NBA Legends Pay Tribute to NJ Pizzeria for COVID-19 Efforts

What would you do if your favorite basketball player personally thanked you for your service to your town? That is what happened to Akhtar Farazie, the owner of Bella Pizzeria located in Hillsborough, NJ. Farazie was noticed by NBA stars Jayson Williams and Charles Barkley for his charitable service to the town of Hillsborough.

According to Tapinto, Farzaie stated, "I've worked my butt off and done everything I could to make the business grow; any time the community needed me for something...I had the platform, I've been able to do that, and there's lots of good that came from that."

Farzaie has been giving away free coupons to supermarket employees, donating food to homeless shelters, celebrating birthdays by supplying free pizzas to kids throughout the county, and delivering meals to senior citizens. These acts of kindness caught the attention of Jayson Williams, resident of Hunterdon County, and spread the word to his past teammate, Charles Barkley.

Barkley stated in a Facebook video, "Bella Pizzeria, Charles Barkley here. Hey man, my boy Jayson Williams tells me you guys have been doing some amazing stuff during this pandemic. This has been awful and sad for everybody but I just want to thank you guys for doing what you do. Keep up the great work. Hey listen, really appreciate it especially during this time of real financial ruin for a lot of people. Thank you guys for what y'all are doing. Bless you."

The world needs people like Akhtar Farazie right now. Someone who is willing to give back to a community that has helped him succeed. Farazie’s reaction was just as humble as he is. "I was just like, 'wow' when I went on Facebook...I came here in 2005, a 23-year-old kid taking a chance, and Hillsborough welcomed me with open arms."