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Spring 2025: The Harbor Lights Newsletter
April, Vol. 3
| | Celebrating Our History, Vision and Future | |
Ocean’s Harbor House Announces Leadership Transition:
Moving Forward in 2025
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The Board of Directors of Ocean’s Harbor House is pleased to announce a new change in leadership of the 37-year-old community institution, as Executive Director Alice Woods steps down to pursue a new opportunity in Atlantic City. Woods leaves behind a legacy of transformative leadership that has significantly enhanced the organization's capacity to serve the unhoused youth of Ocean County, leading the way for the creation of an innovative and collaborative team.
Donna Carlson, Chief Operating Officer, and Dawn Samaritano, Chief Financial Officer, bring a wealth of experience to their new co-leadership roles at Ocean’s Harbor House. Donna, with a background in nursing, nonprofit leadership and youth advocacy, has been instrumental in developing programs that support at-risk youth. Dawn, who has been Director of Finance at OHH since 2016, is an experienced social and financial services professional, who has spent her career ensuring vulnerable populations receive the resources they need. In addition, Program Lead Jenny Allen steps in to the role of Director of Programs, and Youth Navigator Jay Trifiro takes on the additional role of Community Outreach Coordinator. Together with their leadership team and dedicated staff, Donna and Dawn are committed to guiding Ocean’s Harbor House into the future, strengthening programs, expanding outreach, and continuing to provide a safe haven for youth in need.
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We Gratefully Thank
Our Host:
The Sawmill
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March 5, 2025
A Taste of Our World :
A Shared Dinner of Gratitude
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Spotlight On
Chef Brian Cook,
Heavenly Eats Catering:
Food is Connection, Gratitude, Community
"Food is one thing that brings people together. And if you can get many people together at a table, change can happen." Chef Brian Cook
"My extraordinary evening at Ocean’s Harbor House! I donated my time to share my talents and what I got back in return was priceless. You probably have passed the house a dozen times if you’ve gone to Wawa on 37. I met the coordinator of the home at a fundraiser and it was like ‘Let’s link up and I will come and cook for the house.’ Well, what I got was just an engagement from the housemates who live there, They welcomed me in, and me and my Sous Chef for the night Imani crushed it. Brooke and Chloe also did their thing! It was like we had a cool dinner party at the house. So much joy, so much laughter, so much hope and pride for what they do there. Sometimes we all need a direction, sometimes we all need someone to believe in us, sometimes we need a little structure, and this is Ocean’s Harbor House. A time was had tonight!"
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Staff Spotlight On:
Iya Brown
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Working at OHH for me is an opportunity to give back to my community by spreading enough love and glitter to help our residents fill up their cup with self-love. No one can start their day without enough love for themselves let alone the attempt to spread love to someone else.
As a self-love author of “Dear Mochalicious Goddess Just #Keepmoomwalking”, who grew up on Stuyvesant Avenue in Irvington, NJ and has a 10 plus year experience with educating youth in the Heart of Newark, NJ. I know first-hand what it looks and feels like to have all the odds against you, yet you still succeed! There is a Process to Progress, and I believe with strength, passion, persistence, self-determination, a personal cheerleader, and an abundance of self-love we all can reach our full potential to Just #Keepmoonwalking Into Our Destiny today and everyday!
At OHH, each Friday I host a Just #Keepmoonwalking into Self-Love group check-in for our residents at 7pm. This gives our residents an opportunity to reflect on their week and evaluate their self-love level from the week prior to their current self-love level. As a group we offer peer support as well as non-judgmental feedback with a positive alternative approach and perspective to assist reaching a higher self-love level and awareness for the upcoming week.
Once a month on a Sunday we have a Just #Keepmoomwalking Self-Love workshop that is longer and more interactive to get our residents to focus on their current self-love needs and turn them into real life everyday prompts. These interactive activities between residents and staff give us the opportunity to see self-love values and attributes inside of everything. As self-love resides within us all. My goal is to help our residents think before they act by utilizing their self-love as a channel to tap into positive, intentional thinking that will get them the outcomes they deserve!
