Ada Tzotschew (left), Maddie Bowlsbey (middle), and Chloe Caroselli (right), holding the baskets created for their project.
The holiday months are full of presents, time with family, and days of leisure. But what happens to the people in Watauga County who are not able to experience these joys? According to the Hospitality House in Boone, North Carolina, the percentage of people facing poverty in Watauga County is at 31.4%, over 8% higher than the surrounding six counties and 14% higher than the North Carolina state average.
Fortunately for Watauga, we have a freshman classroom full of motivated students looking to spark change for their community. Mrs. Sarah Kanipe, one of a handful of freshman English teachers at Watauga High School, is behind the charitable work of these young students. Kanipe requires her students to read The Glass Castle, written by Jeannette Walls. The book revolves around her life in rural Appalachia. Kanipe urges her class to focus on how the issues presented in the book can relate to her students now.
For their final project, Kanipe has her students select between three options, all chosen to directly assist the local community. The consensus was that students wished to create baskets of essentials for the Hospitality House. No student was required to purchase any materials, but they were nonetheless enthusiastic to provide for the community.
Freshman Chloe Caroselli created a basket that contained many of the necessities for the people living in a shelter.
“I created a supply bag for the homeless shelter. I put a bunch of things that they needed like toothbrushes, blankets, and a festive cup for Christmas,” said Caroselli. “It was really fun.”
Caroselli was thankful to be a part of the project as a whole, and the large number of baskets that will be given to the Hospitality House made her proud, knowing our Boone neighbors would benefit.
“I'm just glad that I am helping people,” said Caroselli. “I saw all of the bags in Mrs. Kanipe’s room and I'm just so happy that I got to be that much of an influence in our community.”
Not only has this project allowed students to reach out to the community, it creates a sense of gratitude for the students recognizing their fortune at home. Freshman Maddie Bowlsbey was able to relate to the baskets’ recipients and reflect on her blessings.
“I can sort of relate to this,” Bowlsbey said. “We haven't been the richest family, and a lot of people get stuff passed down to them, and we never got that growing up, so my parents worked for everything that we have now and I feel very blessed.”
Another Freshman, Ada Tzotschew, researched what was most needed for the residents at the Hospitality House. She created her basket with hygiene necessities such as socks, bandaids, and soap. Tzotschew also added a unique touch to her basket: a painting.
The orange that Ada Tzotschew painted for her basket. Photo Credit: Ada Tzotschew
“I really like to paint and I made a painting,” Tzotschew said. “It was an orange because that represents good luck, good fortune, and wealth. I really hope that whoever gets this, for the New Year and over the holidays, that they get more luck and fortune.”
Tzotschew disapproves of the lack of funding in our area, claiming that people in need deserve more monetary help from local government organizations.
“There's not a whole lot of funding from what I hear, and a lot of people become homeless because of mental health issues,” said Tzotschew. “They don't have all of the access, and so [they] lack a lot of good healthcare, mental health care, affordable housing. And because the government won't do a lot, it's good to take matters into our own hands”
Kanipe is constantly humbled by her students’ generosity and hopes that they will share their desire to serve with their families and parents. She hopes that this project offered more to her students than just a good grade and that they will look back and see what positivity they have created with their baskets
“As a parent myself, it is a refreshing reminder that in this busy world in which we live, we are often ships passing in the night with our children: between school, work, sports, and extracurriculars, we are lucky to sneak in a few hours of quality time each week,” said Kanipe. “I hope that packing these boxes for the Hospitality House provided my students and their families a little quality time.”
This class had set zero goals for their project, and yet it seems as though everyone understands its purpose, to uplift our community and ensure that its future is not built on the likes of poverty, but that our community is built upon each other. We can all learn a lot from a freshman English class at Watauga High School.
“I think [this project] has shown me that not everyone is privileged, and being able to give back definitely makes you feel good,” said Bowlsbey.
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