UNION, NJ — Local business owner Samuel Casternovia will be delivering holiday meals right before Christmas, as he has done for decades.
“My father has been working in and serving the Union community for over 45 years,” said Samantha Casternovia, his daughter, on Wednesday, Nov. 18. “He owns real estate in the area now and has previously owned a variety of different small, retail businesses. Our most recent family business is Statement Barbershop at 1560 Route 22 E. in Union. We have a manager who runs it. My dad is the owner, and I help him with the day-to-day in the office.”
The Casternovia family has targeted Sunday, Dec. 20, as the big day of giving.
“On Dec. 20, we will be doing our annual holiday basket giveaway,” Samantha Casternovia said. “For more than 45 years, the weekend before Christmas, my father gathers our family and friends to pack holiday meals up in boxes and deliver them to families in need in the area.”
The Casternovias work with local supermarkets to purchase all the items for the meal boxes.
“Every box gets a 12- to 15-pound frozen turkey, which is just enough to thaw in the fridge; two cans of corn, green beans, a can of yams, a box of stuffing, a bottle of juice, a box of mashed potatoes, a can of cranberry sauce, rolls and a tin of cookies,” Samantha Casternovia said. “It’s everything you need to make a full holiday dinner for your family, even if times are tough. The meals are 100 percent free to the people receiving them. My parents pay for the food, and it is boxed up by friends and family and is delivered.”
The giveaway date will be devoted to boxing and delivering the holiday meals.
“On Sunday, Dec. 20, we will not be opening the shop, but instead, we will be packaging up the meals with about 10 friends and family members in the parking lot, and then additional families will drive up to have their cars loaded to deliver the meals to people’s porches. Usually, we would have about 30 loved ones, all helping us pack the boxes, and then we would all deliver them, but this year that is not possible, and we want to be sure we execute this as safely as possible, while still helping as many people as we can.
“We do not cook the food,” she continued. “We deliver all the main items they would need to make their own meal. This is best, because then they can cook it whenever they expect their family, and this year, it is also a lot safer.”
Samuel Casternovia is a Santa Claus of sorts, delivering holiday cheer in the form of food to those who need it the most.
“We deliver to individuals in the community, as well as some retirement communities and a local church,” Samantha Casternovia said. “Most of them go to Union. Occasionally there are some delivered to Kenilworth.
“Usually, we bring them into the home and even put the turkey in the freezer for people who may not be able to lift it on their own. But this year, we will be leaving them on their porches after a quick, distant hello and happy holidays.”
Samantha Casternovia explained that helping others has always been extremely important to her parents.
“My father recounts in Chapter 12 of his book, ‘Coming Back,’ how he and my mother were coping with very troubled times when he was dealing with cancer and subsequent financial problems, spending their last few thousand dollars to fund this yearly tradition.
“He also talks about a woman that received a turkey basket who needed help with her mortgage. My father jumped in with both feet, and, after a 12-month battle, she had her mortgage forgiven. As life would have it, what my father learned reaching out to this woman in need has changed his life forever. He has always been the kind of man who goes above and beyond for even strangers.”
Her father has been doing this for 45 years; some years they delivered 45 boxes, she said, but others they delivered more than 150. “There are some people we see multiple years in a row, but some people just need a little help one year around the holidays, and we are happy to give that to them. The holidays are such a special time for family, and even with everything going on in the world, being able to sit down and share a holiday dinner in your home with your loved ones is something we think everyone deserves to enjoy.
“It may be even more important this year than years before. With the pandemic affecting so many people and so many jobs, we expect this year to be one of our larger deliveries. Buying a Christmas dinner for your household can be an expensive undertaking, and we want to be here to ease some of that burden around the holidays. I’m 26 years old, and I can’t remember a holiday season without delivering Christmas baskets. When I was younger, my mom would drive my friends and me around, delivering meals, and we would sing Christmas carols to families.
“I think this year is especially important, because there will be families who usually don’t contact us that might need a little extra help this year. There also may be people who usually go to a food bank or other service who don’t feel comfortable leaving their house this year,” she added.
Opening a barbershop during a pandemic has been formidable.
“The largest challenge we’ve faced opening our barbershop during the pandemic is letting people know how safe we are in response to COVID-19,” Samantha Casternovia said. “We have gone far beyond the COVID guidelines of temperature checks and proper PPE; we also have UV lights in our towel warmers, vinyl dividers hanging from the ceilings between each station, UV air purifiers and up to 10 feet between stations.
“We understand why people are hesitant to get a haircut. These are hard times, but we want them to know we are a barbershop not only focused on luxury services, but our No. 1 priority is the safety of our clients and we would love to have them visit us. Being a new facility, we designed our barbershop with social distancing in mind.”
Opening a business during the COVID-19 pandemic is hardly the first challenge Samuel Casternovia has come up against, according to his daughter.
“My father has had multiple cancers and bone diseases and suffered health problems most of his life,” she said. “However, he is a highly disciplined person, exercises regularly, takes supplements and watches his diet. While he is in his 70s, he is still working 10 plus hours, six days a week. His work is one of his greatest joys.”
His family is proud that, despite his health challenges, Samuel Casternovia is able to pull this project together every year.
“I’ve known Sam for almost 30 years,” Robin Weidman, his sister-in-law, said on Thursday, Nov. 19. “Helping deliver the holiday meals has become a very important holiday tradition that my husband, my two sons and I look forward to every year. All of the extended family and friends get together the Sunday morning prior to Christmas to pack up the meal boxes. After a local pastor stops by to offer a prayer for all of us and the families that we are helping, each group gets a list of people in need to whom we deliver the boxes.
“Sam works hard for weeks, gathering the names of families and mapping out the specific routes that each group will take. We all work that morning, but he works for many weeks to make everything go smoothly and to help as many people as possible.”
For Weidman, giving back to the community is humbling.
“Sometimes it is a single mom or sometimes an elderly man or woman. Sometimes there are tears and, often, a lot of hugs. I’m sure things are going to be very different this year, because of COVID,” Weidman said.
“A good lesson that my kids have learned through the years is that a family’s situation is not always what it looks like,” she continued. “You may drive up to a nice house with nice cars in the driveway, but you don’t know what people are going through. They may be losing their home, they may be out of work, have lost a family member or have been sick, and the food we are delivering may be the only way that they would be having a holiday meal this year.
“I am so grateful to Sam and Lynne for allowing my family to be a part of this for so many years. The great part of this tradition is that all of the cousins have been participating since they have been born and will certainly continue the tradition going forward.”
Samuel Casternovia says his delivery of food sends a message to the recipients.
“I started this many years ago. It’s not so much thinking about the food substance of the gift but the message,” he said on Wednesday, Nov. 25. “I wanted to remind people that they are not alone. I wanted them to feel the gift of friendship, the gift of humanity reaching into their homes and hearts from those they do not know. Today, it is more important than ever to reach out. Between the daily minute-to-minute bombardment of COVID information and restrictions on opportunities, it is tough for all of us to take a deep breath.”
Photos Courtesy of Samantha Casternovia