What’s recently happened
In order to prepare for the upcoming winter holidays, Wheeler High School (WHS) has been encouraging everyone to give back to the community with the annual WHS Holiday On-Line Auction and Food Drive in support of the Lunch with Santa program. These programs donate time and money to worthwhile foundations, a perfect way to spread holiday cheer.
The Lunch with Santa program is an opportunity in which families with young children are able to enjoy a delicious meal with an appearance from Kriss Kringle himself!
The program is loved by all, and highly anticipated, year after year.
The Holiday On-Line Auction will be held on December 8 and running through December 14. The On-Line Auction is full of opportunities. Whether you intend to peruse the site for yourself, or for others it's a great way to help out the community.
Along with the Lunch with Santa program, WHS is also participating in a Food Drive servicing local families in need. Each resource class has a goal of filling at least four boxes to be donated to the local families. Even though the goal is four boxes, the Food Drive tends to become quite competitive. Since there are prizes to be won such as a Chick-fil-A lunch, many classes are trying to win, in hopes of helping the community.
In the loving nature of the holidays, the students of WHS are going above and beyond to meet the needs of those in the community. Especially WHS’s Key Club. They are offering service points for a multitude of helpful community service acts.
Bellringing for the Salvation Army and donating a shoebox for children with the Samaritan's Purse are just a few of the many projects that the Key Club is participating in.
What’s coming up
As winter break approaches, the anticipation can be felt radiating through the halls of WHS. With most classes having a test nearing the end of the week, students are studying hard, ready for a well-deserved break.
Almost every winter sport is anticipating a win this week. The WHS Girls and Boys Swim team travels to North Judson this week and with their excellent team bonding skills and their relentless training, a successful meet is on the horizon!
This Monday, WHS’ SCORE club will be hosting a kickball tournament. Senior representatives of the SCORE club have been signing students up for the event all week. The tournament will be held in the fieldhouse at 5:30 p.m. Each grade has the chance to compete with a team of 10.
In other news, the Bearcat Band will be performing in their Holiday Band Concert. Students in each grade will work together to melodically produce their harmonious sounds.
Teacher spotlight
French Teacher, Eric LaMagdeleine, is beloved by all of his students. LaMagdeleine, who has been teaching at WHS for two years, has become, in words of senior Ava Piwinski:
“The coolest teacher I’ve ever known.”
LaMagdeleine forms bonds with all of his students by creating a fun, positive environment in which learning is genuinely fun.
He incorporates music, art, and film into his curriculum, as a way to appeal to the likes of his students. French music can often be heard from his room, and he is showing and analyzing French music videos.
Aside from teaching, LaMagdeleine is the sponsor of WHS’ French Club. The club meets every other Thursday to discuss French current events, music, food, games, and trips. They are planning to visit the Christkindlmarket in Chicago.
Even though the market has Germanic origins, many French traditions can be found throughout the attraction. LaMagdeleine and the French Club are looking forward to experiencing the French traditions as the Holidays approach.
Student spotlight
Senior, artist, and musician, Chantal Ares, is a leader in the WHS community.
Ares has a full load of classes, including a criminal justice vocational, in which she intends to pursue after high school. Ares works hard in all of her classes which is shown through her dedication and perseverance. She is also a part of WHS’ National Honor Society and is featured on the 4.0 Honor Roll.
“Ever since I was little, I’ve been interested in crime. I grew up on detective shows, like Sherlock Holmes, as they were always playing in my household, and I think that really affected me. I want to pursue this because I want to help the people who are wronged by the justice system,” says Ares.
Aside from pursuing her criminal justice passion, Ares also pursues music and art. She makes innovative clothes from modern recycled fabric-all from her bedroom and sells them online to her rapidly growing fanbase. She has a following on the fashion app, Depop, and loves every second of it.
Ares plays guitar and often uploads videos to YouTube, covering classic rock and grunge rock.