On October 17th, Anthony joined Sandalwood for their Annual Trunk or Treat with the Jemicy Community!
Continuing Support for Sandalwood Elementary
After completing our capstone project last year as Co-president of the Jemicy Community Service Club, I wanted to continue supporting Sandalwood Elementary School. I reached out to Ms. Shannon over the summer to schedule the food drives we would volunteer at for the upcoming school year, and during our conversation, she mentioned Sandalwood’s Trunk or Treat event.
Organizing Jemicy’s Participation
I collaborated with the club’s teacher sponsors and my school to organize Jemicy’s participation in the Trunk or Treat. Since we could only bring a few students to Sandalwood for the event, I wanted to find a way to involve as many students as possible. Inspired by Baltimore Hunger Project’s cards of encouragement, I thought it would be wonderful to have students create Halloween-themed cards to hand out at the event.
Engaging Students Through Card-Making
To get more students involved, I promoted the opportunity during school-wide assemblies and through the club’s communications. The response was amazing! We set up a room at school for one lunch period per week over the course of four weeks, where students could come in, create Halloween cards, and earn service time. Over three dozen students participated in this weekly activity.
Packing Halloween Treat Bags
On October 10th, we hosted an after-school event where about 20 students gathered to pack 400 Halloween treat bags. Each bag contained two pieces of candy, a fidget toy, a Halloween sticker, and a card of encouragement, all packed into Halloween-themed bags. We organized three assembly lines, with each student assigned a specific task—much like how BHP organizes its bag-packing events. During the event, we also put out three large banners for students to decorate, which we later hung on the bus at the Trunk or Treat. Volunteers even decorated boxes to hold the treat bags.
A Collaborative Effort
This project wouldn’t have been possible without the incredible support from Jemicy’s teacher sponsors. They donated supplies and gave their time to help facilitate these events. I’m grateful for their generosity and commitment to helping us support the Sandalwood community.
Inspired to Keep Supporting
Last year, I was deeply inspired by Ms. Shannon and the tremendous work she does for her community. I’m so glad I’ve been able to continue supporting Sandalwood Elementary, both personally and through Jemicy’s Community Service Club.