My ultimate goal is to expand our self-love groups to other agencies as a community collaboration tool to bring our residents and community leaders together. Together we can create a culminating vision of self-love accompanied with our personal self-love journeys. I take pride in finding the talents and gifts within our residents to give them the self-love tools and feedback that they need to help them continue to Just #Keepmoonwalking into their Destiny today and everyday!
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Seaside Edition 2025!
Get your walking shoes ready!
Join us on Sunday, April 27th, for our second annual Walk In Their Shoes, Seaside Edition! Once again, we will begin and end at The Sawmill, and once again for a $10 donation enjoy their famous pizza and pasta downstairs after the walk in the Park Pavilion room, with an open cash bar! Join in supporting our transitional living program and our residents of The SHORE House!
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Thank you To Our Sponsors
The Citta Foundation
aka Dare To Love
OceanFirst Bank
Florian J Lombardi Foundation
Gemsmith: Ketti Designs
Hackensack Meridian Health
Carole Mack
Floor & Decor
Glen Redding Mortgage
Central Ocean Rotary Club of Toms River
Rotary Club of Point Pleasant Boro
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THE SHORE HOUSE SPOTLIGHT:
"A Taste of Our World"
This was an evening of gratitude for the community of board members, donors and supporters who have held us, it was a shared table of open hearts. Chef Brian Cook of Heavenly Eats Catering blessed our SHORE House table, guests and residents with his talent and love.
| Support the teens and youth of our SHORE House. Become a Harbor Light today. Your gift, for as little as $10 a month, will help support our program and the kids who call The SHORE House home. Click the button below to become a Harbor Light, and be part of extending the light of hope to the youth of our community. | SHORE House staff attended the January 24th Southern Regional Ice Hockey home game at Winding River Skating Rink highlighting the 2025 senior class players. We celebrated and supported our own PZ, so proud of all his accomplishments! | |
Brionna Kesto, Primary Counselor –
“This is like a proud moment for me. PZ came to us from the shelter at 15, and transferred into the TLP at 16, from the emergency shelter. This has been his home since. And seeing where he is now and his growth over the last year has been amazing and emotional.”
Paul is a straight-A student, and will graduate in June from Southern Regional. He is interested in vocational school and joining the Marines."
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We gratefully honor the memory of Maheep Singh Riar, a professional soccer player who gave his support to young men and women like ours in need.
On behalf of his mother, we extend our thanks for his birthday, April 7th.
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Linda Fazio, owner and operator of Chariot Riders, Inc, welcomed OHH staff and residents on a tour of their facility and program, opening another new world of experiences.
Chariot Riders Inc. provides therapeutic horseback riding for anyone experiencing physical, mental or emotional challenges. The interactions with the program horses improve the quality and depth of physical, emotional, mental and social well-being. The Equine-Assisted Learning activities that can be experienced as volunteers for the stable opens a world of peace, connection and understanding for our residents.
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Ocean's Harbor House participated in the Greater Toms River Chamber of Commerce Ocean County Mall Expo, joining local businesses and nonprofits in presenting and connecting to our Ocean County community. It was a great day of networking, and we enjoyed sharing our mission and vision with our neighbors. We were profoundly moved and grateful by the words of a young woman who stopped by the table to say thank you :
"I know Harbor House, I stayed at the house on Conifer many years ago. You saved my life, Thank you."
Pictured: GTRCC President Adam Servodio, COO Donna Carlson, and Maddie, Director of Administration Mary Teresa Bijeau.
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Youth Navigator Jay Trifiro is interviewed as part of Causeway CARes initiative to feature local nonprofits and their mission.
The carnival, organized and hosted by the Wintrode family, connects nonprofits to their peers and community members. It was a great day of collaboration and conversation!
| | Director of Administration Mary Teresa Bijeau, Chief Operating Officer Donna Carlson, and Youth Navigator Jay Trifiro attended the Summer in Winter Carnival Event, hosted by the Wintrode Family and Causeway CARES, highlighting local nonprofits and the wonderful work they do throughout the community. | | Our Program Team, Director Jenny Allen and Youth Navigator Jay Trifiro, presented a table at the New Jersey Kiwanis Mid-Year Conference. Ocean’s Harbor House, along with Anchor House, Visions and Pathways, Covenant House, Collier Youth Services and Sleep In Heavenly Peace, are part of the New Jersey Kiwanis District Project on Youth Homelessness and joined forces at the conference held at Brookdale College, connecting with one another to learn more about the part each agency plays in preventing and ending youth homelessness. | |
We thank Danny Marvin and Ron Wood of the JBJ Soul Kitchen for inviting Jenny and Jay to share our mission at their pop-up kitchen in the Ocean County Library on Washington Street, and for creating this amazing and necessary service to the people of Toms River. Hope Is Delicious!
