The second annual Marisa Tufaro Classic, a season-opening bowling tournament featuring more than 60 boys and girls high school teams from the Greater Middlesex Conference and elsewhere across the state, raised more than $3,600 for our nonprofit.

In addition to the monetary donation, the event, held Nov. 30 at Majestic Lanes in Hopelawn, served as a wildly successful toy drive for pediatric patients at Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick.

First responders from the Port Reading Fire Department and EMS collaborated on the toy drive, collecting presents for the hospitalized children during the department’s first annual Christmas Tree Lighting Celebration, held Dec. 3 at the firehouse.

Amanda Small, the head bowling coach at Woodbridge, and her father, Brian, a councilman at-large in the township who is also president of the Port Reading First Aid Squad, coordinated the tournament and tree lighting celebration as a joint venture.

First responders from the Port Reading Fire Department and EMS joined our foundation’s leadership and representatives from Woodbridge High School to transport holiday cheer with two ambulances full of more than 40 boxes of toys for the pediatric patients.

Born with a complex cardiac defect, Marisa Tufaro lived with a medical condition that restricted her from some physical activity, but never prevented her from bowling.

Marisa, who died in 2017 at the age of 13 following complications from a heart transplant, enjoyed her time at Stelton Lanes in Piscataway and at Milford Lanes during family vacations in Delaware.

She is the inspiration behind the Marisa Tufaro Classic, which benefits the nonprofit bearing her name.

The tournament has raised a total of more than $6,500 for our nonprofit over the past two years.

The Marisa Tufaro Foundation, which helps pediatric patients and other children in need throughout the greater Middlesex County area, has made a profound impact, donating nearly $150,000 since its inception almost three years ago.

The foundation also spearheads multiple community initiatives and awards college scholarship dollars to exceptional high school students who advance the nonprofit’s mission.

Marisa’s father, Greg, a sportswriter for the Home News Tribune, and mother, Cyndi, the principal at James Monroe Elementary School in Edison, founded the nonprofit to give back to a community that long provided their family with overwhelming support.

The Carteret girls and Jackson Liberty boys won the second annual Marisa Tufaro Classic, which was conducted in a best-of-five baker format using NJSIAA tournament scoring with open substitution.

Awards for boys and girls were presented to the team champions and runners-up in each division, as well as to the three bowlers with the highest individual game and the three bowlers who rolled the highest series in each division. For the second straight year, Ron Mazzola of Prestige Imaging of Old Bridge donated the awards.

“Amanda wanted to offer another option for a holiday tournament to kick off the year, and she came up with the idea to host one in Woodbridge Township to benefit The Marisa Tufaro Foundation,” said Woodbridge athletics director Joe Ward who, along with Glenn Lottmann, the high school’s principal, approved the concept.

“We were 100 percent on board when she brought the idea to us. Amanda is hard-working and dedicated to the sport of bowling. She’s always looking to assist the school and the community in any way she can, and I think this is a great example of that.”

Marisa, who would have been entering her senior year this fall at Edison High School, was born with hypoplastic left-heart syndrome, a complex cardiac defect which required six open-heart surgeries. She developed two life-threatening conditions that necessitated a heart transplant. The transplant was supposed to extend her life, but tragically cut it short when a postoperative complication developed into a rare form of blood cancer to which Marisa succumbed. Despite being hospitalized for more than two years and maintaining hundreds of doctor’s appointments, Marisa, who was an honor roll student in elementary and middle school, lived a vibrant life that inspired.

The parent of an Edison bowler who was one of Marisa’s friends approached Small in 2018 about simultaneously using the Marisa Tufaro Classic as a toy drive, an idea Small and the Woodbridge administration fully embraced.

In honor of the tournament’s namesake, new and unwrapped toys from a specific wish list were collected at the event.

Marisa was under the loving care for her entire life of Joseph Gaffney, MD, Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Division Chief, Pediatric Cardiology at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, which made the donation of toys to Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital extra special.

After the first annual event in 2018, Small and Ward joined our foundation’s leadership to deliver hundreds of toys for pediatric patients at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital of New York Presbyterian Columbia University Medical Center, where Marisa spent 161 of her final days including her last holiday season.

