As a student at South Brunswick High School, I started volunteering at the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen, where I was amazed by the organization's community impact. 

When COVID hit, my cousin Viren and I thought about supporting local soup kitchens by organizing cutlery donations and student volunteer efforts. This enabled students to gain volunteer experience and earn volunteer hours remotely while supporting meal services at a time when the soup kitchens needed help the most.

 This experience taught me that anyone, even a high school student, can make a difference and foster community support. 

As student interest in my initiative grew, I expanded to support the Cathedral Kitchen in Camden, NJ.  Each soup kitchen serves over 5,000 meals a week. To reduce the impact on the environment while supporting the meal programs, I introduced environmentally friendly utensils through donations.  I am very encouraged by the enthusiastic response and generosity of our donors. 

With over 25 student volunteers,  I am now joining hands with other High School students who are enthusiastic and excited to spread the word and continue working with these great organizations! We are also growing our initiative by sharing our idea with students in other towns and states and supporting communities there.