"It was an eye-opening experience this morning/afternoon at JBJ Soul Kitchen at the library location. You get a front-line look at the homeless community and are quickly reminded how much this organization means to them." Jay Trifiro, OHH Youth Navigator
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Thank you Rotary Club of Point Pleasant Boro!
Our Program Team, Director Jenny Allen and Youth Navigator Jay Trifiro, attended the first meeting of the year for the Rotary of Point Pleasant Boro, and gratefully accepted a donation in support of OHH for $500 from President Mary Guetzlaff. We are so blessed for the support and goodwill of our local Rotarians! Thank you for allowing us to share our mission and vision!
| | | Our CFO, Dawn Samaritano, and COO, Donna Carlson, welcomed Kay Neary and the wonderful generosity and essential donations the Women's Club at River Pointe. Our residents thrive on the goodwill of our communities! | | | |
Around The Town...
Left: Youth Navigator/Community Coordinator Jay Trifiro and Director of Administration Mary Teresa Bijeau get ready to enjoy the St. Patrick's Day lunches prepared and delivered by the mighty women of Open Arms in their annual fundraiser supporting Ocean's Harbor House and Contact of Ocean and Monmouth Counties. Our thanks to L Gourmet for the corned beef and The Office Lounge for the cole slaw - it was delicious!
Right: COO Donna Carlson goes on air at Press Communications for their 'Make a Difference Monday', sponsored by New Jersey Natural Gas/Press Communications, which will be featuring Ocean's Harbor House on radio station WWZY 107.1 The Boss on Monday, May 26th!
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Oceans Harbor House is excited to announce that as of April 1st we are being featured in Target Circle! This wonderful opportunity enables us to contribute significant funds to our agency and promises to continue to help us to make a difference in our community.
Here is how you can help:
Step1: Choose "My Target" in the Target app or "Account" on Target.com
Step2: Tap: "Cast votes"
Step3: Find & vote
It's that simple!
The voting period runs from April 1st through June 30th. You can vote as many times as you like through the voting period. Your support for our mission to helping the homeless youth in our community is so greatly appreciated. Working together we can make our goal and create positive impact and change lives. Thank you for your support!
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Thank you Glen Kelly Realty!
"Get ready to strike out homelessness at a charity bowling benefit on May 17th at 2 PM, held at Playdrome Bowling Center ~ Toms River in Toms River NJ! This fun-filled event supports Ocean's Harbor House, a local organization dedicated to providing shelter, support, and essential services to homeless youth in our community. By joining us for an afternoon of bowling, you'll help Ocean's Harbor House continue its vital work in offering a safe haven and brighter future for kids in need."
Glen Kelly, CEO & Founder at Glen Kelly Real Estate, LLC
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From The Desk of Alice Woods
Executive Director March 2020 - March 2025
“It is with a mix of emotions that I announce my decision to step down as Executive Director of Ocean’s Harbor House,” said Woods in her farewell message to the community. “This was a difficult choice, but one I believe is in the best interest of both myself and the organization. I am excited to utilize my vast experiences here to pursue a wonderful new opportunity within a housing and economic development initiative in Atlantic City.”
During her tenure, Woods advanced the mission of OHH by elevating awareness of the challenges faced by children and youth in crisis, strengthening coalition-building efforts, and enhancing the agency’s Transitional Living Program. “We have created career and educational pathways, reducing the levels of repeated homelessness for young people while providing them with stable housing options and bright futures,” Woods reflected.“The strength of OHH lies in the dedicated staff and board members, passionate volunteers, and unwavering support from our community partners. I am confident that this organization will continue to thrive under new leadership with an even sharper focus and clear direction.”
Thank you, Alice, for your years of hard work and dedication to the youth and staff of Ocean's Harbor House!
| | | Ocean's Harbor House, Inc. | www.oceansharborhouse.org | | | | | |
