Lunch Break
Lunch Break is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Red Bank, New Jersey, that freely provides meals, groceries, clothing, housing assistance, and life skills training to individuals and families in need across Monmouth and Ocean Counties.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1983
- HeadquartersRed Bank, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Lunch Break does
Lunch Break is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1983 by Norma Todd in Red Bank, New Jersey, providing free food, clothing, housing assistance, life skills training, and health and wellness services to individuals and families experiencing economic hardship across Monmouth and Ocean Counties. Its core program portfolio comprises the Community Kitchen (serving 5,000+ meals monthly), Your Choice Pantry (distributing 3,600+ grocery bags monthly), Clara's Closet (providing clothing to 13,000+ individuals annually), and Family Promise of Monmouth County (housing entity offering shelter, prevention, diversion, stabilization, and case management following a 2022 merger). Supplemental programs include Life Skills (job readiness, GED prep, financial and computer literacy), Alliance for Student Success (youth mentoring and college/career prep), Health & Wellness, Womyn's Worth, a Mobile Community Garden Market, Project Citizen Gardener, Prom and Suit-Up drives, and Shower and Laundry Services — collectively forming a wraparound delivery model at a single renovated Red Bank headquarters that opened in 2024, with a satellite clothing site at Brookdale Community College.
The organization operates on a donation-based revenue model with no fees charged to beneficiaries. Funding streams include monetary donations (online via Donorbox, wire, stock, cash, and check), recurring monthly donors, in-kind food and clothing contributions, planned giving and bequests, corporate matching gifts, and grants. Ancillary revenue is generated through facility rental of its dining room (capacity 140), commercial kitchen, executive conference room, training spaces, and wellness room, plus a Shopify-powered online merchandise store. Service delivery is community-led, supported by a 30+ person staff and over 2,350 volunteers, and amplified by third-party fundraisers (poker runs, trivia nights) and a 2026 partnership with the Albertsons Companies Foundation for the national Nourish the American Dream campaign.
Lunch Break holds the Platinum Seal of Transparency from Candid (GuideStar) in 2024, 2025, and 2026, and is governed by a Board of Trustees (21+ members) and led by President & CEO Gwendolyn Love. The organization does not operate proprietary technology platforms; core workflows run on commodity nonprofit software (Volgistics, Donorbox, Constant Contact, Shopify). Revenue figures are not publicly disclosed in the available source materials.
Lunch Break firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Lunch Break
- Legal name
- Lunch Break
- Website
- https://lunchbreak.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1983
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Lunch Break is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Red Bank, New Jersey, that freely provides meals, groceries, clothing, housing assistance, and life skills training to individuals and families in need across Monmouth and Ocean Counties.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Lunch Break industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Community Social Services
- NAICS
- Community Food Services (62421), Community Food Services (624210)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating Places (5812)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Meals, Nutrition & Congregate Dining Day Programs (HSABANAM)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Meal Preparation & Nutrition Support (Non-Medical) (HSABAAAC)
Keywords
Where Lunch Break is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Red Bank
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Lunch Break business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Monetary Donations: Lunch Break accepts monetary donations via online (Donorbox), wire transfers, stock donations, cash, and checks. Monthly recurring donors provide sustainable funding. Donations are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law.
- Donated Food & Supplies: The organization receives donated food, clothing, and general items from the community, which are then distributed to those in need. This in-kind donations model supports their core service delivery.
- Facility Rental: Lunch Break rents out its facility spaces including dining room (capacity 140), commercial kitchen (capacity 45), executive conference room (capacity 46), training spaces, and health and wellness room for meetings, events, and seminars. Catering services available.
- Planned Giving & Estate Gifts: The organization accepts planned giving arrangements, bequests, and qualified charitable distributions (QCDs) from IRAs, providing long-term revenue streams and legacy donations.
- Matching Gifts & Corporate Giving: Corporate employers match employee donations, and businesses engage through sponsorships, third-party events, and employee volunteer programs.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Other | Free services for individuals and families in need |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Facility rental pricing available upon inquiry |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
Lunch Break product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Lunch Break is a community-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers free food, clothing, housing, life skills, and supportive services to individuals and families in need across Monmouth County, New Jersey. Its core offerings include daily hot meals through the Community Kitchen, client-choice groceries via Your Choice Pantry, free clothing through Clara's Closet, housing and case management through Family Promise of Monmouth County, and life skills and youth development programs.
Product overview
Lunch Break is a community-based nonprofit organization offering a comprehensive suite of social services to those in need in Monmouth County, New Jersey. The organization operates on a multi-service model consisting of core programs: Community Kitchen (providing daily hot meals), Your Choice Pantry (client-choice food pantry), and Clara's Closet (clothing boutique). Additional support services include Family Promise of Monmouth County (housing and case management), Life Skills (employment and education support), Alliance for Student Success (youth mentoring), Health & Wellness (yoga and wellness activities), Womyn's Worth (women's empowerment), Mobile Community Garden Market and Project Citizen Gardener (fresh produce access), Prom & Special Occasion Drive, Suit Up for Success, Shower and Laundry Services, and Facility Rental for community events. The organization also maintains an e-commerce store powered by Shopify. Services are provided regardless of age, with some programs targeted to specific populations.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Family Promise of Monmouth County: Housing entity of Lunch Break providing housing plus comprehensive services and case management designed to support families experiencing homelessness and housing instability.
