SYLACAUGA, Ala.- Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) students at Sylacauga High School have been hard at work this school year developing a community outreach program called “Sylacauga Cares.” The chapter’s Community Service committee, led by coordinators Lily Frances Price and Estela Padgett, sought input from school and community leaders on where service, compassion, and care are needed.
The student committee included Leliany Banuelos, Tucker Beane, Gracyn Brooks, Ava Grace DeLoach, Sydney Harris, Baylee Harwell, and Rebekah Theilacker, who selected three varied opportunities and began organizing support.
After the high school students became aware of loneliness among nursing home residents caused by isolation from the pandemic, they connected with them by sending Valentines to residents at Sylacauga Health and Rehab.
A second project the committee has undertaken is a food drive in partnership with the Care House of Sylacauga. From February through the end of March, FBLA is collecting jars of peanut butter and jelly for the Care House to distribute in family food boxes. The school-wide food drive is being promoted regularly through the in-house Aggie TV programming.
The most intensive project the committee has undertaken is the creation of videos about COVID-19 precautions. One video is geared toward elementary students and another for the middle and high schools. Each school will show the appropriate video for their student age group. To produce the videos, FBLA partnered with their fellow student organization, HOSA, to discuss hand hygiene and mask etiquette. Not only are students demonstrating best practice techniques, yet another student group, the Sylacauga High Show Choir, has written and choreographed a special song to reinforce the practices. This collaborative effort by the FBLA Community Service committee also will be available on social media as a public service announcement.
“Sylacauga Cares” reflects the dedication and leadership of the SHS-FBLA students in reaching out to meet the needs of the community. These future leaders are making a difference today, and most certainly will tomorrow.
