This past summer, a dozen students – all now seniors – from West Islip High School participated with teacher Noreen Matthews in the school’s seventh annual service trip to Guatemala with Common Hope. Eric Besanceney, Krista Ciccarelli, Mary Connolly, Alexa DePaola, Melodi Doganay, Mark Gellar, Holly Hohorst, Michelle Kurkela, Jack Magee, Tricia Mueller, Grace Schaefer and Abby Weintz raised more than $8,000 as a team for Common Hope.

The Minnesota-based Common Hope sends teams of volunteers to Guatemala to build houses for families in need. According to Matthews, Common Hope promotes education by supporting Guatemalan families and encouraging parents to keep their kids in school. Most students in Guatemala are forced to end their education at sixth grade due to financial responsibilities.

“While in country, we built a one-room house for a family of six,” said Matthews. “We also visited a school and participated in cultural exchange activities like teaching dancing and painting lessons to the local teens.”

The 12 students were honored at a recent West Islip Board of Education meeting.

 

WI Common Hope: A dozen West Islip High School seniors were honored by the Board of Education for raising more than $8,000 for Common Hope and participating in the group’s service trip to Guatemala.

 

Photo courtesy of the West Islip School District

 

Photo caption: Students at Smithtown High School West in the Smithtown Central School District recently came together to help those affected by Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. The students organized an “essential items” drive and collected baby formula, diapers, nonperishable foods, batteries, flashlights, first aid items and feminine hygiene products. Many of the school’s groups and clubs worked together to show a humanitarian spirit and help those in need. Some Spanish classes wrote messages of hope, empathy and encouragement. They also shared inspirational quotes and drawings to show their support.

 

Photo courtesy of Smithtown Central School District

Long Beach High School administrators, teachers and students have banded together to raise awareness and necessary funds to help defeat pediatric cancer through “Mustaches for Kids.” The six-week-long event kicked off on Sept. 30 and will continue until Nov. 4. A donation box is located in high school main office, where anyone interested in supporting this effort can contribute.  

This is the 11th year of the Long Island Chapter of “Mustaches for Kids” fundraiser, which has raised more than $540,000 in proceeds.

 

Photo Caption: Front row: Long Beach Middle School teacher Keith Harvey, High School teacher Anthony Balsamo. Back row: High School Principal Jeffrey Myers, High School senior Joseph Liabach, High School teacher Eric Krywe, High School teacher Matt Hartmann, High School teacher Neil Campbell, High School Assistant Principal Dr. Andrew Smith and High School teacher Eric Fox.

Throughout the month of October, fifth-graders at Dickinson Avenue Elementary School in the Northport-East Northport Union Free School District are holding a Halloween costume drive for the children at the Brentwood homeless shelter. On Halloween, the children at the shelter will host a parade, decked out in their new costumes.

The entire fifth-grade class at Dickinson is part of the Leadership Club, and this drive was their first project of the school year. Students participate in various service projects throughout the year, and can even spearhead ones that they come up with.

For this drive in particular, each student contributed in different capacities.  Some reminded their peers of the drive over announcements, while others visited different classrooms and explained the drive to the other grade levels.

“We went around the school and explained that doing this drive will help homeless children have their own Halloween parade, like we’re used to having,” fifth-grader Fallon said. “It feels good to help people who are less fortunate.”

Many even gave up their recess period to help empty the boxes of costumes. The school collected 10 large garbage bags of costumes for the 350 children living at the shelter.

“Now these children can have a super cool costume on Halloween and have fun,” said fifth-grader Elliote. “All because of the kids here at Dickinson.”

 

Photo Captions:

1. Fifth-graders at Dickinson Avenue Elementary School helped less fortunate children by conducting a Halloween costume drive for the Brentwood Homeless Shelter.

 

Photos courtesy of Northport-East Northport Union Free School District

Three high schools in the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District as well as Levittown’s General Douglas MacArthur High School joined forces on Oct. 21 to host a baseball fundraiser for a student battling Hodgkin lymphoma.

As Steve “Bones” Kuzemchak, a student at Sanford H. Calhoun High School, continues to fight this illness, teammates and peers wanted to assist the family during their time of need. The teams jointly hosted a homerun derby, which was open to all to participate. Various batters knocked it out of the park in support of Kuzemchak’s fight.

More than $10,000 was donated to the family, including $5,000 already donated by the Smith Street Deli owners in Merrick.

 

Photo caption: Several baseball players, coaches and community members joined together to fundraise for a family in need.

 

Photos courtesy of the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District