Local comedian Kevin Israel will host a comedy benefit at Park East Restaurant, 3352 State Route 35 in Hazlet, at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 13, to help The FoodBank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties.
The FoodBank has been operational since the day after Super Storm Sandy, providing more than 33,000 meals in the first four days after the storm, when most other member pantries and agencies were unable to provide assistance due to power outages or flooding. Since the storm struck, The FoodBank has distributed food for more than 1 million meals, including hot meals prepared in the organization’s kitchen, military rations (MREs), shelf stable food, disaster boxes, and fresh and frozen items for organizations cooking for victims and rescue workers.
“I grew up in Monmouth County and I live here now, this storm really affected everyone but we all came together so quickly to help one another,” said Israel who has been performing stand up for over 12 years. “I’ve worked with The FoodBank in other capacities and I know how much immediate good they do. This benefit will help them continue to assist those who need it the most in the coming months.
“Everyone could use a laugh after the past few weeks and we’ve assembled an incredible group of comics. As soon as I approached Park East with the idea of a comedy benefit show, the folks there were immediately receptive,” Israel said. “We have Robin Fox from NickMom Night Out, Chris Covert who recently performed with Artie Lange at the Count Basie Theatre and Joseph Anthony, a finalist on TV’s Last Comic Standing. These are all Jersey comics and they’re all donating their time for this show.”
Tickets are $25. Reservations and additional information are available by calling (732) 739-2002 or contacting Israel at kevinisrael@ gmail.com.
