Last year, smiley face posters and t-shirts began popping up all over the school. They announced and spread the word about a new group at central – The Happy Club. “Our biggest weakness (at Central) is that we kids take ourselves far too seriously,” said Audrey Glaser, senior. She and Lauren Paul, senior, founded Happy Club last year in an effort to help students lighten up. Meetings are low-key affairs, with food and games on Friday mornings.
The first Happy Club fundraiser was held Tuesday, Sept. 27. The smiley face cookies entirely sold out, raising several hundred dollars. The most immediate use for the money will be a Jersey Shore themed dance after the football game on Friday, Oct. 14.
Happy Club does not limit itself simply to spreading smiles within Central. Plans for the future include caroling at Hinsdale Hospital to bring cheer to patients around Christmas time. The club also has plans – which they will not disclose to keep them a surprise – to reduce the stress and tension of finals week in January. “Central can get pretty depressing when everyone is trudging around in their pajamas and stressing out over tests,” Glaser said. “As a club we are coming up with many ideas on how to bring laughter and stress relief into the school atmosphere during this time.”
Freshman year brings nervousness about a new school, sophomore year brings anxiety about grades, junior year brings way too much homework, and senior year brings college applications. A byproduct of Central’s high academic standards is an often stressful environment, where extracurriculars add to the stress instead of providing relief. Happy Club intends to spend this year doing the opposite. “Overall the goal is really to do whatever we can to improve school morale, to make a difference, no matter how big or small, in the lives of others, and just to have a good time,” said club sponsor Ms. Patel.
“We want to remind people of their priorities. Even more simply than that, we want to make people smile,” Glaser said. “Anyone who sees the positive energy at our Friday meetings would have proof that, so far, we’re doing a good job.”
