BRICK – The parking lot of Seeds of Service (SOS) was jam-packed on a recent Tuesday afternoon as a steady flow of people came for help from dozens of programs and activities offered by the charity organization.
SOS provides 28 services, including a food bank, to the sick, the poor and the needy in Ocean County with a focus on improving the process of receiving assistance and increasing access to resources in times of need.
When asked about the origin of the faith-based organization, Executive Director and founder Christie Winters said volunteers from Visitation Church and from the surrounding community came together in the basement of the Catholic church to make meals and gather donations to help families that were impacted by Superstorm Sandy.
“In the process of working with the families, we started to recognize the need was just too big,” she said. “Families were starting to find out that they were going to have to lift their homes and they didn’t have the money.”
Moira Edge, Director of Development, and Christie Winter, Executive Director and Founder of Seeds of Service. (Photo by Judy Smestad-Nunn)
The group outgrew the church basement, and through a Robin Hood Grant, they were able to secure their current location in 2013 on Mantoloking Road, which is the home of the former Colony Market.
“Around the fourth year, it was a ministry and still part of the church, but it had grown bigger than the ministry, and Father Edward Blanchett said we should start working towards getting a 501(c), which took about two years, and we got a month into COVID,” Winters said.
Last month, SOS fed over 1,000 households, supplying enough food for a family of four for a week.
“We’ve got it down to a science now where it costs $5 to feed a family of four for one week,” – mostly because much of the food has been donated, she said.
Trader Joe’s donates two pallets of produce every day, and the Fulfill Foodbank delivers food once a week.
SOS has two trucks that pick up food items from Aldi, LIDL, ShopRite, Big Lots, Walmart, all five Brick Wawas, Joe’s Bagels, the Amazon store in Eatontown, and others.
Long time volunteer Carol Fox organizes the food pantry. (Photo by Judy Smestad-Nunn)
“Food insecurity is very high right now, it’s on the rise,” she said. “As soon as we put the food on the shelves, it’s out the door.”
There is also a huge housing shortfall right now, Winters said, with skyrocketing rents making it difficult to buy food. This year, SOS came into contact with 142 cases of homelessness, which includes 36 individuals from Brick.
Before COVID, two-bedroom rentals could be had for $1,000. Now they run as high as $2,000, she said. People are being relocated from Brick to more affordable housing in the south and to the west, Winters said.
A majority of the families who have registered at SOS are from Brick, but they don’t turn anyone away for food, she said. They even offer a pet food pantry.
So far this year, the cost of running SOS was $320,00, but the “impact value” back into the community is estimated at $12 million over the past 12 months, she said.
SOS is a full-on community outreach organization and uses software to track unmet needs, Winters said.
“When a family comes in here and registers with us, on their intake, there’s a whole bunch of different challenges that the family might be facing from addiction, to food insecurity, homelessness, transportation, education, financial budgeting – and we run the workshops here,” she said.
Seeds of Service offers help in many categories, such as a food pantry and workshops on financial planning. (Photo by Judy Smestad-Nunn)
If a struggling family comes in for help because they’re unable to pay their bills every month, SOS not only provides food and clothing but they also help with financial literacy.
Some people have donated cars to SOS which they turn around and give to a family in need. Winters estimates that they have given away some 25 donated cars in 13 years.
SOS is funded in a plethora of ways, Winters said. There is a “donate now” button on their website – seedsofservice.help, through an annual fundraiser held at River Rock Restaurant, through grants, flea markets, and through their e-commerce store work, which offers a Preparedness Program for special needs high school students.
SOS will be expanding with plans to build a 5,000 sq. ft. warehouse in the rear of the property next year.
“Youth and young adults love to volunteer, including high school students with special needs,” she said. “Specifically with the special needs students, there’s not a lot of places that they can go to volunteer, and working with the school system, we found out this is very helpful. They learn everything from how to set up a resume, have mock job interviews, how to understand an employee handbook and how to advocate for themselves on a job,” Winters explained.
Perrie White and Danielle Havens work the front desk one day. (Photo by Judy Smestad-Nunn)
Some of the student volunteers run the food pantry, work the tool lending library, run the e-commerce charity (such as ebay and poshmark) and much more.
SOS is always looking for donations of food, clothing, and household goods. They are always in need of volunteers, which make up for about 90 percent of their 90-person staff.
SOS has donation dropoff bins onsite at 725 Mantoloking Road, which can be utilized 24/7.
You can visit their Facebook page at SeedsofserviceSOS.
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