Jose Ledesma, Maryah Sabat, Thania Rubio, Cynthia Garcia, and Adriana Izelo were among students honored at this year’s Youth Appreciation Dinner. Photo by Mr. Sheridan.
By Kimberly Martinez
The Youth Appreciation Dinner is an annual dinner that is held by PHS’s very own Mr. Sheridan, the Octagon Club, and the Passaic Optimist Club. This year, it was held on April 6. At the event, students of all ages are rewarded and appreciated for their hard work and dedication to make a change in the Passaic community.
The dinner is held to highlight the positive contributions to society that the youth of Passaic are involved in. These young and bright students are nominated by a teacher, coach or staff who see something in them that’s inspiring, motivating, and unique that separates them from the rest of their peers.
The dinner was held at the Sevilla Restaurant in Passaic. Various clubs and organizations have tables reserved especially for them, the award recipient and their guest(s).
The night began with a brief introductory speech by Juan Izaguirre, the President of the Optimist Club. Afterward, Mr. Sheridan explained the history and importance of the dinner.
Following the flag salute, Mr. Sheridan called a group of students with the teacher, coach, or staff member who nominated them. Each adult gave a speech about their nominee and described how each dedicated student deserved this honor. Students gave heartfelt thank you speeches. Each speech given was extremely motivational and evoked emotions from everyone in the room. The words pulled strings in every guest’s heart.
After a delicious meal, Passaic’s mayor, Hector C. Lora gave a humorous and motivational speech. Keynote speaker, Salim Patel, President of the Passaic Board of Education, made a speech honoring the dedicated students.
The banquet ended with a reading of the Optimist Creed, which brought the crowd together and reinforced exactly how important it is to honor our youth for their good deeds.
Oftentimes, in society and the media, teenagers are portrayed as rebellious and immature. However, these students who were thanked at the banquet for their good attitudes, stand out from the crowd and remind us to not focus on negativity. These students contradict what society thinks of teenagers. They are dedicated, hard-working, selfless, and inspirational leaders.
There is no doubt that these students will continue to make a difference. This one of a kind event truly showcases and captures the positivity that all students should recognize and emulate in their own lives, and spread to others.
