2020 Virtual National Leadership Conference competitors
Middletown HS students Alexis Crist, Abigail Paul and Callieanne McKeon are competing in National FCCLA Virtual Conference 2020 with their project “Pillow Cases for Happy Faces” in the Focus on Children event. The girls created pillow cases for children hospitalized at A.I duPont Hospital for Children. When asked why they wanted to do this project they replied “Our overall goal is to provide children with an overall welcoming environment in their hospital rooms as well as provide them with a little gift to show we care from the organization!”
Ashlyn Moore is a Cape Henlopen HS student who is competing in Fashion Construction in 2020 FCCLA’s Virtual National Leadership Conference. Check out this article in the Cape Gazette! 
Cape Henlopen HS teacher makes masks to benefit sewing school in Kenya
When Cape High textiles teacher Alayna Aiken, who founded a sewing school in Kenya, learned that masks were in short supply, she knew she could meet the need and generate funds for a second sewing school.
“I thought it would take a year to raise funds,” she said. “People asked me to make masks, and within three weeks we raised enough money to buy land for another school and office furniture.”
With that goal reached, Aiken now has set her sights on raising funds to purchase a car to travel between the schools in Turkwel and Siala, places nine hours apart in Kenya.
“People are so generous,” she said. “Many have bought masks and given an additional donation to the school.”
Fitted masks are available with or without wires, pleats or plain. Shoppers can choose from a plethora of patterns, including animal prints, summery florals and African fabrics, for children and adults.
“I miss teaching, and it helps to customize face masks for people,” Aiken said. “I’ll be able to transfer my experience running this as a business and making money to my students. I hope to create an awareness for the importance of sewing.”
Newark High School students competed at the 2018 National FCCLA Leadership Conference in Atlanta, GA. The poster above won a Silver medal.
This cake that won gold at the state conference.
NHS students at Delaware FCCLA state Leadership conference 2018
Newark High School held a free event at the Newark Library in December for families to come in and build gingerbread houses with graham crackers, chocolates and finger candies. They also made snowmen out of marshmallows and enjoyed a nice cup of hot cocoa. Oh what fun!
On Oct. 16 the students, parents and faculty of HB du Pont Middle School partnered with several Hockessin area restaurants and cafes to host the school’s first Empty Bowls Dinner. The event is designed to raise awareness of hunger and food insecurity in our community while raising funds to support the West End Neighorhood House.
Under the direction of HB’s art teacher, Colleen Zufelt, 6th, 7th and 8th grade students and several faculty members hand-painted more than 200 beautiful bowls that will help inspire meaningful conversations in classrooms and around family dinner tables that far too many in our community face empty bowls at meal time.
Students, their parents and faculty members gathered at the school on Friday evening to share a simple meal of soup, bread, water and dessert and gain a better understanding of what it’s like for families to have to find nourishment from a soup kitchen. HB students & teacher Rebecca Schuck’s FCCLA student organization made the desserts.
HB du Pont’s Empty Bowls Program was generously funded by a National PTA Mary Lou Anderson Arts Enhancement Grant to actively engage families and community partners and strengthen family-school partnerships through artistic learning opportunities.
Middletown HS FCCLA made Elf On The Shelf Kits
MHS FCCLA Identified a Concern in their community: working parents love the Elf On The Shelf tradition but just don’t have the time or energy to develop fresh, new ideas each day! MHS FCCLA has come up with the answer! Students in Middletown High School’s Chapter of FCCLA have created an Elf On The Shelf kits. Inside the kit, parents found everything they needed to keep this tradition fun and meaningful for kids and easy on them! (Elf not included.) Take a look at some of their photos:
Middletown HS Baking Treats for the Troops
On Friday at 9:30 a.m., the culinary arts students at Middletown High were up to their elbows in cookie dough, part of an annual service project called “Baking for the Troops.” Now in its fourth year, the program offers an opportunity for high school students to work alongside veterans from American Legion Canal Post 25 and ranking members of the Delaware National Guard making and baking cookies for distribution to service men and women stationed away from their homes (and families) this year. Open this story to learn more and enjoy an album of photos from today’s event…
- To view an album of photos from today’s event, click here.
“My students look forward to this event every fall. Baking treats for the troops is a positive way to say thank you,” said culinary teacher Lindsay Baker. “We want to let them know that people at home care and are appreciative of the hardships they endure to keep us safe.”
The idea for a partnership hatched in 2015, when American Legion Auxiliary Canal Unit 25 Secretary Margie Donovan-Abbott read about how student/staff cooks from Middletown assisted home bakers from the MOT Senior Center as they prepared their famous peach pies for sale at the Town’s historic Olde-Tyme Peach Festival.
“My husband Ray (Canal Post 25 Adjutant Ray Abbott) is a veteran of Vietnam and the Gulf War,” Margie explained. “We know how important it is to receive a package from home at the holidays. When you send a box of cookies, one soldier will open it, and then share it with the rest. It’s a way to spread a smile and let them know we’re thinking about them.”
Margie reached out to the school, where she was warmly embraced by culinary arts instructor Lindsay Baker. The rest is history.
This year, the group will prepare hundreds of cookies using dough donated by Bob Evans Restaurant in Middletown. Joining them will be VIPs including: Major General Frank Vavala (retired), Delaware National Guard Command Sergeant Major Don Catalon, Command chief Master Sergeant Patty-Ann Ollinger, American Legion Canal Post 25 Adjutant Ray Abbott, American Legion Auxiliary Canal Unit 25 and Appoquinimink School Superintendent Dr. Matt Burrows.
After the cookies are baked and packaged, American Legion Auxiliary members will transport them to Rehoboth, Delaware for shipping overseas on November 21.
Middletown High School Leadership Games
From L to R
Dorian Gray, Simauri Daniels Mikala Baldwin, Maddi Boswell
Middletown High School students figured out a genius way of practicing public speaking skills and giving back to the community in an event they coined “FCCLA Gifts Back”. Each member showed up to the event with five $5 gift cards to various places. They were then given a Scavenger Hunt sheet to find people who fit their Scavenger hunt description (ex-a mom with a baby, a man with a beard, etc.)FCCLA members had to go up to those people, explain who they were, who FCCLA is, and what they were doing. It was heartwarming to get the feedback from the community with this kind little gesture!
MHS FCCLA teamed up with Chiari & Syringomyelia Foundation – CSF for their annual Unite @Night Walk.
Unite@night is a collection of one-mile, casual evening walks around the country that bring together people who are living with the devastating effects of Chiari malformation, syringomyelia, EDS, and related disorders.
unite@night will support CSF Chapters to provide education and increase awareness while funding advocacy work and research projects that can potentially find answers to help those who are fighting these disorders. This cause is close to MHS’ hearts, as MHS Adviser, Michelle Semonelle and chapter officer, Maddi Boswell both have Chiari and EDS!
MHS students presented A Door of Hope Pregnancy Center with a large donation of baby clothes, diapers, wipes and necessities as their fall chapter community service project.
MHS Christmas party 2017
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