Home :

State Charity Program

Each year, student leaders at our member schools raise thousands of dollars for a special State Charity that is chosen by their State Officers each April. At the Spring Awards Program in May the new State Charity for the coming year is announced, while awards are presented for various levels of support.

Good Grief - Promotional Video

The video below will introduce you to our 2011-2012 State Charity, "Good Grief".

 

CLICK HERE to view a recent article about Good Grief published in the Star-Ledger. The article will open in a new window.

Recent State Charities

Click on one of the links below to learn more about recent State Charities that have been selected by the NJASC State Officers.

2011-2012 Good Grief

WEBSITE: www.good-grief.org

Good Grief is a resource for grieving children and their families. Through our support center and workshops we help children during the difficult times of their lives and offer support and guidance to the adults in their lives. We currently provide direct services for children and adults coping with loss due to death. 

Our MISSION is to normalize grief in our society and create resilient communities where children coping with loss grow up emotionally healthy and able to lead meaningful and productive lives.  This is done through our year-round peer grief support center and educational workshops. 

 

We BELIEVE THAT grief is a natural reaction to loss, we all have within us the natural capacity to heal after a loss, the duration and intensity of grief are unique to each individual, and that caring and acceptance assist in both the grieving and healing processes.

 

In our PRACTICE we accept and affirm all feelings in our Support Circle, we provide caring support and serve as companions on each individual's unique journey through loss, we are empathic listeners and compassionate witnesses, we believe every person has the right to be heard and understood, we gather as a grieving community to honor each other's stories and to hold hope in the presence of suffering, and we care for ourselves with compassion and understanding so that we may do the same for others.

 

For more information please contact:

Good Grief
c/o Marisa Bolognese, Executive Director
E-MAIL: marisa@good-grief.org

 

2010-2011 Spread The Magic Foundation

WEBSITE: www.spreadthemagic.org

About Our Mission

Our mission is to spread hope and inspiration to children battling cancer through the power of magic. Spread The Magic Foundation was founded by Chad Juros, whose story is presented below:

About Our Founder

In 1991, at the age of three, Chad was diagnosed with leukemia. In 1995, at the age of seven, he relapsed. For 17 months Chad lived as an inpatient in the cancer ward of Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. There, he fought the good fight, which included having to learn how to walk and talk again because of the devastating side effects of the drugs that were intended to cure him. Tubes were attached to him so he could breathe and eat. Through the ordeal, he experienced cardiac arrest and coma, and underwent numerous surgeries and multiple blood transfusions.

While he was bravely fighting the battle, his father would use magic to distract Chad from the fear and pain he was enduring. While receiving his treatments, Chad would lie in his hospital bed and practice making magic for hours a day. Each week, his dad would teach him new tricks to master. In 1998, at long last, Chad was released from the hospital. That same year, Chad's dad collapsed and was subsequently diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor and died on January 17, 2000, leaving behind Penny, his wife, and his children, Faith and Chad.

In January 2003, Chad began experiencing severe headaches. Doctors determined that Chad was bleeding from the brain and he underwent emergency brain surgery. When Chad awoke from his surgery deficit free he decided to make his father's dying wish his living wish. That wish was for "Chad to be considered cured and continue to spread the magic". Therefore this nonprofit charitable 501(c)(3) foundation was formed and is being dedicated to the memory and wishes of Chad's dad, Dr. Donald Juros (1958-2000).

 

For information and/or to book appearances please contact:

Spread the Magic Foundation
c/o Penny Juros
322 McClellan Rd.
Egg Harbor Township, NJ 08234
E-MAIL: spreadthemagic@aol.com

 

2009-2010 Family Reach Foundation

WEBSITE: www.familyreach.org

About Our Mission

Our mission is to provide financial relief and heartfelt support to families fighting pediatric cancers and other life-threatening diseases. While the majority of our efforts are dedicated to families fighting solid-tumor, pediatric-type cancers, we extend support to families with similar medical situations and urgent, unfulfilled needs. The focus of our current efforts is to raise funds to help eligible families pay for a variety of significant expenses that mount during the patient's treatment, including:

  • Everyday home bills that accumulate due to lost wages of parents (e.g., mortgage, utilities, insurance, etc.)
  • Transportation to care centers and lodging for family members
  • Child care
  • Palliative care
  • Other special patient needs (medical or non-medical)
Our goal is to help over 1,000 families in the next 3 to 5 years.

