Catholic 6th grader rallies school community to help single mothers in need
A 6th grader at Saint John’s Academy (SJA) in Hillsdale recently united her school community with mothers in need by launching a school-wide fundraiser for a local pregnancy resource center.
Lily Angioletti recently began volunteering at New Hope Pregnancy Resource Center, a Westwood volunteer organization that helps first-time single mothers achieve self-sufficiency through resources and mentoring. She was inspired to get involved at the center through her mother Carolyn, who has been a volunteer for two years.
Through her volunteer work, Lily recognized a need for baby supplies at the center. She put her idea into action by proposing a school-wide service project to SJA principal Theresa Cabrera.
“She showed great leadership and took initiative,” Cabrera said, describing how Lily spearheaded the project by writing loudspeaker announcements, designing, and printing flyers, and hand delivering the donations to the facility.
“At first I was nervous to take on this project, but as my friends began contributing and as the supplies kept on coming, I got pretty excited,” Lily said. With this being the first large-scale service project Lily has been involved in, she said that she was surprised by how many donations she received.
What started out as a proposal for a small supply drive quickly grew into a school-wide Lenten service project involving multiple supply collections and a dedicated fundraising day, with the support of the school administration. Cabrera said that the idea of “children helping children” was the most profound aspect of the project and inspired her to champion it alongside Lily.
During the 40-day Lenten season, students and their families brought donations to school and purchased supplies to be shipped directly to New Hope through the center’s Amazon wish list. It took several trips to the center to drop off all the donations, which included diapers, bottles, sippy cups, baby wash and lotion, diaper cream, burp cloths, wash cloths, baby clothes, and more.
“Many of our students have younger siblings and can relate to the needs of newborns. The idea of children helping children in that way was inspiring,” Cabrera said.
In addition to the supply drive, the school invited students of all grade levels to participate in a N.U.T Day (No Uniform Today) fundraiser to benefit New Hope. Students can wear casual clothes to school on N.U.T. Days for a $5 donation. Through their collective efforts, the student body raised over $1,200 for the resource center.
“It is through their generosity that we volunteers are able to continue our mission of helping first time single moms,” wrote Marilyn Laquidara, Executive Director of New Hope Pregnancy Center, in a thank-you letter to the Saint John’s Academy community.
Laquidara said donations are always needed because the center never turns anyone away.
“I learned a lot about first time moms and their struggles, and how they need help,” Lily said. She added that she is looking forward to planning future projects and continuing her volunteer work to help single mothers in need.
Over Mother’s Day weekend, Lily returned to the center to volunteer as a babysitter for single mothers in need, alongside her mother and other volunteers.
“We [Lily and her mother] looked after the little babies while they were sleeping, and the mothers got to enjoy a Mother’s Day breakfast,” Lily said.
Lily’s volunteer work at New Hope and the school-wide project she led exemplify the pro-life activity that the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) encourages through their nationwide initiative, Walking with Moms in Need.
According to the USCCB, Walking with Moms in Need is a process through which Catholic parishes and communities “walk in the shoes” of local pregnant and parenting women in need and encourages Catholics to support local pregnancy centers and share resources to help pregnant and parenting women.
“Everyone should know how to help moms in difficult circumstances,” the website reads.
The Archdiocese of Newark Respect Life Office also runs resource centers for pregnant and parenting women at Mercy House in Newark and Jersey City.
Student volunteers are always needed at Mercy House to organize supplies or interacting with clients. Students interested in volunteering can contact Annette Miller at annette.miller@rcan.org.
Featured image: Lily Angioletti and Piper Bocchino dropping off donations at the New Hope Center. (Photo/ Lily Angioletti)
