08/17/2026
Please read to the end there is a list of items that are needed …
Charlotte’s dinner last weekend was a big success! Those that came loved the food, and ate to their hearts content. Volunteers came from churches all over Ocean County to help serve the people. Six volunteers from the Brick Presbyterian Church came to help operate the laundry/shower trailer, and assist the people. As I brought the people in from the camps the volunteers would help them with their laundry, and gave them everything they needed for the shower. To see the smiles on the peoples faces as they came through the shower room door was worth all the time and effort.
Thank you to everyone that helped make the event a success by either buying a dinner for the people that came, or assisting hands on at the event. Also a big thank you to Sandy, and the Township of South Toms River for letting us use their Recreation Center free of charge, to serve those in need!
On another note, a woman that is paralyzed on her right side, and was sleeping on a park bench outside a public library for weeks before I found her, is now inside. She has been in our camps for the last 5 years, but has always been helpful and has a sweet disposition. A few weeks ago she told me she had been approved for an apartment where she had been on the waiting list for years, and that she was so excited about moving in. When the day came and she moved in, she was beside herself with joy. Not only was her apartment almost new, it had a balcony with an Ocean view! She said to me, “I don’t know what I did to deserve something so beautiful, but I am so grateful”. I told her, “ If anyone deserves this, it’s you!” “You have kept your good nature through so much hardship, you deserve every bit of this!”
Over the last few weeks we helped her outfit her kitchen with every convenience she would need to make life a little easier. As I walked around the apartment, I said to myself, I’m going to do my best to make sure she has everything she needs to be happy in her new place.
Also, there is a really nice couple that has been in the camps for a while now, and have been a very positive part of the program. The husband works hard for a local employer, and the wife was working hard at the camp; cooking, cleaning, and helping others in the camp. When they told me that they had been working with a local housing program to secure an apartment, and had gotten an apartment, I was so happy for them. On Friday, when they moved in, they were so happy, and wanted me to look around the apartment to see how beautiful it was. They didn’t have much to start with, but they were very excited about making it everything they wanted it to be.
Over the last few weeks we have seen 8 of our residents move into their own apartments and it is extremely heartwarming and gratifying to see. In some respects it seems that things are improving for the homeless in the area, but we still don’t have a critical part of the logistical mechanism that would assure the safety of the homeless. The first level is almost non existent. If someone becomes homeless at any given time during the day or night, there is no place where they can go! In theory there is phone number they can call, but in reality the call almost always leads nowhere. There obviously needs to be a place where people know they can go, if for any reason they become homeless at any given time. This is a foundational starting point that the rest of the system rests on, but it’s just not there in our local system for the homeless. This is why Destiny’s Bridge is so important. We are standing in that gap, and bringing help and light to someone in their darkest hour.
Until that critical component is in place, we will continue to do our best to help our fellow Americans. I would like to thank you for standing with us over the years to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our homeless neighbors! Below, please find some items that are needed for the camps and the people moving into their own place at this time.
Needs list:
• Bottled water
• Non perishable food items
• Rubbing alcohol / hand sanitizer
• Baby wipes
• Paper products
• Counter top appliances; toaster, blender, etc
• Silverware
• Pots and pans
DESTINYS BRIDGE Drop off locations.
Middletown Reformed Church
121 Kings Highway,
Middletown.
Please leave items in the shed behind the building at the top of the hill. If you have any questions call: 908-896-1682
Nicole Leigh
79 Forest Dr,
Jackson.
Please leave items on covered porch.
Brick Presbyterian Church
111 Drum Point Rd.
Brick
Please leave items in the shed in the back of the parking lot.
Cecelia Kett
136 Neptune Ave
Beachwood
Please leave items in the breezeway.
*Debi
732-228-9048
48-B Hudson Parkway
Crestwood Village 2
Whiting
Please leave items in front of the garage.
Lisa Erskine
97 Georgetown Blvd.
Barnegat
Please leave items in the shed on the left side of the house.
*Jane Mnich
289 Bayview Ave
Bayville
Please leave items on front porch
Nikki Cohen
8 Lilac place
Howell
Please put items on the front porch
Ian MacKenzie Smith
10 Bucknell Dr.
South Toms River
Please use donation bin at the street only.
* Drop off sites that have an asterisk (*) before them are not suitable for drop off on rainy days. Thank you.
If you would like to make a financial contribution
you can send it to one of the addresses below
Destiny’s Bridge
P.O. Box 692
Lakewood, NJ 08701
Or, you can send a contribution via PayPal to: [email protected]
Or,
Venmo: -Bridge
Cash app: $Destinysbridge
Thank you for your help and concern,
Minister Steve Brigham
