90-Minute Video Earns Scout Award
Ambika Gaur completed her Girl Scout Silver Award project by creating a 90-minute documentary based on 13 women from India who either live in central New Jersey or were visiting here.
“I realized that I didn’t know much about my culture, heritage, and how things used to be in India,” she says. “I wanted to explore the lifestyle and differences between life and childhood here to what it was in India.”
Gaur, born in Colorado, has lived in Plainsboro since she was an infant. The family moved to the East Coast when her father, Anurag, began working with Morgan Stanley in New York City. Her mother, Rekha, is a stay-at-home mom. Her sister, Anushri, graduated from South in June and is a freshman at Drexel University.
A Girl Scout since fourth grade, Gaur is in Troop 70208 led by Pat Helck. Her community service activities include working with Trenton Area Soup Kitchen and the Plainsboro Shadow Buddy program focusing on disabled children in the community.
“I heard many stories from my parents but by doing this project it gave me a huge opportunity to explore outside of my knowledge,” says Gaur, who has visited India every four to five years. Both of her parents are originally from New Delhi.
With the help of Rishi Patel, a senior at High School South, Gaur put together 13 videos and edited them into the film. Gaur chose the women to interview through friends and family. Jinny Baeckler, Plainsboro Library director, invited Gaur to present the documentary at the library on history day on December 31.
“My knowledge was now spread to many more and educated others as well as myself,” she said.
Teen Angels
The Interfaith Caregivers Youth Group collected 150 gently used coats and gloves for needy families through the Trenton Ecumenical Area Ministry (TEAM). The teen group, which volunteers with the elderly and does projects around the community, was started in the fall and has already done two projects: the coat drive and giving out holiday cards to elderly people at the Elms of Cranbury nursing home.
“My grandparents live in India, and because they live so far, it’s hard for me to meet and learn from them, so it is nice to see older people here and get that experience,” says Yamini Bhandari, the founder of the group and a sophomore at High School South.
“I started volunteering in eighth grade and what I learned from it was to respect older people and learn from their experiences,” says Bhandari. “As neighbors it is our duty to help elderly people live on their own with a little help. Throughout the experience you meet truly inspirational people and that is what makes it so much fun.”
The group meets outside of school on Saturdays to plan and execute monthly projects. New members ages 13 to 17 are invited to join. E-mail youth.volunteer12@gmail for information.
Lions’ Winners
West Windsor Lions Club has announced the winners in the club’s ninth annual “Why I Love America” essay/poem contest. “It is indeed encouraging and gratifying to read how these young scholars from the WW-P school district perceive and appreciate the freedom and unity we all enjoy in this great county,” said Patricia Ward, president of the organization. “I join with the other West Windsor Lions in congratulating the contest winners and applaud the fine work of all the contest participants.”
The contest winners include:
Grade 1, Manya Sood, Town Center Elementary School; Grade 2, Arya Sasne, Hawk Elementary School; Grade 3, Drishti Devnani, Hawk Elementary School; Grade 4, Bharath Hegde, Millstone River School; Grade 5, Prahlad Iyengar,Village School; Grade 6, Divyansh Devnani, Grover Middle School; Grade 7, Rohith Hegde, Grover Middle School; and Grade 10, Hyejin Kim, High School North.
New ‘Cheeburger’
John Lim of West Windsor has opened a second Cheeburger Cheeburger restaurant at the Shoppes at Hamilton, 549 Route 130 North. His first restaurant in Mercer Mall opened five years ago. Through the years he has helped many community and school organizations raise funds. Call Lim at 609-585-8899 for information on a benefit day or evening for your group.
In the News
David and Patricia Atkinson, former West Windsor residents, recently donated $80 million to Cornell University to permanently fund the David R. Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future, a research center created in 2007 to study problems related to energy, the environment, and economic development. According to Wall Street Journal, “the gift is the largest ever received by an individual to Cornell’s Ithaca campus.”
