The York Suburban Education Foundation’s student-led Impact Foundation’s outreach has been rapidly expanding since its start in 2015. A growing number of elementary students are becoming “backpack buddies” in the Food for Thought program, and students from all schools are taking home supplies from the Impact Closets. However, the increasing number of students receiving assistance means there is a need for more students willing to take a role in the organization. Students from outside the Impact Foundation board are stepping up to join in the efforts to ensure that all York Suburban students have what they need to come to school prepared for the day.
l to r: Sophia Mingora, Kenzie Park-Hubb, and Brooke Ruth
Cody O’Donnell
For their senior project, Sophia Mingora, Kenzie Park-Hubb, and Brooke Ruth chose to focus on reaching the needs of students in the high school. They see the topic as being close to home; the people they are helping are people they see every day in the halls. By interviewing Impact Foundation president, Ali Reinecker, they found out more about the current needs of students and how they could make a difference. They are currently working on a supply collection, and at the end of May, they will give a presentation on what they learned about student needs and how others can get involved.
Another pair of seniors, Cody O’Donnell and Michael Barbera, have chosen to focus their senior project on collecting food for the Impact Closets and Food for Thought. They feel that the Impact Foundation has really made a difference in the York Suburban community, and they want to get involved to enhance the positive impact they have already seen.
Elena Scarpato
Even younger students are getting involved in any way they can. Elena Scarpato, a second-grader at Valley View, has asked her friends to donate items like food and school supplies to Food for Thought and the Impact Closets instead of receiving presents for her birthday party at the end of April. The small sacrifices students are making can’t compare to the amazing impact IF has on York Suburban students. Students helping students is more than just a motto for the Impact Foundation; it is the real result of students getting involved in their own school community to help support their classmates and friends.
Submitted by Lilly Cook, York Suburban Junior and Impact Foundation Board Member