Mayor Mo Hill and Police Chief Mitch Little presented over $3400 raised by Township employees and officers to Superintendent Mike Citta during the Toms River Board of Education meeting on Wednesday for the family of Jena LeRiche,

Jena, a young wife and mother of three, was a special needs teacher at Intermediate East.

Jena had profound impact on her students and was a beloved and well-respected member of the Toms River Regional staff. "Those who knew her best make it abundantly clear how selfless she was, and how she thought about everyone else before herself, a relentlessly dedicated mom and teacher.

She was incredibly patient and kind, never complained, and challenged her students appropriately, in turn raising their level of self-esteem," Superintendent Michael Citta said of Jena.

Township, Police and School District employees wore "Jeans for Jena" in memory on Weds and collected donations to support her family.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to support her children's education:

https://tomsriver.org/a-gofundme-has-been-organized-for-jena...