Through the month of November, RBHS was involved in the Blackhawks Fall Haul. This event collected donations for Goodwill from students, with Visa gift cards and even a visit from two Chicago Blackhawks players as prizes for those schools with the most donations.

“We had NHS members that were volunteered to take [donations] that took about ten loads of donations,” NHS sponsor Lyndsay Mynaugh said.

The Fall Haul received many donations, all of which were greatly appreciated.

“We weren’t really sure what to expect so we kind of decided that any donation was a good donation, because then they can turn around and sell it, and they use that money for training and jobs for various people,” Mynaugh said.

Mynaugh stated that the Fall Haul felt most successful when students she didn’t know brought in items on their own accord.

“Any morning that I came to school and there was a bag outside my door from students that brought things in that maybe I didn’t teach or didn’t know, I figured that was kind of a success,” Mynaugh said.

Furthermore, the Fall Haul was significant in that it accepted all different types of items. This helped to both receive more donations and a greater variety in the items donated.

“I think it brought in other items such as shirts and sweaters,” Mynaugh said. “Some people had some gently used shoes they donated… Those can, in turn, be sold for money for Goodwill that they can then use with their various projects.”

Although high school students are often stereotyped as being selfish, the fall haul helps to show that not all students are like that.

“In general, my kind of observation of students in RB and across the board with the Fall Haul and Santa Anonymous, Thanksgiving Baskets, things like that, is we’ve seen students that kind of rise to the challenge of helping other people out,” Mynaugh said. “I think that doing these things definitely helps kind of take that stereotype away, for sure.”

Although the Fall Haul has already come and gone, many other donation events lie around the corner, such as the Coat and Blanket Drive. If students missed the Fall Haul and still hope to donate items, there are more opportunities.