BLOOMFIELD / MONTCLAIR, NJ — One of its many partnerships in the community, Bloomfield College works with nearby Toni’s Kitchen in Montclair to support its students on a weekly, sometimes, daily basis. Based out of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Montclair, this food support ministry is providing hot meals, bagged meals and groceries that have become essential to students.
“Students cannot learn if they are hungry,” college President Marcheta P. Evans said. “This is why the college’s relationship with Toni’s Kitchen is so important to our students, many of them hit hard by the pandemic, who are often working two or three part-time jobs while studying for their degrees. The expense of college attendance alone eats up their finances and the reports that they sometimes miss meals as a way to balance their budgets is highly concerning.”
In these past two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, food insecurity has increased across the nation, regionally and locally. A recent survey by Feeding America showed that demand at U.S. food banks is up by an average of 70 percent compared to the prior year, with nearly 40 percent of those individuals using a food bank for the first time.
“At Bloomfield College, we are bearing witness to the increased food insecurity of college students. Every Wednesday this past fall, Toni’s Kitchen provided commuting students with breakfast sandwiches it purchased from the nearby Coffee & Cornbread restaurant, and they plan to start back up later in January,” said Sheila Wooten, dean of student life and director of athletics. “Toni’s Kitchen has also provided groceries during the academic breaks when the college cafeteria is closed, supporting about 30 to 40 students who were unable to go home. Over Thanksgiving and the winter break, they provided hot meals for these students.”
Toni’s Kitchen has been in existence since 1982 and currently works with approximately 60 community partners. It is also supported by fundraising and the Community FoodBank of New Jersey. Toni’s Kitchen manages more than 2,000 volunteers and is busy seven days a week.
“This past year, we provided 1.5 million meals overall. Our goal is to get the right type of food to the different populations who are in need in ways that help them, whether it be through groceries, hot meals or prepared foods,” Toni’s Kitchen Executive Director Anne Mernin said. “Just 2 miles away at Bloomfield College, we know that many students are struggling with both finances and time. This is why the quick pickups of prepared meals they can warm up and the hot breakfast sandwiches are so helpful to them.
“We have also been able to assist Bloomfield College students with acquiring inexpensive, high-quality clothing through our thrift store,” she continued. “Oftentimes, people believe that our food and clothing support is only for those in crisis, but we want everyone to visit us before they go into crisis, especially our nearby college students and others who need to have funds available for unexpected expenses.”
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