The holiday season can be a challenging one for some people.

Given the season can bring out a wide range of emotions depending on where one is at in life, making things a little happier for others is always a good thing to try and do.

That is where groups like the Helix Charter High JustServe Club come in.

Under the direction of sophomore Lainey Krage, the club recently did a stuffed animal drive, with the animals going to the children at the Ronald McDonald House. The club partnered with Our Father’s Grace Ministries and collected more than 3,200 stuffed animals. According to Krage, 35 people participated in this year’s event. 

“We are currently getting more and sometimes tag the stuffed animals during our lunch meetings,” Krage stated. “On the tags we write positive notes to help them stay positive. We did last year as well.”

Krage, who is president of the JustServe Club, started the group last year as a means for students to easily do community service. “I have deeply enjoyed being president and am very grateful for all the help I have gotten from my club members and faculty,” Krage said. “As president of the Just Serve Club at Helix Charter High School, I also participate in the National JustServe Club Youth Council, which involves several of the Just Serve Clubs around the Country.”

According to Krage, she has been a part of this Stuffed Animal Drive for the past six years.

“I learned about it when my church began participating with Pastor John Quinata (Our Father’s Grace Ministries) each October by gathering stuffed animals for children at our church buildings,” Krage remarked. “My father has always taught me to do a bunch of community service so when I found this project, I fell in love with it. So, this last year I arranged for my JustServe Club to volunteer to help gather and tag the stuffed animals. Everyone in the club really enjoys this project because they know that it is for a good cause. Throughout the year Pastor John will contact my club and ask for help. The tags we tie onto each stuffed animal say: ‘A Gift of Love, Hope & Prayers from Our Father’s Grace Ministries, The Interfaith Community of San Diego & Our Community Partners’. We love doing this during the holidays to express our gratitude for our community; and we love to share some light with those children who might have a hard time finding it right now. We find our projects on JustServe.org, which is a website and an app that connects organizations needing help with willing volunteers.”

While the focus now is on the holiday season at hand, thoughts are already being turned to next spring and another important project.

“On April 26, 2025, our club will join the other 25 JustServe Clubs in San Diego County for a day of volunteering as we all participate in Global Youth Service Day,” Krage went on to say. “We will all meet at the San Diego Food Bank to sort and package produce that will then be distributed to thousands of people in San Diego who are having a hard time putting food on their tables.”

As much as Krage enjoys her time with such projects, fellow students also find these opportunities are well worth it.

Getting fellow students to participate

“I told a few of my friends about the project and encouraged them to participate in the club at lunch,” student Gray Crocket said. “I liked writing positive messages to hopefully make someone’s day. I think it is very important to help others in need because I am in a very privileged position and it doesn’t take much effort to help someone out every once in a while.”

Meantime, fellow student Mia Turpin liked that there were different roles for all participants when tagging the stuffed animals, such as writing kind notes, cutting off tags, tying on tags etc. “Knowing that they will be given to those who need them really made me happy to do the project,” Turpin remarked.

Turpin noted that whenever there was a stuffed animal drive, she would always encourage her friends over the week to join in.

“I feel that it is highly important to help others in need and show that we care,” Turpin added. “I believe that it gives them the opportunity to be happy and at least bring a little joy to their day or life.”

For student Kennedy Heytasinga, they noted, “I loved the community of the project, working with the same people every day. I think it’s truly important to help people who need support, even if it’s not the necessities. Little things bring people so much joy.”

When it comes to this holiday season, the efforts of a number of people at Helix Charter High will make the holidays a little bit brighter for so many local individuals.

(Courtesy photos)