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‘I want everyone to enjoy the beach’: Woman raises money for beach badges

An Asbury Park woman is continuing her effort to buy beach badges for New Jersey residents who cannot afford them.

News 12 Staff

Jun 27, 2019, 2:41 AM

Updated 1,974 days ago

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An Asbury Park woman is continuing her effort to buy beach badges for New Jersey residents who cannot afford them.
People who wish to visit most of the state’s beaches must purchase a daily or seasonal badges. In Asbury Park it would cost a family of four with two teenagers $180 for the summer – a cost that a family may not be able to afford.
“The reality is that families that we serve here on the west side often times struggle,” says Douglas Eagles, the executive director of the Boys & Girls Club of Monmouth County.
This is where Lisa Cramp comes in. The southern California native has made it her mission to ensure everyone can enjoy the beach, despite their income level.
Cramp says that she remembers growing up going to the beach for free with her family.
"Everybody should have those kinds of memories,” she says.
Cramp started raising funds last year for the effort. She says that she hopes to surprise last year’s amount of $10,000 for the badges.
"I’m at about $10,000 in and I’m going for $15,000,” she says.
The badges will be distributed through the Boys & Girls Club and a local church on a first come, first serve basis.
"Not only are we thankful, we are just thrilled to watch this thing grow from year after year. It just means more kids and more families are going to be able to benefit from her efforts to raise dollars to make this happen,” says Eagles.
Cramp says she hopes to inspire change in the way the state handles beach fees.
"I’m hoping in the future that this will cause discussion in the town perhaps people who do live below a certain poverty level would get discounted badges or maybe New Jersey will have free beaches at some point,” she says.
Camp says she's received donations from New Jersey Natural Gas and state Sen. Vin Gopal.