Hometown Helpers: Teens Promise to Help Other Teens

With winter holidays  in full swing, many fundraisers and projects aim to help those in difficult situations. Ashley Kalb, age 14, and Morgan Mandel, age 13, of Dix Hills created a project geared specifically toward helping teens.

“Over the holidays we have students contribute gift cards that we will donate to teens at Cohen’s Children’s Hospital,” Kalb and Mandel said about their volunteer project, Teen Promise. The two felt it was vital that teens were at the project’s core. “Usually people donate toys that are geared toward young kids,” they said, “and we felt that teens get left out.”

The Half Hallow Hills High School West freshmen were part of a similar project in Garden City for the past two years, but broke off on their own this year. They aim to exceed 2017’s donation collection, which totaled $3,000.

In addition to the holiday collection, Teen Promise will also host a district-wide pajama party in April. Students are encouraged to wear pajamas to school and donate a new pair of pajamas to kids in the hospital. Over 1600 pairs of pajamas were collected last year.

For additional information about Teen Promise, or to find out how you can donate, email the Mandel family at [email protected].

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