By Autumn Garrett

This holiday season, the Northeast High School Alumni Association’s Elf Project raised funds to help Northeast High School (NEHS) students.

Before leaving for winter break, 60 Vikings each received a $50 gift card at the annual Elf Gift Party. Students were nominated by teachers to be invited.

The Elf Project is one of the many fundraisers that the association hosts to raise money for the students, this time through gift cards around the holiday season. Other annual fundraisers help students continue their education with scholarships, especially for those students who are not able to pay for colleges by themselves.

“Our main goal is to help these students as much as we can in getting these scholarships for them… it’s something that we heavily focus on,” said Mary Cincotta, President of the NEHS Alumni Association.

The association funds programs at the school year-round, in addition to providing annual scholarships to seniors. They support academic programs for sophomores and juniors, as well as sports programs, the yearbook, music and arts projects, and other projects related to the high school.

The association has an active membership that raises funds through membership dues, a golf tournament, Texas Hold ‘Ems, Bunko and an all-school dinner dance. Not only are scholarships given through these fundraisers and dues, but the association also goes out of their way to help the students outside of school.

Cincotta explained how the association helped students and their families with payments during the COVID shut down when many families could not afford basic necessities or keep up on payments due to jobs being lost.

In 2018, the association even opened a food pantry for students, their families, and community members. The association wanted to help their entire community in addition to their beloved alma mater.

The alumni association has a Facebook page and website for those who are interested in supporting or donating money to help these students get scholarships and help the community. For more information go to northeastvikings.org.