Teens — the future of philanthropy?

It has been one year since 15-year-old Yaakov Hawk started his own charity organization. In that time, both the charity and the teen, a sophomore at the Davis Renov Stahler Yeshiva High School for Boys in Woodmere, have grown significantly — the charity in size, the teen in wisdom.

Yaakov draws inspiration from his parents, who have been active in their local community of West Hempstead and in the Five Towns for as long as he can remember. It is due in part to them that he created Philanthropy for the Future, an organization focused on getting local teenagers involved in charities and philanthropic opportunities around New York.

“My parents give back so much, it just showed me that it’s important to give back, and that’s what you have to do,” Yaakov recently told the Herald. “I felt, How could I educate my peers on how to give back?, and this would be a perfect opportunity.”

What often keeps people, particularly youth, from getting involved in their communities is the scarcity of opportunities to do so, according to Yaakov. “Nobody’s coming to schools and telling [us], ‘Oh, this is what you could do to give back to your community,’” he said. “Youths just assume that they’ll find out how to do it on their own or they won’t do it at all. … I think society could be a lot better, less corrupt and [have] more moral people if everybody gives back and everybody cares about one another.”

Caring and altruism are what Yaakov’s group has been about since its founding around this time last year, when it raised $300 for Hanukkah gifts for a widow and her three children. Since then the organization has grown to include a mailing list of 2,000 people. It has staged a number of events, including a fundraiser for breast cancer awareness that garnered nearly $1,500 and a Haiti relief drive that raised a “truckload of stuff” in just two weeks, Yaakov said.