Foundation commits first acts of kindness
Graeme Preston's family wants to help others in memory of youth
BY CLARE MARIE CELANO Staff Writer

FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP - The spirit of 12-year-old Graeme Preston has woven a tapestry around his family, his friends and those who never even met him. This design has a name - the Graeme Preston Foundation for Life.

Graeme and his friend, Kevin Clawson, 13, were both struck by a van on Bar Harbor Road on Feb. 27. Kevin died that evening and Graeme died on March 3. A spokesman for the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office said that as of July 16 there was no conclusion regarding the circumstances of the accident.

However, Graeme's spirit and his energy live on in the Graeme Preston Foundation for Life, an organization that allows people the opportunity to do what he did, according to his family - give to others in need.

Graeme's uncle, Pat Preston, said, "The purpose of establishing the foundation was to affect lives in a positive way through acts of kindness. Graeme was all about giving. He was just that kind of kid. Whatever he had, he was willing to share it or give it to someone who needed it more than he did."

The foundation hosted an event on June 22 at the Pine Grove Day Camp in Wall Township.

"We wanted to create awareness of the foundation and thank people for all the support our family has received and to thank all those who helped us to get the foundation up and running. We used that event to commit our first acts of kindness," Preston said.

The aim of the event, which welcomed about 1,100 guests, was not designed as a fundraiser, yet it ended up raising more than $20,000, according to Preston. The foundation has already distributed about $10,000.

The foundation has provided scholarships for students and supports local families that are undergoing a hardship or an unexpected loss.

A $1,000 scholarship which had nothing to do with academics was presented to Freehold High School senior Joseph Mount. Preston said the criteria for the scholarship was to write an essay about some hardship a student had to overcome and how that experience made the student a better person.

Two awards of $750 each were presented to a pair of soccer players in the Olympic Development Program for New Jersey youths.

"Graeme was a member of this program. It's an intense, weeklong soccer camp. These awards will cover part of the cost of the program. We coordinated our efforts with officials at the Olympic program and asked them to identify two members in the program who had the same qualities as Graeme," Preston said.

Graeme was a student at the EisenhowerMiddle School and Preston said the foundation awarded $500 to the student council as seed money to begin the charitable endeavor that the eighth-grade pupils work on every year.

A donation was also made to a Point Pleasant youngster who has been diagnosed with a rare form of brain cancer.

"This information came to us through our soccer community," Preston said. "[The boy] was diagnosed with the cancer exactly one year to the date of our kickoff event."

Money that was raised at a dunk tank led to a $1,000 donation to The Friends of Brian, an organization that was formed to help with the cost of medical expenses for that child.

"And last, but certainly not least, we gave our first responders, who were with Graeme first - the Freehold First Aid and Emergency Squad - a check for $5,000," Preston said. "They were able to get Graeme to the hospital where he remained on life support for several days. That time for us was a blessing. It allowed us to come together as a family. That time was a gift."

Calling the experience of the family coming together around Graeme in those final days "spiritual," Preston said that "something happened to us as we all gathered in the hospital."

"The foundation is allowing us to make some sense out of things and come together to do some good every day for someone in need. It is tragic to lose a child," Preston said, and speaking about himself, added that it is "tragic to lose someone you are that close to as well."

"We are trying to do as well as we can, and the foundation is giving us an outlet to make something positive come out of tragedy," Graeme's uncle said.

Graeme's mother, Annie, said she believes the youngster is as alive today as he always was.

"We just can't see him," she said.

Annie feels that Graeme's spirit and presence can be felt within her family and she believes he is leading her to do the things she has been doing since his passing.

In addition to the foundation, she is in the process of creating Graeme's League of Volunteers (G's LOVE), a group of volunteers who will donate their time and talents to help people or organizations.

"I believe the gift is in the giving," Annie said. "People who are receiving things benefit, but the real benefit goes to those who do the giving. I like to use the analogy of Christmas, when you buy something for someone and can't wait to give it to them. Even little children can understand this is what it's all about."

She said G's LOVE is just getting started.

"It's an outlet for people to help others, Annie said. "The intention was to give people an opportunity to do something for others that makes them feel good as well. In this sense, you receive so much."

Remembering for a moment the experience of losing her son, Annie said something happened to her in the hospital when she went to see Graeme.

"All I can remember is two words as soon as I entered his room, 'Love, Positivity' and the phrase, 'Don't let him go,' " she said. "I am not a strong person, and it is beyond me how I'm feeling this way and I can't say why. But I am very close to my children and have a unique bond with them."

Scott and Annie Preston are also the parents of Jessica, 18, and Paige, 15.

"All I know is that I am not doing these things because they are the right thing to do. It's as if I have no choice," she said. "My son was much older than he appeared, more like an old soul. All I know is that I recognize the beauty of what we have. We are very fortunate. For him to die and have us not recognize all these things in his life and in his passing, that is the real tragedy."

Annie said she is not meant to hold onto the gift she feels Graeme continues to bring to his family, but it is her belief that Graeme wants her to share this gift with others. That is the philosophy behind the foundation and G's LOVE.

For more information, visit www.graemeprestonfoundation.org.