By TAPINTO HACKENSACK STAFF

HACKENSACK, N.J. — The Alfred N. Sanzari Family Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving communities across northern New Jersey, has awarded $30,000 in grants to the first five recipients of its inaugural grant program:

Alpine Learning Group, Inc. — Based in Paramus, Bergen County’s comprehensive resource for families living with autism offers a full range of diagnostic and clinical services, along with established programs in education, in-home treatment, and adult services. Alpine Learning Group meets the challenge of autism with science and compassion. Their grant will be used to help offset the exorbitant, unbudgeted COVID-19-related expenses for devices and personal protective equipment (PPE) required to safeguard the individuals Alpine serves, and the staff that serves them.

Boys & Girls Club of Paterson and Passaic — This Paterson-based club helps meet the needs of thousands of children in two of the most challenging communities in the state, Paterson and Passaic. Their wide range of programs help to inspire and enable all young people, especially those from disadvantaged circumstances, to realize their full potential as productive, responsible and caring citizens. Recognizing the childcare challenges presented by COVID-19 and virtual learning, B&GCPP has looked to expand its Academic Success Programming to provide full-day, out-of-school educational support to children in Paterson and Passaic. The grant from the Alfred N. Sanzari Family Foundation will be crucial in providing the financial resources needed for the expansion of this invaluable program.

CUMAC — Singularly focused on eliminating poverty in Paterson, Passaic County and beyond, programs include a food pantry that serves over 40,000 people every year and a food depot that handles nearly two million pounds of food for a network of over 50 agencies. CUMAC also operates a disaster relief program, a thrift shop that provides high quality, low-cost items to the community, the Pathways to Work program that offers job training to those seeking gainful employment, Place of Promise which provides a permanent supportive housing program for the chronically homeless, and the Community Food Coalition, a collection of pantries working together to stop hunger in New Jersey. Serving 3,000 people each day, CUMAC’s grant will help support its ongoing pandemic relief efforts to ensure they can continue to provide their important programs and improve the lives of northern New Jersey residents into 2021.

Oasis, a Haven for Women and Children in Paterson — A nonprofit focused on changing the lives of women and children by breaking the cycle of poverty through compassionate programs designed to feed, clothe, educate, and empower women and children in need. Oasis administers educational and social service programs that help women enter and succeed in the workforce and help children flourish academically. Oasis will be utilizing its grant to administer and expand their GED Program that provides impoverished women daily classes to obtain their high school equivalency diploma. The program also offers antipoverty services including meals, food bags, and psychosocial services to ensure women can earn their diploma while also becoming self-sufficient.

Star of Hope Ministries, Inc. — For more than a century, this nonprofit has served the underserved in Greater Paterson, Newark, Willingboro and beyond in several ways, but principally and most notably through its Member Network, a partnership of churches and organizations committed to serving the poor. Since March of this year, Star of Hope Ministries, established in 1913, has provided their community with over 36,000 meals and more than 17,000 grocery kits. The grant from the Alfred N. Sanzari Family Foundation will allow the organization to continue to purchase non-perishable and perishable food items for distribution, as well as organize and implement their Boxes of Love program during the Thanksgiving Day season.

The grants will assist these community organizations as they continue to respond to the needs of their communities stemming from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

“Although many would define Alfred Sanzari by the properties he constructed and the company he built, one of the things he was most proud of was the lasting impact he made on his local community,” said Dana Jareck, member of the Alfred N. Sanzari Family Foundation Board of Trustees. “We are proud to carry that legacy forward through the Alfred N. Sanzari Family Foundation and our mission to positively impact the lives of those in our local communities.”

Founded in 2006, the Alfred N. Sanzari (ANS) Family Foundation was established to carry on the legacy of Alfred N. Sanzari, founder of Alfred Sanzari Enterprises, through the promotion and support of a wide range of causes throughout northern New Jersey. Reflecting the values of Alfred and his family, the ANS Family Foundation supports the promotion and support of healthcare with a special preference for patient care and Parkinson’s Disease, local education programs, and programs that support disadvantaged populations such as shelters/housing, and services for women and children in need. Since its founding, the ANS Family Foundation has donated over $1.5 million to organizations throughout northern New Jersey.

“Now more than ever, we know that our communities and the organizations that serve the people within them need all the help they can get, said Lisa Britt, a member of the Alfred N. Sanzari Family Foundation Board of Trustees. “We are honored to support these five inspiring organizations to ensure they can continue to make a difference in their local communities, and we look forward to lending support to additional deserving nonprofits through our grant program in the future.”

The ASN Family Foundation has two grant cycles per year with grant amounts ranging from $500 to $10,000. The Foundation is currently in the midst of its second grant application period for 2020. All grant applications are due by February 28, 2021. For more information on the grant application process and to apply, please visit the ASN Family Foundation at sanzarifoundation.com/how-to-apply.

About the Alfred N. Sanzari Family Foundation
Established in 2006, the Alfred N. Sanzari Family Foundation was established to carry on the legacy of Alfred N. Sanzari, founder of Alfred Sanzari Enterprises, through the promotion and support of a wide range of causes through northern New Jersey. Reflecting the priorities of Alfred and his family, the ASN Family Foundation supports a wide range of causes including the promotion and support of healthcare with a special preference for patient care and Parkinson’s Disease; local education programs; and programs that support disadvantaged populations such as shelters/housing, and services for women and children in need. Since its founding, the ASN Family Foundation has donated over $2 million. For more information on the Alfred N. Sanzari Family Foundation, go to sanzarifoundation.com.

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Photo: Giorgio Trovato