Festivals usually bring food and entertainment to the community but organizers of the upcoming Just Jersey Jazz and Food Truck Festival in Succasunna hope to bring awareness to a local New Jersey food pantry.

The festival, to be held Sunday, Oct. 19, will be hosting a variety of food trucks featuring various food styles and cuisines. Not only will food and entertainment be a part of the festival, but fundraising will also be the main attraction as donations and fundraisers will occur at Horseshoe Lake throughout the day to benefit the Roxbury Food Pantry.

According to JMK Shows and Events Director Allison Kohler, the idea to fundraise and receive donations for the food pantry comes at a time where the need and demand at the pantry is great, with the holiday season approaching. Kohler also said that the pantry is in dire need regardless of it being located in one of the seventh wealthiest counties in the nation.

“Holidays are coming up and the stress it has put on these people who are already in this situation is doubled at the holiday time and the need in the food pantry increases significantly during the Thanksgiving, Christmas season,” said Kohler.

While the holidays highlight the need, Kohler said food pantries need supplies year round to help people who are struggling to put food on the table.

“There are people whose main concern is that, can this one box of hamburger helper feed all four of us,” Kohler said. “I just think that it’s amazing that here in my town that the needs of the town and food pantry have doubled by 100 percent over the last 18 months and growing. And their contributions are down as well as their means being up so it was a perfect marriage — a food truck festival and a food pantry.”

According to Kohler, the festival has three goals — awareness, product donation and fund donation.

To ensure product donation, the festival is offering a discount off the admission price when people bring in food donations. All donations include non-perishable canned or boxed food.

If attendees donate more than one product, Kohler said they will receive a T-shirt as well as the admission discount.

“If people want to bring awareness, maybe they don’t want to give a check or any money that day, but they’re aware,” Kohler said. “We’re asking people to bring a can or boxed item. … We’re hoping to leave with thousands of items.”

Along with raising awareness, the festival is set to feature 28 different food trucks. The event menu is set to feature different cuisines such as Puerto Rican cuisine, Colombian cuisine, sliders, empanadas, steak, seafood, exotic meats, waffles and desserts. Since the festival happens to fall in October, an Oktoberfest menu is also set to be featured by The Barn Restaurant.

“They’re [The Barn Restaurant] setting up a nice Oktoberfest display, that’s going to be in the center of the whole event but that’s a fantastic addition to this event,” said Kohler.

According Kohler, the 28 trucks are unique, with the exception of two lobster roll trucks. She said the number of trucks is high in anticipation of demand.

“Our last event had 18 trucks. This one has 28 because the demand was there,” Kohler said.

Throughout the festival, jazz bands and acts will be the featured entertainment, bring arts and culture to the event, according to Kohler. Three bands are scheduled to play at the event — The Eric Mintel Quartet, Dick Voigt’s Big Apple Jazz Band and Alan Dale and the New Legacy Jazz Band — each playing a two-hour set.

“It’s so many facets. Our main thing is the awareness from the product for the food pantry,” said Kohler. “The same time we want to produce an incredible event that people can enjoy and at the same time bring arts and culture to the community.”

Kohler said that plans are in the works for future events, all of which will benefit the Roxbury Food Pantry.

Since this will be the first festival dedicated to the food pantry, Kohler said that she does not want to set her expectations too high. She said that she wants to see people enjoy themselves while raising awareness.

“I think it’s great that we have the opportunity to bring all these things to the community while having a good time,” Kohler said. “So my expectations are to get a good crowd and to have them have a fantastic time and that we do good. We eat good, we feel good, we’re doing good and we help.”