A charitable & foundational partnerships to ensure that portions of proceeds and/or profits are channeled to organizations dedicated to building better lives for underprivileged kids.
What an amazing morning we had at Van Holton School in Bridgewater, New Jersey. The amazing students and staff at Van Holton surprised us by making today Superhero Day. They all came to school wearing superhero clothes, costumes, and capes, in our honor. We were delighted!
We were also incredibly honored that the Van Holton staff and PTA chose us, out of many other assemblies, to be a part of their Week of Empathy – a week dedicated to respect and kindness.
We heard immediate and positive feedback regarding our program from students, teachers, and the principal. One teacher commented, “This is such a valuable message! I’m so glad you came to our school.” We are too!
For further information on how to bring a Hero Assembly to your school, or to take advantage of our Spring Savings, please email leighann@wearthecapekids.com.
It is an honor to introduce to you our Cape Kid of the month, Ilana Druskin, a 15 –year-old high school Sophomore at Gill St. Bernards School in Gladstone, NJ and an inspiration to children and adults.
This wonderful young lady has been volunteering since sixth grade. She had always helped others, but decided that she wanted to assist in a greater way, in preparation for her Mitzvah project. Her desire to help children led to her work with Blessings in A Backpack, with the Greater Brunswick Charter School, where she helped to raise enough money to fill backpacks with food for over 170 less fortunate students, for them to bring home on the weekends to ensure that they had food to eat when not in school.
Ilana became so passionate about this project that she chose to continue her work with Blessings in a Backpack and the Greater Brunswick Charter School. Once, when in middle school, she noticed that the school’s pantry was near empty. In response, she organized a canned food drive to ensure that the pantry had plenty of food for the students. She also has lead several bake sales and coat drives to help the students at the school over the course of the four years that she has been volunteering.
Along with her family, Ilana provides Thanksgiving meals to families in November, so that they have a warm meal to eat on the holiday. In December, she purchases Christmas gifts for the students at Greater Brunswick Charter School, as she knows their families cannot financially provide them with the gifts they hope to receive.
When asked what serving these children means to her, Ilana replied, “It makes me more humble and not take anything for granted. These kids will take anything over nothing. “
Ilana even turned a family vacation in Guatemala into a service project. She noticed that impoverished children were running to cars to receive Christmas gifts, a custom in this country. She and her family wanted to help. They found a local store and purchased toys, then pulled to the side of the road and handed them out to the dozens of children who ran up to the car. “It made me feel good to do something for them,” she recalls.
In an effort to do even more for others, Ilana became certified as a pet therapist with her dog, Chloe, through Bright and Beautiful, Ltd. She hopes to begin her own business tutoring children in reading by having them practice read to Chloe. She has already started reading with kids and her dog at a her local library, and claims “…the kids absolutely love it. They don’t want to stop reading. It’s a great way to encourage the love of reading.”
As an aspiring doctor, Ilana will volunteer in the Emergency Room at Ocean County Medical Center in Point Pleasant, New Jersey.
When asked how she finds the time to fit in all of her volunteering with an already full sports and school schedule, she says that she lives by her motto: You can only go up! If you keep trying hard, you can only get better. Don’t stop, if you put in the dedication and effort, you will get results. She encourages others to volunteer as well by stating, “Saying that you don’t have the time is not a good excuse. I have practice every day, and I find the time. Start small and find something that you are passionate in.”
Well done, Ilana. Thank you for being a terrific Cape Kid and for inspiring others to want to help, as well.
As we all know mornings can be rough and a morning coffee is essential for some. I am NOT a morning person, and therefore, require coffee to kick start my day. I’m sure some of you can relate.
What began as an incredibly crazy morning – kids missed the bus (dare I say, again?), lunches weren’t made, and I had no time for breakfast, let alone a cup of coffee. After racing out the door and miraculously getting my kids to school on time, I had less than five minutes grab a quick cup of coffee on my way to work.
As I opened the door to Dunkin’ Donuts, my heart sank. The line was long. I now had only 4 minutes to get my coffee. I pondered leaving, but the smell of my awaiting “cup of sanity” begged me to stay. I gave in, praying the line would move quickly.
With 2 minutes to go, I finally was next in line. However, the woman in front of me was taking quite a while to decide what flavor she wanted in her coffee, and I was growing equally impatient and panic stricken that I would be late for work.
Just as I was about to suggest a flavor to speed things along, I heard her scream, “WHAT? WHO DID?” She then turned around pointing to me and others behind me asking, “Was it you? Was it you?” All of us shook our heads in bewilderment.
It was what followed that turned my morning, from a hectic and crazy mess, to a joy filled and happy one – coffee or no coffee. I heard the words, “Well, then I’ll pay for her!” Yes, that wonderfully, indecisive woman had just offered to pay for my coffee, as the person in front of her had just done. I thought, “Now this was getting fun!” I wanted in on this, so I offered to pay for the person behind me, he then offered to pay for the person behind him, and this continued until the end of the line.
My cup of coffee tasted wonderful that morning. It definitely hit the spot…right in my heart. I was in awe of the human spirit. One random act of kindness, by one stranger, set up a chain of pay if forward events, which affected five people on a dreary cold morning in Warren, New Jersey. Each one of us left that store smiling and feeling grateful for the one person who spread kindness, by his good deed, and his example.
See below for ideas on how you, too, can make someone’s day with your Random Acts of Kindness.
Random Acts of Kindness Ideas for Adults and Kids:
Send a friendly letter in the mail to someone who could use some cheer
Pay for a stranger’s coffee or groceries when at the store
Help a neighbor or elderly person bring in his/her mail or groceries
Let someone merge in front of you when on the road
Bring pizza or treats to your local EMT, police, or fire department
Put a quarter in a parking meter that is running out of time
Give someone a compliment
Donate old clothes or books to underprivileged schools
What an amazing morning we had at Van Holton School in Bridgewater, New Jersey. The amazing students and staff at Van Holton surprised us by making today Superhero Day. They all came to school wearing superhero clothes, costumes, and capes, in our honor. We were delighted!
As we all know mornings can be rough and a morning coffee is essential for some. I am NOT a morning person, and therefore, require coffee to kick start my day. I’m sure some of you can relate.