Ruth Perez, co-founder of Movimiento Tricolor, is dedicated to empowering Latinx business owners and residents in South Jersey and has transformed her community through doing so. 🥦 #HispanicHeritageMonth #MakingADifference #LatinxLeadership #NewJersey

This Hunger Action Month, we celebrate Tanya & Matthew Veltz, 2022 Russ Berrie Making a Difference Award Honorees and founders of Tree House Cares. 🍎 ⭐ Read this month's blog feature on Tanya, Matthew, & Tree House Cares at bit.ly/VeltzBlog.

A passion for gardening led Gary Oppenheimer to create @ampleharvest, a groundbreaking technology-based solution to fighting hunger. 🫛 Read this month's blog feature on Gary & AmpleHarvest at loom.ly/K5iyJ_c.

Imagine having to choose between buying diapers or paying rent 🧷 For thousands of New Jersey families, this is a harsh reality. That’s where Bridget Cutler and Moms Helping Moms steps in. #DiaperNeedAwareness #MakingADifference #RussBerrieAward #NewJersey

As #NationalRecoveryMonth comes to a close, we celebrate the incredible work of Lisa Gladwell and Lynn Regan—two Russ Berrie MADA Honorees whose dedication to recovery has transformed countless lives through NJ Recovery Advocates and HealingUs Communities, respectively.

The Clementis turned their grief into action, founding the Tyler Clementi Foundation to prevent online and offline bullying, for which they were awarded a 2016 Russ Berrie Making a Difference Award. Learn more Tyler Clementi Foundation. #StopBullying #AntiBullyingMonth #NewJersey

"Coming out is an act of bravery, but it’s also an act of self-love,” says Robt Martin Seda-Schreiber, a 2019 Russ Berrie Making a Difference Honoree. 🏳️‍🌈 As founder of the Bayard Rustin Center for Social Justice, Robt has spent decades building safe spaces for LGBTQIA youth, families, and elders.

Russ Berrie MADA Honoree, Carol Dvoor, founded Safe Harbor Child Access Centers to create a trauma-informed space for families experiencing separation and divorce. 🛟 We're honored to shed a special light on Carol and Safe Harbor during #DomesticViolenceAwarenessMonth.

Together with the New Jersey community, we mourn the loss of Kathleen DiChiara, a 2005 Russ Berrie Making a Difference Award honoree and the founder of Community FoodBank of New Jersey. Kathleen pioneered food security solutions that shaped how food banks operate across the nation. 📸: CFBNJ Social Media

For National Book Month, we celebrate Larry Abrams, a 2021 Russ Berrie Making a Difference Award honoree and the founder of @booksmilesnj. 📖 Larry has dedicated his life to ending "book deserts" and ensuring that underserved children have access to books.

We honor the legacy of James Credle, a lifelong advocate who led with courage and compassion. 🏳️‍🌈 From his early days at Rutgers-Newark, where he stood up for racial justice, to his role as a co-founder of the Newark Pride Alliance, James spent decades fighting for equality.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, Regina Coyle transformed St. Margaret of Cortona’s Parish Hall into a lifeline for her neighbors, providing shelter, food, & essential supplies. 🌊 When the shelter flooded, she led evacuations by boat and organized aid for 250-300 residents.

In memory of Deacon Ray Chimileski, a man who saw a need and answered with unwavering compassion. 💙 Ray, founder of Operation Chillout and a 2008 Honoree, died Monday, October 28th. He dedicated his life to helping homeless veterans & those struggling through the coldest months.

Voting is a powerful way each of us can drive positive change, just as our honorees do in their communities every day. 🗳️ Make change in your own way today by exercising your right to vote! #ElectionDay #Vote #Changemakers #NJ

Over a decade ago, Dr. Norma Bowe founded @bethechangenj at Kean University, a volunteer community service and activist organization addressing social justice issues in NJ and beyond. 🥦As a 2023 Russ Berrie Making a Difference Award Honoree, Norma’s impact is felt statewide.

As we commemorate Kristallnacht, we also honor Maud Dahme, a Holocaust survivor and lifelong advocate for Holocaust education. 📚 The “Night of Broken Glass,” was an attack on Jewish communities across Nazi Germany in 1938, marking a dark escalation in the persecution of Jews.

Today, we thank all our veterans for their service to our country 💙 We honor your sacrifices and express our deepest gratitude for all you’ve given. #VeteransDay #Changemakers #NewJersey #MakingADifference

These remarkable foster and adoptive parents opened their hearts and homes to hundreds of children across New Jersey: ⭐ Linda Yolman⭐ Beverly Turner ⭐ Phyllis DiNardi ⭐ Janet Farrand ⭐ Pat Chisholm ⭐ Patricia & Raymon Dansen

A 2021 Russ Berrie Making a Difference Award Honoree, Paul created the Homeless Resource Guide to connect people in Bergen County with free resources for housing, mental health, addiction, and more. 💡 Learn more about his advocacy and resources at hrgmediaorg.wordpress.com.

Know someone in New Jersey who embodies this spirit of change? Nominations for our 2025 Awards are now open! ⭐ Nominate a changemaker at russberriemakingadifferenceaward.org. by February 7!⭐ loom.ly/8zxUd_g #SouthJersey #NewJersey