On Dec. 6, Student Council hosted its annual children’s Christmas party for elementary students around Warren Township. Each year, groups and classes are offered the chance to sponsor a student and are given a list with the students’ information along with a wish list.
This year, there were 72 participants, and eight kids were picked from each school in the district. Each school generally picks four boys and four girls and sends their names and information to the committee for the sponsors.
“[The party is] fun for the kids because some of them are less fortunate and they really don’t get toys and clothes at home, so we get to give them things to make them happy and [provide them with] things to play with,” senior student council assistant Miracle Berry said.
When sponsors receive the paper with the student’s information, they go through the information and purchase the items on the child’s wish lists. Together, they wrap the presents and prepare them for the children. Sponsors then bring the bags that contain the students gifts to the student council office and the committee sort the gifts by groups and prepare them for the party.
“We separate [the gifts] between their group like reindeers, snowmen, snowflakes, anything like that, and then we make sure every single child has gifts, and once that’s done we go and set them out based on their group the day of,” junior student council assistant Aniya Reeves said.
On the day of the Christmas party, the elementary students came to the high school and participate in the different activities provided for them. This year, there was a cookie decorating station, the making of gingerbread men, decorating wooden reindeers, a Christmas version of musical chairs and Christmas bingo.
“The sponsors have the opportunity to interact with the children and see how excited and appreciative they are for this opportunity that they’ve been given. [The sponsors] get to go back to school that [following] Monday knowing that them and their class did a good deed for someone,” Reeves said.
The Christmas party is not only a way for the few sponsors that attend to have the chance to meet the students they sponsored, but it is also great for the entire group to give back to the less fortunate students in our community.
“Just seeing the kids happy and excited to do the crafts and [experiencing] the bond they create for the two hours that we’re there is amazing,” Reeves said. “They get to interact with other kids at their schools they may of never seen before, and they get to open up all of their gifts or toys. A lot of them enjoy the crafts specifically, they got to decorate cookies, [and] they’re just happy with the whole entire environment.”