Debra Fox found her second calling at CFBNJ.
“I started volunteering at the FoodBank during COVID with Women Fighting Hunger,” Debra shared. “It was just a few shifts here and there, but it opened my eyes to how critical CFBNJ’s work is. I couldn’t help but think, ‘How can I do more?’”
Debra, who has spent her professional life in healthcare leadership, soon found the perfect opportunity to deepen her involvement.
“I was approached about joining the CFBNJ Egg Harbor Township Advisory Board, and I immediately said yes,” she explained. “Hunger has always been an issue I care about, especially childhood hunger. I wanted to be part of something that was making a real difference in people’s lives.”
From that moment, Debra threw herself into the mission, combining her strategic planning skills with her desire to serve.
“I’ve been a healthcare strategist for years, so when I joined CFBNJ, I naturally started looking at how we could plan for the future.”
Deb’s professional world and her work at CFBNJ often intersect, particularly in addressing the relationship between food and health.
“Food insecurity and health are so connected,” she said. “How can you treat a patient’s chronic disease if they don’t know where their next meal is coming from? You can’t tell someone to eat healthy if they don’t have access to nutritious food.”
Reflecting on one of her most impactful moments, Debra recalled working directly in a food distribution line.
“You see families coming through, people of all ages and backgrounds, and you realize hunger doesn’t discriminate. It can happen to anyone, anywhere, at any time,” she said.
Looking ahead, Debra is focused on continuing to strengthen CFBNJ’s efforts to address hunger’s root causes.
“We’re doing amazing work to feed people, but we need to keep asking ourselves, ‘What’s next?’ How do we create sustainable change so fewer families have to rely on food banks in the future?”
For Debra Fox, her work with CFBNJ is about more than food, it’s about creating hope and opportunity.