Robert Bildner met Kathleen DiChiara early in the Community FoodBank of New Jersey’s history, shortly after it moved from the back of her station wagon to its first building in Newark. Robert, a lawyer who founded RLB Food Distributors, a perishable food distributor and food manufacturer, quickly became a key supporter and advocate for the CFBNJ. He leveraged his professional network to bring in donors, board members, financial advisors, and industry experts to assist Kathleen. They included his friends, former CFBNJ treasurer Neil Raynor, former Board President Richard Brody, and Josh Weston, former CEO of ADP.
“Kathleen got to know my father, who owned Kings Food Markets, and Dad became a big proponent of the FoodBank in the retail industry. My company, RLB Food Distributors became a significant donor to the FoodBank, providing produce that couldn’t be sold but was still perfectly good.”
Bildner’s commitment to service stems from his early career as a public interest lawyer. This expanded into deep involvement as a member of CFBNJ’s Board of Directors for 23 years, with Robert eventually serving as Board President in the early 1980s.
“With my legal skills, business background, and connections in the food industry, I knew I could help Kathleen grow the FoodBank into something much bigger,” he shared.
Over the years, Robert played a significant role in shaping CFBNJ’s operations, scaling up distribution efforts, building relationships with companies to increase food and financial donations, and helping the organization as it moved to bigger and bigger locations.
“Kathleen always inspired me,” Robert said. “We worked together from the beginning, moving from two cramped warehouses to the large facility in Hillside.”
The bold move to its current home in Hillside was a pivotal moment for the FoodBank. Initially skeptical of the massive space, Robert remembers telling Kathleen, “Kathleen, this is insane. This place is way too big, and we’ll never fill it up.”
But Kathleen was steadfast. “She looked at me and said, ‘We’ll fill it up. We have to do this.’ And, of course, she was right,” he recalled with a smile.
In 1999, when the facility expanded to include a commercial kitchen, Robert and his family made the effort possible. “We donated the funds to build the commissary kitchen at the FoodBank because we knew prepared meals were essential for soup kitchens and feeding programs,” he said.
Robert admired Kathleen’s unwavering belief in the goodness of people, particularly in hiring individuals in need of a second chance. “Her compassion is what made CFBNJ not just a food provider but a community-centered organization that uplifts those it serves,” he said, “She gave jobs to ex-offenders and people struggling with addiction. She never stopped believing in the good in people,”
Robert’s time with CFBNJ was a defining part of his life.
“It wasn’t just a board position — it became a part of our family culture. My kids grew up volunteering, and we always believed in giving back,” he reflected.
Still today, Robert continues to champion the FoodBank’s mission, with hopes that the next generation of leaders and professionals will take up the mantle and work towards a better future.
“The ultimate goal is to make food banks obsolete. We shouldn’t have to rely on emergency food assistance in a world where there is more than enough to go around,” Robert said.