J. Bialik

January 2012

Jordan Bialik 
Jordan is a 13 year old student in the 8th grade at the Golda Och Academy.  He lives in West Orange, NJ with his family.  Jordan developed and implemented his project in 2011 during his year of Bar Mitzvah.
 
For his project, Jordan raised awareness about foster care and raised money for the Dave Thomas Foundation and Foster and Adoptive Family Services (FAFS).  Foster care is very personal for Jordan who has a foster sister who is two years old, who his family is hoping to adopt.  Jordan was inspired by the knowledge that he had acquired through being a foster brother to create this project.  He has learned that foster care is not an issue that enough people are concerned about; his mission is to change that.  He has already done this in two places: at his school and at his Bar Mitzvah.
 
At his school, Jordan raised awareness through his 7th grade Tzedakah Fair.  He and his two friends promoted the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption and foster care as a whole.  An anonymous donor provided a donation to his school.  The students in Jordan's grade voted on which cause they believed was most worthy of the money and he is proud to say that The Dave Thomas Foundation came out on top by a wide margin.  The students in his grade were really inspired by the work of the Dave Thomas Foundation.
 
Jordan's project was a main focus of his Bar mitzvah.  Prior to his Bar Mitzvah, Jordan created a website which offered information about foster care and a way to donate to the two organizations he focused on.  At the celebration, he had posters about the two organization and about foster care in general.  Jordan also spoke about his project in his d'var Torah.
 
The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption's mission is to find homes for children in foster care who are already legally free for adoption and in need of permanent homes.  A child becomes in need of a permanent home when their parent's parental rights are terminated, in other words, when the legal system determines that despite the help that the child protection system has offered, they are not expected to be able to properly care for their child.  The Dave Thomas Foundation has been very successful in matching "hard to place" children in adoptive homes.  Their motto is, "Unadoptable is Unacceptable."  It is very important that children in need of forever families are adopted into loving and caring homes because if they aren't, they can develop mental disorders and also can suffer from major financial difficulties leading to homelessness and often incarceration.
 
FAFS is a New Jersey based agency that helps foster and adoptive families with support and training.  They also raise awareness for foster care.
 
In addition to the money Jordan raised through the Tzedakah Fair, he also raised around $1,500 for the project on his own so far.  Each person who donates gets a bracelet that says, "I Helped a Child."  Jordan is still involved with his project on his website.  If you want to learn more about foster care or donate to the two amazing organization, go to his website: http://jordanbialikbarmitzvah.com.    

At a Glance 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 Jordan Bialik
Age: 13  
 

Hometown: West Orange, NJ
 
Year of mitzvah project: 2011
 
Mitzvah project: Raised awareness money and awareness for foster care and adoption 

Favorite Movie: Any Pixar movie

Favorite food: Pizza
 
Favorite singer/musical group: Plain White T's and Coldplay

Best thing about giving back to the community: "The best thing about giving back to the community is definitely the feeling that you made a change.  Whenever someone makes a comment to me that they have truly been affected by my project, it is the greatest feeling."
 
Three things to bring with you to a deserted island: Food, drink, family
 
Motto you live by: "Think different." - Apple

Role model: Steve Jobs