MHS Gives Back This Holiday Season

Submitted by MHS Teacher Lisa Lord:

In accordance with its Mission Statement and Learning Expectations, Melrose High School is embracing the goal of citizenship this holiday season by giving students and staff the opportunity to get involved in a number if charitable events and service activities, including:

On-going activities

• Community Alliance Winter Coat/Cold Weather Accessories Drive - The Community Alliance is collecting winter coats and other cold weather accessories through January 8. Donations will be collected in A Block classes; coats will be given to Anton’s Cleaners Coats for Kids program, and additional outwear will be donated to local shelters. 

• LifeSavers for Life Savers - Girl Scout Troop 71238 (made up of high school students) will be collecting LifeSavers, Skittles, M&Ms and other hard candy to send to our troops overseas. Candy can be left in the collection boxes in the Main Office or in Room 138. 

• Holiday in a Box - Melrose High School will be collecting non-perishable holiday items, cards and letters to create holiday-themed care packages for our troops overseas.  Donations, cards and letters can be left in the collection boxes in the Main Office or in Room 138. All donations should be submitted by Friday, December 16.

• Heifer Project – As part of their unit on the book Of Mice and Men, Angela Singer’s AP English classes have been collecting their annual donations for the Heifer Project. The Heifer Project is a charity that provides farm animals for people in impoverished areas worldwide. Mrs. Singer’s are planning to raise enough money to sponsor a gift of 3 rabbits, since one of the characters in that book wants to own a farm where rabbits are raised. Mrs. Singer explains that “[t]he rabbits are used for manure, for sale, for eating, and for skins. Since rabbits reproduce so quickly, the gift can provide a great deal of support for the economics of a poor family.”

• Giving Tree – Once again this year, Barbara Lichtman has set up a Giving Tree in the Melrose High School Resource Center and is collecting children’s mittens and socks.  These items will be donated to a local day care center.

• Breast Cancer Center Fundraising - For the second year, the Cancer Awareness Club is selling scarves to raise money for the Hallmark Health Breast Care Center of Stoneham, scheduled to break ground in February. Scarves were made and donated by mothers of high school students; they can be purchased for $5. Last year, the group raised $270 for Hallmark Health; their goal this year is to raise $1000.

• Operation Resolve – Numerous groups have been building support for Operation Resolve, a national initiative to send WWII veterans to Washington, DC, to see the WWII Memorial. The Middle School has started an Operation Resolve Club to organize and fundraise for the trip, currently scheduled for May. The faculty of the English Department and Aaron Chernisky’s English classes have all been collecting donations for Operation Resolve. (Notably, the Melrose Education Association, the Firefighters Union, and Middle School teacher Naomi Baline have also made donations.)

• Recycling Club – the Melrose High School Environmental Club is continuing its ongoing efforts to make Melrose green. Members of this group spend time every week collecting recyclable materials from classrooms as part of the city-wide recycling effort.

One-time events and completed activities

• Cuts for a Cause - High School teachers Margot Bauman and Jennifer Mochi organized a dual-purpose charity activity with a Cuts for a Cause event at the recent Thanksgiving Pep Rally. A group of female teachers (Margot Bauman, Francesca LoGrasso, Tanja Hiti-Stearns, Nicole Skinner and Kristen Demick) volunteered to cut their hair and donate it to the Pantene Pro-V company to be used in the creation of wigs for children with cancer; then, these and several other teachers (John Buxton and Paul Bondanza) auctioned off the right to cut their hair (female teachers) or have their heads shaved (male teachers) by the highest bidder to raise money for Toys for Tots. The event netted a total of $156 and 46 inches of hair.

• Gift Bags for DCFS – As part of their unit on the Industrial Revolution, Margot Bauman’s World History classes recently participated in an activity that demonstrated the differences between cottage industries and assembly line production while creating holiday presents for children. Students individually created holiday frames (demonstrating cottage industry production), then formed an assembly line to add their frames and other items to approximately 80 gift bags, which will be distributed to elementary-aged children through the Department of Children and Family Services. 

• NHS Holiday Celebration – Approximately 20 members of the National Honor Society joined senior citizens at the Life Care Center of Stoneham for a holiday celebration on Sunday. Students and seniors enjoyed singing Christmas carols, preparing baked goods, and getting to know one another.

• Toys for Tots - Melrose High School students, in conjunction with the U.S. Marines, collected Toys for Tots from November 28 through December 12.