Greenwich Students Raise Money for Jewish Family Services
Join us in congratulating our Teen Action Committee philanthropists who raised $1,000 to help feed hungry kids! The teens chose to allocate these funds to Jewish Family Service's Kosher Food Pantry in Stamford and Leket Israel. A huge THANK YOU to everyone who donated to this campaign.
Participants in A Teen Philanthropy Experience at the Greenwich JCC allocated $600 to Jewish Family Service and $400 to Leket Israel in their support of those agencies' fight against hunger.
Nearly one in five children in America lives in households that struggle to put food on the table and these Greenwich teens did their part to help end childhood hunger, raising $1,000 for the cause.
At the start of the year, local Greenwich middle and high school students embarked on a philanthropy project at JCC Greenwich to help raise money to end childhood hunger. Through a partnership with Areyvut, a non-profit organization based in New Jersey, a group of teens met every month as part of the JCC’s Teen Action Committee and learned about community needs, philanthropy, valuable leadership skills and local agencies. To raise funds for this important cause, they built their own fundraising websites, designed and sold custom T-shirts, and held a phone-a-thon, from which they raised $1,000 in donations. Through their independent research and due-diligence into organizations that support this cause, they've decided to allocate these funds to the Kosher Food Pantry of Jewish Family Service (JFS) in Stamford and Leket Israel, Israel’s largest food rescue organization.
“By participating in the Teen Action Committee, I learned that teens of any age can work together to take initiative and enact change,” says Becca Powell, a rising senior at Greenwich High School.
Rebekah Kanefsky from the JFS Kosher Food Pantry said the funds would be used to purchase a much-needed new freezer and allow them to continue their vital work of serving approximately 2,000 meals per month to members of the community throughout Lower Fairfield County who are unable to provide food for their families due to financial difficulties.
Learning about food needs around the world helped change the perspective of 14 year old Reese Ochoa, “As a result of the project, I feel very lucky for where I live and to have food on the table”. Reese’s thoughts were echoed by 16 year old Natalie Lilien who said “I want to improve the lives of people in my community…and become more involved with soup kitchens.”
Leah Schechter, Assistant Director of JCC Greenwich said “We are so proud of what the Teen Action Committee has achieved this year in doing their part to help create a world where no child goes to bed hungry. The process has been an important learning experience for this group of teens in philanthropy and fundraising for Tzedakah.”
About JCC Greenwich
JCC Greenwich is an independent non-profit organization that provides exemplary programming for children, youth and adults in our community. The Teen Action Committee meets monthly during the school year to help plan and organize community service projects for Middle and High School students in Greenwich. For more information and to join, contact Leah Schechter at 203-552-1818 orLeah@jccgreenwich.org" _cc="" _bcc="" _subject="" _body="" style="color:rgb(0, 102, 204);outline:none">Leah@jccgreenwich.org. Visit jccgreenwich.org for information.
About the Kosher FoodPantry of Jewish Family Service
The JFS Kosher Food Pantry services the Stamford, New Canaan, Darien, Westport, Weston, Wilton and Norwalk Jewish communities. It providers Kosher food and personal care items, including assistance for pharmacy and transportation, to members of our community experiencing financial difficulties and are unable to afford food and household items for their families. For information, visit ctjfs.org or contact Rebekah Kanefsky at 203-921-4161 ext. 128.
About Areyvut
Areyvut's mission is to infuse the lives of Jewish youth and teens with the core Jewish values of chesed (kindness), tzedakah (charity), and tikkun olam (social action), so that they become thoughtful, giving members of the Jewish community of tomorrow. For more information about Areyvut, or to bring a Teen Philanthropy Program to your community, please call 201-244-6702 or email info@aryevut.org
JCC Greenwich Teen Action Committee members holding a check that will be used to purchase a new freezer for the Kosher Food Pantry of Jewish Family Service in Stamford