As the holiday season commences, giving back and spreading joy to the underprivileged are of upmost importance to many clubs at Wakefield. Although each club practices their own mission, many unite during this time of year for the same cause: to provide help to those in need.

Youth Commission International

The mission of YCI is to facilitate a positive environment at Wakefield and in the community. The members of YCI have collected items, specifically toys, for Operation Christmas Child in order to give presents to children who may not have received one otherwise.

“Our goal is to reach out to people in various ways,” said Advisor, Linley Coggins. “Through OCC, members facilitate to the children and provide them with an opportunity to make decisions regarding their faith.”

Operation Christmas Child is a major event for YCI, and their donations change the lives of many children during the holiday season.

Red Cross Club 

The Red Cross provides service and refuge by extending its reach throughout the world, but Wakefield’s Red Cross Club mainly works with service projects in the area. For the holiday season, the Red Cross Club is going to put together goodie bags for local children in need and for the military.

“This club is student initiated,” said Advisor, Susen Douglass. “The members [of the Red Cross Club] are very independent and organize plans that will spread awareness. Their main goal is just to provide for those who need it.”

This time of year is essential for the Red Cross Club, and the international organization as well, to extend their reach to as many people as they can while emphasizing the importance of giving back and creating a better world.

North Carolina Canned Food Drive

This year coach Terrell has signed Wakefield up for Students Against Hunger; so far Wakefield has helped feed over 500 families. The mission of the food drive is to persuade various groups at Wakefield to contribute as many cans as they can in order to feed the 30,000+ hungry people here in North Carolina.

“People don’t understand how many don’t have access to food,” said Coach Cynthia Terrell. “Hunger is not only a seasonal thing—it’s an everyday thing.”

Thanks to the people who have contributed canned food these past few weeks, more families in North Carolina will be able to receive the food they need.

FCCLA

This holiday season, FCCLA hopes to give back to the community in their own unique way. The club’s mission is to promote personal growth and leadership development through family and consumer sciences offered at Wakefield.

“FCCLA is a student organization where family is the central focus.” said Advisor, Irma Bode. “A lot of things we do are career, family, and community related, because that’s in our name. We are doing two things in December: writing cards for soldiers and collecting items that are permissible to send to soldiers during the holidays and collecting mildly used children’s books to donate to child care centers and elementary schools in the area.”

These community service activities represent what the club focuses on, which is “strengthening our community and the communities that we live in, in hope that students will be more committed community participants and members as they go into their adult life.”

Kids Making a Difference

KMAD is a club solely based on high school students helping others, and it shines particularly bright around the holiday season.

“We positively uplift the community and the student body,” said Advisor, Carrie Dickerhoff. “We just finished our Christmas cards for the troops, and this year we decided that we are going to donate toys to the Salvation Army of Raleigh. With this particular Salvation Army, the toys go right to the individuals living in Raleigh. Therefore, we are giving directly back to our community.”

This service project goes along with the club’s theme of high school students making a difference in their own community.

“There are a lot of people in the organization that have a weak spot for helping other people, which makes this something they can do and enjoy.” said Dickerhoff.

Jewish Culture Club

With Hanukkah approaching, Jewish Culture Club strives to enlighten people about their religion and give back to the community during this time of year.

“Our mission is to educate people about Judaism, and everyone is welcome to come,” said Advisor, Anya Jones. “What I like about [Jewish Culture Club] is that it brings together people from all different backgrounds, so it’s not only the Jewish kids who work together to do this. It doesn’t really matter what your background is, it’s just about giving back to the community.”

During the holiday season, Jewish Culture Club plans to help out at local thrift stores like Goodwill and participate in a Habitat for Humanity project. With the help of its members, Jewish Culture Club aspires to practice their mission by coming together and giving back.