Jacqueline Ghorra ‘23
As we entered into the holiday season, Fontbonne dove head first into the joys of giving. There were many events and traditions that took place to demonstrate the values and morals Fontbonne holds as a school community.
Starting off, the National Honor Society has been working together with the coordinators, Mrs. Winslow and Ms. Sosa, to put together baskets for an alumna who lost her home and all of her belongings during the hurricane in Florida a few months ago. The leaders of the NHS created this service project as a donation to her.
“Ms. Sosa and the leader of the Scholars Society came up with the idea of making baskets and having a raffle. All of the money that we will be collecting is going to be sent to her or put into various types of gift cards for her and her family. Each member of the NHS will be donating items to put in various baskets. We will be having ten baskets where both students and parents will have the ability to put in for those baskets. We will be selling the raffles both at school and online so the parents will also be able to participate. This should be a wonderful event going to a great cause. It will move all of the members of the NHS to feel like they were a part of helping at least one family who was affected by the hurricane,” said Sofia Giudice, NHS president.
Secondly, the FAs carried on the long tradition of the Thanksgiving dinner basket donations to 27 families. The purpose of the basket donations is to provide families with a complete Thanksgiving meal who would otherwise not be able to afford one.
“NYC residents are keenly aware that the prices of groceries have made it challenging for many of us to eat healthy meals and to eat these meals on a regular basis. At Fontbonne, we are lucky to have a community that is rooted in service and the tradition of the baskets allows us to give back to our community in a profoundly generous and gratifying way” said Ms. Sosa.
Mrs. Nicoll, head of the Respect Club, was also a part of putting together these wonderful baskets for families in need, along with Ms. Connolly and her Magnify Club. The Thanksgiving baskets have been a success as they continue to grow and feed more families every year.
“I think that when we see the faces of the families who receive these baskets for their Thanksgiving dinner, everything about it is a huge success and more than heartwarming!” said Mrs. Nicoll.
In addition, on November 22, Giving Tuesday was celebrated. Giving Tuesday is a day which recognizes donations to our favorite charity/cause/institution/etc.
“My second home is Fontbonne. I always advocate for donating to Fontbonne. I make my own donations as well. Fontbonne is a tremendous institution - and I would love to see it continue to flourish,” said Mr. Surdyka: technology director, teacher, year coordinator, travel coordinator, coach, club moderator, Sports Night moderator and supporter.
Finally, our newest tradition took place for the second year: the pie baking contest. There were 26 pie submissions; one pie for every FA. The judges tasted each pie, and determined which ones were their favorites. Amongst all the pies, the judges discussed and chose five pies to be brought up to the stage for the final round of pie tasting. Senior Lauren Polito took the prize as the pie champion.
From personal experience, I can say that all of Fontbonne’s seniors are feeling bittersweet about this being our last FHA Thanksgiving season.
“I can’t believe it’s my last FHA Thanksgiving. Time has gone by so fast, but I will never forget the feeling of being in the gym with everyone during the Thanksgiving Mass. I’m definitely going to miss the baking contests which I think were so much fun and so entertaining to watch. I can’t wait to come back next year” said school president, Victoria Bruno.
As a community, Fontbonne’s morals lie in the gift of giving. One of Fontbonne's pillars is based on service. I am truly blessed to be a part of this wonderful community.
“The atmosphere at Fontbonne since we all arrived back at school this past September has been nothing but positive, encouraging, and full of joy. As a teacher, the best thing in the world to have is happy students. This year, I am glad to say that I’ve never seen a more happy and family-like atmosphere among the students, and it shows in how much fun they have been having both inside and outside of the classroom. As we enter into the holiday season, I am looking forward to seeing the girls continue to thrive in this year's amazing environment,” said Mr. Cleary, SAC moderator and teacher.
We are so thankful to everyone who has participated in any way to make a difference this Thanksgiving season. We wish everyone a happy and healthy holiday season this year!
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