Huntington High School artists have mobilized for Trees for Troops, an organization that provides a free, farm-grown Christmas tree the US Armed Forces members in every service branch through the generosity of volunteers, donations and sponsorship grants.
Huntington students studying Creative Crafts in classes taught by Jenna Rinaldi and Jennifer Fazin have been working hard and preparing ornaments and holiday cards to be donated to Trees for Troops.
“I feel that what we’re doing in Creative Crafts is important,” said junior Lainey Carney, who has family members that work closely with the US military. “If families cannot be together during the holiday season due to their deployment, Trees for Troops is providing them with the trees for the holiday season and we are providing them with ornaments to give them a feeling like they’re home and not forgotten.”
The Trees for Troops program has delivered 225,319 trees to servicemen and woman over the past 14 years. More than 800 different American tree farmers have contributed trees during that period.
Students in the classes taught by Ms. Rinaldi and Mrs. Fazin painstakingly created 200 ornaments for the initiative and donated them with the hope they will brighten the lives of the servicemen and women and their families.
“This project was fun and interesting,” freshman Sammy Mac Arner said. “I really enjoyed making ornaments for soldiers and their families. I wanted to give back to them for all of their bravery and sacrifice that they give to our country. It was also great that we were able to create ornaments and cards while listing to holiday music! This really got us in the spirit.”
The two Huntington teachers were happy with the results of the project. “We are proud that our students were able to use their abilities to create artwork for a great cause,” Ms. Rinaldi said.
