Hillsborough Thanksgiving Project Coordinated by Community Youth

In a time of changes to every possible norm, one New Jersey neighborhood persisted through 2020’s pandemic and economic crisis to continue with their holiday tradition of giving back to the Somerset County community. In coordination with The Food Bank Network of Somerset County and the help of a dozen Youth Leaders, the 4th Annual Hillsborough Chase Thanksgiving Project (HCTP) continued its goal of donating Thanksgiving meals for four Somerset County families in need.

Because of overwhelming excitement in youth volunteerism in last year’s Thanksgiving Project, the 4th annual HCTP was led entirely by Hillsborough Chase Youth Team Leaders. Heading up this year’s Thanksgiving Project was high school junior and HCTP Youth Director, Miraj Vakil (17). Vakil had the daunting task of, not only turning enthusiastic teen volunteers into HCTP Team Leaders, but creating a contactless way to collect donations for the four designated families. “Being a leader doesn’t just mean leading people through a series of steps,” says Vakil. “It includes having an appreciation for the fact that you are leading a movement in society.” It is with that dedication that Vakil led Team Leaders Ashley Nitschke (17), Tejas Patel (17), Manir Hede (16), Rahul Chauhan (16), Ava Leach (15), Diya Shah (15), Ashna Narielwala (14), Shailen Patel (14), Dean Milano (13), Neel Chauhan (13), and Simran Buch (13) to collect nearly $600.00 in ShopRite and WalMart Gift Card Donations that were given to the families to purchase their own holiday meals. Gift cards were delivered in decorative bags that were purchased and assembled by Vakil personally.

“To be honest - I wasn’t sure there would be a 4th Annual Thanksgiving Project given the current COVID conditions. And I think everyone would have understood why. It was at the insistence of our Youth Team Leaders and Hillsborough Chase community that the Thanksgiving Project go on, that I found the courage to commit to the Food Bank again this year,” said HCTP Founder, Andrea Fein. “These are an amazing group of kids and I’m so excited to see how committed they are to helping our community. They are all natural leaders and are kind, compassionate people.” The rewards were mutually felt by the Youth Leaders. “It feels really good knowing that amidst this unprecedented year,” says Team Leader Manir Hede, “we were still able to help families who needed it more than ever.”

To learn more about starting your own community project or how to become a recipient, please contact The Food Bank Network of Somerset County or call (732) 560-1813.