Federal employees who have not been paid during the partial government shutdown were offered a free lunch Monday by rock star Jon Bon Jovi and his wife Dorothea Bongiovi at the couple’s restaurant in New Jersey.
The eatery, JBJ Soul Kitchen partnered with the family foundation of New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy and his wife Tammy Murphy and fed more than 70 people on Monday hit by the shutdown at the Red Bank location.
“Our thoughts for today was just to see what the community needed, and we will try to address them with whatever resources they might need,” Bongiovi told NJ.com.
“We hope that people use this as a resource, and if that’s not today, we’re here five days a week,” she said.
The restaurant, which functions through volunteers and donations, is usually not open on Mondays during lunch hours. But JBJ Soul Kitchen announced Saturday that lunch would be open for federal workers at the start of the week.
“Since founding the Soul Kitchen, we wanted to ensure that anyone struggling with food insecurity had a place to go,” said Bongiovi and Bon Jovi in a statement Saturday.
“This Monday, we will be open for lunch as a way to create a place of support and resources for furloughed federal workers, many of whom are our friends and neighbors,” the statement said. “We are thrilled to work together with Phil and Tammy Murphy on this endeavor, and this Monday we look forward to giving back in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.”
Another open lunch is scheduled for Wednesday at the couple’s second eatery in Toms River.
More than 800,000 federal workers are either furloughed or working without pay due to the partial shutdown, now in its 31st day, the longest government closure in U.S. history. The shutdown stems from a border wall funding dispute between President Trump and congressional Democrats. Trump has demanded that $5.7 billion for a wall be included in any spending package that reaches his desk. Democrats refuse to consider any such attachment.
