FREEHOLD – On May 17, longtime Freehold Borough residents Ron Griffiths and Jeff Friedman will be honored with the John G. McGackin Renaissance Award at the annual
Mayor’s Recognition Reception.
Both men, along with the Freehold Clergy Association, have been selected by a committee of former McGackin Award recipients and will be honored at the Freehold Knights of Columbus Hall.
Griffiths and Friedman have a long history of volunteerism in their town, while the Freehold Clergy Association has been cited for its years of working together to promote social
justice, tolerance and a genuine love of mankind, according to a press release.
Griffiths, a lifelong resident, was a founding member and is the current president of the Hudson Manor senior citizen complex. He will receive the Volunteer McGackin Renaissance Award.
As a former president of the Freehold Borough Recreation Commission and under Griffiths’ leadership, the growth of the program as the first of its kind in the greater Freehold area soon became the best in the area, according to the press release.
Griffiths served as a 20-year veteran of the Freehold Fire Department Engine Company No. 1. He is a former councilman and served as a representative to the Monmouth County Office on Aging.
Friedman was a founding member and is the current president of the Freehold
Borough Arts Council. He has supported the growth of cultural programs in the community and will receive the Business McGackin Renaissance Award.
Friedman’s work for the borough includes the creation of the Freehold St. Patrick’s Day Parade, the Sunday Jazz and Blues Concerts, the Holiday Arts and Crafts Show, Jazz Camp and the Memorial Day High School Jazz Concert, according to the press release.
The Freehold Clergy Association, a group of interfaith clergy, works to spread the message of coming together as one for the greater good. These men and women serve individuals in need throughout the area, according to the press release.
The association promotes youth and adult programs with initiatives such as Rise Against Hunger, Blessing Bag Brigades and others. The members of the association offer a united voice in response to social injustice and tragedies, according to the press release.
