Health and safety are two aspects of life that most people are not very mindful of. It is easy to forget to take care of your own mental or physical well-being. SHAC, the Student Health Advisory Council, aims to be a constant reminder to everyone in our school to take care of yourself and the people around you.
SHAC is a nationally recognized club with numerous branches across the country. The organization is a group of students focused on helping people in schools understand the impact health has on students and their academics, as well as spreading awareness for various causes in the community. The president of SHAC, Shelby McCurry (12), explains the importance of this organization.
“The causes we are spreading awareness for are very real and very in your face. Like they impact everyone. Whether it be someone’s brother, sister, mother, father, cousin, or friend, it seems that everyone knows someone affected by one of these causes. So I feel like bringing more awareness to it, just by saying something like ‘Hey, you might be able to help by doing this,’ it just makes people want to help each other,” McCurry said.
SHAC makes an impact and benefits the community by shedding light on specific concerns. The club hopes to inform more people about current issues. Even in their personal lives, the club members feel positive impressions of their actions that spread throughout their family and friends. Alexandria Alvo (10) describes what prompted her to join the club.
“I really enjoy helping people and being in the community, so being a part of these clubs, SHAC specifically, benefits you as a person and it helps the people around you.”Alvo said.
SHAC does countless projects in the community from working booths at local events, like tailgates and Locopalooza, to advocating for better health services at school. The organization offers a variety of opportunities for prospective members to become involved in their community. McCurry encourages everyone to embrace the opportunities SHAC offers.
“If someone’s interested, I would recommend just joining it because there’s no immediate commitment. If you join it you can always just be like, ‘Oh this isn’t really for me,’ and just not come back. I would recommend coming to a meeting first, and once you come to a meeting you can see if you don’t really like it or if you’d like to know more. And just talk to anyone there, they’d be happy to tell you more. Everyone is very inviting,” McCurry said.
The organization is always welcoming new members dedicated to their mission of spreading awareness. Anyone thinking of joining the club is invited to experience a meeting and figure out whether or not SHAC is something they would be interested in.
SHAC is undoubtedly an integral part of our school and even if their efforts are not always seen, they certainly are felt throughout all aspects of LCHS.
