Morris Bart, LLC, is excited to announce that this year’s winner of our 2023 Community Service Scholarship is Emily Meyer. Emily has been awarded $2,500 which she plans to use to advance her education at Quinnipiac University.
This year, there were over 1,000 applicants, each of whom submitted an essay on the topic: “What is the meaning of service?” Emily Meyer’s essay, which stood out both for quality and commitment to community service, featured her own foundation which is aimed at providing a little comfort to children enduring extended stays at medical facilities.
“This started when I was four years old and was rushed to the hospital on Christmas night after suffering an almost deadly allergic reaction,” writes 18-year-old Emily Meyer. “I received a bag full of toys from the Child Life department the day after I was admitted…Thirteen years later, I still remember the toys and the feeling behind that kind gesture. That was my motivation for starting Emily’s Awesome Toy Drive and using my voice to help the community.”
At just five years old, Emily took her experience from the year before and, with the help of her grandpa, collected 20 new toys from friends and family. She donated them to the same Child Life department that helped her.
“I was elated after donating and the Child Life staff was so grateful. After that, I made it my mission to provide ill children with gifts for the holidays. Emily’s Awesome Toy Drive has gifted over 20,000 toys to date, and we now donate year-round. As a result, I formed The Emily Meyer Foundation, a 501c3, not-for-profit organization catering to children that are ill, have special needs, or are dealing with emergency housing situations due to homelessness or displacement.”
Emily shared with us that her grandfather was an inspiration to her. “He was the one who was like, ‘Yeah, we can do this.’ He helped me collect the first few toys that year.” She recalled. “Ever since then, he was so happy to help and so proud of what I was doing.” Unfortunately, Emily’s grandfather passed in 2015 but she hopes to keep his spirit alive and continue her work in his memory.
Not only is Emily the founder of her own nonprofit, but she is active outside of her work with the toy drive. She hosts book, backpack, blood, and food drives throughout the year, partnering with many organizations along the way.
“I’ve learned when you surround yourself with people that also want to make a difference together, an unstoppable force forms. That is the essence of being part of a helping community.”
We couldn’t agree more. Congratulations Emily!
Learn more about The Emily Meyer Foundation:
