Throughout the month of September, Sachem Central School District students and staff came together to organize a variety of fundraisers and activities to benefit the victims of devastating hurricanes Harvey and Irma.

Among the various items collected were personal hygiene supplies, nonperishable food items and a harvest of crops grown in Wenonah’s community garden, as well as gift cards and other monetary donations.

Students, faculty and administrators throughout Lynbrook Public Schools recently held fundraisers and drives to help those in Texas who were impacted by Hurricane Harvey and those in Florida affected by Hurricane Irma.

Sponsored by the student council, students at Waverly Park Elementary School showed their support for Texas by running a bracelet sale during lunch periods in the school lobby. The school, which has approximately 206 students, sold green paper bracelets for $1 each and made a total of $217 to send over to Texas.

Lynbrook North Middle School and Lynbrook South Middle School also showed their support. Students and faculty at Lynbrook North collected money for the American Red Cross Hurricane Relief Fund for victims of both Hurricane Harvey and Irma and raised a total of $805 in just one day.

Under the guidance of Lynbrook South Middle School English teacher Susan DeSena, Lynbrook South partnered with the New York District Kiwanis and collected supplies for Hurricane Harvey victims during the course of a two-week period. Items included school supplies, pet food, bottled water, cleaning supplies, paper goods, nonperishable food, blankets, flashlights and gift cards.

To send all the donations to the people of Texas, the New York District Kiwanis stopped by the school to pick up the items and drive them directly to those in need.

“It is such a worthy cause to help people in need,” said DeSena. “Our school community once again showed their generosity.”

Chloe Brown and Jojo Phillips, two West End Elementary School fifth-graders, took the initiative to help those impacted by Hurricane Irma. The students are planning within the next few weeks to create a makeshift school store where they could sell pencils and other items to raise money for one or more families through the “Adopt a Family” program. They hope to raise enough money to buy the struggling families items that they need.

 

Photo Captions:

1. Waverly Park Elementary School students sold bracelets at lunchtime for a $1 each to support Hurricane Harvey victims.
2. Lynbrook North Middle School Principal Sean Fallon (far right) and students with a basket of donations to send to the American Red Cross.
3. Lynbrook South Middle School Principal Caryn Blum (far left), English teacher Susan DeSena (far right) and students collected supplies for hurricane victims in Texas.
4. West End Elementary School fifth-graders Chloe Brown (left) and Jojo Phillips (right) put a plan in place to help families in need.

 

Photos courtesy of the Lynbrook School District

Westhampton Beach Elementary School students raised more than $21,000 for their school through their second annual Hurricane Fun Run, held on Sept. 20.

The run, sponsored by the PTA and powered by Boosterthon, provided the opportunity for students to gather pledges to run laps. All of the funds raised will go directly toward cultural and academic enrichment programs at the elementary school.     

 

Photo Caption: Westhampton Beach Elementary School students cheered on fifth-graders Anthony Polo (left) and Brayden Mackie during the school’s second annual Hurricane Fun Run.

 

Photo courtesy of the Westhampton Beach School District

Garden City, N.Y. — For the fourth year in a row, the Adelphi University softball team played host to the Challenger League, which is a special part of the East Meadow Baseball/Softball Association, this past Sunday, Sept. 24.

This league provides a baseball environment to individuals with special needs, and is run entirely by volunteers who always welcome community participation.

The Challenger program affords these children the opportunity to play the sport and experience exciting, friendly and fun competition.

“Eye-opening is a understatement when it comes to the experience of teaching and competing against the East Meadow Challengers,” said junior Nicoletta Cuccio.

“The opportunity to work with the team allowed us to recognize how lucky we are to be able to do what we do. It is important to not take a day on or off of the field for granted because we get to do this every day. Seeing the progress from last year and the smiles on their faces when they caught or hit a ball was the best way to spend my Sunday.”

Added senior Brenna Martini: “The Challenger game is something we always look forward to as a team. It allows us to connect with a great part of the East Meadow community. It also gives us a chance to learn and grow as a team and as people, with the opportunity to hopefully have an impact on the lives of others.”

STAMFORD, Conn. – The Southern Connecticut State University softball team volunteered at the Special Olympics Fall Festival and its bocce event over the weekend in Stamford.

This event is just one example of many community outreach events that SCSU student-athletes take part in on an annual basis. SCSU student-athletes volunteered more than 2,500 hours of their time to numerous outreach efforts, both on-campus and in Greater New Haven, during the 2016-17 academic year.