Every December, the Norwin High School halls are filled with holiday cheer. For the holidays, many people receive presents from their friends and their family… but how often do we give presents to those in need?

This year, Ms. Pecora’s English 11 students are currently working on their “Letters of Hope” project for children who are living with and battling cancer at the UPMC Children’s Hospital. After reading The Last Lecture by Jeffrey Zaslow and Randy Pausch, a memoir that details an author’s final lecture before his death and teaches readers to live life to the fullest, Ms. Pecora decided to start a project to give back to the local community.

“I came across this project as I was reading and studying The Last Lecture by Jeffrey Zaslow and Randy Pausch,” Ms. Pecora, Norwin High School English teacher, said. “Hearing everything Randy went through with his pancreatic cancer made me want to do something good locally for the kids and the community.”

At the start, Ms. Pecora wanted to start a project that gave back to the community during the holidays. During COVID-19, Mrs. Pecora felt that the project had a new level of meaning due to the hardships and isolation that everyone went through.

“This project has a lot of meaning for me because in 2020, my mom was diagnosed with ovarian cancer,” Pecora said. “It was a lot on our family, and it really scared us and rocked our world. It made us rethink everything and the closeness of our family.”

During the holidays, many children that are fighting cancer may feel alone because they are stuck in the hospital. Ms. Pecora created this project five years ago, and has been doing it ever since with her classes and her friend that works at Children’s Hospital.

“I created this project because I had a student, whenever I taught English 12, whose mom worked at Children’s [Hospital] and she’s been my contact ever since,” Pecora said. “I’m so grateful that I have her because she loves getting these letters. Sometimes the kids write back too, and we get to see how thankful they are and how much of an impact this project has on other people too, besides being just a grade.”

Ms. Pecora chooses to do this project with her English 11 students every year around the holidays, in order to spread cheer and to give back to the community during a time of giving. Originally, Ms. Pecora used to do the project in the springtime, however she felt that it had more meaning during the holidays.

“I never used to [do this project around the holidays], I used to do it during the spring,” Pecora said. “We do this after we read our whole Crucible unit, so first it is nice to have a break between stories. Then, we read and watch The Last Lecture, so we talk about the things that we are grateful for. It feels like the perfect season to do the project. It is really nice to do something kind for someone in general but I feel like around Christmas time some kids can’t go home for the holidays, and some of them might feel really down. By talking to my contact at Children’s Hospital, she said that it would be around the holidays because it brings them some holiday cheer.”

The students in Ms. Pecora’s English 11 class also had a great time writing the letters for different students in the hospital who have been battling cancer.

“We are doing it to make the kids in the hospital feel better and to make them happy,” Saryn Tadich, a student in Ms. Pecora’s English 11 class, said. “I do enjoy it because I think it helps and it is a good cause.”

Writing letters to children in need of some extra holiday cheer also lets the kids know that they are not alone. The majority of Ms. Pecora’s students do not know who they are writing to, but they enjoy doing it nevertheless because they get to share their thoughts and hopes with someone new.

“It lets people know they are not alone and I feel like it will make them feel better,” Lily Babbie, a junior in Ms. Pecora’s English class, said. “If they are having a really rough day, I think it will help them have a better day. It is interesting to share the things we are talking about with someone else who don’t even know.”

From giving gifts to others to writing encouraging letters of hope for children in the hospital, the holidays are an important time to give back to the community.

“It feels like the perfect season to do the project,” Pecora said. “It is really nice to do something kind for someone in general.”