Nursing Students Fundraise to make a Contribution for the Cambodia Project
from top to bottom, left to right: Jessica May Aying (Secretary), Melanie Cardoso-Lozano (co-Apparel Chair), Eric Mangru (co-Community Service Chair), Sunny Ko (Treasurer), Katherine Morales (Historian), Ayano Ueda (President), David Lyu (Academic Chair), Courtney Alonzo (Vice President), Saki Nishikori (co-Community Service Chair)
In September 2021, the Nursing Student Organization (NSO) at Ramapo College of New Jersey (RCNJ) were planning their annual apparel drive for all nursing students and faculty. Every year, the club donates to a cause they support. In past years, the NSO has donated to nonprofit charities such as Young Vision Africa, the WIRES Wildlife Emergency Fund for Wildlife, and so on. For the 2021-2022 academic year, the president of the organization, Ayano Ueda, knew that she wanted to have the nursing program at RCNJ make a big impact. As someone who has been involved with helping launch the Cambodia Project initiative in New Jersey, she knew she wanted to involve the NSO to contribute to their cause. Nursing school is as challenging as it is rewarding, so most nursing students understand that education is a privilege and a form of empowerment. By aiding a cause that supports education and beyond, the NSO were excited to help the Cambodia Project in any way.
Ayano suggested to the executive board and advisor of the NSO that donations for the 2021-2022 apparel drive go to the Cambodia Project. The votes were unanimous, and the club got right to work. The NSO collaborated with a local company in Mahwah called CBL World, who helped them tremendously in setting up the details for apparel. Ayano and the apparel chairs of the NSO (Sabije Dervishi, Sara Lonergan, and Melanie Cardoso-Lozano) worked on the apparel drive for months, always communicating with the CBL World team on details and thinking about the nursing students and donation recipients in mind. There were many obstacles along the way, especially the shipping delays that were occurring globally due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the team worked endlessly and were able to have over 260 apparel orders ready in January 2022 for the nursing students and faculty, which is the largest number of apparel orders made in the club’s history.
From all the apparel orders and the donations, the NSO collected $600 to donate to the Cambodia Project. As the nurses of the future, they expressed gratitude for the opportunity to contribute towards a cause that aligns with the same values they do of having compassion, excellence, and advocating for the less fortunate. Making a direct impact to help others is what nursing is all about, and by donating to the Cambodia Project, they hope that it can foster a community of love, growth, and support for the children that benefit from the donations.
To learn more about WFWP’s humanitarian projects visit https://www.wfwp.us/humanitarian-projects. To support the Cambodia Project contact Hiroko Nitro at hirokonitro@hotmail.com.