Village Students Prepare Gifts for MercyFirst Teens

Village Elementary School students in Syosset worked diligently on Dec. 18 to prepare holiday gifts for teenagers who live at MercyFirst, a Syosset-based organization that provides residential services for displaced youth, during the school’s annual holiday workshop. 

Facilitated by the student council, the event brings holiday cheer to those less fortunate. The student council members, along with fifth-graders and parent volunteers, collected donations from the school community. Presents included gift certificates to local eateries, toiletries and sweatshirts, among many other items.

During the holiday workshop, students wrapped and packed gifts for 17 youths between the ages of 13 and 19, focusing on teens who have limited or no familial connections. 

MercyFirst decides which teenagers will be included on the list, as an incentive for the youths to work hard and behave properly on campus. Generous classes, staff members and families from Village adopt individual MercyFirst teens, providing homemade baked goods, toiletries and other luxury items they are not afforded in the residential program. 

All gifts were distributed at the annual breakfast at the Celebrity Diner in Syosset on Dec. 19. This event serves as a special occasion for the youths, as many do not get to leave the campus.

As part of the workshop, three teens from MercyFirst visited the school with their service dogs in training. The teens train the canines as part of a therapy dog program called Project CARE and demonstrated some of the tricks they’ve taught the dogs through the training program.