From left: Joe Jingoli and Jack Morris recently received the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Service Award from the First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens in Franklin Township, presented by the Rev. DeForest “Buster” Soaries.
By Joshua Burd
Longtime real estate executives and business partners Jack Morris and Joe Jingoli were honored recently for their work to rebuild communities in New Jersey, earning the distinction from a well-known congregation in central New Jersey.
Morris, CEO and president of Edgewood Properties, and Jingoli, CEO of Joseph Jingoli & Son Inc., were recognized with the 2018 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Service Award from the First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens in Franklin Township. The partners received the award earlier this week ahead of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
The developers recently partnered with Hard Rock International to purchase the former Trump Taj Mahal Casino in Atlantic City. The casino will be turned into a Hard Rock facility, while Morris and Jingoli have invested in a training program for residents of Atlantic City to ensure future employment opportunities for local citizens.
“They’re developing a model so that big developers and contractors will stop bringing people in from all over the world to employ local people wherever money is spent to rebuild those neighborhoods,” said the Rev. DeForest “Buster” Soaries, senior pastor with the First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens. “It’s a phenomenal model.”
The service award is given to those who champion for justice in underrepresented communities, according to a news release. Morris and Jingoli were applauded for their continuous efforts in community development and service.
Morris, vice chairman of Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, is responsible for many developments throughout the state. Jingoli, meantime, has helped revitalize and build up Middlesex County with a focus on school developments.
“When New Jersey has had a need they respond with great dispatch,” Soaries said. “I value people who see a need and create solutions.”
