Rayuana Aleyce always remembers her roots.
The model and past Project Runway winner may now live in New York pursuing her fashion career. But she always returns to her native Atlantic City.
On Sunday, she will be back again to mark the fifth annual Rayuana Aleyce Day —or “Ray Day” as it’s been dubbed — to visit her old neighborhood, handing out gifts and meals.
Usually, the event is held at the Boys and Girls Club, where the Champions of Youth Program helped the then-struggling young girl from a troubled family.
This year, her venue will be Stanley Holmes Village, where she and her siblings grew up.
“As a kid my mom put me there,” Aleyce recalls. “My family was unstable at the time. My mom was going through her issues.”
As a teen, she was able to move in with her great aunt in Egg Harbor Township.
“It was like a dream,” she said of having a stable environment. “I was really happy to have my aunt in my life.”
Her plan now is to help those like her find another way out.
“I want it to be a home for kids whose parents don’t really want them or have tough times, and give them a more stable environment,” she said.
It’s all part of her giving back.
Beginning at 1 p.m. Sunday, she will knock on doors in Stanley Holmes —including her old home in the Third Village.
Anyone who answers will get presents and platters of food, courtesy of the model who knows her way around a kitchen as well as a runway.
“I have a big family, so I just act like I’m cooking for them,” she said.
Aleyce expects other family members to be there, including her sister, Seng Bethea, also a model.
She knows her career has given her a stage, and she plans to bring that focus to her hometown.
“I want to use that platform to show them where I came from,” she said. “Show them what drove me.”
