![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)
Start the Season of Giving Early
Interact Club is looking for dresses and costumes to donate to the less fortunate.
media by Claudia Llado
Posters advertising the dress and costume drives were posted in the hallways Oct. 10. Students in Interact Club received community service hours for creating and distributing the signs. “If people donate to the boxes in Ms. Moss’s room or outside the library, reshare our Instagram posts, or join Interact, it helps! If they join Interact, they can earn volunteer hours while helping to organize the project,” Vice President Kaeli Nallathamby ’24 said.
October 25, 2022
A closet sits full to the brim, old outfits shoved to the back. An open dresser drawer reveals overflowing clothes stuffed like sardines in a can. So many garments, unused and uncared for, just taking up space. Many people are guilty of collecting clothing, but how to get rid of it all?
“A lot of us wear things like Homecoming and Prom dresses or Halloween costumes only once, but this is an opportunity to give them a second chance to make someone’s special day,” President Katie Dupper ’24 said.
Interact Club is partnering with Rylie’s ARK to offer a solution: from Oct. 1 to Oct. 28, the club will be collecting Halloween costumes, and for the entirety of the school year, they will accept donations of Homecoming/Prom dresses.
“Both events are partnered with Rylie’s ARK, an organization dedicated to small acts of kindness. The dress drive, called the ‘Be Happy Boutique,’ is perpetual, as we will be accepting dresses throughout the year,” Interact Vice President Kaeli Nallathamby ‘24 said. “The Halloween costume drive, the ‘Halloween BOOtique,’ will end Oct. 28 so that we are able to donate the costumes before Halloween. They are both donation drives for gently used, but clean, clothes to provide dresses and costumes to those in need.”
“We felt this project had a need our community will be able to fill very well. We also decided on these projects because we felt we wanted to action in helping those around us, since Interact is a service club,” Nallathamby said.
Interact Club is a Rotary International-sponsored high school-level organization. It aims to take action with both local and global issues, and to build awareness while providing members with strong relationships and community service hours. The club meets before school every Monday morning at 7:15 a.m. in room 9100 with club sponsor and biology teacher Mindy Moss.
“Interact Club makes me feel so happy,” Dupper said. “It is a great way to start your days seeing people who want to do good things. Riley’s ARK inspires us through their optimism and commitment to kindness, and we wanted to engage our local community at Rock Canyon for a great cause. It is super easy to donate and the garments will go to kids who deserve them.”
Donated items can be placed in the boxes available in room 9100 or the library. Donations can also be given directly to any club member.
“I’m thinking about [donating],” Anya Lossman ’23 said. “I tend to save my money or spend it on experiences rather than material objects, so I don’t buy a ton of clothes, but I think it’s important to donate clothes because, especially if you don’t wear them often, there is always someone in need or otherwise who would appreciate having them.”
Updates from Interact Club can be found on their Instagram page, @rchs_interact_. Text @c8c4ah to 81010 to join the club year-round.