When it comes to rockers, few have hearts as big as that of Jon Bon Jovi. He operates community kitchens that serve as restaurants for providing free meals to people who are homeless and can’t afford a hot meal. In 2016, the rocker started the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation at the same time that the star and his wife started to fight against poverty and homelessness. They opened their first restaurant in 2011 and if you ever visit, you will see that there are no prices on the menus. This is because these meals are free to people who need a hot meal and can’t afford it.
For the most part, customers at the restaurant are homeless people or people who are experiencing food insecurity. However, anyone can visit, and if you can afford it, the restaurant suggests a donation of $20 to help pay it forward. The first restaurant is located in Red Bank, New Jersey, and the second one opened in 2016 in Toms River, New Jersey. However, the third one opened this year on the grounds of the famous Rutgers University. In an interview with NBC Nightly News, Bon Jovi explained that they chose the third location because they realized that college kids are often hungry.
To him, this seemed like a logical progression and the university embraced the idea. The singer and his wife, Dorothea, said that people have this romanticized idea of the “starving student,” but if you’re that student, it’s not very romantic. Having been one of those students (not at Rutgers, I can tell you that it’s absolutely not romantic!). On the Soul Kitchen website, it says that the meals served are 54% funded by donations and the rest is funded by volunteer work.
For people who volunteer, the foundation offers life coaching, professional job coaching, legal advice, and financial coaching. Jon Bon Jovi is an American legend.