Abdul Hafiz resides in a disadvantaged area of Clifton, Staten Island. In May of 2000 Abdul’s life changed forever. His sixteen-month-old baby brother, Ibrahim, accidentally crawled out his window onto the fire escape and fell to his death. Immediately after the accident, Abdul and his classmates focused their energy to help save all children, in memory of little Ibrahim. They created their own Web site and started a campaign to obtain safety gates on fire escape windows, which would open in event of a fire but would prevent a toddler from falling through accidentally.

Abdul and his classmates met with the heads of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and obtained a half-million dollar grant to install safety gates, security cameras, and two computer labs to reduce crime in their neighborhood housing complex. Abdul’s youth group wanted to accomplish more. They have persevered to push for legislation to mandate these safety gates for the entire city, state, and nation. Abdul’s group has obtained thousands of petition signatures and regularly meets with legislators and commissioners. They even helped pass resolutions with the New York State NAACP and business and professional women's clubs in support of the campaign. Abdul is presently working with Mayor Bloomberg to create a window safety commercial and radio announcement.

In addition to working on the safety gates campaign, Abdul and his group have become youth advocates in their community. They often volunteer at events and rallies to improve the community. They recently worked on a project to try to save a local hospital and bring additional nurses, safety agents and crossing guards to schools. The group often volunteers at their local nature parks. For example, Abdul’s group has helped transform Eibs Pond Park from an illegal dumping ground to a beautiful oasis. Abdul even donated his 2004 Volvo for life Award winnings ($25,000) to Eibs Pond, his favorite charity.

Abdul and his group act locally, but they have committed themselves to acting globally as well. A recent project involved assisting in a humanitarian effort to collect and send goods to Liberia in Africa. The group sent a 20’ container with boxes of food, toys, school, medical, and health supplies. The shipment was distributed in Liberia in February, 2005. Now the teens are working on projects for the Boimah Cooper Memorial Fund to help fulfill the dreams of Boimah, a little Liberian boy who was brought to New York for life-saving spinal surgery. Though Boimah died of TB just days later, his dream of creating a clinic, school and park in his home country live on, and will help thousands suffering in Liberia. For more information, visit
www.boimah.com

Abdul and his group have learned to transform tragedy into a catalyst for positive change. Abdul’s causes have built bridges to all in a unique way. Not only does Abdul excel in the community, but he also has consistently earned a position in the high honor roll in school. He has received numerous academic awards and was the valedictorian at his graduation. He has also received honors for outstanding community service from local elected officials, New York’s governor, and the Mayor of New York City. At just 14 years of age, Abdul has already touched the hearts of the city, state, and nation. For more on his group’s continuing work, please visit Abdul's Web sites:
www.ps57gates.com and (click on html folder) and
www.eibspond.com

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