In honor of two high school sweethearts tragically killed in a car crash, family and friends are raising money to help others. Their Give Forward fundraiser is truly inspiring.
Over Thanksgiving weekend this year, two teens died in a single-car crash in central New Jersey. In life, Jeffrey Szatkowski and Nicole Surace were inseparable, the very definition of high school sweethearts. Universally loved in their small suburban hometowns, Szatkowski and Surace attended Spotswood High School together, where they began dating in 2012. Surace graduated in May, and the former cheerleading co-captain was in her freshman year at Monmouth University, where she worked with the University Community Service Club. Szatkowski was in his senior year, playing varsity football and baseball as well as working with the school’s anti-bullying program. Their deaths were a great loss for these small communities, which are now seeking some hope amidst the tragedy.
Looking for a way to honor the memory of these inspiring young people, friends of the couple set out to raise funds for a scholarship to honor Szatkowski and Surace through the charity assistance website GiveForward.com. The goal is to raise funds to establish a college scholarship, and to provide memorial gifts to the two teens’ families. Initially, fund manager Kevin Meller, a close friend of Jeffrey, set the financial goal at $2,500. After just a few days, however, the outpouring of donations had nearly reached $2,500, prompting the organizers to change the goal to $5,000, and then again to $50,000. As of Dec. 16, the fund has raised nearly $29,000, mainly in small donations from friends and anonymous visitors, moved to contribute after reading about the couple online. The fund drive is scheduled to end on New Year’s Day, and tentative plans have been made to award the first scholarship at the end of this school year.
A joint memorial service and burial offered some solace to the friends and families of these outstanding young people, but still the need to find meaning from this heartbreak lingers in the community. For those wishing to contribute, donations are welcome at the fund’s home page, which also can be shared easily on Facebook.
Written by Seth Joseph
