RCDS Alumna Makes Impact on Local Non-profit and Across the Globe

Fourteen-year-old Molly Devine believes that you don’t need to have a lot to give a lot. This past June at RCDS’s 2019 graduation ceremony, Molly was recognized with the Class of 1994 Jane Denny Community Service Award, which honors a student who has exhibited exemplary efforts to serve the community. The award gives the recipient an opportunity to designate a donation to a non-profit or charitable organization. On Tuesday, August 13, Molly surprised The No Limits Café, a nonprofit lunch cafe that will train and employ adults with intellectual disabilities, with a donation.

“This generous gesture makes a huge impact,” said No Limits Café co-founder Stephanie Cartier as she dabbed her damp eyes and embraced Molly. “It will allow us to buy necessary equipment for our kitchen and ultimately support our mission to empower adults with intellectual disabilities.”

Only 20% of people with disabilities are currently employed. No Limits Café is striving to change that. Since they announced the No Limits Café last year, they have been contacted by over 200 people with IDD looking for employment and are trying to raise money to make the facility completely ADA accessible. Molly hopes to attend the opening-day celebrations when the doors open this winter.

Molly’s service journey began in seventh grade when she first volunteered with The Harbor School, a school for special needs students, through the RCDS Service Learning Program. An elective available to students, the program is tied into the curriculum and serves as an integral part of the RCDS educational experience. About three times each month, students visit The Harbor School, The Atrium, an assisted living facility, and the RCDS Beginners, Pre-K and Nursery classrooms to share a positive moment with someone in need.

“I remember the day Molly came home from her first Harbor School visit,” recalled her mother Sarah. “A fire was lit inside her. She was thrilled and I could tell that she found something that she was naturally passionate about.”

By the time summer arrived, Molly knew she wanted to expand her impact from a local level to international. She joined the ARCC Program, a summer service program for teenagers that focuses on community-driven projects around the world. This summer, she traveled to Ecuador to build greenhouses in villages that needed improvement in food sources ­– a life-changing experience that resonated deep within her. 

“I think the people that live in the villages gave more to us than we did to them,” said Molly of the experience. “They were so welcoming and gave me a different perspective on life. You don’t need to have a lot to give a lot.”

Molly will be a freshman at Red Bank Catholic High School this fall. She hopes to pursue any service opportunity provided at school and will continue to take summer service trips to make an impact around the world.

Learn more about the No Limits Café at their website: www.nolimitscafe.org.