St. Thomas Aquinas football players and cheerleaders promote childhood literacy

The kindergarteners in Ellen Zyra’s class gathered around Saint Thomas Aquinas High School cheerleader Andrea Asare and football player Chukwuma Odoh as they read aloud to her students from the children’s book There are No Moose on this Island!

The story portrays a father and child exploring animals and sea life during their visit to an island, but the dad is too wrapped up in his guidebook and binoculars to notice what his son witnesses.

Asare and Odoh, hamming it up for the unwitting class, insist at every turn of the page that there indeed are absolutely no moose whatsoever on the island, much to the chagrin of the kindergarteners who become increasingly frustrated at their guest readers’ inability to see the animal.

The young students, from their seated positions on the floor, began straining their arms, pointing with their index fingers at the moose, whose appearance increases in size and visibility on each page of the picture book as the story unfolds.

One precocious kindergartener, trying to settle down her agitated classmates, tells the incredulous group in a calming voice: “Relax everyone. They obviously don’t see what we see. There is a moose there.”

The hysterical interaction was one of countless highlights a contingent of football players and cheerleaders from Saint Thomas Aquinas enjoyed during their recent visit to Saint John Vianney Elementary School.

The student-athletes read aloud to children in seven classes across four grade levels as part of a community service project for The Marisa Tufaro Foundation, which has partnered with the Saint Thomas Aquinas and Saint Joseph of Metuchen football programs to promote early childhood literacy.

The border rivals, who are both currently state-ranked, are using their upcoming Oct. 19 football game, which takes place during National Book Month, and the days leading up to it to collect monetary donations for the purchase of new children’s books for New Jersey’s Reach Out and Read program.

“It’s for a great cause,” Saint Thomas Aquinas star quarterback Roman Blanks said. “There’s going to be a lot of eyes on that game. It’s probably one of the biggest games of the year and there’s a lot on the line so it’s great that both teams are involved.”

Donations are currently being accepted online and will be collected at the gate the day of the game, which kicks off at Brenner Family Field at Saint Joseph at 11 a.m.

The Marisa Tufaro Foundation will match at least a portion of the schools’ fundraising total to purchase the new books, which will be donated to medical providers in Middlesex County who dedicate their time and expertise to educate and encourage income-challenged parents to read aloud to their children.

As part of a well-child visit at 100 participating health clinics statewide, the Reach Out and Read program incorporates reading into pediatric care, providing children from birth to 5 years of age and their families with free books to keep and resources that promote early childhood literacy.

The students and staff at Saint John Vianney, who have supported The Marisa Tufaro Foundation since its inception, generously jump started the fundraiser, conducting a dress down day at school last week that generated $600 for the cause.

“Saint John Vianney’s administration and staff opened their doors and hearts to embrace this important community service initiative, and we could not be more grateful for the school’s amazing support,” said Greg Tufaro, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation’s co-executive director.

“The classroom teachers were such gracious hosts and we so greatly appreciate them allowing us to incorporate these read alouds into their instruction time. We are equally proud of the Saint Thomas Aquinas football players and cheerleaders, who were incredibly well prepared and outstanding ambassadors of their high school. Some of them graduated from Saint John Vianney, which should be commended for preparing its students for success inside and outside the classroom and teaching them at a young age the value of community service.”

One football player and one cheerleader were paired for each classroom visit, which included reading an age-appropriate book to students and engaging with them during an ensuing question-and-answer session.

Tyler Montgomery, Anwar Witherspoon, Caden Sternlieb, Elijah Thomas and Connor Bailey also represented the football program. Cheerleading squad readers included Kelly Baroud, Tabitha Appolon, Emma Aly, Gianna D’Addario, Brianna Trenery and Victoria Figueroa.

Amanda Cleveland-Miller, who teaches at Saint John Vianney and coaches two sports at Saint Thomas Aquinas, worked with Saint Thomas Aquinas Athletics Director Jerry Smith to coordinate the read aloud.

“Never did I realize until the ride back to school what this adventure meant to the students,” Smith said. “They each could not stop talking with excitement about their experience. They learned life lessons about caring and bringing joy to others. They said, ‘Mr. Smith, I want to do this again.’ Today will be a memory I will never forget.”

Saint John Vianney teachers selected the books for their respective classrooms and Cleveland-Miller provided the student-athletes with advance copies, ensuring they could familiarize themselves with the material to maximize their classroom time.

