Comforts of Home -- SVDP's House in a Box program moves to Industrial Parkway in Brick
July 29, 2019 at 12:37 p.m.
By Lois Rogers | Correspondent
Since the St. Vincent de Paul ‘House in a Box’ distribution center first opened in the Ocean Township Industrial Park back in March, 100 families who lost everything to Hurricane Sandy have received the comforts of home from the program.
Each family rolled up to the warehouse door with an empty truck and departed with all new household furnishings, including beds and dressers for each family member, a sofa, dining table and chairs, pots, pans, dishes, glassware, silverware, bedding and linens.
The program is sponsored by the Trenton Diocesan Council of the St. Vincent de Paul Society, with funding support from the American Red Cross and Catholic Charities, Diocese of Trenton.
On July 11, House in a Box moved its distribution center to a 4000-square-foot warehouse in Brick Township, opening the doors to the first of at least another 200 families and now better enabling the center to provide assistance to Ocean County residents who are still recovering from the storm.
A crew of 12 volunteers of all generations had received instructions, started with a prayer and was eagerly awaiting the arrivals of six families due to appear in intervals over the morning by the time Aldo and Stephanie Ferraro pulled into the loading area.
In just a half-hour, the Brick couple, whose house in the badly battered Shore Acres area of the township was submerged in three feet of water by Sandy, would be heading back to the restored dwelling with the contents needed to turn the structure back into a home.
As her husband helped volunteers fill the black pick-up truck with the household goods, Stephanie Ferraro, expecting the couple’s second child in September, looked on, a gentle smile lighting her lovely face.
“We’re so very happy to get the furnishings and get our lives back together,” she said. “We’re just about done getting the house ready to go back in.”
“It’s been a rough road,” she said. “We’ve been trying to roll with what’s been happening along the way,” said Mrs. Ferraro. She said the family – including daughter Gianna, 3 – was very appreciative of the help received from St. Vincent de Paul, Catholic Charities and the Visitation Relief Center in the recovery hub there on Mantoloking Road in Brick.
In no time, it seemed, the truck, filled to the brim, was heading out of the industrial park and on its way home as the crew of volunteers regrouped to get ready for the next arrival.
Joseph T. Williams, president of the Trenton Diocesan Council of the St. Vincent de Paul Society, wasted no time striving to reach out to the community at large and let them know House in a Box was settled in its new home. “We’re reaching out to 2,600 members of the society within the Diocese and everyone we can with fliers and information,” he said. “We hand out fliers to everyone we meet. We want people to know it’s here.”
Jim Campbell, the warehouse manager and Gordon Reinold, the district coordinator, both from St. Benedict Parish, Holmdel, shared how the all-volunteer crew had been working since June 1 to get the new location at 1106 Industrial Way prepared.
“Now it’s opening day,” Campbell said. “We’ll be open through the end of the year as long as the funds hold out.”
They both expressed excitement over the number of families that had been helped by the program and their aim to serve another 200 before the effort was through. “The cooperation from everyone is really wonderful,” Reinold said.
Paul Capelli, one of several volunteers that day from St. Luke Parish, Toms River, called being part of the House in a Box project a very meaningful experience.
“For me personally, my wife and I were victims of Sandy. Being able to help people who needed the help after the storm is very important. Here it is, two years later and people are still recovering. These are all our neighbors,” he said. “And this is what St. Vincent de Paul does. It helps people in need.”
Those interested in volunteering to help with the distribution which takes place on Fridays and Saturdays from 8:45 a.m. to noon, may call 732-493-4745 or go to www.volunteersignup.org/bxtrt
[[In-content Ad]]
Related Stories
Tuesday, December 23, 2025
E-Editions
Events
By Lois Rogers | Correspondent
Since the St. Vincent de Paul ‘House in a Box’ distribution center first opened in the Ocean Township Industrial Park back in March, 100 families who lost everything to Hurricane Sandy have received the comforts of home from the program.
Each family rolled up to the warehouse door with an empty truck and departed with all new household furnishings, including beds and dressers for each family member, a sofa, dining table and chairs, pots, pans, dishes, glassware, silverware, bedding and linens.
The program is sponsored by the Trenton Diocesan Council of the St. Vincent de Paul Society, with funding support from the American Red Cross and Catholic Charities, Diocese of Trenton.
On July 11, House in a Box moved its distribution center to a 4000-square-foot warehouse in Brick Township, opening the doors to the first of at least another 200 families and now better enabling the center to provide assistance to Ocean County residents who are still recovering from the storm.
A crew of 12 volunteers of all generations had received instructions, started with a prayer and was eagerly awaiting the arrivals of six families due to appear in intervals over the morning by the time Aldo and Stephanie Ferraro pulled into the loading area.
In just a half-hour, the Brick couple, whose house in the badly battered Shore Acres area of the township was submerged in three feet of water by Sandy, would be heading back to the restored dwelling with the contents needed to turn the structure back into a home.
As her husband helped volunteers fill the black pick-up truck with the household goods, Stephanie Ferraro, expecting the couple’s second child in September, looked on, a gentle smile lighting her lovely face.
“We’re so very happy to get the furnishings and get our lives back together,” she said. “We’re just about done getting the house ready to go back in.”
“It’s been a rough road,” she said. “We’ve been trying to roll with what’s been happening along the way,” said Mrs. Ferraro. She said the family – including daughter Gianna, 3 – was very appreciative of the help received from St. Vincent de Paul, Catholic Charities and the Visitation Relief Center in the recovery hub there on Mantoloking Road in Brick.
In no time, it seemed, the truck, filled to the brim, was heading out of the industrial park and on its way home as the crew of volunteers regrouped to get ready for the next arrival.
Joseph T. Williams, president of the Trenton Diocesan Council of the St. Vincent de Paul Society, wasted no time striving to reach out to the community at large and let them know House in a Box was settled in its new home. “We’re reaching out to 2,600 members of the society within the Diocese and everyone we can with fliers and information,” he said. “We hand out fliers to everyone we meet. We want people to know it’s here.”
Jim Campbell, the warehouse manager and Gordon Reinold, the district coordinator, both from St. Benedict Parish, Holmdel, shared how the all-volunteer crew had been working since June 1 to get the new location at 1106 Industrial Way prepared.
“Now it’s opening day,” Campbell said. “We’ll be open through the end of the year as long as the funds hold out.”
They both expressed excitement over the number of families that had been helped by the program and their aim to serve another 200 before the effort was through. “The cooperation from everyone is really wonderful,” Reinold said.
Paul Capelli, one of several volunteers that day from St. Luke Parish, Toms River, called being part of the House in a Box project a very meaningful experience.
“For me personally, my wife and I were victims of Sandy. Being able to help people who needed the help after the storm is very important. Here it is, two years later and people are still recovering. These are all our neighbors,” he said. “And this is what St. Vincent de Paul does. It helps people in need.”
Those interested in volunteering to help with the distribution which takes place on Fridays and Saturdays from 8:45 a.m. to noon, may call 732-493-4745 or go to www.volunteersignup.org/bxtrt
[[In-content Ad]]