SEPTEMBER 2022
Hamilton Post COMMUNITYNEWS.ORG
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It’s all in the family at Foley’s Market By Joe EmaNski
It wasn’t that long ago that the family-run grocery store was an essential part of almost any community. One does not have to be especially old to conjure the image of an aproned store owner welcoming shoppers by name while strolling around, inspecting stacks of produce and fussing with endcap displays until they are just so. Like many things in the modern world of commerce, this image is fading fast. Supermarkets these days usually fall into one of two categories: enormous, gleaming, full-service behemoths like Wegman’s, Whole Foods or the many “World Class” ShopRites in our area; or no-frills discount groceries like Aldi and Lidl. But there are a few stores out there that still maintain the tradition of the local grocery: Marrazzo’s Market in Ewing is one, and Foley’s Family Market, in Hamilton, is another. At a time when the big chains, including Walmart and Target with their ever increasing grocery sections, appear to dominate the market, some shoppers still value the personal touch offered by a store like Foley’s. And they show their appreciation not only by remaining loyal customers,
but also by helping Foley’s win frequent Trentonian’s Reader’s Choice awards, in categories such as best meat market, best deli, best soups, best produce, best catering and best grocery store. Long-time area residents Joe and Sharon Foley took over the old Paber’s Shop n Bag on White Horse Avenue in 2003 and renamed it Foley’s Shop n Bag. From 1991 to 2002, Joe Foley had been a partner at Lalor Market on Lalor Street. He started his career in grocery stores with Acme Supermarkets when he was a teenager. He and Sharon saw Shop n Bag as an opportunity for them to own and operate their own store. And in the nearly two decades since, they have also brought their four daughters into the fold: Melissa (Persichetti), Jessica (DaBronzo), Erica (Stefanelli) and Samantha. After Shop n Bag went out of business, the Foleys joined the IGA, originally known as the Independent Grocers Alliance, and renamed the store to Foley’s Family Market. “Foley’s Family Market is more fitting for the township,” says Erica Stefanelli, 34, the third Foley daughter, who today serves as a store manager. “We’re a family-oriented business. We have cousins who work here, my uncle See FOLEYS, Page 16
New Boys and Girls Club of Mercer County chief executive Reggie Coleman (back) with a group of swimmers at the B&G Club pool on Centre Street in Trenton.
Boys and Girls Club of Mercer taps Coleman to lead nonprofit By SUe Ferrara
Reggie Coleman knows all too well that sometimes the career path we set out to walk doesn’t lead to the dream we envision. But he would add that missing out on one dream might lead to something we never expected. The Hamilton resident grew up in West Trenton and gradu-
ated from what was once known as McCorristin High School, now Trenton Catholic Academy. He played basketball at the Urban League’s West Ward rec center. And like many young men who grow up in New Jersey, guys who live between two cities which host pro-sports teams and popular sports announcers, a younger Reggie Coleman carried dreams
of landing a career in one of those two professions. Graduating from Upsala College in East Orange in 1995, with a degree in communications, Coleman worked several jobs as he “tried to figure things out.” He applied to the Boys and Girls Club of Mercer County for the position of athletic director. See COLEMAN, Page 12
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