The reading list included My Truck is Stuck! by Kevin Lewin and Danial Kirk, I Promise by LeBron James, The Scarecrow's Hat by Ken Brown, Our Table by Peter H. Reynolds, Ten Beautiful Things by Molly Beth Griffin, and Be Kind by Pat Zietlow Miller.

“Among the most important ideals we teach at Saint John Vianney School is service,” Principal Nancy Tannucilli said. “Having so many high school athletes – including some alumni – come to read to our students lays a good foundation for them, setting the example of service from a very young age. In addition, the power of literacy in the lives of our students is beyond what they are able to comprehend. Having such wonderful examples of student-athletes helps our students to get excited about reading and the doors it will open.”

Asare said There are No Moose on this Island was a big hit with the first grade and kindergarten classes.

“I was pretending not to see the moose and they were very angry and upset about that,” Asare said with a laugh about reading to Zyra’s class. “One of the kids who is usually very quiet kept telling me that there is a moose. It was nice to see him engaged. They enjoyed the story and it was overall a great experience to see all the kids smiling.”

After reading The Scarecrow’s Hat to a second-grade class, Blanks joined the students for an arts and crafts activity.

“They were all excited to see us,” Blanks said. “They asked a lot of questions about football and they asked to see (game action) videos. It was really fun reading to the little kids.”

More than 1 in 3 children nationwide start kindergarten without the language skills needed to learn to read, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. The academy recommends pediatric providers promote early literacy development for children beginning in infancy and continuing through kindergarten.

Reach Out and Read facilitates that goal, making available in nearly 30 different languages free books that are representative of the broad spectrum of children and families the program serves. The stories are relevant and engaging, accurately reflect and affirm a diverse range of identities, cultures, and histories, and contain colorful illustrations that resonate with young children.

“I congratulate the players, cheerleaders and coaches from both high schools for using their big game to heighten awareness about this important initiative,” said State Senator Patrick Diegnan, who accompanied the Saint Thomas Aquinas student-athletes on their visit to Saint John Vianney.

“This outstanding literacy program provides parents with free books to read aloud to their children, giving them a foundation for success in school and life. Reading books out loud to your child is also a wonderful way to bond and stimulate their interest in reading. I could not be prouder of both school communities for working together for this excellent cause.”

Despite being born with a severe cardiac defect that required six open-heart surgeries and a heart transplant, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation’s namesake was an avid reader who inherited an affinity for books from her parents. They read daily to Marisa at home and in the hospital when she was an infant and toddler.

Marisa Tufaro, who succumbed to a rare form of cancer in 2017 at the age of 13 following a valiant battle, was hospitalized for more than two years and maintained hundreds of doctors’ appointments. Reading played a paramount role in Marisa overcoming her medical challenges to become an Edison Township Public Schools honor roll student.

"We are humbled to be a part of honoring the memory of Marisa Tufaro and assisting the Reach Out and Read program and fundraiser,” Saint Joseph football coach Bill Tracy said. “This program is a great endeavor to promote child literacy and bring families closer together. Our game with Saint Thomas Aquinas will be a terrific platform to both raise awareness and to help our community. We are all excited to be a part of it."

Since its inception in July 2017, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation has donated more than $350,000 to fulfill its mission of assisting pediatric patients and other children in need throughout the greater Middlesex County area.

The nonprofit has also spearheaded multiple initiatives resulting in the collection of thousands of toys, nonperishable food items, winter coats, baby supplies, school supplies, and other items for donation upon which it has placed no monetary value.

In addition, the foundation has awarded 46 scholarships totaling $33,000 to high school seniors and sent 27 elementary and middle school students to a weeklong summer art camp at Rutgers University’s Zimmerli Art Museum.

“We’ve been blessed beyond words with amazing support from so many people, including the Saint Joseph, Saint Thomas Aquinas and Saint John Vianney school communities,” said Marisa’s mother, Cyndi Tufaro, who is the foundation’s co-executive director and the principal at James Monroe Elementary School in Edison.

“This particular fundraiser has added meaning because of the profound impact reading had on Marisa and the role books played in her life,” Greg Tufaro said. “Our nonprofit considers itself honored to be able to provide the gift of literacy to children and families in need. We can’t thank everyone enough who is donating to the cause and hope their benevolence is exponentially returned.”

“Partnering with the Marisa Tufaro Foundation is an absolute privilege,” Tannucilli said, “and we are so proud to be fortunate enough to work with such a wonderful charity on such an important initiative.”

This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: St. Thomas Aquinas football players and cheerleaders promote childhood literacy