On September 29, 2022, Riverside Secondary held its first assembly since 2019. The assembly was for the Terry Fox campaign and run.
The assembly at Riverside Secondary school was an opportunity to spread cancer awareness and raise charity money. The “who am I running for” event helped the school unite as a community for a good cause, and be together for the first time in three years.
Grade 12 student Pouya Khoshnavazi was happy to come together as a school again for a worthy cause. “The Terry Fox run is a good tradition. It raises money for a good cause and breaks from the norm of school life as an outlet for students.”
Many senior students were excited because this was the first time in three years that Riverside secondary school organized an event like this. Riverside teacher Adrienne Chapell’s Leadership class organized the event and the fund-raising activities.
“I was excited; as a senior, seeing everybody in one place was great because it hadn’t happened in a few years. That nostalgia from grade nine came back when everyone was cheering and happy around each other, and it was a great feeling. I was nervous about being a host, but I do a lot of public speaking, and I was an MC in middle school. So it all came back once I was in front of everyone,” said grade 12 host Maggie MacCormack.
The goal of the Leadership class was to raise $2500, but everyone came through and raised $2753 with a combination of coin collection and fund-raising, such as the Bubble Tea sale. An added incentive for fundraising was Riverside science teacher, Jeremy Brown, agreeing to dye his beard red if more than $2500 was raised.
Brown said that there was a discussion on what color his beard should be. “So I have to get my beard colored, and there was a big discussion on what color it should be, which went from my beard being half blue and half green, but I said no. They asked about bright purple and pink, and I said no, I came back with blonde, and they said you have white hair, so we settled on red.” Brown went on to add that he always is willing to support a good cause and students’ efforts to re-create the school culture and spirit from the pre-Covid years.
The grand prize of Brown dyeing his beard red will be during winter spirit week, and the Prizes won by the grade 12 students for donating the most money, such as gift cards, will be distributed accordingly.
Thank you Riverside for your generosity!