Diagnosed with cancer in December 2016, Marisa was weaned from a ventilator days before Christmas. With high-dose steroids alleviating the swelling in her brain, Marisa miraculously regained her cognitive function and fine motor skills in time to celebrate the holiday with her parents, who could not have received a greater gift. Through the generosity of strangers, Marisa was able to unwrap many wonderful donated presents in Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital’s pediatric cardiac intensive care unit.

Parents of hospitalized children, some of whom are overwhelmed with medical bills and other related costs, may not be able to afford presents or are so consumed with caring for their ill child that shopping, even online, is not a possibility or a priority.

Greg and Cyndi Tufaro were deeply moved upon learning the annual bowling tournament would also serve as a toy drive for a children’s hospital in Marisa’s honor.

The donations are available for distribution at the hospital, not only during the holiday season, but throughout the year, to meet the needs of pediatric patients, all of whom can benefit at any time from a diversion to help cope with the stress and pain that can accompany treatments, medical procedures and extended admissions.

The Woodbridge school community has been among our nonprofit’s biggest supporters.

The high school fully funds in Marisa’s memory the Woodbridge High School Marisa Tufaro Memorial Scholarship and has donated its facilities and volunteered its staff to host the Greater Middlesex Conference All-Star girls and boys basketball games in 2017 and 2018 with all proceeds from the doubleheader benefiting the foundation. Earlier this year, Woodbridge hosted the second annual Tecmo Bowl for Tufaro, a retro football video game tournament which raised money for the nonprofit, and for the second straight year recently donated the entire gate from its football team’s home opener to our foundation.

Following are some of the ways The Marisa Tufaro Foundation has helped pediatric patients and other children in need (please click on the hotlinks to read about any of the initiatives).

Donated a total of $3,000 to Children’s Specialized Hospital and the Lakeview school in honor of the football players and cheerleaders who would have participated in the 27th annual Middlesex-Union County All-Star Game, a charity event which the coronavirus pandemic canceled.

As a way of giving back to the Greater Middlesex Conference, which has been among our nonprofit’s biggest supporters, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation jump-started the league’s fundraising effort to feed county families during the coronavirus pandemic with a $2,500 donation to the Middlesex County Food Organization and Outreach Distribution Services.

Provided funding for a part-time healthcare social worker to assist families of pediatric patients under the care of Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School’s Department of Pediatrics’ Division of Pediatric Cardiology.

Partnered with the Colonia High School football team to tackle a Super Bowl-themed community service project that benefited pediatric patients and their families at PSE&G Children’s Specialized Hospital in New Brunswick.

Donated more than $2,500 worth of ShopRite, Target and Walmart gift cards to dozens of Middlesex County families in need, helping parents purchase food, necessities and presents for their children this holiday season.

Partnered with Woodbridge High School, the Central Jersey bowling community and the Port Reading Fire Department and EMS to deliver more than 1,000 toys to patients at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital’s Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital during the holiday season.

Sponsored more than 80 South Brunswick High School student-athletes, who donated their time and youthful energy to participate in a charity kickball tournament benefiting an inspirational boy living with an incurable and terminal disease.

Established a fund at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, from which Marisa received outstanding care for her entire life, to provide financial support to families of pediatric patients from Middlesex County in medical crisis by helping to pay medical, personal or incidental expenses.

Donated to Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital’s newly established extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) program, a specialized cardiac and respiratory support system that saved Marisa’s life at another medical facility following her heart transplant.

Conducted a boardwalk-themed Family Fun Night for a second consecutive year at PSE&G Children’s Specialized Hospital, where the sights, sounds and smells of the Jersey Shore were brought to patients and their families through carnival games, food, prizes, music and more.

Partnered with Teamwork Unlimited Foundation to treat Special Olympics athletes from the Raritan Bay Area YMCA to a Somerset Patriots game experience.

Partnered with the Saint Joseph High School football program and campus ministry to pack and donate more than 200 “Weekend Snack Bags” for pediatric patients’ families at PSE&G Children’s Specialized Hospital in New Brunswick.

