Students from the National Technical Honor Society at Carbon Career & Technical Institute spoke with members of CCTI’s Joint Operating Committee about the various activities the club has been doing since the beginning of the school year.

Adviser Sue Ann Gerhard introduced the three NTHS members also in attendance, who spoke of the group’s activities. The three senior students were Samantha Muthard, Lily Dickson and Isabel Wentz.

Muthard, NTHS president, and a senior from Palmerton in the drafting design and technology department, spoke about the Veterans Day program held in the school’s cafeteria on Nov. 11. The club also sent out Thanksgiving cards to senior citizens at Heritage Hill Senior Living Center, Weatherly, and Mahoning Valley Nursing Center, Lehighton.

“Members also volunteered for community service hours on November 26th at the Trinity Lutheran Church in Lehighton for their annual rummage sale fundraiser,” Muthard added. “They were short-handed and asked if our students could help set up the sale.”

Dickson, a senior from Palmerton in the carpentry department, spoke the Toys for Tots collection held at CCTI.

“NTHS and SkillsUSA sponsored a Toys for Tots collection for children in Carbon County,” Dickson said. “A competition was organized with the technical areas. The technical area bringing in the most toys would receive a pizza and ice cream sundae party before Christmas break. The culinary arts department won, bringing in 90 toys.”

Students in various departments and school organizations took part. The carpentry, welding, auto collision and precision machine departments together built a red Radio Flyer wagon to hold the toys.

“Students in the NTHS, SkillsUSA and other organizations spent the day, December 7th, here at CCTI collecting toys from the public,” Dickson said. “Hot chocolate and cookies, baked by the culinary arts department, were served and Santa was available for photos.”

A total of 475 toys were collected for the children of Carbon County.

Toys for Tots is a project of the United States Marine Corps Reserve.

Dickson also reported that members of the Interact Rotary Club of CCTI shared how money was raised by reading to children at the Dimmick Memorial Library, and volunteering at the children’s center.

Wentz, NTHS vice president and a senior from Lehighton in the graphic design department, told how NTHS members visited the Heritage Hills Senior Living Center in Weatherly on Thursday, bringing the residents snacks and blankets.

“We visited the residents in the common area, sang Christmas carols and visited others who were unable to leave their rooms,” Wentz said.

Christmas cards were also distributed to all residents at Heritage Hills and Mahoning Valley Nursing Center.