The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Foundation is a worldwide organization that helps kids around the world in need. This organization was founded in 1946 in New York by Ludwik Rajchman who was a Polish physician and bacteriologist who served as the world leader of medicine for the League of Nations Health Organization. He started UNICEF to help disadvantaged kids affected by war and poverty. 

High schools around America have this club, and so does our very own. They started up in the year 2021, and they are still going strong to this day. They just recently had their first meeting of the 2023 semester. The meetings are very well organized and structured. On the February 6th meeting, they went over their new project for the semester. They are running a card drive for the Amy’s Rays of Sunshine Foundation. This foundation supports patients going through the procedure of getting new bone marrow transplants, and these cards go to patients going through a prolonged period of isolation while their body is healing. Students from NHS can go to these meetings and make two cards to receive one volunteering hour. 

Every month Apex High’s UNICEF club has a theme or themes for the month. This February their theme is Black History Month and Social Equality. This month they will also be talking about Freedom Day where we celebrate the end of colonialism, segregation, and white minority rule that ended around three hundred years ago. They will also be working on a project called Shoes for Miles. Shoes for Miles is a small non profit organization that collects shoe donations for children in need. 

This club has previously worked on a successful hygiene drive that collected hygiene products to be given to the Women’s Center in Raleigh and coat drive for the One Warm Coat Foundation. They also have made necessity kits that went to people in need in Haiti after the hurricane back in 2022.

The club’s Co-President, Sophia Hayer, has been in the club for the last two years, and she joined for her interest to make a difference and help others to participate in local service to the community. Sophia believes this is a good opportunity for all students to step in and help out in their local community and even global issues. This club focuses on issues in our own community, country, and even ones that are worldwide. UNICEF club gives the chance to help but also helps students become more aware about issues around the world. 

To be a part of the club just show up to the meetings that are every other Monday. They tend to have two  meetings a month. The meetings will be in room 2203 after school in Ms. Fruehauf’s room. This club requires no dues and the meetings are around thirty to forty-five  minutes. If you are interested, show up to a meeting and support the club!