As the holiday of thankfulness approaches, the gratitude that South Windsor High School students show is not forgotten. Many students like to represent and keep Thanksgiving traditions to show gratitude for all they have.
Some students like to create cards that they give to their families, while others just like to verbally thank the people around them. Many students recognize the figures in their lives and try to express gratitude for all that they have done for them.
Students also like to take the extra step to appreciate students and faculty for all they do for the school and the environment. Students try to appreciate the faculty around them for how hard they work to create a comfortable space.
“I show appreciation to my teachers and classmates by respecting them and connecting with them on a personal level as well,” SWHS senior Alanna Larmand said. “It is important to show appreciation in school because our peers and administrators do a lot to make our school have a comfortable environment.”
It is extremely sentimental to be able to honor the people around the community, and SWHS works hard to allow resources for students to represent their gratitude and celebrate Thanksgiving. One example of this is in the NHS club for the high school, where one of the committees wrote gratitude letters for the elderly at a local retirement home.
“I decided to make gratitude letters because the elderly have done so much for us, and they deserve to be shown the gratitude that we feel for them,” committee chair Ayden Kennedy said. “I want them to feel as though they are still recognized and appreciated, even if they are not the most active participants in the community.”
The students who were a part of this committee were extremely grateful and excited to be able to spread positivity. Many agreed that it is super important to honor those around us, even when a holiday is not coming up.
“I think spreading kindness can impact a lot of people just by making everyone feel better,” committee member Lily Lines said. “Spreading gratitude is important because people take a lot for granted, so it can make many people more appreciative.”
The Interact Club is also another part of South Windsor High School that tries to do its part in spreading gratitude and appreciation for the staff and the school community. Every year they attempt to embody kindness and gratitude through an event they put on.
On World Kindness Day, Interact and many SWHS students went around spreading positivity and kindness. They even wrote and drew beautiful pictures all over the windows to show the importance of being kind. South Windsor is more than just showing gratitude during the holidays, but doing so much more.
“It is important to show kindness by doing things like drawing on the windows for World Kindness Day to let people know they have a community they can count on at school,” Interact president Aahana Roy said. “A lot of people do not know what others go through at home and away from school, so having people at school they can count on can help them.”
Many do not realize that spreading kindness can easily make someone’s day and create change in the world. Gratitude is something that is so special, and it is truly amazing to see how high school students are making a difference by just being kind.
