October 04, 2021
AHA Shows Care for All by Helping Outreach Organizations Fill Shelves
Hundreds of local families are now benefitting from a Diaper and Toiletry Drive sponsored by the Academy of the Holy Angels’ Campus Ministry Department. This effort is particularly important since diapers and toiletries are essential items that are not covered by state or federal assistance programs.
“The School Sisters of Notre Dame, who founded and sponsor AHA, are committed to the dignity of life and the care of all creation,” said AHA Director of Campus Ministry Kathleen Sylvester. “We are an SSND school, so we embrace their mission. Times are hard, especially during the pandemic, so it is our obligation to help whenever we can.”
This fall, students at the middle school were asked to contribute diapers and those from the high school were asked for toiletries.
“The Diaper Drive was for the Office of Concern in Englewood. They operate out of Saint Cecilia’s Church. We have been working with them for over 20 years,” Sylvester noted. She added that the AHA Middle School students donated over 700 diapers and 2,854 wipes.
The Office of Concern Food Pantry is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that provides “the invisible poor” with food and other daily necessities. Clients include senior citizens, the working poor, and those struggling to feed babies and young children. This outreach was established in 1980 to support local families who had lost their homes in a fire. Over time, the Office of Concern has become one of northern New Jersey’s largest food pantries. While it is sponsored by Saint Cecilia’s and associated with the Community FoodBank of New Jersey, the Office of Concern is independent and serves clients regardless of religion, race, or culture.
The Office of Concern reports that 44 percent of families who use diapers are low-income families, yet diapers are not covered by federal or state programs. The cost of diapers, which is approximately $80 per month per child, consumes a large portion of a low-income family’s wages, forcing people to make difficult choices among food, rent, and diapers. Notably, families with diaper shortages report more difficulty with stress management, depression, and coping with trauma, which can negatively affect a child’s health and development. (Source of the preceding statistics: www.officeofconcern.com).
Saint Joseph Care Corner was able to restock its shelves with the items contributed by AHA’s high school students. Donated items included shampoo, deodorant, toothpaste, mouthwash, soap, and body wash.
Saint Joseph Care Corner is based at Saint Joseph R.C. Church in Oradell/New Milford. According to their web page, SJCC coordinates its efforts with Meals with a Mission in Garfield, Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Newark, Center for Hope and Safety in Rochelle Park, Family Promise in Ridgewood, New Hope in Westwood, and the Bergen County Housing, Health, and Human Services Center in Hackensack.
“Please thank all of the students for their tremendous generosity and support of the Saint Joseph Care Corner. It is greatly appreciated,” Peg Kohli of the SJCC wrote to Sylvester. “I am very thankful for the continued support of the Academy of the Holy Angels.”
Founded by the School Sisters of Notre Dame in 1879, the Academy of the Holy Angels is the oldest private girls’ school in Bergen County. While AHA is steeped in Catholic tradition, this prestigious school serves young women from a broad spectrum of cultural and religious backgrounds. Over time, thousands of women have passed through AHA’s portals. Many go on to study at some of the nation’s best universities, earning high-ranking positions in medicine, government, law, education, public service, business, arts, and athletics. The Academy’s current leaders continue to further the SSND mission to provide each student with the tools she needs to reach the fullness of her potential—spiritually, intellectually, socially, and physically, by offering a first-rate education in a nurturing environment where equal importance is placed on academic excellence, character development, moral integrity, and service to others.