Roll Up Your Sleeves for the Shore

Interested in volunteering to help rebuild the Shore community?  Tomorrow, hundreds of New Jerseyans demonstrate their devotion to their communities and state by providing some desperate help to communities in need.

This extraordinary event is called Jersey Cares Day, started in 1998 to celebrate and encourage volunteerism.  The Newark based non-profit Jersey Cares organization seeks volunteers right now for major projects in New Egypt, Toms River, and Bayville.

New Egypt’s Reindancer Therapeutic Riding Center needs help to assemble horse stables, landscape and assemble horse jumps that were damaged by Hurricane Sandy.

Central Regional High School in Bayville is recruiting help for landscaping on its campus. In Toms River, volunteers are needed by Waves Of Hope for storm debris cleanup. In Jackson, storm cleanup is being organized by We Are Team Jersey.

All the activities run from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM. You must be 18 years or older to participate. For more information, please visit the Jersey Cares web page.

In its 15 years, Jersey Cares Day has grown from 300 volunteers working on revitalization projects in Newark to 2,000 peoples in community-building projects in 13 New Jersey counties.

This year's Jersey Cares Day takes on special meaning in the wake of Hurricane Sandy as hundreds of volunteers will spend the day restoring some of New Jersey's beaches in advance of the summer tourist season.

Jersey Cares volunteers have made the restoration of New Jersey's beaches a priority. Since the storm receded in November, more than 4,500 volunteers have provided 16,500 hours to: remove 19,488 pounds of debris, return 800 tons of sand to beaches, serve 15,593 hot meals to residents lacking power, and gut 174 homes.
"Throughout the year, our volunteers show their commitment to New Jersey by donating thousands of hours to support neighborhood schools, nursing homes and other community organizations," said Brian Dean, Jersey Cares Executive Director. "Jersey Cares Day allows us to honor their commitment and celebrate some of the people that make New Jersey a special place."

Jersey Cares works directly with local nonprofit organizations and schools, identifying their needs and training volunteer leaders. Service projects have included mentoring troubled teens, reaching out to isolated seniors, working with the mentally and physically challenged, restoring the environment and helping children with their schoolwork.