A Note From The President....
We face an unprecedented time of need, which will continue to grow in the coming years. We at MESH have been working hard to address the unhoused and those with food insecurity. It has been our pleasure to help anyone without any bias. I am proud to say that we have assisted several of our guests in gaining meaningful
employment!
The recently House-passed Republican reconciliation plan would cut nearly $300 billion from SNAP assistance through 2034 leaving millions of families unable to afford food and groceries. Our aim and hope is to collaborate with local businesses and food pantries to address this food insecurity.
There has been concern from local businesses and residents regarding issues that have arisen due to the increasing unhoused population in Montclair. I have met with several of the local businesses to discuss their concerns and how we can help to mitigate them. There is a small percentage of individuals that have been the root cause of problems around town. We have discussed solutions with the town and police to make sure there is heightened security around Bloomfield and Midland Ave. In addition, our security staff is making frequent rounds during our operating hours of 4 to 6:30 pm to address any potential issues. We have set rules in place
that guests are not to gather outside the cafe before, during or after our service hours. My hope is that these measures will reduce any potential issues and concerns.
I hope we are all able to continue to collaborate to help those that are in need. We will need the support of our gracious donors and partners through the summer and into the winter months. In May, we served 240 unique guests and a total of 1765 meals! In addition, our kindness closet has distributed 680 articles of clothing and washed over 80 loads of laundry!
This would all be impossible without the support of our local partners and generous donors. Please consider making a donation at the link below. We can’t do this without you!
https://www.wearemesh.org/donate
Sincerely,
Ankur Jetley
Montclair Emergency Services for Hope
Mesh. verb. (es) to fit in; to come together harmoniously
Montclair Emergency Services for Hope (MESH) is a local, non-profit organization dedicated to providing basic and essential services to Montclair’s most vulnerable homeless adults and families. MESH partners with local churches, synagogues and other community members to provide a nutritious evening meal, 6 days a week, to the underserved adults and families in Montclair, NJ in addition to providing overnight respite during extreme weather.
Thank you to St. Marks for everything you do to help us and for providing us with the space for Winter Respite!
A very special thanks to St. Marks United Methodist Church!
CHRIST CHURCH • BNAI KESHET • ST. PETER CLAVER • UNION BAPTIST • GRACE PRESBYTERIAN • SHOMREI • ST. JOHN’S CHURCH• FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF SOUTH ORANGE • PCUM • THE GIRLS CLUB OF GLENRIDGE • RISING MT. ZION • FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH OF MONTCLAIR • ST. MARKS UNITED METHODIST CHURCH • BDP HOLDINGS •.WOMENS CLUB OF UPPER MONTCLAIR • ST. TERESA CALCUTTA • IMMACULATE CONCEPTION CHURCH • MARCEL BAKERY AND KITCHEN • HILLSONG CHURCH NEW JERSEY• UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST CONGREGATION AT MONTCLAIR • MICHELLE DICE AND ANDRE ESPINOSA • CYNDIE SPIEGEL • MOO AND OINK • UPPER MONTCLAIR PRESBYTERIAN • MARY BETH ROSENTHAL • ACADEMY APPAREL • SCAVENGER HUNTS BY LET’S ROAM • TURTLE & THE WOLF • BOHO HAIR SALON • OUTPOST AND THE BURBS • T.S MA CHINESE CUISINE • REDEEMER MONTCLAIR CHURCH
Thank you to our partners:
“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”
Ankur Jetley, President
Nancy Taiani, Vice President
Dallas Boris, Treasurer
Frisca Boris, Secretary
Patty Dreher, Corresponding Secretary
Joe Granger, Executive Director
The Rev. Wade Renn, Board Member
Christine Grasso, Board Member
Rev. Patricia Bridges, Board Member
Mikayla Mathers, Director of Marketing