Bar mitzvah project helps needy children get educated

For his bar mitzvah community service project, Zachary Leader of Hollywood wanted to choose a charity that dealt with children.

Zachary, 12, learned about the Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters program through Family Central and Kids in Distress. He realized that many families live below the poverty line and cannot afford traditional preschools, and that in order to get them ready for kindergarten, the HIPPY program provides curriculum and supplies for their parents to homeschool them for preschool.

For his bar mitzvah project, Zachary has raised more than $2,500 in in cash donations and school supplies for the HIPPY program in Broward County.

“I was lucky enough to go to preschool, and there’s a lot of kids who aren’t, so it really means a lot for me that I know that I’m helping these kids out,” Zachary said.

Zachary has also received help for this project from Miami Dolphins long snapper Blake Ferguson.

“Blake is such a great person,” said Zachary’s mother, Lara Leader. “I reached out to him to see if he wanted to contribute to the charity in honor of Zachary’s bar mitzvah. He couldn’t attend the school supply drive we were having at our house, but instead surprised Zachary at his football practice with a signed football and a very generous check to the HIPPY Program.”

Th family’s connection to Ferguson goes back to last summer when Zachary’s grandfather, who was a season ticket holder since the Dolphins’ inaugural season, died at the age of 93. Zachary was deeply affected by his death as they always went to games together. He made a video about losing his grandfather and how much the Dolphins meant to him.

Ferguson saw the video and was touched by it, so he contacted Zachary, and surprised him at his home with a signed football for his grandmother in honor of her late husband and a signed hat for Zachary. The family has kept in touch with the Dolphins’ player via social media.

Zachary felt it was a great surprise that Ferguson not only came to his practice with the check for the HIPPY program, but that his mother planned it all along.

“He gave us a generous donation for the project, and I really thank him a lot for that,” he said.

Zachary said the experience of helping out the HIPPY program was an eye-opening and impactful one for him.

“I knew this world wasn’t perfect and there were definitely problems,” he said. “However, when I discovered this program, I didn’t know things were this bad and people were struggling this much, and that’s what really caught my eye.”

Miranda Gopaul, program manager for HIPPY program in Broward, said, “Zach’s wonderful because he did such a great job.”

“He’s so mature for his age,” Gopaul continued. “He came in and he asked such intelligent questions on how he can help the children. You can see he has a heart for the children, and it was amazing to see the empathy in him for other children. That totally impress me with him, and an interest for helping others.”

Zachary and his family donated bags with names of this year’s HIPPY graduates to the program. He praises his mother for influencing him on the project.

“She really helped me the most and influenced me the most,” he said. “I learned the lesson of not everyone having the same things as I have not only from the project I’ve done, but also from her. I’m really lucky to have her teach me that. I’m really grateful for her.”

Lara Leader said, “My husband and I are very proud of him.”

“He grew up at Temple Sinai of Hollywood, where he attended preschool, and he knows what a fantastic experience he had there as it prepared him for kindergarten with every advantage,” she said. “He wanted to do pick something that had to do with helping children.”

Leader continued, “All his friends from school came by for the big donation event and donated tons of school supplies.”

Zachary’s bar mitzvah ceremony is scheduled to take place in October, the month of his birthday, at Temple Sinai, which he credits for helping him prepare for the mitzvah project.

“Learning all the things I’ve learned at Hebrew school at my synagogue really made a significant difference,” he said .

Money donations can be made via the Venmo account, @ZRLHippy.