Beginning May 23rd, Camden County is no longer announcing new cases and deaths related to Covid-19 on weekends or holidays. All weekend cases and deaths will be announced on the next business day and will be properly attributed to the day they were received. As of Friday, May 29th, Merchantville had 44 confirmed cases of coronavirus and the Camden County Department of Health (DOH) announced 59 additional confirmed cases of the disease. This brings the aggregate number of confirmed positive cases to 6,588 in Camden County today and 320 total fatalities.

Merchantville School is committed to providing food to the students of Merchantville and this process will continue to be available on Mondays while the building closure is in effect. Grab and go breakfast and lunches for the week were distributed on Tuesday, May 26th from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm., because school was closed on Memorial Day.  To pick-up meals students should use the door by the playground to enter the building. This service is open to all resident students in Merchantville and Haddon Heights High School. For the remainder of this year, there will be no cost to families for meal pick up.  The District has been notified that a waiver was approved for the state.  At this time, all students in the district who have experienced financial hardship due to COVID-19 may receive meals.  It is important to stress that free lunches now include all students who are experiencing financial hardship and not only those students eligible for free or reduced lunch. If you have difficulty getting to Merchantville School to pick up the lunches, please contact Mr. Strong at 856-663-1091 Ext 512 or through email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention initially discouraged people from wearing face masks unless they had COVID-19 and were showing symptoms but, that guidance changed on April 3rd, after studies found that the virus can be spread by asymptomatic individuals, or before symptoms start to show. Now, the CDC recommends that nearly everyone wear a facial covering in public and in areas where social distancing isn’t possible. There are numerous studies that suggest if 80% of people wear a mask in public COVID-19 transmission could be halted so, until a vaccine or a cure for COVID-19 is discovered, a cloth face masks might be the most important tool we currently have to fight the pandemic. The low cost of wearing masks – which can be made at home with no tools – and the potential to slow COVID-19 transmission with wide scale use should motivate everyone to protect themselves and others by wearing a mask in public.

As New Jersey raises the limit on outdoor gatherings ahead of Memorial Day Weekend and, beaches and more recreational businesses are allowed to reopen, it's important for residents to realize where our community stands in terms of Covid-19 spread. There have been 42 confirmed cases in Merchantville between 3/28 - 5/22 so, as we all look forward to gathering with family and neighbors at Memorial Day outings please be personally responsible and protect yourself and others by physically distancing, wearing a mask and washing your hands. Businesses that are reopening will be implementing restrictions such as: electronic or telephone reservation and payment systems; installing physical barriers between employees and customers; limiting the use of equipment to one person; additional social distancing measures including demarcation and signage; infection control and hygiene practices; frequent sanitization of high-touch areas; and limiting occupancy of restrooms.

Merchantville encourages everyone in our community to protect themselves and others from COVID-19 by masking up. NJ DEP (Department of Environmental Protection) has launched a public awareness campaign that strongly encourages the public to "mask up" and keep their mouths and noses covered when visiting the state's parks, beaches, forests and other open spaces, especially where it is difficult to maintain a 6-foot distance from others. This Dropbox link contains print and social media downloads for anyone to use and post including "Beach" Mask Up!, "Open Space" Mask Up, "Risk" Mask Up! and "Trail" Mask Up! posters  and signs from the digital download center for New Jersey’s “Mask Up!” campaign.