MARLBORO

Published in the Asbury Park Press 07/14/05

(STAFF PHOTO: FRANK GALIPO) Auction It NJ owners Steve (left) and Rich Cherin stand inside their business at 450 Union Hill Road in Marlboro with Project S.O.S. founders Harry and Andrea Mesh. The business is working with the philanthropic organization to collect donations to help U.S. servicemen and women.

- advertisements -

Steve and Rich Cherin, owners of Auction It NJ, said they often heard about the good works of Marlboro resident Andrea Mesh on behalf of U.S. soldiers.

Through her organization, Project Save Our Soldiers, Mesh has conducted drives to supply U.S. soldiers with everything from calling cards to rosaries, from toiletries to bedding.

She has provided local families of soldiers with toys and infant needs and even helped host Days of Beauty for wives and girlfriends of deployed soldiers.

So when the owners of the Marlboro eBay drop-off store recently were looking for a local charity to support, they called Mesh.

As a result of the discussions that followed, Auction It NJ is encouraging the public to donate new or used items for sale on eBay. Net proceeds from the sales will benefit Project S.O.S., said Rich Cherin, 40, of Marlboro.

"It just seemed like a good thing to get involved in that local people in our area would want to donate to," he said. "A lot of people know her and respect what she's doing, so we thought this could be very successful."

Steve Cherin, 36, of Manalapan said he believes the convenience of donating items through eBay will help raise more for soldiers than the typical fund-raiser.

The Cherins should know. Since 2003, the two have operated their eBay business, where the Auction It NJ team researches prices and photographs and posts items for sale on eBay and ships products to buyers for their customers.

Since the business's inception, the Auction It NJ team has conducted successful fund-raisers for the Holmdel Community Church and the youth group of Temple Shalom in Matawan, among other organizations, according to Steve Cherin.

"People are more willing to donate things that they're not using than money," he said. "People might donate $10, $15 in a typical drive, but when it's items from around the home they'll donate hundreds worth of good things, and they're happy to get rid of them."

Mesh said she hopes the drive will be successful, noting the funds may be used to continue S.O.S.'s support of outreach to veterans' homes, supplies for the wounded and personal-care items for troops in Afghanistan.

"I read once that prisoners in Guantanamo Bay were complaining about their treatment — they were given three square meals a day, had clean clothes and sheets," Mesh said.

"Meanwhile, our guys didn't have basic supplies like sand goggles, weren't changing clothes, weren't showering for days, were eating the ready-to-eat meals," Mesh said. "A lot of people were saying how bad it was and they wanted to help, so I started S.O.S."

The organization — supported by local churches, agencies and businesses, including the Marlboro Improvement and Cultural Fund and St. Gabriel's Roman Catholic Church-was founded in 2002, she said.

For Marlene Pedersen, 47, Manalapan, an Auction It NJ employee, the drive's success has personal significance. Pedersen's son, Alexander, 19, is in his second year as a cadet at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., she said.

"I know he could be in harm's way one day and he could be in a position that he would need support," she said. "I hope that the Andrea Meshes are still around then."

Those interested in participating in the fund-raiser, which will run through July, are encouraged to donate items valued at $30 or more.

Top-selling items on eBay include designer handbags, modern and vintage cameras, cell phones, musical instruments, home electronics and collectibles, the Cherins said.

A raffle of gift certificates from Cambridge Square businesses also will be held throughout the summer with proceeds to benefit Project S.O.S. Raffle tickets may be purchased at the store.

For more information, visit Auction It NJ at 450 Union Hill Road in the Cambridge Square plaza, visit the Web site at http://www.auctionitnj.com/, or call (732) 972-1443.

For more information about Project S.O.S., visit http://www.project-sos.com/. on the Web.

Alesha Williams: (732) 308-7756 or awilliams@app.com

Go Back | Subscribe to the Asbury Park Press