Rabbis Yisrael Bennish and Moshe Schapiro, shluchim to the Jersey City area, distributed supplies to thousands of Bayonne residents, along with with a message of encouragement and hope.
By Anash.org reporter
Thousands of people showed up on foot and by car for a free face mask distribution hosted by Chabad of Hoboken & Jersey City and Bayonne at the 16th Street Park in Bayonne on Monday, NJ.com reported.
Volunteers gave each household 50 masks, 100 gloves, a bottle of hand sanitizer, and a can of disinfectant spray.
People showed up as early as 7 AM for the 11 AM distribution time. By 12:15 PM, all 60,000 face masks and 120,000 gloves and other supplies — which was sponsored by an anonymous donor — had all been given out.
Enclosed with each personal protection kit is a printed message from Rabbi Yisrael Bennish, director of Chabad of Bayonne, and Rabbi Moshe Schapiro, director of Chabad of Hoboken & Jersey City, offering advice to “focus on mental health, be hopeful and have faith and be grateful.”
Among the city officials who helped at the distribution event were Mayor Jimmy Davis, newly-appointed Business Administrator Melissa Matthews, and Board of Education President Maria Valado.
“I couldn’t make it to the distribution,” a member of Bayonne’s Jewish community told Anash.org, “and they were nice enough to save me a package, which I picked up later. The Shluchim here are doing an amazing job keeping everyone’s spirits up and making sure that people are cared for.”
