

The Shelter is a driving force in aiding our community, serving more than 500 meals daily, sheltering 50 people nightly, and providing invaluable support services, such as case management, counseling, job and life skills training, emergency grants, and permanent supportive housing solutions. Join Keller Williams in supporting the shelter in its time of need, while giving business to the struggling restaurants of Hoboken and join them May 14 for Red Day. Follow along in their journey on Red Day Facebook Page 2020 check out other charities they’re supporting.

Read More: Hudson County: Join Us at 7:00PM Nightly to Thank Our Health Heroes

Together we made it through another week, and we have a lot to look forward to in the weeks to come. Have a relaxing weekend full of all the little joys you can find all around you.

Have a happy news story you want to share with us? Tell us on Instagram @TheHobokenGirl!

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