Two high school seniors from Severna Park High School are supporting veterans and military families through a partnership with the Fisher House Foundation. According to Eye on Annapolis, as part of a leadership program, Abby Johnson and Emma Marsh initiated a project, which they called “Helping Heroes,” to collect donations for the Fisher House Foundation. With a goal of raising $150, Johnson, Marsh, and their team surpassed their goal and raised $350 for the organization.
The team organized a successful fundraising campaign by using social media and advertising during lunch at their school to raise money from their peers. Meeting every two weeks during school, the team continued to advance the scope of their project. In addition to raising money, they created donation bins that were set up for the collection of care items to be donated to Fisher House Foundation. Their “Helping Heroes Donation List” consisted of items separated into three categories: priority (paper towels, cleaning gloves, fabric softener sheets, keurig cups, and toilet paper); kitchen (sugar, creamer, dish soap, kleenex, bottled water, ziplocs, canned goods); and COVID-19 (masks, hand sanitizer). Reaching out to potential donors through Instagram and in school, the team collected over fifteen care items and were able to create baskets to be sent to the organization.
The project is part of the Severna Park High School Leadership Institute which is “a school program that educates young leaders and encourages them to give back to their community.” Along with fellow seniors who donated to other causes, the “Helping Heroes” team have certainly become role models for young people who may now be encouraged to lead their own outreach for an organization they are passionate about and want to help. Getting involved in leadership opportunities not only helps students find their voices and confidence, it motivates them to share their compassion with others who undoubtedly have gratitude for being thought of and cared for by their community.
The Fisher House Foundation is an incredible organization that builds homes where military and veteran families can stay at no cost, while a loved one is in the hospital. These homes can be found at military and VA centers all over the world. The Fisher House Foundation has served over 413,000 families since inception. In addition to housing families, The Fisher House Foundation also has programs for helping family members get airline tickets through their Hero Miles program, helping them stay in hotels near medical centers with their Hotels for Heroes program. Additionally, they manage a scholarship program in which 15,000 students have received $27,000,000 in awards.
The project, “Helping Heroes,” was certainly well-named as veterans are our nation’s bravest and true American heroes. The team of seniors were not just participating in their high school leadership program, they were bringing hope, pride, and joy to our national heroes to whom we are forever grateful for their service.