K-Factor Show Set for Friday at 7 p.m.

The Key Club’s K-Factor is ready to thrill crowds gathering in the Huntington High School auditorium on Friday, May 17 at 7 p.m. Tickets will be available at the door for $10.

The 2024 edition marks the 13th annual K-Factor Talent Show, which draws its name from club alum Kaila Harlan, a member of Huntington’s Class of 2009. Proceeds from that first show were dedicated to supporting Ms. Harlan during her battle with leukemia. A Key Club member throughout high school, she passed away that same August, but the show has continued in her honor.

The show now raises money for Rachel’s Dance for the Cure, a foundation set up by current Huntington High School English teacher Aimee Antorino. Her daughter, Rachel passed away in 2018 after a brave battle with AML leukemia. All proceeds go to the foundation, which helps children currently battling cancer at Stony Brook Hospital.

Members of various academic honor societies will be staffing a concession stand with refreshments and snacks in the auditorium lobby during the show. Rachel’s Dance for the Cure merchandise and candy bouquets for performers will also be available.

A member of the Kiwanis International family, Key Club chapters exist in thousands of high schools across the country. Huntington’s chapter was established decades ago and has thrived over the years.

This year’s Key Club officers include Charlotte Gordon (president), Jack Ruthkowski (vice president), Samantha Koepele (historian), Brooke Parks (secretary), Giovanna Lanfranco (treasurer), Jaipreet Singh (chief financial assistant) and attendance officers Marianna Diaz, Nicolas Francis and John Joyce were all involved in the drive in one way or another. Gina Colica and Kelly Kaiser serve as the faculty advisors.

“Key Club is the oldest and largest service program for high school students in the world,” according to the national organization’s website. It has approximately 251,000 members in more than 5,000 clubs and is represented in 40 countries.