Premise of our Cause

The Foundation has provided care and support to families since its original efforts in 1981, with funds addressing a spectrum of needs. As our mission describes, Family Reach Foundation was created to provide financial relief and heartfelt support to families fighting pediatric cancers and other life threatening diseases...

A Menacing Storm: Each year, there are over a million new cases of cancer, 20,000 afflicting patients under the age of 30 and their families. The disease does not discriminate - it affects people of all backgrounds and financial means.

Facing the Tornado: The surprise and trauma of the disease can resemble the sudden devastation of a tornado: One moment, life is safe and normal, and the next it is has been turned upside down with no time to hide or recover.

Attending to Love Ones: Quickly, the only thing that matters to the family is bringing a loved-one back to good health and restoring calm to the family - make the pain go away, get rid of the cancer, return to normalcy, do whatever it takes.

The Ongoing Aftermath: At the same time, life continues to move - the world does not wait. The often-overlooked consequence of the cancer tornado is that thousands of families hit financial and emotional breaking points.

Staying Afloat: Many families struggle tirelessly to keep the calm, stay on top of difficult financial conditions, and help bring health back to their loved one fighting cancer. The drain can be catastrophic, and lasting.

Family Reach exists to help families get through this unimaginable storm.

History

Before Family Reach Foundation was incorporated in 2003, the organization operated as the "Colangelo/Morello-Wiatrak Cancer Fund." The Fund was founded as a joint effort in 1996 by the families of Christopher Colangelo and Kristine Morello-Wiatrak. Christopher lost his battle with neuroblastoma at the age of 11 in 1981, and Kristine died in 1995 at the age of 27 after a year of fighting Ewing's sarcoma, a pediatric-type cancer.

Shortly after Christopher's death, the Colangelo family began a relationship with Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York to help families with the financial and emotional burdens of dealing with pediatric cancers. Over the years, the Colangelo's offered special attention to families requiring palliative care, home health assistance and other needs in the final days of their children's lives.

Kristine and her husband Chris had a similar vision during Kristine's fight against Ewing's Sarcoma. They both were astounded by the plethora of secondary costs and burdens that mount during treatment - from transportation to cancer centers, to special nutrition needs, to day care. They witnessed how families struggled to keep up with the enormous, everyday challenges of helping their loved-ones' fight cancer, while managing the variety of financial pressures that mount during the treatment period. Kristine, before she died, agreed with her husband Chris that they should create a fund to help families cope with these financial pressures, and allow them to focus their emotions on the healing of loved ones.

In 1996, the families of Christopher and Kristine, already good friends, decided to meld their efforts together into one fund. After seven years of grass-roots efforts and successful fundraising to help families primarily at Memorial Sloan-Kettering and Columbia, the founders launched Family Reach Foundation as a formal 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in 2003. Since that time, Family Reach Foundation has helped hundreds of families fighting cancers (and other life threatening diseases) to help pay for critical non-medical and medical expenses.

 

2008-2009 P.O.A.C.

WEBSITE: www.poac.net

More children are diagnosed with autism each year than cancer, aids and diabetes combined. One out of every 150 children born today is on the autism spectrum. In New Jersey the number is even higher, 1 in 94 children and 1 in 60 boys. There are many national and local organizations focused on autism research, but almost none dealing with teaching and reaching children already affected by this disorder. The needs of children with autism are often not met in a traditional special education environment, and parents are unprepared to deal with the daily challenges of having a child with autism.

POAC (Parents Of Autistic Children), a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, was formed to help address these needs. Founded in 1999, POAC's mission is to provide scientifically-based training to parents, teachers, and related personnel who provide direct services to children with Autism. In order to fulfill its mission, POAC offers targeted and sustained training to parents, professionals and paraprofessionals. This training focuses on Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), the only research-based treatment recognized by the U.S. Surgeon General for children with autism, and specifically B.F. Skinner’s analysis of Verbal Behavior (VB).

