On Thursday, Jan. 25, National Honors Society (NHS) members gathered after school in Mr. Shaw’s classroom to decorate Valentine’s Day cards for kids at Cheyanna’s Champions 4 Children, a Texas-based organization dedicated to providing a support system for children with rare or undiagnosed illnesses and their families.

“They [gave us a] list [of] a bunch of kids— young [kids] to teenagers [who are] almost our age— with health conditions who’re in the hospital pretty frequently,” Rai Makaraju ‘24 said. “[We made] Valentine’s cards so that we can send messages to them that are inspiring and just say we care about you.”

NHS received a list of 15 children to make cards for, in total. After looking up each child’s profile, members made five cards apiece specific to the kids’ hobbies and interests. The cards were decorated with song lyrics, drawings, and heart-shaped cutouts, among other decorations.

“I like decorating [the cards] to each kid’s personality and what they like,” Jamie Jefferson ‘24 said. “I put a book on one kid’s card. There’s a kid who likes swimming, so I [drew] water-themed things. Another kid really likes music, so I drew a bunch of music-related stuff.”

The hope is that these cards will uplift the days of each child in celebration of Valentine’s Day.

“I hope [the cards] make them smile,” Makaraju said. “I hope it makes them feel inspired and just like that people care about them and that we’re super proud of them, even if we don’t know them that well.”