Secaucus Rotary Honors Member Who Helped Hackensack Staff

SECAUCUS, NJ — When times are tough, heroes emerge. We all know someone who's making a difference right now as we live through unprecedented times.

Here at Patch, we partnered with Ring to find local heroes. A member of the Secaucus Rotary Club has been honored:

Name: Forrest Elliott

Location: Secaucus

Hero's job: Volunteer, member of the Rotary Club of Secaucus

Reason for recognition: When the pandemic was at its worst in New Jersey, Forrest ran a campaign in his hometown of Wood-Ridge to deliver meals and desserts to feed the medical staff at Hackensack Meridian Health Hospital. This is the main campus in Hackensack, which was incredibly hard hit by coronavirus patients. Forrest and the Rotary did this for weeks, and supplied more than 800 meals to the staff at Hackensack during the worst weeks of the pandemic.

While Secaucus Rotary did not participate in that event, Secaucus Rotary did work with Hudson Regional Hospital here in town. Secaucus Rotary fed 175 doctors, nurses and staff, and installed two signs honoring these heroes working on the front lines. You can see the signs placed at the two entrances to Hudson Regional, so staff could see them while walking into work.

Forrest also does letter-writing campaigns to soldiers serving overseas and collects diapers for families of veterans and those who serve in our armed forces.

"The Rotary Club of Secaucus is very proud of Forrest for the things he does for our club, outside our club in his town and other areas, and especially his work with veterans," said Secaucus Rotary past president Rick Saltarelli. "He is a very giving, caring person and a great Rotarian."

Thank you, Forrest Elliot!