Posted on

Prudential Center to Serve as Polling Station

Well, it’s been long-time, no-see around here, but we do have some Devils-related news to get to here that I thought I’d throw out in one post.

Firstly, in a relatively minor note, Amanda Stein is reporting on the Devils’ official “Inside the Devils Blog” that prospect Fabian Zetterlund has been loaned to HC Vita Hsten of HockeyAllsvenskan in Sweden.

The 21-year-old forward had just completed his first season in North America with the Binghamton Devils of the American Hockey League. He had 19 points (eight goals, 11 assists) over 49 games for Binghamton in 2019-20.

The other news, also reported by Stein, is that Prudential Center will be a polling site for the 2020 General Election. This announcement – which is “pending a final vote by the Essex County Board of Elections” – was made yesterday by Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka and Jake Reynolds, Devils President.

Devils owners Josh Harris and David Blitzer have been doing a lot as of late to combat systemic racism and other societal ills. Baraka had this to say about the two: “Having Josh [Harris] and David [Blitzer] and of course the New Jersey Devils and Prudential Center folks to be engaged with the City of Newark period. They’re always a great partner of ours, whether it’s helping us deliver food or operations for children or hockey in our neighborhoods, all the kind of things that they do, this is just an extension of that.”

Stein reported that Reynolds added: “We’re so incredibly appreciative of the city of Newark in the state of New Jersey, being able to join us as partners in this civic engagement. This continues the commitments that our managing partners, Josh Harris and David Blitzer have made in so many ways to help drive the community.”

Stein said that, in the week leading up to Election Day, the Rock “will serve as a satellite office of the Essex County Clerk. Residents who did not receive their vote by mail ballot and need one” can get one there. She also noted that “on Election Day, Newark residents who opt for in-person voting can cast their ballot or drop their ballot off. In addition, and in conjunction with National Voter Registration Day, Prudential Center will host a voter registration drive September 22 on Championship Plaza.”

Mayor Baraka said that “without the New Jersey Devils commitment to doing this we have no location, so we are indebted to them for always being a part of the city. There’s probably no other place in the county that we could have this other than at Prudential Center, so if [Josh Harris and David Blitzer] didn’t step up to the plate, we probably wouldn’t be here today.”

Election Day is, of course, November 3 this year, it should be noted, which does fall out of the 2020-21 hockey season, which will be starting in December for COVID-19-related reasons.

Stein also said that the “Devils have launched the “Go Vote, Jersey” non-partisan campaign which will center around brand-specific content, including players public service announcements, tutorials on how to proceed to Prudential Center and podcasts among other related content. The campaign is designed as an education and awareness campaign.” Visit https://prucenter.com/vote, to learn more. There are “a myriad of information, facts and deadlines” as Stein said.

The “Go Vote, Jersey” campaign being run through the Devils Care Foundation, which is trying to bring a focus on “social injustice issues and continues the support and impact of working for the betterment of diverse communities.”

Reynolds briefly touched on the subject of what has been going on regarding suppression of voting, especially amongst minority communities, which was greatly affect Newark in a negative way. He said: “I think that’s critically important, whether it’s through what we’ve been going through as it relates to COVID, social equality or this process in terms of being able to give citizens the right to be able to go out and have their voice be heard through the voting process.”

He continued: “The Devils Care Foundation and the Devils Youth Foundation is something that we have put a lot of emphasis and a lot of resources behind in terms of being able to bring our community together, especially the youth side and pave a path for them to understand that their voice matters, and their voice can be heard. This is is one of their fundamental rights, and we are going to partner with them, as well as with the city and the state to continue to make this a better place for them to live and raise their families.”

I will have more on the “Go Vote, Jersey” program in a future post.

Posted on

Devils’ Owners Make Donation to Newark Working Kitchens

In a staff report yesterday on the Devils’ official app, the Devils announced that managing partners Josh Harris and David Blitzer have donated $200,000 to the Newark Working Kitchens.

The Newark Working Kitchens are “a free meal delivery service for Newark residents who are low-income senior, disabled and family housing residents, people without homes, and other vulnerable Newark citizens.” They help “create and sustain jobs while supporting those most critically in need of food.”

According to the piece on the Devils’ app and Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka, NWK has been operating for 12 weeks and “has delivered more than 200,000 meals during” that time. They have helped in “Newark’s recovery by ordering a minimum of 200 meals a week from the 21 participating restaurants.”

The article mentioned that NWK and the City of Newark work together to distribute meals where they are needed the most within the city. It works with tenant associations in the housing residences and with “a growing list of community organizations.” According to the article, these include: Ironbound Community Corporation, Bridges Outreach, Newark Emergency Services for Families, Newark Public Schools, University Hospital, Palm Street Block Association, Newark Homeless Coalition, NJCRI/Crossroads Drop-In Center, Tree House Cares, Willing Heart Community Care Center, Clinton Hill Community Action and the YMCA.

Mayor Baraka said: “Newark Working Kitchens will be able to deliver tens of thousands of meals in the coming weeks while supporting Newark’s talented array of small business entrepreneurs heavily impacted by the events of 2020. Our local restaurants have been very hard hit, and funding NWK allows restaurant employees to return to work and cook for Newark residents in urgent need.”

More information can be found by emailing nwk@audible.com. Audible.com, a company based in Newark, “has been a tremendous corporate partner for the New Jersey Devils and Prudential Center and the organization is happy to join them in this cause” read the article on the Devils’ app.

The Devils, Prudential Center and Devils Care/Youth Foundation have been working with Mayor Baraka’s office in Newark and the State of New Jersey since the pandemic began in March. They made a donation to the City of Newark then “to help facilitate a food assistance gift card program that provides groceries to families in need.”

Then, in April, Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment “made a large six-figure donation to RWJBarnabas Heath’s Emergency Response Fund” helping “secure essential personal protective and medical equipment for the 35,000 system employees.” The group also donated “7,000 pairs of gloves, 10,000 hand sanitizer units, and sanitizing wipes and sprays to the RWJBarnabas medical system.

May saw them donate “10,000 tickets for the 2020-21 season to RWJBarnabas Health front-line workers, in conjunction with the ‘Pay it Forward’ Season Ticket Member and Plan Holder ticket donation program.”

Despite the team really patting themselves on the back with some of the wording in this article. For instance, crowing that they were “the lead donation [Mayor Baraka] cited as an inspiration to the other business leaders in Newark and the state to make additional contributions” at the time of the crisis hitting in March, this is a good move by the Devils. It helps struggling families in the city and reaches out to help workers in restaurants keep working. The Devils have been really good in supporting Newark since they moved to the Prudential Center and this continues that positive trend.