By Karla McArthur, Correspondent
Gaston High School’s Key Club honored military veterans by placing American flags on graves at Crestwood Cemetery.
Key Club sponsor, Amy Noakers, said the mission of the Bulldog Key Club is to build a family within the school by teaching leadership and encouraging a sense of responsibility through community service.
“Teenagers need not just a community but a family,” Noakers said, adding that students also need a place to turn when they feel out of options. “We are the people they can depend on when times get tough.”
The club chose Nov. 25 for the flag placement as a way to honor veterans of foreign wars and recognize their sacrifices within the local community. With support from the Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary Whorton-Dykes Post 2760, Noakers and club members were able to carry out the project.
“We are so grateful we were able to put our idea into action with their help,” Noakers said.
In addition to keeping the school campus clean and volunteering at school functions, the club hosts several community service events. Members launched a coat drive that collected more than 300 coats for families in need during the winter season. They also helped host the school’s fall festival and will host another event in the spring. Club members assist the local Kiwanis Club with its annual Pancake Day as well.
Noakers said Gaston High has the most active Key Club in the Etowah County district and continues to develop new service projects. Current initiatives include a blanket drive running through the end of November. The club is collecting new or gently used blankets for families in need. Members are also preparing for a fall blood drive and planning a towel and washcloth collection.
Regardless of the project, Noakers said the club strives to create a welcoming atmosphere “full of laughter and community.”
To join Gaston’s Key Club, students in grades 9–12 must pay a club fee. Beyond that, Noakers said students simply need to “show up with an open heart and be ready to get their hands dirty for the betterment of others.”
She teaches her members the importance of helping others by following the club’s mantra: “Leave it better than you found it.”
