Jake De Guzman ’22 Honored with New Jersey State Governor’s Award

When the pandemic started, Jake saw the need to help the food insecure and food-allergic families access safe food at food pantries. He began with Art for Food, selling his paintings and donating allergy-friendly items to Interfaith Food Pantry in Morris Plains, NJ. As the need for food continues to rise, he secures donations monthly and volunteers by assembling bags for the pantry.
 
Now called Allergy Advocacy Art and Action, his volunteer initiative partnered with another teen and helped the Morse Elementary School Food Pantry in Michigan. Hundreds of food allergy-friendly food have been donated to both pantries and helped many individuals, most of them children, since 2020.