If you are looking for an easy way to give back to the community or world, just ask any National Honor Society member about all the fundraisers he or she participates in. Mrs. Colangelo, the NHS advisor, has organized many fundraisers to raise awareness and money for people in need. “We’re trying to do at least one service event a month. There are so many great opportunities to serve the community,” noted the advisor.

The National Honor Society will be collecting box tops to support Becton from now until January. Box tops, worth ten cents each, are small coupons found on many food products. Box Tops for Education collects the coupons from schools and sends each school a check for the amount of money earned. There will be a container in the main office to collect donations. Anyone interested in donating can also give box tops to an NHS member or Mrs. Colangelo.

Furthermore, during the month of October, the National Honor Society will be selling pink bracelets for two dollars each to help raise breast cancer awareness.

In addition to selling bracelets during the month of October, senior members of the National Honor Society will be chaperoning a senior-senior prom, which provides an opportunity to serve elderly citizens. Members of the graduating class will also be encouraged to attend the event.

Moving on, in the winter, members will collect money for the fundraiser “Pennies for Patients” to support the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, and they will also round up band-aids to donate to the Tomorrow Children’s Fund at the Hackensack University Medical Center. They also collect books to donate to Reach Out and Read, an annual book drive that occurs in March for the less fortunate to stress the importance of literacy.

All of the fundraisers have been very successful, but Mrs. Colangelo is always open to new ideas to help support different organizations. “Suggestions are welcome. We can always add new fundraisers next year.”

So far, she has added an Earth Day project to clean parks in April and is also considering signing the National Honor Society up to volunteer at a local soup kitchen.

There are plenty of available opportunities to get involved in the community. “If each person makes a small contribution, altogether, it makes a big impact in the lives of those that need our help. Sometimes the biggest gift we can give to somebody else is our time,” said Mrs. Colangelo.