![Minutes before the Activities Fair in the gym, president Abhi Gowda ‘26 prepares the stall for his club Helping Hands, Sept. 4. A relatively new club, Helping Hands was co-started by Gowda and focuses on assisting the homeless, and just last year they succeeded in raising a couple hundred donations to send to shelters. This year, they have goals to expand, with hopes to increase volunteer opportunities and take in-person trips to shelters, as well as extend their help beyond just homeless people. “The Activities Fair gives a lot of underclassmen the opportunity to really get to know the Canyon culture, and it gives them many opportunities for service and volunteering,” Gowda said. “[Through the Activities Fair,] I hope to find a bunch of new and passionate members about our club and just get our name out there and spread awareness to the cause that we’re fighting for.”](https://rockmediaonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/1-2-1200x885.jpg)
![The winter guard team makes fifth place at the state championship finals in the Denver Coliseum, March 30. The team performed to Barnes Country's “Glitter and Gold,” lead by coaches Margo Sanford, Blair Bickerton and Anna Orgren. In their class there were a total of nine groups participating, and the top five who made it to finals received a plaque. “[Walking onto the stage] is very nerve-wracking, but also very exciting as well. When you first start color guard there's a lot of anxiety and uncertainty when you first perform in front of an audience, but once you've done it for a while, it starts to become the best part of the season,” Ella West ‘25 said. “It's very fulfilling to see an audience react to something you've put your heart and soul into.”](https://rockmediaonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Both-socal-media-nd-website-main-1-1200x846.jpg)
![April marks the 25th anniversary of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, created by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC). This month is to spread awareness of the harassment, assault and abuse that happens around the world. The symbol that represented the month was a teal ribbon; however, some survivors of assault create different symbols and movements like the TikTok trend in 2022, where survivors would tattoo Medusa on their body, in honor of her backstory in Greek Mythology. “I don't think [this month is known] at all. I rarely see anybody talk about it. I rarely see much of an emphasis on posting it online, or much discussion about it, and I feel like there needs to be way more discussion,” an anonymous source said. “I think just validating every experience that a person has gone through, regardless of the degree of it, the severity, is an essential step into making sure that people are aware that this is a very real problem in a society and that we need to do better in addressing it.”](https://rockmediaonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/IMG_0011-1200x900.jpg)
![Lesbian Visibility Day is April 26, and it’s a holiday to celebrate the lesbian community of the world. Lesbian Visibility day was established in 2008 by many queer activists and organizations who sought to raise more awareness for lesbian history and culture. “So this is why during Lesbian Visibility [Day] we celebrate and center all lesbians, both cis and trans, while also showing solidarity with all LGBTQ+ women and nonbinary people,” Linda Reily, in an article written by her, said.](https://rockmediaonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Lesbian-Visibility-day.jpeg)
Class of 2024 is nearly done with high school, but passing grades alone won’t get them to graduation.
According to Douglas County School District guidelines, every student must also have 20 hours of community service logged in HelperHelper by March 22 to graduate.
There are many opportunities for service hours.
Cassie Watkins ‘25 participated in blood donations and sold snacks at the snack stand at basketball games. She learned about the opportunity to donate her blood through Key Club, a school club sponsored by Christina Geis, and heard about the basketball snack stand from friends who also sold snacks at basketball games.
Senior Chloe Bishop lettered in community service, with over 100 hours. She earned most of her hours volunteering for the SSN candy cart, a fundraiser for the special needs classroom that raises money to pay for their field trips and activities.
Bishop runs the credit card machine, stocks the items, sells items for cash and learns job skills.
“I have loved the time spent in front of the student body as I am serving and getting to know them all better,” Bishop said.
Akshit Praksh ‘26 volunteers at the Douglas County Library and SkyRidge Hospital with friends. At the hospital, Praksh cleans, and at the library, he tutors kids at a summer camp and helps to set up for birthday parties and events. He’s trying to letter in community service with 100 hours by graduation and wants to add community service to his resume to help with college applications.
For seniors, service hours are due by Friday, March 22. This is a permanent deadline and mandatory to graduate this year.
There is a bulletin board located in the main hallway with different opportunities to serve. The counselors also can help work with the students to find creative ways to get their 20 hours.
“All Douglas County students are required to fulfill a 20-hour community service requirement in order to graduate. I believe that community service is a good requirement as it gets students to think outside of themselves and think of the world around them and connect with their community,” counselor Leah Thomsen said.
For those who find that they enjoy serving, 20 hours might just be a start. If students reach 100 or more hours, they can even letter in Community Service. See the form for more information on lettering.
