By: Joshua Rodriguez | Publish Date: October 9, 2026
The end of spring is typically the best time to be a college student. Classes are finished, no more homework, and the rest of the summer to look forward to. But for Alex McGay, it was a troublesome time. Last spring, the president of Helping Younger Hands, a Kean University club, received some troubling news from the program her club had worked with since 2024.
“I got an email from Elizabeth Coalition,” said McGay. “I was sitting on my bed…I immediately clicked on it, and it’s like, we regret to inform you that due to the homelessness rising in Elizabeth, Bernice’s Place will be shut down so that they can focus their resources towards helping that homelessness.”
The news came as a shock. The events that semester went so well. But after learning the news, McGay’s mind immediately went to one thing. It wasn’t about finding another program or dealing with a long search, but about this:
“What’s gonna happen to all these children? Bernice’s place is an after-school program, and, you know, where are these children now gonna go after school?”
Helping Younger Hands is a club that devotes its resources to helping children who face difficult situations. They do this by organizing bake sales, raffles, or activities on campus. The earnings are then given to programs that help give children and families a better situation. This could be either in the form of donations, toys, goodie bags, or even gift baskets.
One of the events Helping Younger Hands planned last semester was a suicide awareness walk. In May, the club organized the walk for Mental Health Month.
“It was great,” said Summer Ramirez, the Director of Public Relations for Helping Younger Hands. “It was a nice day out, nice breeze, and a sunny day. I also got to design the T-shirt, and everyone wore the shirt for the walk.”
However, with the closure of Bernice’s Place, Helping Younger Hands finds itself in a rather strange position. Bernice’s Place was opened by the Elizabeth Coalition to House the Homeless in 1986. The program provided after-school tutoring, recreation, and a summer camp. The specific program that Helping Younger Hands works with opened in 2024. However, as homelessness rose in Elizabeth, it closed. The total number of homeless households in Elizabeth in 2025 was 716, while the number of people was 1099, according to the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Without a club to donate to, Helping Younger Hands’ fundraising efforts have become more difficult to organize.
“It’s just been really hard because no programs are getting back to us,” said McGay. “So I’ve been working overtime, trying to figure that out. But hopefully once we finally get a program that will, we’re gonna start doing our fundraisers.”
The search for a new program is still going strong, but the club is planning events for a successful fall semester. The club will post events and plans on their social media accounts, including TikTok and Instagram.
“I make sure to make (the posts) look very colorful, eye-catching, and fun so people will be interested in coming to our meeting,” said Ramirez. “We make promotional posts, but after we have the meeting, we take pictures throughout the meeting, and then we post those pictures.”
For McGay, looking for a new program goes beyond just providing a recipient for the club’s donations. Her goal is to ensure that Helping Younger Hands continues working for those kids who might not be in the same position as others. However, until the club can look for a new partner, all of its activities remain on hold. McGay mentioned that she hopes the club will be able to do so shortly and carry on the work she started in 2024.
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