(Courtesy of JFCS) On Sunday, June 14, over 220 people biked, walked and ran their way through Northern New Jersey as participants in the 10th Annual Wheels for Meals—Ride to Fight Hunger.
This year’s ride was a resounding success, raising more than $166,000 to support Jewish Family and Children’s Services of Northern New Jersey (JFCS). Funds raised through JFCS’ Wheels for Meals—Ride to Fight Hunger help provide essential services to home-bound seniors and vulnerable families and individuals through programs such as Kosher Meals on Wheels, the kosher food pantries and mental health support. Due to COVID-19, JFCS has seen a large spike in requests for services: a 53 percent increase in Kosher Meals on Wheels requests, a 30 percent increase in food pantry visits and a 20 percent increase in teletherapy calls.
Social distancing guidelines due to the current pandemic prevented Sunday’s ride from taking off from a central location and following a route with hundreds of people biking together, as has been done in years past. Instead, individuals or groups of people joined together safely using their own routes and took to social media with the hashtag #JFCSVirtualRide to share their participation.
Some riders biked over 65 miles to the top of Bear Mountain; groups of kids and adults rode 12 miles through Saddle River Park, and one couple chose to bike 27.25 miles while enjoying the views in Nyack Beach State Park. The virtual event included three b’nei mitzvah: Gregory Michaels, Avigayil Geyer and Maddie Brooks, who chose to include the Ride to Fight Hunger in their b’nei mitzvah celebrations. Gregory led a team of over 60 participants on an 8-mile ride in Tenafly, raising more than $19,000.
A few individuals stepped up to the challenge and took part in a virtual hour-long spin class with two-time USA Cycling national champion Mara Miller. The champion gave tips to riders throughout the class and motivated them to keep going to reach their goals. Mara even took some time to talk to the participants about the need for supporting JFCS. You can watch the class on her YouTube channel by searching for Mara Miller JFCS Wheels for Meals.
Overall, the day was a great success as the fundraising goal was exceeded, participation was almost as high as in years past, and everyone ended the day feeling that they had done something good for the local community while spending a gorgeous day outside. Donations may still be made at ridetofighthunger.com. To see more pictures from the day or learn more about JFCS, visit www.jfcsnnj.org
