Suffolk County Legislator Bill Lindsay III recently presented Grundy Avenue Elementary School fifth-grade students Michael Rivera and Cole Friedman with a proclamation in recognition of their extraordinary efforts collecting winter clothing for families in need as part of the legislator’s annual Community Coat Drive for Every Child’s Dream.

Earlier this school year, Michael and Cole approached building Principal Laura Amato with an idea to collect winter coats, blankets, gloves, hats and scarves for people in need. Deciding that they would contribute the donations they received to Legislator Lindsay’s coat drive, the ambitious duo created posters, made announcements and a donation box to raise awareness of the cause throughout the school. The students collected 12 full bags of various winter clothing for donation.

Photo Caption: Two Sachem fifth-grade students recently received a proclamation from Suffolk County Legislator Bill Lindsay III for their excellent work collecting clothing for a winter clothing drive.

Photo courtesy of the Sachem Central School District

Students at the East Meadow School District’s W.T. Clarke Middle School participated in a two-day Hoops for Heart event to help raise money for the American Heart Association.

On Jan. 23 and 24, all students participated in a knock-out basketball contest during their physical education classes. Class winners advanced to the final, held after school on Jan. 25. The overall winner was eighth-grader Tyseer Rahman, who was presented with a Hoops for Heart basketball.

The school congratulates all the class winners along with Tyseer. Eighth-graders Sophie Aprea, Emily Brown, Isabella Canzoneri, James DeSimone and James Papacostas; seventh-graders Jadon Chang, Aanya Mehta, Maddie Millman and Dominic Murawski and sixth-graders Caleb DaRocha, Jack Giudice, Cole Kaufer and Jack Morovich, each earned spots in the final as class champions.

Donations are being collected until Feb. 14 as the W.T. Clarke community looks to further their support of the American Heart Association.                                                                

Photo caption: W.T. Clarke Middle School eighth-grader Tyseer Rahman, left, and Sophia Aprea, right, were among the class winners of knock out during the Hoops for Heart tournament from Jan. 23-25.

Photos courtesy of the East Meadow School District

The Wisdom Lane Middle School community in the Levittown Public Schools gathered together to support a beloved former Wisdom Lane teacher, Rosemary Daly and her recent cancer battle on Feb. 1. The school hosted the first Ro Daly Teacher-Student Volleyball Tournament after school and raised more than $2,100 to donate to Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital for rare cancer research, in Daly’s honor.

Thirty-two teams signed up for the event and 175 tickets were sold to spectators. Each team featured a total of six players and included one or two teachers and students who dressed in creative matching outfits for the tournament. Wisdom Lane staff members donated food for the event which was sold towards the cause, in addition to raffles. Special Education teacher Lynn Anderson coordinated the tournament with physical education teacher Eric Bradley. Anderson had Daly as a physical education teacher and a field hockey coach when she was a student in Levittown. She later became her colleague. Anderson wanted to find a way to bring the school together to support Daly and this difficult time in her life.

The event was not only a great way for the Wisdom Lane community to come together but to also give back to an educator who did so much for Wisdom Lane Middle School and the Levittown Public Schools. Each team played each other as the winning teams continued on in the tournament. In the end, world language teacher Katie McWalters and her team “Block Party” came out victorious.

Photo Captions:

1) (L-R) Wisdom Lane Middle School Principal John Avena with his teammates, eighth-graders Olivia Manning, Gabby Stanley, Ryan Downing, Anthony Failla and Bryan Basta.

2) Wisdom Lane Middle School students and staff participated in Ro Daly Teacher-Student Volleyball Tournament to raise money for rare cancer research in honor of a former teacher Rosemary Daly.

3) Members of the “Z Wildcats”: (L-R) Eighth-graders Ava Banfich, Mackenzie Quinn, Caleigh Bradley, teacher Elaine Zeller, seventh-grader Joey Toscano and eighth-grader Jack Pendergrass.

4) Eighth-grader Joe Yassa served for his team.

Photos courtesy of the Levittown Public Schools

Two cardboard boxes sat in the auditorium lobby of Berner Middle School in the Massapequa School District: one decorated for the Los Angeles Rams and the other for the New England Patriots. The boxes started out empty but quickly filled up as the Chiefs Challenge Club hosted its annual Souper Bowl collection.

Berner took part in the national initiative that helps restock food pantries following the holiday season. Students and staff could donate non-perishable goods from Jan. 28 through Feb. 1, placing the items in the box of the team they felt would win the Super Bowl.

The Chiefs Challenge Club, led by advisers Marisa Boulukos and Caroline Glynn, promoted the food drive by making posters to hang around the school and gathering facts about hunger on Long Island for the daily announcements. All donations were given to the YES Community Counseling Center food pantry in Massapequa.

Photo Caption: The Berner Middle School Chiefs Challenge Club held its annual Souper Bowl food collection.

Photo courtesy of the Massapequa School District