Because autism affects all those who provide services to children with the disorder, POAC serves not only the children and their families, but also the professionals who treat and teach them. Major goals are to:

  • Provide information regarding effective interventions to the educational community through ongoing workshops, training and conferences
  • Teach parents and families strategies for living successfully with autism through an ongoing free parent training series
  • Increase the pool of individuals qualified to work with children with autism at all levels
  • Bring “best practices” teaching techniques to model classrooms throughout the state
  • Increase public awareness of the disorder

Since its inception, POAC has provided numerous services and support to thousands of people throughout New Jersey and across the country. Some of our accomplishments are:

  • Free training to thousands of parents, teachers, and other service providers
  • Free Five Part Training series offered at locations throughout the state
  • POAC has reached out to colleges and universities and provided course work to students studying to be special education teachers
  • This organization also provides free training to law enforcement professionals, emergency services providers, and other members of the general community who come in contact with children with autism every day
  • Provided hundreds of thousands of dollars in scholarships for advanced training in best practices teaching procedures to public school teachers
  • Funded the first statewide program for the early detection and intervention of children with autism. 
  • Hosts the largest attended autism family event in New Jersey, our Free Family Picnic/Carnival
  • Provides fun, family centered activities for those with autism and their siblings
  • Commissioned the first musical about autism and how it affects families, “Day After Day”
  • Provides a free speakers bureau to civic, service, and parent groups throughout New Jersey
  • Provides an informative quarterly newsletter, The Difference with a subscription of over 4000

Making a difference in the lives of children now is at the heart of everything we do at POAC.  With your help, POAC has become a bastion of support and a beacon of hope to the autism community.

 

2007-2008 The Valerie Fund

WEBSITE: www.valeriefund.org

When nine-year-old Valerie Goldstein lost her courageous fight against cancer in 1976, her parents Ed and Sue were determined to do something in her memory to aid others in their fight.

At that time, there were no comprehensive care facilities for children with cancer and blood disorders in New Jersey. During her treatment, Valerie and her parents would travel several hundred miles a week to hospitals in New York City. The daily trip between the hospitals and home took an emotional and physical toll on Valerie and her parents, sapping their energy at a time when they needed it most.

The Valerie Fund was born in the Goldstein's New Jersey basement - a group of benevolent friends wanting to make certain that no family should have to repeat what the Goldstein's endured. In 1977, The Valerie Fund Children's Center at Overlook Hospital opened, and became the first comprehensive care facility for children with cancer and blood disorders in New Jersey.

Since then, The Valerie Fund has always been responsive to the needs of children and their families, while remaining true the mission of bringing quality care close to home. Our facilities, programs and volunteers assist thousands of children and their families, helping to achieve victories large and small everyday.

From the unbearable despair of loss rose the rebellious, unconquerable seeds of hope. Thanks to the thousands of caring contributors and volunteers, today there are seven Valerie Fund Children's Centers for Cancer and Blood Disorders located in major hospitals in the tri-state area, providing caring and comprehensive health care to more than 5,000 children and their families each year.Our approach is as unique and fundamental as our heritage: we firmly believe that disease in a child is best fought when the entire family is armed and supported to resist it. This means bringing state-of-the-art treatment centers close to the home, providing counseling and child development activities, making a summer camp experience that creates a one week miracle for children with cancer, and doing thousands of other things large and small that collectively make a difference. CLICK HERE or on the logo at left to learn more about Camp Happy Times...

The Valerie Fund Children's Centers comprise the largest network of healthcare facilities for children with cancer and blood disorders in New Jersey, and one of the largest in the nation. Hosting over 35,000 patient visits each year, the impact is to provide a multi-state network of pediatric outpatient center second to none.

 

Earlier State Charities

2006-2007 The Little Rock Foundation
2005-2006 The Simpson-Baber Foundation
2004-2005 Buddy Ball
2003-2004 Cherished Creations
2002-2003 The Sunshine Foundation
2001-2002 Camp Fatima
2000-2001 Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
1999-2000 C.O.S.A.C. (Autism)
1998-1999 Colleen Giblin Foundation
1997-1998 Missy Maloney Childrens Fund
1996-1997 The Ian Foundation
1995-1996 Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
1994-1995 The Epilepsy Foundation
1993-1994 Make A Wish Foundation
1992-1993 Multiple Sclerosis Society
1991-1992 The Rainbow Foundation
1990-1991
 Children's Hopes and Dreams
1989-1990 American Cancer Society
1988-1989 ???
1987-1988 Emmanuel Cancer Foundation
1986-1987 Huntington's Disease
1985-1986 The Epilepsy Foundation
1984-1985 The Arthritis Foundation
1983-1984 Hemophilia Society
1982-1983 ???
1981-1982 The National Burn Foundation


 

State Charity Awards

Click on one of the links below to view recent State Charity award winning schools...

