St. Joe’s students keeping busy this spring

Students at St. Joseph’s Catholic Academy are tapping into their creativity and putting their work on display.

Organized by senior Grace Counsins and teacher Rebecca Donaghue-Gilkes, the inaugural St. Joe’s Art Show at The Makery will feature work from high school art students.

A report from a school spokeswoman said the show will include two- and three-dimensional art pieces with written statements by students about their work.

The event will also include snacks, as well as live entertainment from the school’s a cappella group.

“By showcasing the art of students at SJCA, you can see the way they see things and how they grasp aspects of their lives,” Cousins said in a statement.

State College Framing Co. donated matting services for the students’ works for this event, with a portion of sales from The Makery going back into the art program at St. Joe’s.

In other St. Joe’s news, members of the school’s National Honor Society packed and plan to deliver Jared Boxes to children in nearby hospitals.

Students have been raising money and collecting items to fill the boxes. The goal set earlier this month was to assemble 50 boxes.

But English teacher Laura Cunningham said they exceeded that goal by making 88.

Those students, accompanied by Cunningham, plan to deliver the boxes to Geisinger Medical Center in Danville on Friday.

Cunningham said the trip is a way for students to personally and directly deliver the boxes to youth patients.

According to a report from a school spokeswoman, the Jared Box Project is an annual project that honors the life of Jared McMullen, a former student at Our Lady of Victory Catholic School in State College, who died of cancer at age 5 in 2000.

Inspired by Jared, who used to take a backpack full of toys to his treatments, the Jared Box Project collects boxes full of toys and games for children, assembled by community groups and volunteers.

The nonprofit was created by the mother of another student who wanted to find a way to help her son’s classmates cope with Jared’s death.

To date, more than 200,000 boxes have been made and donated across the country, the report said.

This story was originally published April 23, 2017 at 9:44 PM with the headline "St. Joe’s students keeping busy this spring."