Imagine Haven’s gymnasium — high school students going through soccer drills in gym class. But if you walked into Haven’s gym on Friday, Feb. 20, you’d be sure to hear loud upbeat music, see basketballs flying, and smell pizza drifting through the air.
Haven’s Interact Club hosted Wish Night, where all of the proceeds went to Make-A-Wish. Interact Club is sponsoring Naccai, a child who benefits from Make-A-Wish as he goes through medical treatment. At Wish Night, Interact Club incorporated Naccai’s wish into some of the activities they had.
“Naccai’s wish is to go to Disney World and Lego Land. So we made a Lego table and then had Disney coloring pages,” senior and Interact Club co-leader Katie Snyder said. “And we also were trying to do unique things.”
Over the course of multiple meetings, Interact Club delegated tasks to the club members who were available to volunteer through an interest form. In order for Wish Night to run smoothly, preparation including decorations and food needed to be done ahead of time.
“We had a lot of meetings during fifth block to plan it,” Katie Snyder said. “This project is really meaningful to us.”
The stations and games at Wish Night included basketball, spikeball, table tennis, potato sack races, coloring stations, building Hot Wheels Tracks and Legos, along with other activities. People at the event also had the opportunity to write cards for Naccai, and to purchase a 50/50 raffle ticket or a guess for the number of jelly beans in the jar.
The entry fee was $10, but a $15 ticket included pizza and water. As for desserts, homemade sweet treats could be purchased at the snack table. Interact Club members volunteering ran stations and handed out food, played games, and pitched in helping with whatever was needed at the time.
“I kind of just walked around and checked out if anybody needed any help, and hung around helping whoever needed it,” senior Jason Ventriglia said.
Some student volunteers had the opportunity to connect with the children they were playing with at the station, or even remind themselves of their earlier childhood.
“My favorite part was probably playing cards with the kids. It was the most fun to see the excitement on their faces, just playing with toys. It brought me back to when I was younger, and just putting smiles on faces is just such a great feeling,” junior Scott Snyder said.
Junior Cecilia Lindsay helped run the arts and crafts station for the majority of the night, and also handed out pizza in the beginning.
“It was so much fun. I had a lot of fun talking to all the kids and seeing them running around and being happy,” Lindsay said.
Children at Wish Night expressed their enjoyment for the many activities and the fun time they had playing with their friends. While the night was open to people of all ages, most of the participants were in elementary and middle school.
“First of all, me and my friends came here together, and it was really fun… so my favorite part was hanging out with my friends and the food, and I like celebrating his wish,” fourth grader Lila Olcott said.
After the winners were announced for the 50/50 raffle and the jelly bean jar guess, a large Simon Says game took place in the center of the gym, led by student volunteers.
“I like doing the Simon Says and playing with my friends,” fourth grader Clemmy Patterson said.
Scott Snyder, along with other volunteers and participants, viewed the night as a success. Wish Night allowed the community to be involved in fun activities all while helping fundraise for Naccai to visit Disney World and Lego Land as he goes through medical treatment.
“It was a success. Everyone’s having a great time. There were stations for everyone. It was just such a great event that was put together,” Scott Snyder said.
Interact Club is planning other service opportunities coming up this spring and will be having a fundraising night at Chipotle on Mar. 4 to further raise money for Naccai’s wish.
Community members can also join Haven’s Rising Stars team to donate to Naccai’s wish and track Haven’s fundraising progress.