2011

The 2010 State Officers return to present a check for $122,000.00 to our 2010-2011 State Charity, Spread The Magic Foundation.

State Champion

  • Eisenhower Middle School

Top Three Middle Schools

  • FIRST - Eisenhower Middle School
  • SECOND - Edison Intermediate School
  • THIRD - Applegarth Middle School

Top Three High Schools

  • FIRST - Hunterdon Central Regional High School
  • SECOND - Allentown High School
  • THIRD - Phillipsburg High School

$5000 Club Awards

  • Allentown High School
  • Applegarth Middle School
  • Brooklawn Middle School
  • Edison Intermediate School
  • Eisenhower Middle School
  • Hunterdon Central Regional High School
  • Phillipsburg High School
  • Readington Middle School

$2000 Club Awards

  • Buena Regional High School
  • Cherokee High School
  • Community Middle School
  • Franklin High School
  • High Point Regional High School
  • J.P. Case Middle School
  • John P. Stevens High School
  • Kittatinny Regional Junior High School
  • Madison Junior School
  • Melvin H. Kreps Middle School
  • Monsignor Donovan High School
  • New Egypt Middle School
  • North Hunterdon High School
  • Rancocas Valley Regional High School
  • Raritan High School
  • Roosevelt Intermediate School
  • Seneca High School
  • Shawnee High School
  • Shore Regional High School
  • Southern Regional High School
  • Thomas Grover Middle School
  • Timberlane Middle School
  • West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South
  • Westfield High School

$1000 Club Awards

  • Absegami High School
  • Belvidere High School
  • Bordentown Regional Middle School
  • Burlington County Institute of Technology - Medford
  • Collingswood High School
  • Columbia High School
  • Delaware Township School
  • Ewing High School
  • Gloucester County Vocational-Technical High School
  • Hillsborough High School
  • Holy Cross High School
  • Mount Olive High School
  • Oakcrest High School
  • Ocean City High School
  • Olson Middle School
  • Palmyra High School
  • Parsippany Hills High School
  • Ramapo High School
  • Riverside High School
  • Rutherford High School
  • Sayreville War Memorial High School
  • South Brunswick High School
  • Southampton Township School #3
  • Stewartsville Middle School
  • Washington Township High School
  • Williamstown High School

 

2010

The 2010 State Officers present a check for $125,075.00 to our 2009-2010 State Charity, The Family Reach Foundation.

State Champion

  • Allentown High School

Top Three Middle Schools

  • FIRST - Bridgewater-Raritan High School
  • SECOND - Eisenhower Middle School
  • THIRD - Applegarth Middle School, Brooklawn Middle School, Edison Intermediate School (tie)

Top Three High Schools

  • FIRST - Allentown High School
  • SECOND - Hunterdon Central Regional High School
  • THIRD - North Hunterdon High School

$5000 Club Awards

  • Allentown High School
  • Applegarth Middle School
  • Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School
  • Brooklawn Middle School
  • Edison Intermediate School
  • Eisenhower Middle School
  • Hunterdon Central Regional High School
  • North Hunterdon High School
  • Phillipsburg High School
  • Readington Middle School

$2000 Club Awards

  • Burlington Township High School
  • Cherokee High School
  • Community Middle School
  • Franklin High School
  • High Point Regional High School
  • John P. Stevens High School
  • J.P. Case Middle School
  • Madison Junior School
  • Manchester Township High School
  • Monsignor Donovan High School
  • Riverside High School
  • Roosevelt Intermediate School
  • Seneca High School
  • Shawnee High School
  • Steinert High School
  • Thomas Grover Middle School
  • Timberlane Middle School
  • Toms River High School South
  • Westfield High School

