“Driving Jersey,” the Emmy-nominated TV series that brings viewers on a journey to meet some of the Garden State’s best-loved or little-known people, places and things, is at a crossroads. The show, produced and funded mainly by Steve Rogers – a single dad, who grew up in Manahawkin – may have to pump the brakes as finances prove scarce.
Earlier this year, the project’s vehicle went down and a new camera and other equipment were needed as well. Without corporate sponsorship or individual angel support, continuing the show has become nearly impossible.
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| Photo via Steve Rogers The show is produced and funded mainly by Steve Rogers, who is a single dad. |
“Unlike most PBS programs, we’re not sponsored by a long list of corporations,” Rogers said. “We get by on our own dime, which means we have complete freedom, but it also means when we’re hit with major expenses we’re in jeopardy of stalling.”
The show appears in fives states to 2.2. million households. It is currently in production of its fifth season.
During the series’ creation over the last seven years, the crew has made several stops locally.
The now-closed Colonial Theater in Beach Haven was featured in an episode about cinema in New Jersey, and an episode about education in the state included Manahawkin teacher Adele Rogers, who is also Steve Rogers’ mother. A full episode was even dedicated to Surflight Theatre.
An earlier episode highlighted local Barnegat Light fisherman/towboat captain Jake D'Arcangelo, and another featured singer and Beach Haven West resident Gino Valenti.
In an attempt to complete the show’s fifth season and get rolling on the next, Rogers and his crew have started a Kickstarter campaign, which they hope people will contribute to.
This is only the second time they have requested help from the public. The first fundraiser for the show concluded just after Superstorm Sandy in 2012.
“Because we had no power, I was in the dark, in my car texting friends and family, asking them to spread the word and share our need,” Rogers said.
One of three post-Sandy episodes devoted to chronicling the aftermath of the storm featured Beach Haven West, Ship Bottom, Brant Beach, Haven Beach and Beach Haven.
“That was important to us,” Rogers said. “We really mean it when we say this is a people project, so doing what we could to help people and highlight the tragedy and need that was out there was us trying to directly connect the dots of gratitude we had for people helping us.”
The show’s upcoming November episode features Ocean County/Southern Monmouth County band Thomas Wesley Stern. The final episode of the season will highlight former Manahawkin resident Kevin Bott, “a former professional actor turned academic,” who created an old-style tent revival show that celebrates democracy instead of old-time religion. His family still lives in Manahawkin and on LBI.
To learn more about the show and its campaign, visit drivingjersey.com.
— Kelley Anne Essinger
This article was published in The SandPaper.
This article was published in The SandPaper.
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