On December 14, the Housing Authority of Plainfield (HAP) welcomed residents and the Plainfield community at its Holiday Health Screening NJ Mobile Unit and Community Service Providers Event at Joanne Hollis Gardens’ (JHG) HAP Center located at 543 West 3rd Street. The festive and informational event was the second installment of the JHG Community Resource Center’s information and referral fair which was held a few months ago. The December event was organized by the JHG Community Resource Center and brought together several organizations, such as Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Essex, Hudson, & Union Counties; Equal Opportunity Support Services; HOPES CAP Inc.; Jewish Family Services of Central New Jersey; Neighborhood Health Services Corporation; Partnership for Maternal & Child Health of Northern New Jersey; Prevention Links; Proceed Inc.; ScreenNJ; and Urban League of Union County. As part of the holiday celebration, Santa Claus (First And Fourth Wards Councilman-At-Large Barry N. Goode) took photos with children and there were toy giveaways, coat and clothing donations provided by the Non-Profit Clothing and Furniture Distribution Center as part of the clothes and toys uplifting initiative, resource linkages in the community, and cancer screenings provided to attendees inside the ScreenNJ mobile unit.
Rose Diggs, resident leader and JHG food pantry logistical coordinator, prepared a free lunch for the agencies in attendance without reservation in partnership with the JHG Community Resource Center (JHGRC). “I help as much as I can and I enjoy working together to assist with events and helping families in need. Mr Graham and the rest of the team have been doing a great job serving the community,” said Rose Diggs.
City officials in attendance included Vice President & Fourth Ward Councilwoman Terri Briggs-Jones and there was also departmental engagement from the City of Plainfield who extended their assistance during the event. Mt. Olive Baptist Church provided bible materials for the residents. Ten new bicycles were raffled off, adding even more joy to children’s holiday happiness.
The community resource center has been actively putting together a consortium group of organizations called the JHGRC Coalition Group that share a common interest of family self sufficiency and facilitate wraparound services, referred to as the Wheel of Opportunity, that are available in the area. The JHG Community Resource Center’s Director of Community Programs Eric Graham, PHM stated, “I am honored to say that the community stakeholders have been very welcoming and passionate about addressing the needs of families without adjustment. We had a fantastic turnout and the families and children had a magnificent time at our holiday health screening event. We are immensely grateful to all of our sponsors and ScreenNJ for providing an outstanding job offering their mobile health unit for both male and female residents.” ScreenNJ is an initiative from Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, the New Jersey Department of Health, and healthcare and community organizations across New Jersey that promotes the importance of cancer screening, early detection, and prevention.
HAP Executive Director Randall M. Wood remarked, “We continue to offer inspirational, educational, and wellness events such as these here at the Housing Authority of Plainfield and extend them to the greater Plainfield community. Thank you to all of our partner organizations for furthering our mission to enhance residents’ lives.”
Photos from the event are available here: drive.google.com/drive/folders/1K7we7F2ayuAdcI5QETJTNKztZjH3ucLR. For more information about HAP’s Joanne Hollis Gardens Community Resource Center, contact Eric Graham at ericg@hap-nj.org or call 908-769-6335 extension 604.
On Thursday, December 21, HAP; HAP’s 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, Premier Community Development Corporation; and Sisters of Solomon will host the Ninth Annual Joanne Hollis Toy Drive starting at 4:00 p.m. at Joanne Hollis Gardens. This event is also made possible by Councilman Steve G. Hockaday, Esq. and Councilwoman-elect Julienne Cherry and is open to all HAP residents. PCDC works in conjunction with the City of Plainfield to improve neighborhoods for local residents and focuses on the development and rehabilitation of quality housing for the improvement of family lives in urban communities. For more information about PCDC and its board, visit www.pcdc-nj.com
“There’s nothing better than spreading holiday cheer and education at the same time. We hope our residents felt the joyfulness of the season with the holiday health fair and we look forward to bringing smiles to children’s faces at our Ninth Annual Joanne Hollis Toy Drive in loving memory of my sister this week,” stated HAP Board of Commissioners Chairwoman Bridget Rivers. For more information about Joanne Hollis and Joanne Hollis Gardens, view the JHG Community Resource Center video at vimeo.com/768099061.
About the Housing Authority of Plainfield
The Housing Authority of Plainfield continues to develop resources to enhance Plainfield’s low and moderate-income and senior communities, by collaborating with its network of community service providers and other public agencies to better serve the community under the Affordable Housing Federal, State, and local housing initiatives, and to enhance homeownership opportunities for income-eligible residents. HAP collaborates with residents and public, non-profit, and private entities to create viable, healthy communities and to empower residents to achieve financial independence. HAP achieves the above while maintaining strong internal controls, and developing and maintaining a strong culture of mutual respect, fiscal responsibility, and ethical behavior by its employees, residents, and other key stakeholders. For more information about HAP, visit www.hapnj.org.
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