Courier Post, Jan. 24, 2017 – Written By Tammy Paolino

Hosting a Super Bowl party?

Well, you need awesome snacks, of course. I am partial to those mini pretzels dipped in melted cheese mixed with the local craft beer of your choice.

I’m also in favor of Super Bowl parties that also fight hunger.

After all, the Super Bowl is a big, huge event with bazillion dollar commercials and, home on  the couch, an impressive spread of food.

And this year, a Lady Gaga halftime show.

Enjoy all of it. And consider also inviting your favorite football fans to join you to fight hunger in South Jersey at the same time.

The Food Bank of South Jersey has launched a Super Bowl-inspired initiative to tackle hunger by encouraging football fans to host a “Souper Bowl Party” — meaning mini food drives or fundraisers to benefit the Pennauken-based food bank. The Food Bank of South Jersey supplies food pantries, shelters and soup kitchens in four counties — Camden, Burlington, Gloucester and Salem.

By hosting a Souper Bowl Party, South Jersey hosts and their friends can help the 200,000 South Jersey residents who are may not know where their next meal is coming from. That adds up to 57,000 children and 20,000 seniors who rely on the Food Bank.

Participants are asked to register their Souper Bowl Party as a #KickOffForKindess Watch Party through Born This Way Foundation.

Born This Way Foundation — co-founded by Lady Gaga and her mother, Cynthia Germanotta — has launched #KickOffForKindess to encourage fans to participate in acts of kindness (such as hosting a food drive) during the Super Bowl.

Hosts can go to BornThisWay.Foundation/Kickoff and share how they included kindness at their party for a chance to receive tickets to an upcoming Lady Gaga show.  To be eligible, party hosts must register their event by midnight on Tuesday, Feb. 7.

In addition, the Food Bank will give one Souper Bowl Party Host a $50 gift card. According to the Food Bank, hosts can register by snapping a photo or sharing a video of their party to FBSJ’s social media sites and tagging @foodbanksj and hash-tagging #tacklehunger. The winner will be chosen at random, they say.

“These simple acts of kindness are what fuel the stability and growth of our organization,” says President and CEO Val Traore, who has directed the non-profit organization since 2006, in announcing the program. “Without the support of our community who so generously donate their time, resources, and portions of their hard-earned paychecks we would not be able to provide for the thousands of hungry people fighting for a better life in South Jersey.”

“Our organization was founded on the belief that kindness has the power to change the world,” says Maya Enista Smith, executive director of Born This Way Foundation, in a statement. “We started #KickOffForKindness because we want to make the biggest game day of the year one of the kindest days of the year. Hosting a Souper Bowl Celebration to benefit the Food Bank of South Jersey is one wonderful way to do that.”

To learn more about FBSJ’s Souper Bowl Celebration campaign, visit www.foodbanksj.org/souperbowl