Wolfpack Gives Back Day Gives Nearly 600 Hours of Volunteering to Community
Members of National Honor Society paint bathrooms at Lincoln Junior High School.
Nov 4, 2019
Over 170 students participated in the third annual Wolfpack Gives Back day on Saturday, Oct. 26, a three hour volunteering event that commemorates National You Make a Difference Day.
In total, the event gave 573 hours of service to the community. Participating organizations included Black Student Union, Boys’ Basketball, CEC, Cheerleading, Chinese Club, DIY Club, Fashion Club, Girls’ Swimming, Homeroom Mentors, Middle Eastern Club, Mr. Jodelka’s honors biology classes, Muslim Student Association, NARWHALS, National Honor Society, Seminars for Scholars, Sophomore Cabinet, WHO Club, and Yearbook.
Students participated in nine service projects. Groups painted bathrooms at Lincoln Jr. High, put together care packages for military troops, and made heart pillows for breast cancer patients.
“I really liked the pillow idea. All we did was tie and stuff them,” senior Kristine Hwang said. “It was super easy for everyone, and they were really cute.”
Others helped clean the Harms Woods and Watersmeet forest preserves, organized the Niles Township Clothing Closet, and bagged lunches at Connections for the Homeless. The cross country meet, school recycling sorting, and painting walls at Hilda’s Place were other opportunities.
Students who participated not only logged service hours, but embraced the opportunity as a way to give back to the township.
“Wolfpack Gives Back day is important because I felt like I was helping to better my community, with my community,” senior Libby de Klerk said. “The experience of giving back is always very rewarding.”
Katie Odell, director of student activities, and Kelly Adamovic, executive secretary of student activities, organized the event.
“Ms. Odell and I delivered paint, lunch bag supplies, gloves, and scarves to different organizations the day before,” Adamovic said. “While students were volunteering, Ms. Odell went to other locations to check in. I stayed here at West and helped to keep the stations here running.”
The work done by students and sponsors was helpful for many organizations in the area, many of which have reached out to Student Activities with their thanks.
“We’ve gotten many thanks from Connections for the Homeless,” Adamovic said. “If we hadn’t gone to help out, [bagging the lunches] would’ve been two months of work for them. We also got a thank you card from the Niles Township Clothing Closet for the work students did there.”