- Clara's Closet
- Your Choice Pantry
- Alliance for Student Success
Products and services
- Community Kitchen
Quantifiable outcome
- 5,000+ meals served monthly (5.6% increase over 2024)
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Lunch Break
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Lunch Break technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Lunch Break partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Albertsons Companies FoundationcoreLunch Break is participating in the Nourish the American Dream national campaign (July 1-7, 2026), organized by Albertsons Companies Foundation's Nourishing Neighbors program. This multi-year movement aims to end childhood hunger, with a collective $5 million goal across participating organizations. Lunch Break joins other nonprofits nationwide in this initiative tied to America's 250th anniversary.
- Skinny Flowers Brewing CompanyminorPartnership for trivia night events. Skinny Flowers Brewing allows Lunch Break to host fundraising trivia nights at their venue, combining community entertainment with nonprofit support.
- Georgies BarminorLunch Break partnered with Georgies Bar for the 'Feeding Community Connection' event, a vibrant evening celebrating art, music and community engagement.
- Open Heart YogaminorPartnership for yoga classes held at Open Heart Yoga (The Anderson Building, 200 Monmouth St., 3rd Floor, Red Bank, NJ). Lunch Break promotes these wellness sessions as part of its health programming.
- Jester's Highway MCminorBeneficiary of the 7th Annual Poker Run organized by Jester's Highway MC. Lunch Break received funds along with other nonprofits including HABcore, Inc., Chapter 12 Veterans, Tunnel to Towers Foundation, and Autism Speaks.
- Food Bank of Monmouth and Ocean CountiescoreKey food bank partner providing support for food distribution operations. Listed as a Food Bank/Soup Kitchen Partner in Lunch Break's civic and community resource network.
- Brookdale Community CollegecoreClara's Closet satellite location operates at Brookdale Community College during Spring/Fall semesters, providing clothing assistance to students and the community. This partnership extends Lunch Break's reach to the college campus.
- Family PromisecoreFamily Promise of Monmouth County is the housing entity of Lunch Break, providing comprehensive services and case management for families experiencing homelessness. The organizations merged to strengthen housing support services.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights7 records
Lunch Break competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Family Promise (National): National housing/homelessness nonprofit whose Monmouth County affiliate merged into Lunch Break in 2022. Operates the same shelter, prevention, and diversion case-management model for families experiencing homelessness.
- Community FoodBank of New Jersey: Statewide food bank serving New Jersey pantries and meal programs — including via partnerships similar to Lunch Break's relationship with the regional food bank. Comparable food distribution and anti-hunger mission at scale.
- Food Bank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties: Lunch Break's named food bank partner operating in the same Monmouth/Ocean service area with overlapping food distribution, pantries, and food-insecurity programming. Directly comparable geography and mission.
Regional players
- Goodwill Industries of Greater New York and Northern New Jersey: Workforce development and clothing programs with comparable life-skills, job-readiness, and "Suit Up for Success"-style offerings. Serves similar low-income populations through a different funding mechanism (thrift retail).
- United Way of Monmouth and Ocean Counties: Local United Way affiliate funding and convening many of the same community-based nonprofits in Lunch Break's service area. Functions as both a peer organization and a potential upstream funding intermediary.
- Meals on Wheels of Monmouth County: Local home-delivered meal program for seniors and homebound individuals. Overlaps directly with Lunch Break's homebound meal delivery service (Route #2) and broader congregate/homedelivered meal service approach.
Broad incumbents
- Feeding America: National umbrella network of 200+ food banks. Sets the policy, supply-chain, and fundraising infrastructure through which many local food-assistance nonprofits (including Lunch Break via its regional food bank partner) source inventory.
- Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Newark/Trenton: Faith-based social services network providing food pantries, housing case management, and emergency assistance in New Jersey. Comparable multi-program community aid model with stronger institutional funding base.
- The Salvation Army (New Jersey): National nonprofit providing food, clothing, shelter, and emergency assistance. Direct overlap with Lunch Break's wraparound service model at larger geographic scale and with deeper institutional donor support.
Emerging players
- Habitat for Humanity in Monmouth County: Local housing-focused nonprofit in the same service area providing housing stability services — adjacent to Lunch Break's Family Promise housing program and a likely donor/funder counterpart in the local social-services ecosystem.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Lunch Break social profiles
Digital presenceLunch Break financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Lunch Break leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Lunch Break funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Lunch Break M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Lunch Break
What does Lunch Break do?
Lunch Break is a community-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers free food, clothing, housing, life skills, and supportive services to individuals and families in need across Monmouth County, New Jersey. Its core offerings include daily hot meals through the Community Kitchen, client-choice groceries via Your Choice Pantry, free clothing through Clara's Closet, housing and case management through Family Promise of Monmouth County, and life skills and youth development programs.
Is Lunch Break a public or private company?
Lunch Break is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Lunch Break founded?
Lunch Break was founded in 1983. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Lunch Break based?
Lunch Break is headquartered in Red Bank, United States, in the North America region.
How does Lunch Break make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Monetary Donations are the primary driver. The others are donated Food & Supplies, facility Rental, planned Giving & Estate Gifts and matching Gifts & Corporate Giving.
Who are Lunch Break's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Family Promise (National), Community FoodBank of New Jersey and Food Bank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties. Regional players are Goodwill Industries of Greater New York and Northern New Jersey, United Way of Monmouth and Ocean Counties and Meals on Wheels of Monmouth County. Broad incumbents are Feeding America, Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Newark/Trenton and The Salvation Army (New Jersey). Habitat for Humanity in Monmouth County is listed as an emerging player.
Does Lunch Break have an API?
No public API is recorded for Lunch Break.
What industry is Lunch Break in?
Lunch Break's product category is Community Social Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HSABANAM, Meals, Nutrition & Congregate Dining Day Programs, with a secondary code of HSABAAAC, Meal Preparation & Nutrition Support (Non-Medical). Its NAICS code is 62421 and its SIC code is 5812.