A statewide drought watch may have canceled the Woodbridge Spirit Program’s fundraising car wash last week, but the need to conserve water did not create a shortage of creative ideas to help others in need.
Members of Woodbridge’s cheerleading and dance teams who comprise the Spirit Program are conducting a food drive to benefit The Marisa Tufaro Foundation from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Aug. 25 at the high school oval adjacent to the football stadium.
To heighten awareness about the nonprofit, which assists pediatric patients and underserved children throughout the greater Middlesex County area, the cheerleaders will also be wearing purple – the official color of The Marisa Tufaro Foundation – during the football team’s Aug. 26 home opener against Irvington.
All proceeds from this year’s annual car wash were going to benefit the Woodbridge Animal Shelter, which will once again be the beneficiary of the event when it is conducted at the end of next summer.
An accompanying food drive, with all collected nonperishable food items to be donated to The Marisa Tufaro Foundation, was also slated for Aug. 15. That component of the Spirit Program’s charitable endeavors was merely postponed.
“We can still donate food,” Woodbridge cheerleading coach Victoria DePinto said, noting her team members were “all on board with the food drive and have already started to bring in donations a whole week in advance.”
On game night next week, Woodbridge cheerleaders will also augment their own school colors of black and red with purple beads, socks, bandanas, wristbands, feathers, boas or “any accessory they can find to support the foundation,” DePinto said.
“They don’t just stand on the sidelines and cheer,” DePinto said of her Spirit Program. “They’re involved and always willing to help give back. They are always doing volunteer hours and community service for many clubs and cheer as well. They are always going that extra mile.”
DePinto said the cheerleaders and dancers added The Marisa Tufaro Foundation to this year’s event after participating in the nonprofit’s Tournament of Roses Parade Charity Walk and Food Drive last month.
More than 30 members of the cheer and dance program, who Jersey Mike’s Subs of Woodbridge sponsored, attended the charity walk and food drive.
Woodbridge’s cheerleading squad, which is attending a National Cheerleaders Association camp in Pennsylvania this weekend, performs as well in competition as it does in the community.
The Barrons won five Greater Middlesex Conference titles during a six-year stretch from 2015 through 2020.
The cheer program also claimed New Jersey state titles in 2015, 2020 and 2021 and won a National Cheerleaders Association National Championship in 2016.
“We’ve been very successful on a county, state and national level,” Woodbridge High School Athletics Director Joe Ward said. “We have a very strong cheerleading program.”
Woodbridge cheerleaders also have a tradition of spreading school spirit beyond the confines of their campus.
“Our cheerleading program has always been about being committed to working hard and doing the right thing and being involved and giving back to the community,” Ward said. “That’s been the case for the past seven or eight years.”
The entire Woodbridge school-community is among The Marisa Tufaro Foundation’s biggest supporters.
Since its inception five years ago, the nonprofit has donated a quarter of a million dollars to fulfill its mission.
The Marisa Tufaro Foundation has also donated thousands of toys, nonperishable food items, winter jackets, baby supplies and other items upon which it has placed no monetary value.
The nonprofit has awarded $26,500 in academic scholarships to 38 Middlesex County high school graduates.
A Woodbridge alumnus or alumna has earned a Marisa Tufaro Memorial Community Service Scholarship each of the past five years including Jordan Cinelli (’18), who currently serves as an assistant cheerleading coach at her alma mater.
Marisa Tufaro, who would have graduated last year from Edison High School, survived six open-heart surgeries and a heart transplant before succumbing to a rare form of cancer in 2017 following a valiant battle.
Despite being hospitalized for more than two years and maintaining hundreds of doctor’s appointments, Marisa was an honor roll student involved in myriad extracurricular activities who lived a vibrant life that inspired.
The Marisa Tufaro Foundation is eternally grateful for the support it has received from Woodbridge High School, which has hosted the Greater Middlesex Conference All-Star basketball doubleheader, the Tecmo Bowl for Tufaro, a Pictures with Santa event, and sponsored the Marisa Tufaro Classic bowling tournament as fundraisers.
In addition, the school community has donated money raised from a dress down day and the entire gate from its football team’s 2018 and 2019 home openers to the nonprofit.
Countless student-athletes from multiple sports have participated in other fundraising events that benefited The Marisa Tufaro Foundation.
The high school also fully funds an annual Marisa Tufaro Memorial Woodbridge High School Scholarship, awarded each year in Marisa’s honor and memory to two exceptional college-bound seniors.