Spare change is typically misplaced or neglected. Instead of letting excess money sit at the bottom of backpacks, Volenteens wants to use it to help local communities. With every dollar raised by the organization, ten healthy meals are delivered to those who otherwise would not have access to it.

The Volunteens started off the school year with their project “Bag a Lunch, Help a Bunch” created by “Table to Table,”– a community-based program that collects food that would otherwise be wasted, with the purpose of serving the hungry. 

Club advisor Mr. Steve Ahad said the organization will “take all the money we raise. It has worked with so many other companies like Shoprite and even pharmaceutical companies where they will maximize the number of dollars they get into feeding as many people throughout Bergen county which includes homeless teenagers, battered and abused women, and families that can’t afford lunch.”

Club members are tasked with asking people for their spare change to collect in a brown paper bag. The change will then be collected, counted, and donated directly to the charity. 

Freshman Jessica Jung, who is an active participant in the club, said, “I didn’t realize how much of an impact I could make just by collecting leftover lunch money from other students. It is hard to believe that such little money, when donated, can have such a powerful impact on someone in our community.” 

The club has been recognized for its active participation in the “Bag a Lunch” project.  Ahad said, “We receive plaques from the foundation all the time- I even got an email from the president of the organization asking how we are so successful.”