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Mostly Cloudy A flying turkey means it’s time for giving
When turkeys fly, you know it’s Turkey Shoot time.
It happens this time every year: Anyone passing Oceanside High School on the morning of Nov. 23 would have seen hundreds of frozen turkeys “flying” out of the back of a pick-up truck into Thanksgiving baskets assembled and staged in the front lobby by OHS students.
This year, more than 200 decorated Thanksgiving dinner baskets, sponsored by every OHS department and club, were delivered by students and community volunteer drivers to local families in need.
The elementary schools and Oceanside Middle School joined in the giving by providing canned goods for the Turkey Shoot. All donated food was transported to the Oceanside Community Service pantry at School 6, where it was sorted by student volunteers for additional food baskets. This year, the schools also initiated a turkey donation campaign dubbed “The Turkey Hunt.” A friendly inter-school rivalry netted over 50 turkeys that took flight to needy families on Turkey Shoot Tuesday. Additional turkeys were also donated by the Oceanside Federation of Teachers and community members.
The Turkey Shoot, spearheaded by OHS Director of Student Activities Julia Nappi, is just one of many community outreach projects coordinated by Oceanside Community Service, Inc. And the Holiday season is this all-volunteer organization’s busiest time of year. The spirit of the season brings even deeper meaning to the OCS motto: “You have not lived until you have done something for someone who can never repay you.”
With Thanksgiving behind them, OCS volunteers are now gearing up to make the season brighter for those who have fallen on hard times. Canned goods to fill Holiday baskets will continue to be collected at all schools as toy donations begin for the OFT Holiday Toy Drive.
Community members wishing to donate non-perishable foods, toys or Kohl’s gift cards (for older children) can drop them at Home and Hearth Real Estate, 230 Merrick Road, Oceanside, seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monetary contributions can be sent to: Oceanside Community Service, PO Box 203, Oceanside, N.Y., 11572.
