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May 10, 2023To date, in this academic year alone, Immaculata High School students have participated in more than 260 service-based events, giving nearly 12,000 hours of service through its campus ministry program, some within the school itself but many more beyond the walls of the school, often in the local community and sometimes even much further.
But in order to volunteer in the community, the student volunteers have to get there first, said Colleen Paras, the school’s director of campus ministry and a 1999 graduate of the school.
“First and foremost, our annual campus ministry garage sale is how we raised enough money initially to purchase two vans,” Paras said, referencing the two campus ministry vans that can often be seen behind the school, ready to tote everything from students to donations back and forth to food pantries, nursing homes, soup kitchens, cleanup sites, and other various locations in and around New Jersey.
“We're definitely on the horizon of buying a new van,” she said, citing the age of the current ones, “but those vans then become the ways we go out and do service.” The high school’s annual campus ministry garage sale will, she said, hopefully help the program raise enough money to purchase a new van.
This year, the campus ministry garage sale will be held at Immaculata High School, 240 Mountain Ave., Somerville, on May 12 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and on May 13 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The all-consuming event, which involves hundreds of volunteers who give thousands of hours to ensure its success, is more than just a garage sale, she assured.
“It really is an opportunity for our students to stretch out into the community, to raise money and to also help provide for the needs of people in the community around us, who otherwise might not be able to furnish their homes,” said Paras, who noted the school also invites other non-profit organizations, like Catholic Charities, Diocese of Metuchen, pregnancy aid centers, and more, to attend the sale and to select items for their clients, often donating items to them before the sale even begins and donating all remaining items after the sale concludes. “God blesses and multiplies, so whatever we do have then becomes more opportunity going forward, in allowing our students to do more service or by allowing other organizations to receive what was so generously donated to us.”
Weeks and even months before the sale begins, Paras said volunteers donate their time to the garage sale, often behind the scenes in their own homes, upcycling bicycles, organizing jewelry and other items amassed for the sale, or coordinating meals for volunteers on the days leading up to and on the days of the event. “We really take an all hands on deck approach,” she said, estimating that 60-70% of the student body attends even though they have two days off from school to allow for the sale preparations.
“Students have been talking about it, which is exciting to me because I want them to have fun with it, and to understand that this is an all hands on deck event for our community and there is a reason why we love doing it.”
Volunteers to help during the sale and volunteers to provide food are still needed. Click here to sign up to volunteer during the sale and click here to sign up to provide food for volunteers. Donations will be accepted at Immaculata High School, 240 Mountain Ave., Somerville, on May 10 from 4 p.m. - 8 p.m. and on May 11 from 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.
