Two High School South seniors have been volunteering at Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation in Lawrenceville since January. Already donating their efforts to numerous organizations, Maddy Weinfield and Anne Murphy, both learned volunteer skills from their mothers.##M:[more]##
“Maddy and Anne make a huge difference with their dedication and enthusiasm,” says Nancy Healey, executive director, Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. “They donate their time and energy, which is not typically seen in young adults, and we are grateful for support.”
The two friends have organized merchandise, manned the registration table at the Race award and reception at the Westin in February, collated documents, worked on Excel spreadsheets, recruited other volunteers from South, and took an active role in handing out flyers at their school for Komen’s recent open house. They also took a Yoplait box for High School South’s cafeteria, the national fundraiser yielding 10 cents for every pink lid returned to Yoplait.
“My friend Maddy found out about the volunteer opportunity, so we both decided that it was something we were interested in,” says Anne. “I have done the Race for the Cure and other breast cancer awareness benefits through school and Girl Scouts, so I was familiar with the types of activities they promote.”
A Girl Scout since kindergarten, she recently achieved the Girl Scout Gold Award. Her past volunteer activities include Red Cross, Make-A-Wish Foundation, and area shelters. She has also been involved with Princeton Arts Council “Art Exchange” volunteer program that works with children from HomeFront. Through the Arts Council she has also helped out at Communiveristy running a tile painting booth for children. At school Anne is a member of the National Honor Society and Concert Choir.
A lifelong Plainsboro area resident, her parents are Carol Murphy, a fifth grade teacher at Village School and a Girl Scout leader for 13 years; and Michael Murphy, a consulting sales manager for Oracle. Her sister Katie Murphy, 15, is a freshman at South. Both parents volunteer with Queenship of Mary Roman Catholic Church.
Maddy Weinfield says her mother has had two bouts with breast cancer. “Everyone knows someone who has been hurt by cancer and I just wanted to do my part,” says Maddy.
Born in New York City, she moved to West Windsor when she was three. Her parents are Barbara, a real estate agent; and Anthony, a computer consultant for his own company, S.A. Weinfield. Her sisters, both graduates of West Windsor-Plainsboro High School (South), are now in graduate school — Elizabeth at Oxford University and Catherine at the Cleveland Institute of Music.
A Girl Scout during her elementary school years at Hawk School, she has grown up watching her mother do fundraising activities for American Heart Association and the National Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
In running an oral history project for the West Windsor Historical Society, she collects personal stories and photographs from residents who have lived in the town long enough to see how it evolved. She also volunteers for HomeFront.
“Riding is really important to me,” Maddy says. “I’ve been horseback riding for the past nine years.” She was a volunteer for Saddle-Up Therapeutic Riding Academy, a non-profit organization teaching disabled and impaired children to ride horses. “It was amazing to teach young kids with such a different life and physical circumstances from my own to ride,” she says. “To see them experience similar benefits to the ones I have gained through riding was an awe-inspiring experience.”
