The St. Joseph High School football program partnered with The Marisa Tufaro Foundation to fill a hundred “Weekend Snack Bags” for families of pediatric patients at PSE&G Children’s Specialized Hospital in New Brunswick.
According to Children’s Specialized Hospital’s Foundation, “Often times, one of the biggest burdens for families while their child is living at our New Brunswick inpatient hospital is feeding themselves during their child’s stay. Families often forget about themselves as they are so concerned with their child’s health, and limited funds really narrow their options. By providing these weekend snack bags, you are ensuring each family who stays with us has one less thing to worry about during their child’s stay.”
Representatives of the St. Joseph football program will personally deliver the “Weekend Snack Bags” to the hospital on behalf of our nonprofit later this month, at which time the select players and coaches will receive a tour of the facility from Sara Mapes, Children’s Specialized Hospital’s director of sponsorship and engagement.
One of the current Falcons, who was a patient at PSE&G Children’s Specialized Hospital, is scheduled to make the trip to the facility with several teammates and coaches.
Our nonprofit’s namesake, Marisa Tufaro, is the daughter of longtime Home News Tribune sports writer Greg Tufaro, a 1985 graduate of St. Joseph High School, and of Cyndi Tufaro, principal at James Monroe Elementary School in Edison.
Greg kicked off Monday night’s community service project at St. Joseph with a brief presentation to the football players, coaches and high school administrators, which included the showing of a video about PSE&G Children’s Specialized Hospital.
The presentation was designed to give the student-athletes perspective and insight into the pediatric patients and families they are assisting.
“I think what the kids took away from (the presentation), especially after seeing the video, was how fortunate each and every one of them are to be doing what they are doing,” St. Joseph head football coach Rich Hilliard said. “You look at a video like that, which brought a tear to me eyes, and see these kids that won’t get an opportunity (to play football), yet people care enough to try to help.”
Each “Weekend Snack Bag” contained a package of Bumble Bee tuna salad and crackers, a microwavable container of Kraft macaroni and cheese, a microwavable container of Chef Boyardee pasta, a microwavable cup of Nissin chicken flavor ramen noodle soup, a Nature Valley protein bar, a bottle of Poland Spring water, a container of Apple & Eve juice, a container of Dole mixed fruit, Goldfish crackers, Handi-Snacks Ritz Crackers ‘N Cheese Dip, a package of Pop Secret microwavable popcorn, a cup of Jiff peanut butter, a package of Blue Diamond almonds, a package of Nabisco Belvita cookies, a package of microwavable Quaker oatmeal, and several other snacks.
The football players provided utensils, wrapping each set in a napkin and placing it in a Ziploc baggie along with accompanying packets of Bigelow tea and Swiss Miss hot chocolate.
The food items were carefully placed inside specially designed reusable cloth bags bearing our foundation’s official logo.
“I’m so proud,” Hilliard said of his players, who committed to the community service project, which took place two days after St. Joseph dropped its season-opener and in the middle of its game-week preparation for state-ranked North Brunswick, which the Falcons host on Saturday.
“All I had to do was ask those kids one time and their answer was, ‘Of course, coach,” which speaks volumes about them. They absolutely wanted to be there. There’s a lot more to football than just Xs and Os. There’s more than just winning and losing. It’s about being able to help others. It all works into the grand scheme.”
Marisa Tufaro received outstanding care as an outpatient from Children’s Specialized Hospital, benefiting most recently from physical therapy following her July 2016 heart transplant.
The Marisa Tufaro Foundation has a longstanding partnership with Children’s Specialized Hospital, where our nonprofit has hosted a boardwalk-themed “Family Fun Night” each of the past two summers.
In addition, our nonprofit partnered with Teamwork Unlimited Foundation to provide medical alert bracelets for Children’s Specialized Hospital’s pediatric patients.
Children’s Specialized Hospital recently featured our nonprofit in its annual report.
Since its inception just over two years ago, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation has donated more than $100,000 while fulfilling its mission of helping children in need throughout the greater Middlesex County area.
Our nonprofit has also donated thousands of toys, nonperishable food, winter jackets, baby supplies and other items upon which our nonprofit has placed no monetary value.
The St. Joseph school community has been among The Marisa Tufaro Foundation’s biggest supporters.
Marisa, who would have been a junior this year at Edison High School, was born with a complex cardiac defect that required six open-heart surgeries. Despite being hospitalized for more than two years and maintaining hundreds of doctor’s appointments, she lived a vibrant life that inspired. After her sixth surgery, Marisa developed two life-threatening conditions that necessitated a heart transplant. A postoperative complication developed into a rare form of cancer that riddled her brain and body. Marisa succumbed to her illness following a valiant battle on Jan. 30, 2017. She was just 13 years old.
The mother of St. Joseph football player Christopher Wylde, Nancy Hoebich-Wylde, helped Marisa, who underwent her first open-heart surgery less than a day after birth, learn to drink from a bottle after Marisa had for months been tethered to a feeding tube. Christopher’s cousin, Katie Keane Marsala, served as Marisa’s physical therapist following another open-heart surgery Marisa endured in elementary school.
Children’s Specialized Hospital, which annually serves more than 34,000 children statewide at 12 different locations throughout New Jersey, is the nation’s leading provider of inpatient and outpatient care for children from birth to 21 years of age facing special health challenges ranging from chronic illnesses and complex physical disabilities, such as brain and spinal cord injuries, to developmental and behavioral issues such as autism and mental health.
Since the inception of its varsity football program in 2010, St. Joseph players have annually participated in the Autoland Classic, formerly known as the Snapple Bowl, a charity all-star football game from which all proceeds benefit Children’s Specialized Hospital and the Lakeview School, a program of the New Jersey Institute for Disabilities.
The game has raised more than $700,000 over the past 26 years. Hilliard coached in the contest last summer.
“I’ve always looked up to Marcus Borden (the game’s founder),” Hilliard said. “It was my first year coaching in that game, and I really got to see all the people he is touching. It’s an unbelievable cause, and I was so glad to be a part of it myself.”
PSE&G Children’s Specialized Hospital in New Brunswick serves approximately 550 pediatric patients annually.
For more information visit Children’s Specialized Hospital on the web, on Facebook or on Twitter.
