Douglaston teen helps fi ght hunger with Thanksgiving challenge
TIMESLEDGER | QNS.20 COM | DEC. 4-DEC. 10, 2020
approach to donating
mostly boxes of fresh
produce such as boxes of
mixed fruits, veggies and
potatoes,” Manuali said.
As she has been involved
in community
service and trips at Loyola,
Manuali said she has
always loved the spirit of
the Great Ignatian Challenge.
“I knew from freshman
and sophomore
year that I wanted to be
a leader of the challenge
this year, just to be able
to help people spread
awareness of food insecurity,
especially right
now during this time,”
Manuali said.
For this year’s competition,
Fordham Prep
alum, Jim Rowen, is
once again personally
pledging $250,000 to support
the participating
schools’ efforts. The nine
schools are competing
for tiered awards based
on criteria identified by
Rowen.
A total of $170K is divided
among all schools
by the amount collected
per student. The first
place winner will receive
$35K; second place
will receive $25K; third
place will receive $20K;
and six runner-ups will
each receive $15K, a total
of $90K.
The school that attracts
the most outside
attention for the Great
Ignatian Challenge will
receive $30K.
The school that collects
the most absolute
amount of poundage via
online food donations,
recognizing the importance
of online giving
during the pandemic
will receive $30K.
And the school that is
most creative in collecting
food donations, above
and beyond what has typically
been done collecting
food for those in need
will receive $20K.
If Loyola wins this
year’s challenge, Manuali
said it would reinforce
a sense of community.
“Loyola is a small
school and we really
come together every year
to donate as much as we
can,” Manuali said. “It
would also show New
Yorkers in general that
people really do care —
especially teenagers,
wanting to make a difference.”
While in the prior
years the monies have
been allocated to supporting
financial assistance
programs, this
year the awards will be
applied toward offsetting
COVID-19 related expenses
incurred by each
of the schools.
Inspired by the commitment
to social justice
and service to the
community that lies at
the heart of Jesuit education,
Rowen has generously
donated more
than $1,100,000 toward
the Great Ignatian Challenge
competitions over
the last five years.
Rowan’s desire is to
open the competition
up to even more schools
next year.
Reach reporter Carlotta
Mohamed by e-mail at
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.
com or by phone at
(718) 260–4526.
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
Julia Manuali, a 17-
year-old Douglaston
resident and high school
senior at Loyola School
in Manhattan, is spearheading
the school’s
food drive for this
year’s “Great Ignatian
Challenge” during the
Thanksgiving season.
The challenge, which
began on Oct. 12 and
ends Wednesday, Nov.
25, is a competition between
a group of nine
Jesuit schools — from
New York, New Jersey,
Connecticut and Pennsylvania
— to collect and
donate the most food for
underserved communities
. Since the challenge’s
inception, participating
schools have collected
218 tons of provisions
for local food banks and
pantries serving needy
families. Last year alone,
the challenge collected
137,632 pounds of food.
For the past five
years, Loyola has won
the challenge. This year,
Manuali is one of eight
student leaders encouraging
her classmates to
participate in helping
to feed families who are
struggling with food insecurity,
she said.
“It’s going really well
this year. We’ve presented
PowerPoints at virtual
assemblies to get the
message across to help
people in New York City
have enough food for the
holidays,” Manuali said.
According to Manuali,
so far they’ve collected
around 10,000 pounds
of food, which will be donated
to City Harvest.
The students are virtually
donating through
Give Healthy, an organization
that enables people
to donate fresh fruits,
vegetables and other
healthy food.
“It’s a more healthy
Julia Manuali, 17, a senior at Loyola School in
Manhattan, is spearheading the school’s food drive to
help feed New Yorkers. Photo courtesy of Manuali
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