In Willingboro, New Jersey, barbecue and conversation help strengthen community ties

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WHYY and the Willingboro Community Development Corporation brought together more than 100 residents on Saturday for an afternoon of food, conversation and community building. At the Willingboro Library Park, adjacent to the Public Library, attendees met neighbors, connected with local organizations and shared barbecue from a local restaurant.

Strengthening community ties outside the newsroom

The barbecue was part of WHYY’s ongoing effort to deepen community connections in South and Central Jersey and across the region, said Sarah Glover, WHYY’s vice president of news and civic dialogue.

“Our news team is one of the most trusted news sources in the Delaware Valley,” Glover said. “How we build that trust with our audience is meeting them where they are. Our community engagement efforts are interwoven in our news operation.”

Patricia Lindsay-Harvey, president of the Willingboro Community Development Corporation Board of Directors, said the event created an opportunity for people to come together.

“This is a wonderful environment, and I’ve met a lot of people I didn’t even know,” she said. “We’re really appreciative that WHYY sees value in Willingboro and wanted to partner with us.”

The Willingboro CDC is a nonprofit organization that works to improve residents’ quality of life, by promoting engagement, economic development and sustainable initiatives that benefit people.

Youth leadership on display

During the event, the Conglomerate Performance squad, a team of about a dozen girls and young women, ages 6 to 18, delighted the crowd with a drill, majorette and step performance.

Ariel Grinnage, the squad’s coach and one of the choreographers, said the performers come from all over Burlington County.

“I love the youth, and I love my community,” Grinnage said. “My mother and I, we work on the team together. We decided to make it our mission not just to uplift the youth and uplift the community, because these children, they are our future.”

Willingboro Mayor Samantha Whitfield said the town values community engagement. “So this kind of event contributes to the sense of community that we are trying to nurture,” she said.

“Our neighbors can be outside, get together and connect, and they don’t have to spend a lot of money,” she said. “We appreciate the kind of a get-together on so many levels.”

The complimentary lunch, courtesy of WHYY, prepared and served by 1911 Smokehouse BBQ in Trenton, New Jersey, including ribs, hamburgers, collard greens, macaroni and cheese and vegan sausages, was a wonderful idea, said Willingboro resident Gail Fountaine.

“It brings people together, and we love that,” she said. “These events build relationships. It’s multigenerational, and that’s what it’s all about.”

Sitting next to Fountaine, former Willingboro Mayor Lavonne Bebler Johnson said, “It’s great to have WHYY hear about what’s going on in the community,” she said. “And if you don’t have community, you just have a bunch of houses.”

Neighbors, nonprofits and local leaders connect

Tiana Harvey, 16, said she enjoyed her cheeseburger, mac and cheese, and collard greens.

“You meet a lot of people from different backgrounds and find out about their personalities,” she said.

Allison Eckel, deputy director of the Burlington County Board of Commissioners, agreed that the barbecue was a great way to bring people together.

“We want to hear how people are doing in our diverse county,” she said. “This picnic … is another opportunity to check in with neighbors, relax and enjoy some great food and interact with them.”

Burlington County Sheriff Jim Kostoplis and his outreach unit set up an information table to give residents information about programs designed to help and protect them.

“It lets them know we’re people just like they are,” he said. “Our mission is to help people, and this helps us share that message.”

The New Jersey Department of Children and Families, or DCF, was also represented at the event. Brandi Harding, deputy director of the Division of Child Protection and Permanency within DCF, said several people inquired about adoption and foster care opportunities.

“All it takes is one individual or one family to make a life-changing difference for a child,” she said. “We were thrilled to have a chance to give people information about the program.”

Glover said that hosting a relaxing, barbecue lunch with neighbors is “classic, quintessential WHYY.”

“Our focus, our mission, is to be of public service, and we get story ideas from interacting with citizens, audience members and members of the community,” she said. “It separates us from other news sources, and we’re grateful to be able to serve the community.”

WHYY holds civic news events across the region year-round, including pop-up newsrooms, educational media literacy sessions and other events on topics such as health care and housing. Glover said community engagement activities will continue as WHYY News seeks to deepen its community-building in the Garden State.