BLOOMFIELD, NJ — Bloomfield hasn’t been an exception to the COVID-19 pandemic over the last few months, losing more than 60 residents to the coronavirus. The community has rallied around the family of one of those victims, setting up a meal train that is running through June so the family doesn’t have to worry about cooking for a while. Andrea Jobity-Severin said in a phone interview with the Independent Press on June 6 that she’s been surprised by how many people have helped her and her sons, Tristan and Ethan, after her husband, Gray, died.
“I only know a couple of them,” she said. “Three-quarters of them are just acts of kindness, so we don’t have to focus on” cooking.
The train started when Councilwoman Jenny Mundell, whose son played soccer with one of Jobity-Severin’s sons, created the online signup page after talking with other friends. Teachers from both Bloomfield High School and Franklin Elementary School, where Tristan and Ethan are students, have contributed to the meal train. So have members of the Franklin Home and School Association.
“Our goal is to just get them through the month,” Mundell said in a phone interview with the Independent Press on June 6. “I think it’s hard, because normally when someone passes the idea is to bring food and comfort over. Now it’s hard to do that.”
Because of the pandemic, no-contact delivery is the best way to get meals to the family. Instructions for how to contribute and slots to sign up can be found at www.mealtrain.com/trains/v1z8dz.
“It’s nice to know there are people who want to do acts of kindness,” Jobity-Severin said. “Bloomfield is amazing. Even when my husband got sick, people were asking if we needed anything. Jenny said, ‘This is your village,’ and it is.”
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