Recently, Walter Johnson High School chose to give back to the community through a Thanksgiving dinner held for the elderly. The school has held this event for 39 years and its principal, Jennifer Baker, reported that “it is an incredible tradition.”
The organization responsible for this event is Walter Johnson’s Key Club.
“It means so much to our community members and we are very proud to honor their contributions each year,” says Baker. The Senior Citizen Luncheon consisted of a traditional turkey dinner served by Key Club members along with music and dance.
This year, Walter Johnson welcomed 180 senior citizens. Many participants are also people who have attended other years. As Principal Baker says, “some of the participants tell us that they look forward to the luncheon all year long!”
Baker encourages more senior citizens to attend in the future.
Key Club’s senior presidents, Dani Vogel, Emma Zwick, and Alexa Dorfman were the main planners of the event. “I thought it went really well!” said Vogel.
The senior citizens also voiced their opinions to Vogel that “they look forward to the luncheon year round because it is one of the only opportunities they have to get out of their homes and interact with younger people.”
In preparation for this event, Key Club presidents started back in October. Vogel and his colleagues formed different committees that key club members could sign up for to volunteer in.
“We had a decorations committee, a gifts committee, and a banner committee”. The club presidents were able to provide many opportunities for members to give back so everyone could help out. “This luncheon gave club members a great opportunity to give back to the senior citizens that have done so much for [their] community,” said the presidents
WJ hopes that this tradition will continue on for many years as the thought behind this event is sentimental and sweet. As winter break approaches, many MCPS schools will organize more events for the community.
Article by the MoCo Student Staff Writer Elizabeth Choi
Photo Provided by Courtesy of Seacoastonline.com