Service and spirit are soaring higher than ever these past few months. In November, several chapters submitted to Club of the Month. North Gwinnet High School in Georgia participated in a meal packing event that packed over 110,000 meals to help bring children out of starvation. This was an excellent project that many members enjoyed. After they packed food for children, the chapter examined Ancient Rome through a culinary lens. The chapter hosted a Roman feast workshop to explore the eating and cooking habits of Romans. Norman High School in Oklahoma went to a local animal shelter to spend time with the cats and dogs there. Chapter members pitched in by cuddling and petting the animals, cleaning up after the animals, doing administrative work, and so much more. Louisville Classical Academy in Kentucky participated in many projects this month. They helped to transport turkeys to a food pantry, collected over 500 canned foods for a food pantry, and volunteered at the Dare to Care
food pantry by helping pass out food. Later that month, they started a Take-a-Book, Leave-a-Book drive in their school, which they hope to keep going long term. The chapter then donated all of the food leftover from the school’s annual Thanksgiving banquet to Kentucky Harvest. Louisville Classical Academy continued a project that they started in September by creating coloring books for the Latin classes they adopted. It sounds like Louisville Classical Academy had a very busy month. Classical Magnet School of Connecticut JCL started a JCL Compliment Wall in their school. This is a wall where students and teachers can pay a small fee to write warm messages on the wall. All of the proceeds are donated to the Fidelco Guide Dog in Bloomfield, Connecticut. Flint Hill High School in Virginia held two school-wide bake sales with a decent profit from each on and also sold White House ornaments at the annual Flint Hill Holiday Shoppes on November 13. The chapter grew busy as states came closer and closer, opting to run mini certamen camps and then
ended up going to states and winning an impressive second place for spirit. University High School in California hosted the SCRAM (Southern Regional Amici Madness) with over 950 delegates. University High School hosted carnival games, a fashion show, numerous academic events, and JCLers worked hard to plan and run this convention. Over in Louisiana, Baton Rouge Magnet High participated in a Hunger Walk with all proceeds donated to the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank and Holy Grill, which both work to feed the hungry. Finally, in Wisconsin, Homestead High School collected soda tabs to donate to the Ronald McDonald House and the money that the soda tabs turn into will be donated to families with chronically ill children. Overall, Homestead donated 34,222 soda tabs and motivated its members to donate through a Latin level competition.
In December, Shaker Heights High School of Ohio hosted a Saturnalia party where they had pizza, a Saturnalia Sack exchange, and participated in a service project where they made tie blankets of children spending the holidays in the Cleveland Clinic ICU. Gilbert JCL in Arizona celebrated Saturnalia by creating ornaments for teachers to decorate their classrooms with. Easton High School in Maryland had a traditional Saturnalia party, feasting upon traditional Roman foods and “wine”. The JCL sang holiday carols and had a piñata as a sacrifice to the Roman gods. Additionally, the chapter fundraised enough to send one student to Nationals, which is awesome. Riverbend High School in Virginia collected clothing, toys, and games through a project called Holiday Hope program. Riverbend also participated in the Virginia JCL coat drive and donated 37 coats, the most of any Virginia chapter. Finally, Riverbend decorated
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Spring 2016 · Torch: U.S. · SERVICE and spirit
SERVICE and SPIRIT
By Hannah Seariac, NJCL 2nd VP
North Gwinnet High School in Georgia hosted a Roman feast workshop to explore the eating and cooking habits of Romans.
University High School in California hosted the SCRAM (Southern Regional Amici Madness) with over 950 delegates.