As Christmas break inches closer, the Great Crossing community has embraced the spirit of the holiday season. Around the school, teachers wear festive sweaters, assignments revolve around holidays, people discuss which gifts they hope to receive this year, and Christmas music is often heard throughout the building. While there are so many activities going on in the community like parades and plays, there is one thing that everyone agrees makes this holiday so joyful: the spirit of giving. Multiple Great Crossing clubs have taken advantage of this holiday season in order to raise money for multiple causes in the larger Scott County community.
Y-Club is helping students enjoy some holiday fun with their Candy Cane Gram drive. Proceeds from the event will be used to help support the club’s various activities throughout the year and to allow a greater number of students to participate. Tammy Le, senior and president of Y-Club, said, “The prices of going to our conferences like KYA and KUNA increased this year, as well as the bus fees to get to Louisville in order to attend those conferences. We are fundraising in order to cover those transportation costs, as well as help some of our lower income students with the prices of attending conferences.”
Candy grams can be purchased from Y-Club members for a dollar, and cash is required for purchase. “We hope to raise over $100 for our club. Since a lot of Y-Club’s work is volunteering and civic engagement, we really rely on our student body support in order to help cover some of our funding,” said Le.
Jobs for America’s Graduates, more widely known as JAG, is also jumping on the sleigh this season. They are hosting a Toy Drive through December 13 to provide local children with gifts and necessities for the Christmas season.
“In our JAG club meeting in November, the students wanted to do a community service project in December and decided to give back to the kids in their community by hosting a toy drive,” explained Becky Brown, the JAG sponsor.
JAG has partnered with the Salvation Army to make this drive possible. Salvation Army has a large outreach that connects with various people in the community, and alerts JAG of the need for items such as clothing, educational toys, books, and blankets.
“Most of the students that Salvation Army works with do not know how to read, and that is why they want to make sure that every kid gets a book and blanket this Christmas. We hope to make a meaningful impact on not only the children’s Christmas, but their education as well,” said Brown.
JAG’s toy drive will conclude on December 13th, and students will deliver the gathered items to the Salvation Army. Items can be taken to Mrs. Brown’s room at any time.
Not pictured are Makenna Combs and Ryann Cottongim. (Becky Brown)
And finally, a holiday staple at GCHS, is National Honor Society’s annual Trim-A-Door fundraiser. NHS uses some friendly competition to raise money to buy gifts for Salvation Army Angel Tree kids. For this fundraiser, students and staff can donate money to the NHS in order to buy an ornament during lunch blocks to decorate their favorite staff members’ door. In years past, competition among staff has been fierce to collect the most ornaments, with last year seeing a good-spirited fight between staff members Chloe Hebert, Emily Lusby, and Nick Maxwell. The decorated doors become a visual representation of the generosity of the GCHS community.
“I think that Trim-A-Door is a fun and festive way to help students get involved with helping the community,” commented Annie Lawson, senior NHS member.
Brenna Parker, a senior member of NHS, has helped with the fundraiser for several years. “Trim-A-Door brings together our love for our teachers with our love to give back to our community. In donating, we are able to give to a local organization that helps families during hard times while supporting our favorite teachers in a fun, school-wide competition.”
In the end, no matter who has the most money raised, it all goes towards the same cause. NHS Officers gather the money to spend on an assortment of gifts, ranging from baby dolls and matchbox cars to bikes and bluetooth speakers. Gifts are matched to an Angel Tree kid to ensure they have the chance to open a gift on Christmas day.
Each year, GCHS never fails to help out the school and the larger community through fundraising and generous donations. Without the support of staff, students, and local organizations, the Christmas season would not feel the same at GCHS.
Amie Greshen Willis • Dec 10, 2024 at 11:42 am
Well written Anna! You are a phenomenal leader of NHS and you serve very well in the role as President. Proud of you!