$1000 Club Awards

  • Barnegat High School
  • Bayonne High School
  • Belvidere High School
  • Bordentown Regional High School
  • Bordentown Regional Middle School
  • Burlington County Institute of Technology - Medford
  • Collingswood High School
  • Columbia High School
  • Edison High School
  • Ewing High School
  • Gloucester County Vocational-Technical High School
  • Hillsborough Middle School
  • Hillsborough High School
  • Kingsway Regional High School
  • Kittatinny Regional Junior High School
  • Logan Elementary School
  • Marlboro High School
  • Montgomery High School
  • Mt. Olive High School
  • Oakcrest High School
  • Ocean City High School
  • Olson Middle School
  • Parsippany Hills High School
  • Ramapo High School
  • Rutherford High School
  • Sayreville War Memorial High School
  • Shore Regional High School
  • South Brunswick High School
  • Stewartsville Middle School
  • Union High School
  • Washington Township High School

 

2009

The 2008 and 2009 State Officers proudly present a check for $153,275.00 to our 2008-2009 State Charity, Parents of Autistic Children (POAC).

State Champion

  • Roosevelt Intermediate School

Top Three Middle Schools

  • FIRST - Roosevelt Intermediate School
  • SECOND - Eisenhower Middle School
  • THIRD - Applegarth Middle School

Top Three High Schools

  • FIRST - Allentown High School
  • SECOND - Hunterdon Central Regional High School
  • THIRD - North Hunterdon High School

$10,000 Club Awards

  • Allentown High School
  • Roosevelt Intermediate School

$5000 Club Awards

  • Applegarth Middle School
  • Bayonne High School
  • Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School
  • Brooklawn Middle School
  • Edison Intermediate School
  • Eisenhower Middle School
  • Franklin High School
  • Hunterdon Central Regional High School
  • North Hunterdon High School
  • Phillipsburg High School
  • Shawnee High School

$2000 Club Awards

  • Belleville High School
  • Belvidere High School
  • Bordentown Regional High School
  • Community Middle School (West Windsor-Plainsboro)
  • Edison High School
  • Frank Antonides School
  • High Point Regional High School
  • J.P. Case Middle School
  • Lenape Valley Regional High School
  • Madison Junior School
  • Manchester Township High School
  • Monroe Township High School
  • Monsignor Donovan High School
  • Oakcrest High School
  • Rancocas Valley Regional High School
  • Rutherford High School
  • Seneca High School
  • Steinert High School
  • Timberlane Middle School
  • Toms River High School South

$1000 Club Awards

  • Barnegat High School
  • Bordentown Regional Middle School
  • Cherokee High School
  • Collingswood Middle School
  • Cumberland Regional High School
  • Ewing High School
  • Gloucester County Institute of Technology
  • Hightstown High School
  • Holy Cross High School
  • Howell High School
  • Kenneth R. Olson Middle School
  • Kingsway Regional High School
  • Kittatinny Regional Junior High School
  • Linwood Middle School
  • Mainland Regional High School
  • Marlboro High School
  • Middlesex High School
  • Mt. Olive High School
  • North Brunswick High School
  • Ocean City High School
  • Parsippany High School
  • Parsippany Hills High School
  • Readington Middle School
  • Riverside High School
  • Sayreville War Memorial High School
  • Shore Regional High School
  • South Brunswick High School
  • Southampton Township School #3
  • Stewartsville Middle School
  • Union High School
  • Washington Township High School

 

2008

The 2007 State Officers proudly present a check for $193,884.23 to our 2007-2008 State Charity, The Valerie Fund.

