Freshman advisories drive animal shelter fundraiser to success

Over the past few weeks, the Baez, Pingree, and Richardson freshmen advisories have been collecting donations for a fundraiser for the Manchester Animal Shelter. The drive ended November 19th, having collected more than three boxes full of essential supplies for the shelter.

Joseph Goreham, a member of the Baez advisory, explains that while “some people might want a reward,” he and his peers “wanted to help animals, lift their spirits, so that the animals can be alive to one day brighten someone else’s day.” To accomplish this admirable objective, Goreham and his fellow advisees went to other advisories to spread information about their fundraiser. The three advisories collected dog and cat food, pet toys, rubber gloves, bowls, paper towels, and more in large bins situated around the school. Although the fundraiser was a collaborative effort between the Baez, Pingree, and Richardson advisories, the details of it were mostly separate, with each advisory designing their own posters to spread around the school and organizing different outreach efforts.

The drive lasted only a few weeks, ending Monday November 19th. Christy Elliot, another member of the Baez advisory, says that she feels the fundraiser was a success, but that they could have done more with a larger time frame. She adds that they could improve on it in the future by communicating more with parents and members of the community outside of BHS. Elliot explains that “it’s important to contribute to the community you live in,” and shares that she and the rest of her advisory want to continue this fundraiser next year. They are also considering doing more community service projects throughout their years at BHS.

If they do plan more projects in the future, the Baez advisory knows what they would change to make them even more successful. Elliot would want to focus on improving organization. Her classmate Matthew Kyle explains that he would want to make it a more collaborative effort between all three advisories. According to these students, the star of their advisory was Freshman Michael Quinn who took command and was an undeniable contribution to the success of the drive.

Overall, the Baez advisory wants to thank everyone who donated supplies and contributed to their fundraiser. Goreham says that the project “was a blast,” and challenges other advisories to do community service projects of their own because “nothing’s fun without competition.” Hopefully, Goreham’s challenge will be met, and these students’ exemplary efforts will spread throughout the school.