One of our favorite good news celebrities, whose kind deeds have been featured nine times by GNN in the last decade and a half, has opened his heart—and wallet—yet again.
A New Jersey rock star renown for his arena anthems “Living on a Prayer”, and “Wanted Dead or Alive”, Bon Jovi’s most joyful noise is heard in the restaurants he has opened to serve the hungry and the homeless. Anyone visiting his JBJ Soul Kitchen is always welcome to dine on fresh, lovingly-prepared food, even when they have no money—by pledging volunteer hours in return.
This week, the 57-year-old rock star—along with his wife Dorothea Hurley—opened his third Soul Kitchen restaurant in New Jersey. On the campus of Rutgers University, it serves a new demographic of hungry low-income customer, the college student. At the Grand Opening, Jon dismissed the idea that it should be a rite of passage for students studying hard to eat nothing but instant noodles.
Bon Jovi said the goal behind the Rutgers location is “to play a role in alleviating food insecurity among college students and giving them the support they need to achieve their dreams.”
The menu features locally-sourced ingredients and offers several methods of payment—pay what you can, pay what you want, volunteer, or pay it forward, a structure intended to create a sense of community, respect and dignity, as well as charity among local communities.
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Additional locations include JBJ Soul Kitchens in Toms River, New Jersey and Red Bank, NJ. According to the website, more than 105,000 meals have been served so far, with 46% of diners paying through volunteering their time, and the remaining 54% with donations.
At his latest grand opening, Bon Jovi said he doesn’t plan on stopping his food service expansion any time soon.
Visit his website, JBJsoulkitchen.org where you can buy his line of seasonings, find directions and store hours, or donate and volunteer. Or, follow his JBJ Soul Kitchen Instagram.
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