Community Involvement
The Story
The Joseph Lacroce Foundation was formed in 2011 by a philanthropist named Sam Lacroce, who was born in southern Italy in 1941 and came to the US sixteen years later to start a new life with his parents and siblings.
In 1975, Sam tragically lost his son, Joseph, to leukemia at the age of twelve. Some years later, Sam, along with other enthusiastic individuals, decided to do something to help children in the hospital, and they have! They put together a non-profit organization called “Carz ‘n Toyz,” which was a big success. They were able to collect thousands of toys and donate them all to Virtua Hospital.
Since then, the organization was renamed The Joseph Lacroce Foundation, and Sam has been leading the charge to help underserved children in our community, including by raising $1 million for a mobile pediatric unit in the form of a highly specialized medical bus that serves many children in need.
This story, which was born from a traumatic experience, gave birth to a beautiful cause, which is benefiting thousands of kids in our area.
The Match
In 2019, Sam and Ben met for the first time. Ben was looking for a commercial property to establish his base for Fresh Air Flow, and Sam happened to be a landlord looking for a tenant. They immediately bonded and realized that they shared a common history: they both immigrated from foreign countries and came to America pursuing a dream of happiness and success for their families and themselves.
Some months later, Sam presented Ben with the idea of helping the kids by asking him to attend a fundraising event. As a father of two children, Danielle and Mehael, Ben wanted to be supportive, and so not only attended the event, but also contributed to the Foundation for the next several years.
In 2022, Ben came up with the idea of helping the Foundation even more by engaging his business and its wide customer-base. He initiated a donation matching program for all money collected and/or donated by members of the Fresh Air Flow family.
Join Us
Today, we are asking you, our dear customers, to share the love for those who need us the most, our own children, by making a contribution to the Joseph Lacroce Foundation at https://josephlacrocefoundation.org/. Fresh Air Flow will be happy to match your gift. Thank you for your kind consideration and your selfless generosity.
“It’s not about how much we give, it’s about how much love we put into what we give.” – Ben Marga
Bringing Happiness to Children in Need
Joseph Lacroce Foundation Mission
We’re fully focused on change
The Joseph Lacroce Foundation (formerly Carz N’ Toyz), a non-profit 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Service Code, was formed by local car enthusiasts who wanted to combine their hobby with community service. The original mission of the organization was to “bring a smile to the faces of hospitalized children served by Virtua in Southern New Jersey”. Over the years, and because of the generosity of their benefactors, the original mission has expanded to support many worthwhile causes and projects all of which focus on benefiting children.