In an effort to “can hunger,” the Community Service Club at West Islip’s Manetuck Elementary School sponsored a “Soup-er Bowl” drive during the week of the big football game.
Students were encouraged to bring in cans of soup and place them in a bin representing the team that they predicted would win the Super Bowl. The cans were later donated to a local food pantry.

IMG_0764: The Community Service Club at West Islip’s Manetuck Elementary School sponsored a “Soup-er Bowl” donation drive.

Photo courtesy of the West Islip School District

Bronxville High School students, who have been examining issues related to education and injustice in Bill Meyer’s Humanities Research Seminar class, recently hosted a group of Sarah Lawrence College students to gain a deeper understanding of community partnerships and service.

During the joint class, the students – who are required to complete a community service project during their second semester – discussed a variety of volunteer opportunities that are available in the area and how they could make a difference. In the past, Bronxville High School students have volunteered at afterschool programs in Yonkers and worked with special needs students in Bronxville and Eastchester.

“The course is a powerful opportunity for students to explore in both an academic and an experiential way what authentic service means,” Meyer said. “Reflection is such an important part of this process as students learn to reflect on their experiences and apply these lessons to their lives and the choices they make.”

During their second semester, the high school students will discuss how they can develop partnerships and relationships through consistency, commitment and humility. They will also participate at a Sarah Lawrence College symposium at the end of the semester to discuss their service placements and projects.

“Sarah Lawrence College professor Kim Ferguson is an incredible partner in this relationship and helped us both broaden and deepen the service experiences of Bronxville students,” said Meyer, who has been partnering with the college for five years. “The possibilities are impressive and connecting with other students around common work can help them understand how transformative service really can be.”

Photo Captions: Bronxville High School students hosted a group of Sarah Lawrence College students to discuss a variety of volunteer opportunities in the area.

Photos courtesy of the Bronxville Union Free School District

W.T. Clarke Middle School students in the East Meadow School District recently held their annual Soup-er Bowl food drive, collecting more than 100 pounds of nonperishable food items for Island Harvest, a nonprofit established in 1992 to end hunger and reduce food waste on Long Island.

On the day of collection, students were encouraged to wear their favorite team jersey or Clarke spirit-wear as they donated items such as soup, pasta, cereal and snacks for those in need.

Photo Caption: W.T. Clarke Middle School students collected more than 100 pounds of nonperishable food items for Island Harvest during the school’s annual Soup-er Bowl food drive.

Photo courtesy of the East Meadow School District

Ninth-grade students at Massapequa High School’s Ames Campus recently participated in the Hoops for Heart 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament. The effort helped raise approximately $1,450 for the American Heart Association.
The event was organized by physical education teacher Gennaro Trotta. The winning team was John Cuttitta, Nick Bianco and Brendan Brookmeyer, whose sudden-death overtime victory in the finals capped an exciting event.

Photo Caption: Ames Campus students, from left, John Cuttitta, Brendan Brookmeyer and Nick Bianco were the winners in the 3-on-3 basketball tournament for Hoops for Heart.

Photo courtesy of Massapequa School District

To give back to the larger community, some sports teams have started fundraising campaigns, raising thousands of dollars to benefit cancer patients and research. Others have started an effort to raise funds for the Los Angeles homeless population.

“I think it’s important for student athletes to do community service projects because it reminds us that life [exists] beyond ourselves,” cheer coach Octavia Ellison said.

Baseball players launched a campaign last week to support pediatric cancer, with a goal of raising at least $30,000.

Through the Vs. Cancer Foundation, an organization that encourages student athletes to work to fund childhood cancer efforts, half of money raised will go to Mattel Children’s Hospital at UCLA to supply chemotherapy for families that can’t afford it, and the other half will go towards national research grants.

This is the second year that all members of the baseball program will shave their heads to raise money and awareness for pediatric cancer.

In years prior, only the varsity team participated.

“As a team, we shave our heads as a symbolic gesture to show that we support these kids who are fighting such a terrible disease at such a young age,” varsity pitcher Adam Rich ’17 said.

For the past two years, Harvard-Westlake has been named the number one high school fundraising team for Vs. Cancer Foundation, according to the foundation’s website.

“It feels really good to be a part of it,” varsity pitcher Jarod Bacon ’17 said. “Knowing that we, as a program, are able to contribute to our community, and especially to a cause as important as this one, is really significant to us and is something that we enjoy doing.”

The cheer and basketball teams worked together to also raise money for Mattel by hosting two bake sales during the week of Dec. 5.

By selling shirts and baked goods during the basketball’s triple header game Dec. 9, as well as during the school day earlier that week, the teams raised around $10,000.

“As coaches, we try our best to cultivate a ‘we’ mentality in and out of cheer,” Ellison said. “The success of our program depends on how well we, and the entire Harvard-Westlake community, work together.”

The money raised will go towards hiring an art teacher for long term patients to provide an activity that they can enjoy during treatment.

“It’s good to know that so many people here are willing to give to a good cause,” JV point guard Emma Sunkin ’19 said. “A lot of the time people didn’t want to pay $10, but once we told them what it was for, they were so generous, and it was really nice.”

In a similar effort, as of press time the boxing club was set to sponsor a taco truck for “Taco Tuesday” on the quad Jan. 10. Profits will go to transitional housing organization LA Family Housing.

“I’m really proud of [the fundraisers led by sports teams] and the initiative that students are taking toward ‘purpose beyond ourself,’ to use words from our mission statement,” President Rick Commons said.

Source: http://hwchronicle.com/sports-teams-fundraise-for-charities/