Those who normally stop by the Voorhees Town Center might do so to shop or grab a bite to eat, but on Jan. 18, some visitors had a slightly different purpose in mind.
On that day, hundreds of kids and teens gathered at the Town Center to help with this year’s Alicia Rose Victorious Foundation Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service event.
In keeping with the goals of the ARVF, volunteers used the day to sort through donations and put together teen kits to eventually be delivered to teenagers near and far suffering from cancer.
The mission of the ARVF stretches back to 13 years ago when Voorhees residents Gisele and Mario DiNatale started the foundation after their daughter Alicia passed away from cancer at age 17. As Alicia underwent treatment at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, she was often disappointed due to a lack of space where those her age could pass their time.
As a way to honor Alicia’s memory, the DiNatales started the ARVF with the idea of installing a “teen lounge” at the hospital.
“We found there just was a need for some of these hospitalized children who are not so much children anymore and they were a little older and we just wanted something just for them,” Gisele DiNatale said.
Once the original goal was accomplished, the foundation started work to get teen lounges installed in hospitals across the nation, as well as ease the time teens spend in hospitals by providing them with teen kits. The teen kits, which were assembled by volunteers during the service event, are filled with items to comfort teens during their hospital stay. Items typically include lip balm, socks, book lights, cards, coloring books, crafts and anything else to entertain teens and ease their treatment.
As DiNatale addressed volunteers during the service event, she said she couldn’t thank them enough for all their hard work, and with their efforts, the group was expected to assemble more than 500 kits throughout the day.
“That’s how many kids have asked for these, and we’re just so happy to be able to present them,” DiNatale said.
Just one of the many volunteers helping was Katarina Ostbye, a member of the ARVF Youth Leadership Council and a senior at Haddonfield Memorial High School. Ostbye said the annual service event helps the foundation get a lot of work done.
“It’s important that teens know that there are people out there who care and they want them to get through it and need a little encouragement, and that’s what we do,” Ostbye said.
Throughout the event, the foundation also received a $10,500 donation from Ronald McDonald House Charities and a $7,500 donation from Investors Bank.
“We can’t do any of it without the support of other organizations and without contributors and donors who support us,” DiNatale said.
ARVF volunteers also used the Jan. 18 event to help promote the start of National Teen Cancer Awareness Week.
