10 South Brunswick Students Given $245 for Holiday Shopping

SOUTH BRUNSWICK, NJ - For the third holiday season in a row, members of the South Brunswick police department teamed up with 10 local students for the annual Heroes and Helpers event at the local Target on Rt. 1. There was a small ceremony, and then each of the 10 students was given a $245 gift card, and set loose on the store with a police officer partner for two hours of gift buying. The money was donated by Target.

These 10 students were chosen by South Brunswick school officials out of 9,000 students in the district, for being role models and giving back. Some of their projects include:

• Helping autistic kids in the classroom and on the playground
• Helping kindergartners learn to read and volunteering to tutor other students
• Assisting in socializing new students when they transfer to South Brunswick schools and reaching out to shy students in school and on the playground
• Acting as an interpreter for a student who spoke little English
• Working in a soup kitchen and helping with food drives for the needy
• Raising money for the homeless through odd jobs and fundraisers
• Co-founding Hartley’s Legacy – Uses music to reach out to elderly seniors, victims of unfortunate tragedies, and children in need
• Raising money for victims of the Sewol Ferry tragedy in South Korea through benefit concerts
• Raising money for Pencils for Promise, which donates school supplies for kids in need
• Founding the Authors Helping Authors Writing Program which mentors younger students in writing techniques
• Working with other students through COOL – Creating Our Own Leaders, and working with other students through FLY – Finding the Leader in You

"These young people are positive role models in their schools. The officers they teamed up with make a positive difference on a daily basis in South Brunswick and this event will create a long lasting memory for the officers and students,” said Police Chief Raymond Hayducka.