Zachary Rink raises funds for veterans004.JPG

Sgt. Joseph Rullo, a Vietnam veteran, purchases four hot chocolate reindeer mixes for his grandchildren. Rullo was a guest speaker at Friday's Veterans Day program in Washington Township. (Kevin Howard)

WASHINGTON TWP. -- A young township resident was honored during Friday's Veterans Day program for his work to help vets in need.

Zachary Rink, 12, spoke to the crowd about his fundraising and sold hot chocolate mix after the ceremony to support a program that helps vets find housing.

Zach was inspired to start fundraising in 2015 after a class project, and the recent death of his neighbor, a World War II veteran.

He sold hot chocolate mix in packages shaped like reindeer and raised $250 for veterans.

"We were learning about homeless veterans and I just thought it was really sad that veterans had to live on the streets like that," Rink said. "I went home that day and asked my Mom and Dad, 'Can we make a hot chocolate stand?'"

Zachary Rink (center) with his family after his fundraiser was finished at the Washington Township Veterans Day Ceremony on Friday. Zachary raises funds for NHS Fresh Start, a program for veterans in Philadelphia and Coatesville, Pennsylvania. (Kevin Howard)

The idea for the reindeer-shaped hot chocolate mix came from Zach's mother, Vicki, when she was searching through Pinterest.

The project has grown since last year with the help of students and teachers from Zach's school and a troop from the Girl Scouts of America, as well as help from family and friends. Each hot chocolate mix was filled and decorated by 30 volunteers.

"We knew we couldn't meet the demand because last year there were so many people asking for them," Vicki Rink said. "We vowed that this year we would make it bigger and better."

As the project grew, Zach's father, Chris, got in contact with NHS Fresh Start to donate the money that was raised. NHS Fresh Start is a housing program for veterans in Philadelphia and Coatesville, Pennsylvania.

"It was such a great program to take people from the streets and try and get them acclimated back to civilian life." Chris Rink said.

Zach and his family were invited to a breakfast and ceremony run by NHS Fresh Start to see the people that Zach has helped.

Zachary Rink stands at the podium at the Washington Township Veterans Day Ceremony holding one of his hot chocolate reindeer mixes. Rink explains to the crowd why he started his fundraising campaign. (Kevin Howard)

"They usually invite people that donate $1,000 or more and I only donated $250 and we had to stop because it was so close to Christmas," Zach said. "When they invited me, I was really happy that they invited me. I guess they were really touched that someone my age would donate money to veterans."

Sgt. Joseph Rullo, a Vietnam veteran and guest speaker at Friday's ceremony, has been helping veterans since 1992. He reaches out to older veterans and gets them to speak at veterans meetings.

Rullo thinks that Veterans Day is important in helping vets resume their lives at home.

"I think it's good to have a special day," Rullo said. "A lot of these people had a really hard time coming back and adjusting to civilian life."

Given the positive response he has received from veterans, Zach said he plans on continuing his fundraiser next year.

"They say it's just really good," Rink said. "I feel like they are proud of me since I've been going through with this.

"At the breakfast they asked me if I was going to do this again and I said, 'Oh yes, I'm going to do this again.'"