Old Colony Archives
Honor Society a champion of service to community
By By Jonathan Darling, Standard-Times correspondent
December 11, 2003
ROCHESTER – After winning their third Super Bowl, people debated whether the New England Patriots were a dynasty or not.
But there is one dynasty no one can make an argument against in Rochester: the dominance of Old Colony's chapter of the National Honor Society in national competition.
The school recently won its fourth straight Outstanding Service Project award at the NHS National Conference in Jacksonville, Fla., and its seventh in the past 10 years.
At the national conference, 10 awards are given each year to the hundreds of schools that attend.
"We were screaming when they announced the winners," said Christine Watling, adviser for Old Colony's NHS. "To think that we can be recognized nationally with such great competition is amazing."
The project that netted Old Colony its fourth award was named Hats Off to You! It involved the students making fleece hats and distributing them to area transition homes.
Old Colony NHS members worked during and after school for two weeks to make the hats. The members solicited donations to buy the fleece material and received discounts from local businesses to get the most material for their dollar.
The project was one of many the NHS at Old Colony has recently completed.
The Halloween Howl for Pets was a photo contest for the cutest and scariest pet, which raised funds to purchase items for Humane Society SouthCoast, an animal shelter in Dartmouth.
They recently completed their Thanksgiving Food Drive, in which more than 500 items were donated to the Shepherd's Food Pantry in Acushnet.
NHS members are working on delivering Christmas meals to those in need. The meals will be made by the school's Culinary Arts Department and be delivered by students and staff to more than 100 individuals and families in need.
In February, the annual Soup and Socks returns, where the NHS donates cans of soup and new socks to shelters.
Mrs. Watling said it all couldn't be possible without the support of the entire school.
"Everybody, from the administration to the staff to the student body, has been very supportive of all our activities," she said. "We have a very active group this year and everyone has a tremendous willingness to help."
Old Colony's NHS might be a dynasty, but the Student Council is doing its share to help those in need.
The council held fundraisers to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation last year and is already working toward this year's events.
"We're just glad to help out," Student Council President Yahaira Ferro said. "Everyone is really receptive to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. It's a great foundation that we'd love to keep being involved with."
The Student Council continues to do projects and fundraisers around school to fund activities, but it is doing it with a heavy heart.
The council's faculty adviser and longtime Cougar Dave Harrison is out of school with an illness and Ferro said that while teacher Tammy Hoyle has been helping the Student Council, they hope for a speedy recovery for Mr. Harrison.
"When he became the adviser for the Student Council, we really stepped it up. We started doing a lot more things," Ferro said. "We hope he feels better. All of us here really miss him."