All with Love
Coeur d'Alene High School freshmen Elliana Rietze, right, Ava Yates, center, and Carlie Flowers wave signs at traffic Wednesday to encourage donations for the All for AWL bedding and blanket drive. CHS and Lake City students have created a new charitable tradition in the absence of the Fight for the Fish spirit challenge, which was canceled by COVID.
DEVIN WEEKS/Press
Coeur d'Alene High School ASB President Holly Hudson stands among bags and boxes of donations on Wednesday as she shares details about the successful All for AWL campaign working with Lake City High to serve the community this month in lieu of the Fight for the Fish spirit competition.
From left, junior Kalena Flowers, ASB president and senior Holly Hudson and seniors Owen Smith, Mckenzie Mattis, Lilian Smith and Chris Swider run the hygiene drive at Coeur d'Alene High School on Jan. 20.
Baby items, blankets, warm clothing and feminine hygiene items are among the numerous bags and boxes of donations the Lake City High School student body collected while working with Coeur d'Alene High during the All for AWL Month of Giving.
Usually, in January, Coeur d'Alene and Lake City high students have a particular fish on their minds.
But this is not a usual year, so student leadership has been creative in how the schools can show their spirit without a fight, or a fish, between them.
For CHS and LCHS, this is the Month of Giving and the year of All for AWL — All with Love.
"We are so happy to be able to show that we are united as a community during this hard time," LCHS senior and ASB President Luci Dixon said Tuesday. "Our community supports us so much, so it is great that we can give back to them through the Month of Giving."
Students have spent the month leaning into the spirit of unity, community and service through clothing, hygiene and bedding drives to benefit Kootenai Humane Society, Village of Hope, Union Gospel Mission Center for Women and Children and the St. Vincent de Paul Warming Center.
Wednesdays have served as community days in the CHS parking lot, where student representatives have been on site collecting items from generous donors.
"I feel like it's a great way to substitute things during COVID," CHS freshman Ava Yates said Wednesday, standing with peers at the CHS driveway entrance and waving "donate here" signs at passing drivers.
"It's good to help people in need, especially during these hard times," Ava said.
CHS ASB President Holly Hudson said the name for the campaign, All for AWL, came from student council adviser Tara Nelson.
"We wanted this to be something that stands on its own," Holly said. "We love the idea, All for AWL, it's what this project stands for, is for love."
She said student leadership is doing what it can to include the entire school in projects like this, since so much has been canceled or postponed.
"This year's actually been super fun, even though we haven't had the same events as normal," Holly said.
She said All for AWL is based on unity, within and between the high schools.
"We thought it would be better to combine our efforts and bring us together at this time rather than constantly be in competition," Holly said. "That's the whole point of this."
"Don’t get me wrong, we miss Fight for the Fish, but we’re glad to be able to work together in such a positive way," Luci said.
The students will be distributing the collected donations to local charities Wednesday.
