What's Happened:
With the end of the semester quickly approaching, students at La Lumiere High School have been kept busy with numerous sports games, activities, and events all taking place on campus. Among these is the annual Thanksgiving Dinner for the boarding students at La Lumiere.
Every year on the Thursday before Thanksgiving, La Lumiere hosts an annual Thanksgiving celebration for all of its boarding members before they leave for the week-long break. This event takes place in the Moore House, where all students have their meals every day.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic last year, many annual traditions such as Thanksgiving Dinner were unfortunately canceled, and as a result, this year many were excited to see the return of a school-favorite tradition.
While the food alone is a highlight of the night, everyone looks forward to the presentation put on by the student body. A select group of students from all different backgrounds and countries stand up at dinner and share what it is they are grateful for. This is especially meaningful for the International Students, many of whom are experiencing their first-ever Thanksgiving.
The night overall proved to be a great success and truly boosted the morale of the student body.
What’s coming up:
With the fast-approaching winter break coming up, La Lumiere is gearing up for the holiday season on campus, bringing with it the return of many favorite traditions.
To start, during the week of November 28 - December 4, La Lumiere celebrated Hanukkah on campus.
The celebration included morning announcements from various members of the La Lumiere community who practice Judaism who helped to explain the history of the holiday to the student body.
A Menorah was also lit in the Moore House every night of Hanukkah. This provided an opportunity for members of the community to share their culture with the rest of the community.
With the conclusion of Hanukkah, started the next holiday tradition at La Lumiere. Every year, the prefect board (a group of senior leaders at La Lumiere who represent different areas of student life), sells candy canes to the student body.
The student body then can choose to send those candy canes to anybody in the school. This is a favorite tradition amongst the student body and is a great way to send your friends a gift during the holidays.
As for the boarding students, many holiday activities are hosted, such as ice skating, Christmas tree decorations, and in some dorms even Christmas parties.
To conclude the holiday season at La Lumiere, the night before winter break a Christmas Dinner for the whole school will be held. Similar to Thanksgiving Dinner, this event allows students to hang out with their friends, and connect with the whole student body one last time before everyone departs onto break. With the whole school being invited to Christmas Dinner many are looking forward to what is shaping up to be a fantastic evening.
Teacher spotlight:
Mike Heffron, the director of residential life, has been working at La Lumiere for 22 years. While initially the boarding school aspect of La Lumiere was quite a shock, he grew to love it and has since made fond memories. One of which was his first time coaching the baseball team.
“One of my favorite memories was when I had just started coaching baseball, and we played our first game,” said Heffron. “Getting to see the kids working together as a team and even winning the game was super special, and I will never forget that moment.”
After having worked at La Lumiere for such a long time, Heffron has been able to partake in the many traditions at La Lumiere, but his favorite would have to be The Taste of La Lumiere.
“With having such a diverse school, The Taste of La Lumiere allows for our students both domestic and international to share their cultures with the rest of the community,” said Heffron. “It allows for the students to showcase who they are in a whole new way.”
Heffron is also a huge fan of the holiday traditions at La Lumiere and is looking forward to the return of Christmas Dinner, an event he has participated in many times.
“Christmas Dinner is a way for the whole community, not just the borders, to come together and celebrate the holidays,” said Heffron.
Student spotlight:
Louie DePalma is a senior at La Lumiere this year. After attending La Lumiere for all four years of high school, she has come to know the school and community very well. Yet, she still recalls her initial surprise at how close the community at La Lumiere is.
“Never before had I sensed such a close community at any other school I had ever been at,” said DePalma. “This school just provides a much different experience because of the little things like the Head's Cup events which helps us get to know our teachers and other students so much better.”
This year in being the Hospitality Prefect, DePalma gets the chance to work closely on holiday events such as Christmas Dinner, and Thanksgiving Dinner, which she feels has helped to reconnect the community again.
“Being able to be together after everyone was apart last year is so nice,” said DePalma. “Being able to have these traditions back this holiday season allows the La Lumiere community to have togetherness again, after being apart for so long.”
Having been at La Lumiere for so long, DePalma has made many fond memories, and although it is her last year in high school she plans to make the most of it.
“After this year there is a chance that I may never see some of my classmates again, or will only see them occasionally, so I really want to make the most of my last year here, and buy into everything,” said DePalma.