By MICHAEL WOJCIK
News Editor
MORRISTOWN - Armed with daring and a "sweet spot" for kids, three local Catholic school students were inspired to cook up their own rather ambitious Christian service project - to raise by Christmas a staggering $20,000 to benefit terminally ill children and their families.
If that goal weren't enterprising enough, this trio of students - twins Lauren and Joseph Shook IV of Essex Fells and their friend, Michael DeFeo of Montville - not only matched their target but exceeded it by more than $3,000 - raising the funds more than a month ahead of schedule. So far, they have raised $23,805 for the Verona-based, not-for-profit Rosepetals, an organization that provides assistance to sick children and their families.
The three childhood friends are amazed at their achievement. "I'm very surprised. We didn't think we would get this much support," said Lauren, who is an eighth-grader at Villa Walsh Academy here. The honor student raised the funds with her brother, Joseph, an eighth-grader at Oratory Preparatory School, Summit and Michael, a freshman at Delbarton School, in Morristown, who is parishioner at St. Pius X, Montville.
The intrepid young Catholics raised the enormous amount of money by distributing collection cans - that they paid for and adorned with a roses-and-petals design - to more than 150 local businesses throughout Essex, Morris and Passaic counties. They also spent more than 20 hours canvassing their neighborhoods, which included asking for donations in front of stores and businesses.
Instead of going to parties they were invited to on Labor Day, these budding philanthropists started collecting funds at 8 a.m. in front of Calandra's Italian & French Bakery, Fairfield. They finished at 6 p.m. that day and raised more than $1,400.
"Everyone was very generous. No one said 'no.' They understood it is a good cause," said Lauren, who is part of the Junior States of America program at Villa Walsh. "I have a sweet spot for kids and we are helping kids. I think that helped me - and the rest of us - push past our goal and succeed."
Letter inspires action
The fund-raising project, called "Shoot for the Stars," began in July, after Joseph, an Oratory honor student, read a letter from Julie Alongi, Rosepetals' founder and executive director, who was soliciting donations from members of the Cedar Grove Chapter of UNICO National. One of its members is Joseph's father, Joseph Shook III, owner of Shook's Funeral Homes in Cedar Grove and Clifton.
The younger Shook immediately got interested in Rosepetals, because it helps terminally ill children and their families. The little-known Rosepetals helps families with rent, groceries, medications and funerals, Alongi said.
Then, the Shook family, members of St. Catherine of Siena Parish, Cedar Grove, in the Newark Archdiocese and the DeFeo family of St. Pius X, met to listen to Joseph's bold proposal - to raise $20,000 for Rosepetals. That night, the two families sketched out a pyramid graph to determine where the funds could be collected and planned out the towns and businesses they would solicit, Joseph said.
The three young Catholics then contacted Alongi about their fund-raising plans, which started after she provided them with letters so they could ask for money on behalf of Rosepetals. Alongi has devoted the past 25 years to helping families in crisis, after she herself faced similar crises years earlier. At 22 years old, she battled cancer. Soon after, her three-year-old son, Justin was diagnosed with leukemia. The situation was difficult but many generous people came to their aid. Now, Justin is an adult, Alongi said.
"I thought reaching our goal was always possible but I had no idea that we would raise the money so quickly," said Michael, an honor student at Delbarton, where he is on the speech and debate team. He also is a St. Pius X altar server and member of the parish's bell choir.
Legacies of service
DeFeo has been inspired by his father, Dr. Michael DeFeo, neonatal unit director and associate chief of pediatrics of New York University Downtown Hospital. He often goes to his father's hospital to do some volunteer work, bringing blood to the lab and "helping out with the babies, making sure they are OK."
A U.S. Tennis Association ranked player and a Montville Public Library volunteer, he sees a direct connection between his service efforts at NYU Hospital and raising money for Rosepetals - "I am helping sick babies in the hospital and I'm helping terminally ill children (through Rosepetals)."
He said he also is inspired by the Benedictine spirit of Christian service that is promoted at Delbarton. David Hajduk, campus minister here, said that most of the school's boys are involved in some type of volunteer work.
"I am encouraged at Delbarton, which has a motto, 'The greatest gift is in the giving,'" DeFeo said.
Impressed with the three Catholic school students' enormous fund-raising efforts, Hajduk focused especially on DeFeo, whom he said "epitomizes what we want are students to be: people with servants' hearts. We try to support the boys (in their service endeavors). It's part of leadership: taking initiative and getting something done for others."
The young Shooks said they've been inspired to Christian service in part by the Shook family motto: "If you shoot for the treetops you may miss and hit a branch but if you shoot for the stars, you may be lucky enough to land in a cloud." Their mother, Carolyn, first heard that saying at her college graduation.
Honors - and more giving
For their considerable fund-raising efforts, the trio has been honored by UNICO National District IV, Essex Fells and Rosepetals, where Alongi named them to the organization's board. On Monday, Nov. 13, Montville officials also will honor them.
Even now, the giving spirit of these three Catholic school students continues. Last month, they and their parents traveled to St. Barnabas Hospital and Medical Center, Livingston (where the twins were born), to deliver 30 handmade Halloween baskets for the children receiving care there. There, they also presented Alongi with the $23,805 check.
Calling the three students "My earth angels," Alongi thanked them for their hard work and dedication to the fund-raising campaign. She also credited their success with the intercession of St. Therese of Lisieux, the "Little Flower," for whom Rosepetals was named.
Joseph, Lauren and Michael - who met in kindergarten at Lacordaire Academy, Montclair - plan to raise even more money for Rosepetals through additional fund-raising efforts, among them raffling off dinners to local eateries, selling bracelets and holding tag days at their schools. They also want to establish "chapters" so young people can get involved, ensuring that their good work continues, Lauren said.
Also impressed the three teens' considerable fund-raising results is Filippini Sister Patricia Pompa, Villa Walsh's principal.
"We are proud that Lauren has taken it (Christian service) to another level. She is very passionate about the cause (Rosepetals)," said Sister Pompa, who noted that Villa Walsh too has cultivated a culture of caring for others. Students and their families have been reaching out to a seriously ill student, while some of the girls have grown their hair for Locks of Love, which makes wigs for children with cancer, among many other outreaches.
"We have a wonderful outpouring of concern for others here," Sister Pompa said. "It's not usual to see in our girls' compassion and sensitivity, especially toward children. It's a philosophy that is built into the school."
Information: Rosepetals (973) 759-7581.
