By Maire Crooks, The Current Co-Editor in Chief
February brings Valentine’s Day, which sparks motivation for people to spread love to those who need it. Many River Hill clubs are embodying the holiday by giving back to the community; the River Hill chapters of both the Key Club and Cancer Kids First held widespread, successful community service events.
As Rebecca Ni, Lieutenant Governor of the Capital District of Key Club and RHHS chapter Vice President, explains, “Key Club focuses on servant leadership, so we wanted to organize an event where students could give back to the community to celebrate Valentine’s Day.”
Cancer Kids First also had a similar goal in mind: “We wanted to hold this Valentine’s Day event because we wanted to bring some joy and love into the hospital environment,” reveals Teni Adejana, Cancer Kids First Co-President.
Each club created various Valentine’s goody bags for their respective charities. Cancer Kids First assembled pencil craft kits, notebooks, and cards, while Key Club put together treat bags with candy, snacks, pencils, and other goodies.
“The treat bags we created were donated to Building Families for Children, a foster agency based in Columbia. The bags went to children who have unstable housing or family situations, and the goal was to give them something meaningful to celebrate Valentine’s Day,” articulates Rebecca. The club had done a similar activity for the agency for Halloween, and it seemed to be popular.
The recipients of Cancer Kids First’s bags were also children; they donated their treats to pediatric cancer patients at Johns Hopkins, as well as those who “are there for their patient’s needs.” The club hopes that, as Teni says, “They will be able to feel and give love through the craft kits by creating a work of art for someone they love or even themselves.”
In regards to how the actual event was executed, Rebecca thinks her event “ran smoothly,” but “the turnout was not as large as expected.” However, “the members seemed to enjoy assembling the bags.”
In contrast, Cancer Kids First was pleased with the amount of attendees at their event. “I think the event was very successful. We were able to fill every single bag and more! The turnout was more than expected and we hope to see everyone at our next event,” exclaims Teni.
Sierra Collis, a River Hill junior who attended the Cancer Kids First service event, mentions that she “think[s] it was very fulfilling to help others and to make kits for children who have cancer.” Sierra particularly enjoyed making the cards for the patients; “I really got to showcase my artistic abilities,” she adds.
To acquire supplies, the Key Club divided up the necessary materials between the officers. “Each officer contributed an item to include in the bags, such as candy, snacks, pencils, stickers, and Valentine’s Day-themed cards. Our sponsor, Dr. Alvarado, generously provided us with colorful gift bags to put all of the items into,” says Rebecca.
Although officers also provided materials for Cancer Kids First, they did not split the responsibility up as much, instead having both club presidents do all of the heavy lifting. Teni details their process: “Our event was more last minute as we faced a lot of communication issues with the hospital. Stephanie Moses, my Co-President, and I went and bought different supplies for the crafts. Some of our officers found school supplies and found ways to utilize them. I delivered the craft kits on Tuesday and I hope we can host more events like this!”
Each organization utilized the promotion tools they had available to them to gain participants and support; as Teni specifies, “posting on Instagram, Canvas, and Hawk Talk promoted [the] event significantly.”
Both clubs were able to offer National Honor Society hours for attending their event, which they think greatly aided in the success of the events. “I think offering NHS hours encouraged people to come. Normally, people will attend an event if they are already a part of a club but offering NHS hours brings in new people. These new people could potentially become active members in our club,” commented Teni.
However, other students, like Sierra, chose to attend for more personal reasons. She expresses, “I chose to go to the event because both of my parents had cancer so I tend to involve myself in things relating to that.” She hopes that the kits created at the event will be enjoyed by the patients and brighten up their day.
Each event brought immense happiness and love to the recipients of the bags. River Hill students were enthusiastic to volunteer and do more for others through both valuable service opportunities.