This year, Earth Club took on a fundraising event to help Puerto Rico recover from Hurricane Maria. This club event took place after school on Wednesday, December 6.

The Earth Club raised money by hosting an event that included tie dying Earth Club t-shirts and eating Puerto Rican food made by Wiregrass Ranch’s culinary chef, Chef Blythe and the culinary class. The meal consisted of arroz con pollo guisado, ground turkey empanadas, and coconut templeque; a vegetarian meal was also offered.

Between the club members, students, and teachers, a total of 42 people attended. Earth Club raised a total of $215 to donate. The money that came from this event will be donated to the Direct Relief foundation.

“This was a great experience for all of us. My favorite part about all of this was seeing our school come together for a place that some of us have not been to, and for people we don’t even know,” Earth Club Vice President Taylor Pudoka said.

President of Earth Club, Stephanie Carrion, is proud of the outcome of the event.

“Everyone who came to the event played a huge role in supporting Puerto Rico. This event means so much because every little bit helps,” Carrion said.

Students who attended the event enjoyed being able to help support a good cause.

“I had a great time going and tie-dying with everyone. The food was great and in my opinion everything went so well. I would go to another event like this for sure,” junior Simone Billington commented.

Earth Club sponsor, Vanessa Podkomorski, was impressed with all the work that the club and students put into this event.

“This was a very fun experience for the staff, the students, and me. I would love to host another event like this in the future,” Podkomorski said.