State Champion

  • Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School

Top Three Middle Schools

  • FIRST - Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School
  • SECOND - Roosevelt Intermediate School
  • THIRD - Eisenhower Middle School

Top Three High Schools

  • FIRST - Marlboro High School
  • SECOND - Allentown High School
  • THIRD - Hunterdon Central Regional High School (tie)
  • THIRD - North Hunterdon High School (tie)

$10,000 Club Awards

  • Allentown High School
  • Applegarth Middle School
  • Bridgewater-Raritan High School
  • Eisenhower Middle School
  • Marlboro High School
  • Roosevelt Intermediate School

$5000 Club Awards

  • Brooklawn Middle School
  • Edison Intermediate School
  • Hunterdon Central Regional High School
  • Manchester Township High School
  • Monsignor Donovan High School
  • North Hunterdon High School
  • Phillipsburg High School

$2000 Club Awards

  • Community Middle School
  • Edison High School
  • Frank Antonides School
  • Franklin High School
  • High Point Regional High School
  • J.P. Case Middle School
  • J.P. Stevens High School
  • Kingsway Regional High School
  • Lenape Valley High School
  • Madison Junior School
  • Parsippany High School
  • Ramapo High School
  • Rutherford High School
  • Shawnee High School
  • Steinert High School
  • Timberlane Middle School

$1000 Club Awards

  • Bayonne High School
  • Belleville High School
  • Belvidere High School
  • Bordentown Regional Middle School
  • Central Middle School
  • Cherokee High School
  • Cumberland Regional High School
  • Ewing High School
  • Gloucester County Institute of Technology
  • Kenneth R. Olson Middle School
  • Kittatinny Regional Junior High School
  • Lenape High School
  • Linwood Middle School
  • Logan Township Elementary School
  • Mainland Regional High School
  • Millstone Township Middle School
  • Monroe Township High School
  • Mount Olive High School
  • Oakcrest High School
  • Ocean City High School
  • Palmyra High School
  • Parsippany Hills High School
  • Rancocas Valley Regional High School
  • Sayreville War Memorial High School
  • Seneca High School
  • South Brunswick High School
  • Southampton Township School #3
  • Southern Regional High School
  • Stewartsville Middle School
  • Toms River High School South
  • West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North
  • Westfield High School

 

2007

The 2006 State Officers thank the student leaders of New Jersey for their hard work and generosity in raising a grand total of $191,200.73 to support our 2006-2007 State Charity, The Little Rock Foundation

State Champion

  • Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School

Top Three Middle Schools

  • FIRST - Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School
  • SECOND - Roosevelt Intermediate School
  • THIRD - Edison Middle School

Top Three High Schools

  • FIRST - Marlboro High School
  • SECOND - Allentown High School
  • THIRD - Hunterdon Central Regional High School (tie)
  • THIRD - John P. Stevens High School (tie)

$10,000 Club Awards

  • Applegarth Middle School
  • Eisenhower Middle School

$5000 Club Awards

  • Allentown High School
  • Bridgewater-Raritan High School
  • Brooklawn Middle School
  • Edison Intermediate School
  • Madison Junior School
  • Marlboro High School
  • Roosevelt Intermediate School

$2000 Club Awards

  • Collingswood High School
  • Community Middle School
  • Edison High School
  • Frank Antonides School
  • Franklin High School
  • High Point Regional High School
  • Hunterdon Central Regional High School
  • John P. Stevens High School
  • Kingsway Regional High School
  • Linwood Middle School
  • Manchester Township High School
  • Monsignor Donovan High School
  • North Hunterdon Regional High School
  • Oakcrest High School
  • Parsippany High School
  • Parsippany Hills High School
  • Phillipsburg High School
  • Rancocas Valley Regional High School
  • Rutherford High School
  • South Brunswick High School
  • Steinert High School
  • Thomas Grover Middle School
  • Timberlane Middle School
  • Union High School

$1000 Club Awards

  • Alexander Batcho Intermediate School
  • Bayonne High School
  • Belleville High School
  • Belvidere High School
  • Bordentown Regional High School
  • Bordentown Regional Middle School
  • Central Middle School
  • Cherokee High School
  • Cherry Hill High School East
  • Cumberland Regional High School
  • Eastampton Middle School
  • Ewing High School
  • Gloucester County Institute of Technology
  • Howell High School
  • J.P. Case Middle School
  • Kittatinny Regional Junior High School
  • Logan Township Elementary School
  • Mainland Regional High School
  • Millstone Township Middle School
  • Mount Olive High School
  • Ocean City High School
  • Palmyra High School
  • Phillipsburg Middle School
  • Raritan Middle School
  • Sayreville War Memorial High School
  • Seneca High School
  • Shawnee High School
  • Southampton Township School #3
  • Sparta High School
  • Stewartsville Middle School
  • Washington Township High School