Funding Announced For Senior Center Kitchen in Galloway Township

About a week after the biggest dance the Galloway Township Senior Center has staged to date, the Atlantic County Board of Chosen Freeholders announced funding for a new kitchen at the center on Tuesday, April 16.

The freeholders announced $53,600 in Community Bank Development Block Grant.

"It has long been my contention that Galloway Township should have a County Nutrition Site," Fourth District Freeholder Rich Dase announced in a release issued Tuesday night.  "It is something I have been working on and another reason I am seeking re-election in November.  Galloway residents currently either go to Egg Harbor City or Absecon.  This may be convenient for residents who live close to the borders of these towns, however I think it's a shame that a municipality as large as Galloway does not have a Nutrition Site of its own.”

Dase, a Republican, is running against Democrat Brandi Endicott in November.

The senior center opened without a kitchen in June of 2012. The senior center has played host to several events since then, including a dance on April 10 that resident Anna Jezycki described as "the most successful" the center has had.

Photos from that event are included with this story.

However, seniors have wondered about the addition of a kitchen to the former VFW building. Dase recommended the community seek funds through the Atlantic County Improvement Authority.

“I told the Township that if they made this a funding priority, a requirement of the CDBG process, I would follow it closely and do everything I could to assist," Dase said. "I am happy to announce today that Galloway seniors are much closer to having a full-fledged senior center with a County Nutrition Site and services available to help seniors with taxes, Low Income Heating Assistance Program applications, and any other issues with which seniors may need assistance.”