This past holiday season, the German Club spread holiday cheer throughout MHS with fun activities all students could take part in. Some of these events included delivering gift bags to students after school, an opportunity to decorate gingerbread houses, and selling advent calendars.

“The German Club is a venue for German [and other] students to explore cultural topics that are unique to German-speaking countries,” Ms. Brigitte Kahn said. Ms. Kahn is a German teacher at the high school and has been the club advisor for almost three years.

While the German club is active all year long, they reach the most students during the holiday season. To celebrate St. Nikolaus Day on December 6, students delivered gift bags to their peers after school. This holiday is celebrated mostly in Europe, and tradition calls for children to leave their shoes in front of a fireplace to wake up to them being filled with little presents the next morning.

Another fun filled meeting was held on Wednesday, December 19 when students continued their yearly tradition and decorated gingerbread houses together. The main goals of this project are “to have fun, and to craft something that students can take home to share with their families,” Ms. Kahn said.

For the first time, the German Club had sold advent calendars to any student in the school who wanted one. The profit went towards the holiday gift bags that they made along with the cards that they bring to the senior citizens when they visit a local retirement home.

The German Club has many other projects that they orchestrate throughout the rest of the year, including a meeting where they color Easter eggs and take part in a game of “Eierpecken.” The objective of this game is trying to destroy or smash eggs made by others.

Every March, the club also organize Sprachfest, which is a meeting of German language students from all over Long Island. The event will be held at Massapequa High School this year and all students are welcome.

German club members also visit the Plattduetsche Retirement Home in Franklin Square to talk and interact with the senior citizens living there.

According to Ms. Kahn, her favorite event that the German Club takes part in is the annual Tug-Of-War championship put on by the school. Multiple clubs participate in this event, and the German Club has been able to remain undefeated thus far.

German Club has brought together students from around MHS to experience German culture and participate in fun activities. “It brings students from different grade levels together. They really enjoy planning and executing fun activities,” Ms. Kahn said. “We love welcoming all students, not just German language learners.”