Senior projects are for students to devote time and effort in creating a project that explores everything from career interests, to doing good for the community. Senior AJ Celania chose the latter by collecting and donating old or gently used sports equipment to the Allen Community Outreach Resale Shop.

“I really wanted to do something that I knew something about and something that I was familiar with, that being sports,” Celania said. “But I also wanted to help someone out at the same time, and do something good for the community. I felt that sports equipment would be a good cause for the community.”

Celania’s contributions will benefit more than just one charitable organization.

“I am going to give the equipment to them (Resale Shop), and then they sell it at a lower price to people that need it,” Celania said. “Then the money they get from that will go to the ACO for the food pantry to purchase more canned food and other items sold there.”

To achieve his goal in collecting several large trash bags of sport equipment, Celania had to adjust to where it was most convenient for people to donate.

“My house got a lot more donations than the school did,” Celania said. “So I actually put more buckets out there in front of my house to adjust to what was going on and where people would be most likely to donate.”

Celania’s mentor, Todd Thompson, also had various connections that aided in the execution of the project.

“I am the volunteer Allen Sports Association Baseball Commissioner,” Thompson said. “I had met AJ from when he helped us chalk our baseball fields and he knew I had the baseball background to help in ways to pull equipment together. I also guided him in ways to collect the equipment in order to donate.”

Overall, Thompson was pleased on the results of Celania’s project.

“I thought it went very well,” Thompson said. “AJ showed a lot of initiative, I honestly did not have to do too much since he took the initiative and had his plan well thought out when we met for our initial meeting. He did a good job of checking in with me and keeping me up to date. I could tell AJ had a passion in what he was doing and he did not treat it like it was just something he had to do. It was also obvious that AJ cared about others given the project he chose and his work in completing it.”

In addition to Thompson, others felt moved to help Celania in his charitable project.

“I had a bunch of unused equipment, and it was for a good cause,” senior Riley Goodman said. “He is a good friend who is doing a good deed, and it felt good to be able to help someone out by doing something so simple.”