Environmental club members clean up the stadium. Clean ups are a regular part of club meetings.
A few weeks into the school year, a small group of students came together to form a charity group at Riverside.
Hurricane Helene caused widespread destruction and numerous fatalities across the eastern coast of the United States.
“The primary goal of the Hurricane Helene relief drive is to provide resources and support to people in Western NC that are affected by the hurricane”, said sophomore Izzy Allison-Pleasants, one of the Environmental Club officers.
“Our job as Environmental Club officers in the relief drive is to advertise and get the word out about our drive to make sure that it is known around the school.” Allison-Pleasants said.
Inspiration for the relief drive started when students witnessed the vast devastation in Western NC.
“Seeing the amount of destruction in Western NC and understanding that it was an environmental issue, [the officers] discussed with Ms. Ericson about running a relief drive for this affected area”, said sophomore Musfirah Sohail.
Sohail believes that getting the word out about a school-led relief drive is influential in how successful the drive is.
“We planned on creating posters, collaborating with other clubs, and getting on the announcements to ensure that everyone knew about the drive.” she said.
“Collective action in helping North Carolina communities provides people with the essentials they need to survive, benefiting them”, said sophomore Eileen Guo, a co-president of the club. “It brings people together, strengthens relationships, and makes the community more resilient and united.”
Guo believes that planning how to transport items to people ensures people affected get the help they need.
“We transport donated items to Western NC through the mutual aid group”, she said. “We have students and faculties drop off supplies at Ms. Ericson’s room.”
All officers agree that the relief drive has been successful.
“This success is thanks to the generous donations we received and the hard work put in throughout the way”, said Guo. “Riverside supported us so much by promoting the initiative through announcements.”
English teacher Emily Ericson is the Environmental Club advisor and is in charge of making sure the relief drive operates smoothly and helps transport donated items.
“It is important to build communities where we are.” Ericson said, “because at the end of the day we are the ones that take care of each other.”
The Hurricane Helene Relief Drive is still operating. Ericson encourages people at Riverside to keep donating items to her classroom in room 214.
Riverside’s Student Government Association also organized a Thanksgiving food drive.
“The goal of the food drive is to collect and distribute food to help our Riverside community so they can enjoy a nice meal during the holidays”, said Senior Kharmina Mitre.
The Student Government Association Food Drive has been a tradition at Riverside for more than 10 years. Food donated is to be non-perishable and Thanksgiving related.
“It’s been a tradition to host a Thanksgiving food drive. During one of our SGA meetings, we ask our members to help us promote the food drive by making flyers/posters and spreading the word on social media”, said Mitre.
Senior Abby Cho is also co-organizer for the food drive. She said motivating students to donate is one of the most important aspects of organizing a school-wide food drive.
“We set a prize that will motivate students, which in this case is a Chick-Fil-A breakfast”, said Cho. “When people see you bringing stuff in, they’ll feel more encouraged to join the food drive as well.”
Nile Mangum and Lucy Heery also contributed to this story.
