Second Harvest Food Bank

Campus Climate Commission began its first Gingerbread Giving House fundraiser this year on Nov. 28. The idea was pitched three weeks ago by commission member sophomore Celine Mol when Campus Climate was planning its decorations for the school. The wooden gingerbread house, built by Leadership adviser Mike White and White’s father, will be located in the Rally Court at brunch and lunch until December 15.

Students may throw change into the gingerbread house to make wishes.

“[The wishes were] part of the original idea. We thought it would be a good way to incorporate the holidays with campus spirit,” Campus Climate lead commissioner senior Manvita Tatavarthy said.

All proceeds raised through the Giving House will be donated to Second Harvest Food Bank.

Operation Smile

This holiday season, MV Operation Smile has partnered with Barnes and Noble at the Westgate Mall and at the Pruneyard Shopping Center in Campbell. Members from Operation Smile will be wrapping gifts at these locations until Dec. 18. The club earns money through donations collected during gift-wrapping shifts. This will be their second year doing this fundraiser; the previous year, Operation Smile earned around $200.

Additionally, the club has started a new fundraiser that will run for approximately two months. Operation Smile members created and decorated jars of peanut butter, shampoo bottles, and other common household containers to put in local stores. The club hopes to collect extra change from shoppers.

Operation Smile contacted Monta Vista Market, Whole Foods and Safeway, but they only have jars placed in Monta Vista Market at the moment.

“We don’t know what to expect, because we’ve never done [this] before, so I’ll be happy with any [money we raise],” president senior Christina Wong said.

Make-A-Wish

Interact’s Project Connecting Communities Team began their annual Letters to Santa fundraiser in conjunction with Macy’s Make-A-Wish Foundation program on Dec. 1. Students may write letters at their cart will be located in the Rally Court at lunch until Dec. 9.

In addition to hosting the fundraiser at MVHS, the PCC Team will visit nearby elementary schools. The previous year, PCC went to Faria Elementary School and raised $378 from the letters. In the next two weeks, the PCC Team will be going to Regnart and may visit Lawson and Kennedy Middle Schools to collect more letters.

“There is lots of innocence in the letters [from elementary school kids],” PCC officer junior Srisruthi Ramesh said. “They color and decorate the page for us, and usually write longer letters.”

In their letters, elementary school students have asked for items ranging from iPods, to cookies, and to gifts for all friends and family. Ramesh notes that the letters from MVHS students often ask for straight As.

A few days before Winter Break begins, PCC will count all the letters they have collected and drop them off at the local Macy’s Santa Mailbox. For each letter, Macy’s will donate a dollar to the Make-A-Wish foundation for terminally ill children.