Wantagh High School Students Raise $1K For Local Charities

WANTAGH, NY — A group of Wantagh High School students banded together recently to raise over $1,000 by selling a cookbook that benefited needy community members — humans and animals alike, Wantagh school district officials said.

Students from the high school’s newspaper, The Warrior, as well as the National English Honor Society, animal rights and recycling clubs sold copies of “The Wantagh Warrior Holiday Cookbook: Cooking Our Way Through 2020-21,” which contains recipes, as well as stories, according to a news release.

Proceeds from the sale were donated to the Last Hope Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation and Island Harvest, school district officials said.

The book, which was written and published just prior to the holidays, tells stories about pets adopted during the pandemic, said school district officials, adding that the book also contains articles by students and faculty, tributes to the school’s essential workers and photos of holiday decorations at the high school.

Newspaper advisor Kathleen Flynn said the “project connected the community during the pandemic and placed a smile on those who read it.”

Wantagh High School student Nora Toscano, who was instrumental in both the cookbook’s genesis and completion, said the book was “a way to bring the community together and for students to connect during a difficult time.”

“In addition, the project ended up helping people all over the community,” she added.