Funded the purchase of uniforms (shirts and shorts) for campers at Kiddie Keep Well Camp, which serves more than 600 underserved Middlesex County children annually.

Partially funded the Make-A-Wish of a Middlesex County girl who was born with a complex cardiac defect to vacation with her family at Walt Disney World.

Provided summer art camp scholarships to Rutgers University’s Zimmerli Art Museum for Middlesex County elementary and middle school students.

Provided college scholarship dollars to high school students whose classroom performance and extracurricular involvement reflected Marisa’s educational success and whose charitable endeavors aligned with our foundation’s mission.

Sponsored a Middlesex County elementary school’s field trip to Special Strides Therapeutic Riding Center in Monroe, where students from self-contained autistic classes were afforded the opportunity to interact with horses and baby goats.

As a way of giving back to the Rutgers University baseball program, whose roster features several players that have supported our nonprofit, our foundation matched the Scarlet Knights’ fundraising efforts with a donation to Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital’s child life program.

Assisted multiple families whose children are in medical crisis, providing financial support through the payment of medical and/or personal expenses. Respecting their privacy, the foundation never divulges the names of those individuals or the dollar amount of assistance it provides.

Paid forward the generosity Saint Thomas Aquinas High School has bestowed upon our foundation with a donation to the school community’s annual Ahr Star spaghetti dinner, whose beneficiaries included a 9-year-old boy from Middlesex County with multiple disabilities.

Partnered with the Edison and J.P. Stevens high school girls basketball teams to collect baby care items to donate to the Edison-based Ozanam Family Shelter.

Partnered with the Middlesex County Association of School Administrators to offer financial relief to parents of children in medical crisis who lost wages while caring for their child at the hospital, who lack health insurance or whose insurance provider won’t cover certain medical expenses.

Funded the purchase of brand-new metal bunk beds for campers at Kiddie Keep Well Camp, which serves more than 600 underserved Middlesex County children annually.

Partnered with Old Bridge and South Brunswick high schools to collect thousands of toys for pediatric patients at Saint Peter’s University Children’s Hospital and Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital.

Partnered with the Kittim N. Sherrod Foundation to provide a youth football and cheerleading organization with a bilingual state-of-the art automated external defibrillator, as well as AED and cardiopulmonary resuscitation training for adult members of the organization.

Supported instruction and supplies for an art therapy program at Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital, to which our foundation also provided funds for infant mobiles and toy cars staff use to transport children to the operating room for surgery.

Provided money for equipment and supplies for students with disabilities who utilize the Lakeview School’s newly constructed aquatics center.

Partnered with Teamwork Unlimited Foundation to provide medical alert bracelets to children with autism and pediatric patients with chronic illness who receive outstanding care from Children’s Specialized Hospital, which annually serves more than 34,000 children statewide.

Partially funded the Make-A-Wish of a Middlesex County boy who is winning a battle with high-risk neuroblastoma to vacation with his family at Walt Disney World.

Provided physical therapy at Special Strides Therapeutic Riding Center and Project Walk for Middlesex County children whose families do not have health insurance or whose families’ health insurer does not cover the cost of the physical therapy.

Partnered with Edison High School and the Chamberlain College of Nursing for two consecutive years to raise money and collect nonperishable food items to benefit Middlesex County children and their families through Hands of Hope via our foundation’s participation in the Race to Outrun Hunger.

Provided new iPads and gaming system accessories (Xbox and PS4 games, controllers, chargers) for adolescent patients at Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital.

Partnered with Woodbridge High School and the Central Jersey bowling community to deliver hundreds of toys to patients at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital, where Marisa underwent a successful heart transplant.

Made a donation in recognition of Piscataway’s Conackamack Middle School, which honored Marisa during its annual Turkey Trot, to the township’s FISH Hospitality Program, which provides shelter, meals, clothing and other services to homeless families in Middlesex County.

Provided James Monroe Elementary School students with food items to fill a hundred “Weekend Snack Bags” for pediatric patients’ families.

Provided meals and goods for families staying at the Ronald McDonald House of Central Jersey.