Hi, my name is Andrew Pietraszka and I am currently a senior at Westerly High School in Rhode Island.

As part of my senior project, I have organized the necessary items to prepare a meal for those in need in my community. Over the past 3 months, I worked in the Vetranos Restaurant kitchen with my project mentor, Tyler Carlson, to learn how to prepare meals for large-scale groups of people. I would like to take the knowledge I gained while in the kitchen, and cook a dinner for those experiencing food insecurity. Food insecurity is defined as “the limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods, or limited or uncertain ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways.” (USDA)

Since my early childhood, my parents influenced my ongoing propensity to help others. They constantly emphasized the importance of giving back to our community. Every year, around Christmas time, they signed up for the “Giving Tree Foundation”, a charity that supports struggling families. We then received a wish list of clothing and toys requested by families, and then I helped to select items to purchase. Throughout my youth, my parents also volunteered their time to the recreational sports boards in my town, supported activities for Boy Scouts of America, and helped with various projects organized by my town. I did not immediately understand the importance of their charitable activities until older, but their efforts significantly impacted me as I grew.

With my parents' influence in mind, I began exploring more ways to help give back to my community. In middle school, I began volunteering time at my local soup kitchen called the Warm Shelter. I learned valuable lessons about the meaning of compassion and benevolence every week as I met diverse groups of people. Now at the end of my high school career, I want to take my passion to help me and combine it with an opportunity for all people to grow in awareness about the needs of members of this community, especially when 31% (RIfoodbank) of Rhode Island is food insecure, and 36.6% (RI.gov) of all Westerly Public School students are on free and reduced lunch programs.

I have a fundraising goal of 1,500 dollars. This money will help to cover the costs of the food for the event, and any remaining proceeds will be donated to the SUPPER TABLE, a non-profit organization in my town that works to feed those in need. While many people live comfortably and feel safe, with enough food and shelter, unfortunately not all do.

The holiday season tends to be a time when people feel moved to give, but sadly, after the holidays, people still suffer from food insecurity, homelessness, as well as financial struggles. I believe in the spirit of community, and hope the Westerly community will continue to give year-round by helping programs, such as my efforts to serve a dinner, that aid in resolving these issues.

This event will be held at the Westerly Calabrese Club on April 13th, 2023.

*Because I am under the age of 18, my father has been added as a beneficiary to manage the funds of this account.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions

Update: Aug 11, 2023

Hello all,

I wanted to take a second to recognize and thank everyone who donated and helped spread awareness of my senior project. It takes such a strong community effort to make a project like this come to fruition. I am truly grateful for the success of this event and it would not have been possible without everyone who contributed. As a result of everybody's generosity, we were able to raise just over $2,000. That money was able to feed 157 people at the Supper Table, and allowed us to donate 2 more trays of food to the Warm Shelter.

I wanted to specifically thank my partners Tyler Carlson and Russ Miller at Vetranos, Silvia Blanda and her team of volunteers at the Supper Table, and Pete Chiaradio and his team at the Calabrese Club. Without the help of these amazing people, my project would not have been possible.

I hope that the community of Westerly continues to spread awareness about food insecurity and I hope that anyone who has the time, volunteers to the great organizations around us that work to fight against these issues.

Thank you,

Andrew Pietraszka