Newark Native’s Inspiring Birthday Request Raises $5K For Charity

© Photo courtesy of Opportunity Youth Network Tyneisha Gibbs encouraged friends and family to make donations to Opportunity Youth Network instead of purchasing her a gift this year. She's made similar requests in the past.

NEWARK, NJ — Tyneisha Gibbs had a simple birthday request for 2023. It was just like others she’s made in the past: make a donation to a local charity instead of giving her a gift.

But according to Gibbs – a Newark native who credits her inspiring annual tradition to her late father – it paid off in more than just money this year.

Gibbs encouraged friends and family to make donations to Opportunity Youth Network, a nonprofit that empowers New Jersey youth with education, job development and other programs. Her original goal was $2,500, which was quickly reached after a single donation.

She ended up raising $4,800.

“It's one thing for you to talk about an issue or for you to care about something but to be able to rally other folks around that cause – it's just priceless,” Gibbs said. “You can't describe that feeling because those are your people … and because you are passionate about it, and they support you, they're willing to support that call to action.”

For Gibbs – who founded her own nonprofit consulting agency, 144th & Vine – her quest to empower young people has a deeply personal origin. This year, she hosted the fundraiser in honor of her late father, Van Lamont Jones, a native of Newark who died at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.

Both her father and her brother were incarcerated at young ages, a fact that continues to drive Gibbs’ passion to help others in similar situations, especially children with incarcerated parents and juveniles who have become entangled in the criminal justice system.

“I wish that there was someone there for my father when he lost his parents and was growing up in Newark,” she said. “I wish that there was someone there for my brother when our mother passed, and he was going through the things he was going through. I wish there was an Opportunity Youth Network for both of them.”

“In this small way, I hope I honor my dad and make him proud,” she emphasized.

Gibbs said she learned about the nonprofit through its chief program officer, Jasmine Joseph-Forman, who she graduated from college with.

“This past year we both were honored at Rider University, and every time I hear her speak about the organization, I’m moved to support the work that she's doing,” Gibbs said.

The gesture was much appreciated, Joseph-Forman said, adding that it will help provide Newark youth and others across the state with the resources and opportunities necessary to break cycles and create new pathways to success for themselves and their families.

“We are so appreciative of Tyneisha’s dedication to changing the lives of young people in a meaningful way, and for the generosity of all who donated,” Joseph-Forman said.

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