Belleville Biz Owner Boosts Town With Huge Donation Of COVID Gear

BELLEVILLE, NJ — A business owner in Belleville donated nearly 60,000 face masks and 1,500 bottles of hand sanitizer to township workers, a move that local officials are calling exceedingly “generous.”

The donation was made by Richard Park, who owns Art Movement, a logistics shipping and storage business. According to a statement from town officials, it was so large – 30 boxes of masks and 72 boxes of sanitizer – that it took workers several hours to unload.

Police Capt. Frank Pignataro said the supplies will be distributed among the police and fire departments, the department of public works and other municipal workers. Some of it will also be made available to various personnel throughout Town Hall and in the municipal court.

The rest of the hand sanitizer and masks will be stored in the police department to replenish the other departments when supplies get low.

Even though the cases of COVID-19 continues to drop in Belleville and other parts of the state as supplies of the vaccine continue to become more readily available, Pignataro said many of Belleville’s employees will likely be using this type of protective gear for “some time to come.”

• See related article: Belleville, Nutley COVID Updates (Vaccine, Case, Death Totals)

“This generous donation will certainly be used by our workers,” Pignataro said. “Our police, fire and EMS personnel continue to respond to medical emergencies on a daily basis. There’s a very real chance that the people we encounter on these calls could have COVID-19. So, wearing a mask and sanitizing our hands has been an important part of how we go about our jobs.”

Park’s donation – like those big and small made by many residents and business owners since the pandemic began in New Jersey in March 2020 – have touched the hearts of Belleville’s municipal workers, officials said.

“How wonderful is it that Mr. Park and others have been so thoughtful and sought ways to take care of our police and fire personnel and other first responders throughout the COVID-19 pandemic,” Mayor Michael Melham said.

“I’m sure no one appreciates it more than our first responders,” Melham added. “This will help keep them safe while they are working to keep us safe.”

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