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Youth volunteers distributing food to community members at Triangle Park Community Center in Jersey City.

Photo: Victoria Melendez. ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ in NJ

The Youth Program Team at the ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ in New Jersey collaborated with to host a Teen Service Day on Saturday, October 21st.

The service took place at Triangle Park Community Center in Jersey City from 9 to 12:30 pm and focused on food security. Eighteen ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ students, along with eight community youth volunteers, unpacked food delivery boxes, sorted and organized food onto tables, and distributed food to community members. The food that was distributed consisted of food produce, non-perishable items such as rice and pasta, canned goods, as well as milk and poultry.  

In this program, ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ students (ages 14 through 18) fulfill their community service volunteer requirement with peers in their ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ Teen Service Day cohort who may share similar languages and backgrounds. Each quarter, students partake in a service project in a different city in New Jersey. Students not only complete their service hours but also foster a sense of community by gaining insight into the needs of the community and building friendships.  

Jenifer and Victoria

Photo: ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ in NJ

Victoria Melendez, the Youth Education Program Specialist at ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ in NJ, in collaboration with Jennifer Gill, General Manager of 1W1L, organized this event.

Jennifer met up with a student with whom she had helped set up his apartment in the past. They caught up as they gathered to organize the food delivery boxes. Another student was celebrating his birthday. When asked what else he was doing to celebrate his birthday, he said he didn’t need anything else, expressing how dinner with his family and time serving his community was more than enough. That was the core sentiment shared among students and organizers around this special day. 

In preparation for the service day...

students led a virtual planning meeting through Zoom. This meeting gives them time to take charge by picking the icebreaker activities and selecting their post-project celebration activity including what food and beverages they’d like to enjoy. Moreover, students also brainstorm their next service projects! They can apply this essential leadership experience to other aspects of their lives and add this volunteer experience to their resumes for career or job applications.  

Students get excited about distributing non-perishable food at the stand

Photo: Victoria Melendez. ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ in NJ

Thanks to this collaboration with One World One Love, the ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ in NJ can host these quarterly Teen Service Days for high school students who have been resettled in NJ for about a year. At the end of this Teen Service Day at Triangle Park, students enjoyed signing each other's t-shirts. They kept their t-shirts which serve as a memento of their community spirit! For more information on how to get involved please contact the ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ in NJ’s Community Engagement Coordinator Sally El-Sadek at [email protected]