Jackson can always be counted on for help

If there is one thing that can be said about Jackson residents as a group, it is this: their generosity does not appear to know any limits.

Over the years we have observed time and time again how residents of this community have rallied to help friends and neighbors in need.

Whether it is monetary support for the parents of a sick child who have to contend with travel expenses and medical bills; or supplies for the wife and children of an armed forces member who is serving overseas; or food for the hungry who cannot afford a holiday meal, the residents of Jackson have come through.

It is amazing to see and satisfying to report.

And now, once again, the residents of Jackson are being asked to come through for their neighbors.

An Aug. 29 fire that occurred in the township's code enforcement office and caused a great deal of damage to equipment resulted in smoke damage in the adjacent Jackson Food Pantry. Fire officials told the operators of the food pantry, the Jackson Women of Today, that all of the food that was stored in the building had to be discarded.

Just looking at a photograph of the food pantry's well-stocked shelves and realizing all of that food had to be thrown away was heartbreaking.

The order to get rid of that food had to be devastating to the people who had worked so hard to collect it and to everyone who had made a donation to the food pantry.

While municipal officials will now help to set up the mechanisms by which the food pantry will be restocked, it is Jackson's residents, business operators and, we hope, residents from neighboring towns who will deliver the goods.

Given the generous nature of the people who live and work in Jackson, it will not surprise us to see the food pantry restocked in the near future. We look forward to reporting on that accomplishment.