Students make V-day cards for senior citizens BY KATHY CHANG Staff Writer CHRIS KELLY staff First-grader Joseph Geardino from the Mawbey Street School No. 1 shows off his Valentine card he made for the seniors as part of the Stand for Children program. WOODBRIDGE - Iselin resident Helen Evans makes sure township senior citizens are not lonely, forgotten or unloved during Valentine's Day. It was five years ago when Evans approached the 21 township schools and threw out the idea of a Senior Valentine card program. "I realized that some of the township seniors didn't have contact during the many holidays throughout the year," said Evans, who founded the program. "I have gotten very good feedback from the seniors. I get a lot of 'thank yous' and I see the cards hanging on their refrigerators." Each year, Woodbridge Township students - grades kindergarten through eight - create between 500 to 800 cards to be delivered to the senior citizens that reside in the six towers overseen by the Woodbridge Housing Authority, which include Stern, Adams, Finn, Cooper, Olsen and Griener Towers. The cards come in all shapes, sizes and colors. "Some of the cards are mechanical, while other cards are covered in glitter," said Evans. "Each card is made to make someone smile. The children inscribe the cards with inspirational thoughts and phrases to spread the message of love, and to remind the seniors that they have not been forgotten." Evans said watching the children construct cards for people that they have never met before gives her a sense of the love that children pour into making them. "Seeing all of these wonderful works of art is like being in an art gallery," she said. "What an unselfish thing to do in spreading the kindness to someone who may be lonely or forgotten." All the cards were delivered to Jennifer Kaden of the Woodbridge Housing Authority on Feb. 9. She separated the cards into boxes and left them in each of the senior Tower buildings. Each resident chooses a Valentine card for themselves. Aside from the Valentine card program, Evans also has raised money for Hurricane Katrina victims, helps out at the Domestic Violence shelter, and 10 years ago started the backpack project campaign, which entails supplying items for foster children. "Every May we do the backpack project," she said. "I saw a need for items when my brother became a foster parent. Some of these children only come with the clothes on their back." Evans said items range from bath towels and shampoo to soap and school supplies. "We try to be as creative as possible for boys and girls ranging from a newborn to a teenager, but nothing sharp," she said. "These kids are taken from their house and don't have an opportunity to take anything, but these back packs are there for them." Evans founded Stand for Children, a national membership organization, in 1998 to increase public awareness about the needs of children and to encourage individuals to make a difference in the life of a child, starting within their own community. The Woodbridge chapter is recognized in the local community for creating lasting programs that promote awareness of the obstacles children face living in foster care and domestic violence shelters. The organization enables everyday people to join together in a strong, effective voice to win concrete changes for children. For more information contact Helen Evans, president of Stand for Children, at (732) 326-0326.