JFK HOSA Held Card-making Event

Photo by Christine Moy | Colorful cards scattered, made by JFK HOSA members.

On Thursday, Jan. 16, the John F. Kennedy High School chapter of Health Occupation Students of America (HOSA) held an after-school card-making event. These cards were then given to patients at Washington Hospital right here in Fremont. Those who participated in this event received one service hour towards the 40 that they need in order to graduate. In total, 27 people showed up to the event, resulting in roughly 50 cards being made.

The team worked together to make these vibrant cards to help bring happiness to patients. HOSA president Christine Moy (12) mentioned, “We planned a card-making event because we wanted to uplift the spirits of patients who spend their days, months, and even years in the Washington Hospital.”

According to the club’s website, the goal of HOSA is to “promote the education, experience, and leadership for future healthcare workers.” The JFK chapter has done that through holding many types of meetings, some to give back to the community, like this one, and others to help JFK students be prepared for going into the medical field. They do this through things like guest speakers and informative meetings that tell members about opportunities such as internships and summer programs.

“We enjoy hosting these service events, especially those that involve crafting cards, because we get to see the creativity and kindness our participants demonstrate towards patients or anybody in general,” continued Moy. “It is also a fun way to spend time with friends, making arts and crafts together while doing good for the community, which is so important.”

While the event was created ultimately to benefit the patients at Washington Hospital, it was still a good experience for those who showed up to help. “I enjoyed a lot of things about the event,” mentioned club member Surya Shanmugam (11). “I thought it was a good … mission to give back to the community and I thought it was really fun because I like making cards. It allows me to be creative.”

Events such as this one require a lot of planning ahead by officers and members. Moy explained, “Aaliya Teli (11) is our activities director, who is in charge of reaching out to organizations for our events; she—on the behalf of HOSA—got in contact with the Washington Hospital through Evangeline Amana-Iyemura, the Director of Volunteer Services for Washington Health.”

Despite the effort that it takes to plan such events, the officers still put in the hard work to make sure that these events bring joy to the community. Teli mentioned, “We enjoy hosting events like this as it is a way for our members to bond with their friends and everyone while giving back to the community, which I think is important as it can help people who need it.”

This event was just one of the fun events that HOSA has in store for JFK students. “We’re planning to do more service events like this in the future because not only does it provide service hours for our fellow students, but allows them to give back to the community in creative and thoughtful ways,” concluded Moy.

Events like this give JFK students a nice opportunity to have a sense of connection to their community and to make themselves more aware of what their future could be like in the medical field.