By Dari Kotzker
NJ Today
Mary Pat Christie’s Hurricane Sandy New Jersey Relief Fund has raised $32 million since its inception in November. Today, in Point Pleasant, Rite Aid presented the first lady with two checks — customers donated nearly $230,000 nationwide and the Rite Aid Foundation contributed $50,000.
“There’s so many companies and citizens not only in the state of New Jersey but all over the country that are going to be integral in bringing New Jersey back. And I think being down at the beach and the shore in the area today reall is symbolic of what’s going on. It’s looking really good down here,” said First Lady Mary Pat Christie.
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The relief fund has already announced its first $1 million in grants, and is now accepting applications for the next $5 million. A grants committee has four areas of criteria when deciding where the money goes.
“There’s a competitive grants process and we’ve targeted four different areas. One is gap funding, which is helping low and middle income folks rebuild their homes. One is financial literacy. We also have jobs and job training and then the last part is mental health issues,” said Christie.
The first lady says donations are continuing to come in and the charity will be in place for the long haul.