Basket of Caring

The United Way of Hunterdon County recently collaborated with Merck & Co., Inc. to gather 105 baskets filled with back-to-school items for kids, home necessities for parents and seniors and various other items for the annual Basket of Caring program.

Basket of Caring is an annual project coordinated by the United Way offering Merck employees an opportunity to contribute to those in need in Hunterdon County.

The United Way works with their 27 partner agencies to discern specific needs and then in turn works with the Basket of Caring Committee at Merck & Co. Inc. to meet those needs. This year, 13 agencies assessed individual needs and then worked with the United Way of Hunterdon County to pass that information along to the Merck Basket of Caring Committee.

The committee includes Merck & Co., Inc. volunteers who solicit donations to the baskets from within the company. The Basket of Caring committee is chaired by Merck employees Judi Sifuentes, Kristen Slattery and Barbara Zeh, an 11 year veteran of this project.
“I was impressed by the generosity of the employees of Merck once again this year. The program couldn’t happen without their support,” Sifuentes said.

Agencies that received baskets included: the Arc of Hunterdon County, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Hunterdon & Somerset Counties, Briteside I, Briteside II, Catholic Charities, Fisherman’s Mark, Hunterdon Helpline’s Translation Center, Hunterdon Hospice, Interfaith Hospitality Network, Meals on Wheels, NORWESCAP Food Bank, Visiting Health and Supportive Services and Women’s Crisis Services.
“[Merck] employees recognize this as a great opportunity to help others in the local community. And, they have responded overwhelmingly every year by filling all the basket requests,” said Zeh.

This was Slattery’s first year involved in the project. “I am amazed at the generosity of my co-workers here at Merck! I’m so glad that we, as individuals AND as a company are able to contribute to such a worthy cause,” she said.

The United Way of Hunterdon County is thankful to Judi Sifuentes, Kristen Slattery and Barbara Zeh, the Basket of Caring committee and all Merck employees who participated in the 2006 Basket of Caring program. According to Heather Holland, Community Resources Manager of the United Way, this project would not be possible without the enthusiasm and support of the entire Basket of Caring committee as well as the Merck & Co., Inc. mail room staff, special thanks to John Giordano and Denise Schroeder.

Basket of Caring has been an on-going project with Merck & Co. Inc. and the United Way of Hunterdon County for more than 10 years. Zeh commented that during her 11 years as the coordinator, she has watched interest grow resulting in the dispersal of more than 1,300 baskets over the years.