NHS Coffeehouse displays winter wonderland of talent
Photo submitted by Cambrie Cole
Senior Maggie Irwin and junior Katie Irwin introduced the acts of the NHS Coffeehouse on Dec. 17. They were MCs of this event, while technicians and other NHS officers helped organize this event behind the scenes.
January 7, 2022
“We are making a winter wonderland,” junior officer Katie Irwin said.
Coffeehouse is a talent show that National Honor Society hosts every year. Auditions were held on Dec. 10 and the showcase took place at 6 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. on Dec. 17 in the auditorium. Filled with acts of singing, playing instruments and other performances, Coffeehouse was a special display of student talent. Although Coffeehouse required a lot of planning and cooperation, the NHS officers worked together and made a winter wonderland of awe-inspiring acts. They created a special event that gave student performers a chance to perform their skills, while representing their community.
The officers of NHS worked hard to organize Coffeehouse efficiently and safely. They demonstrated leadership through handling advertising, decorating, organizing, communicating and the auditioning process. While balancing planning and academics, these student leaders remained professional and responsible. As they set up the event, they remembered to stand by the four pillars of NHS, scholarship, service, leadership and character.
Ellie Berg, teacher and coordinator, said Coffeehouse provided a great opportunity for students to lead and participate in a community event.
Performing for an audience is difficult, but the NHS officers helped each performer feel comfortable. After being chosen from auditions, performers strengthened their performances for the showcase. Coffeehouse was an excellent outlet for students to perform their talents.
“Coffeehouse showcases all the talent that the school has, whether it’s a musical student or a student who’s not involved in any music, but has this amazing gift. It’s fun to watch and to see their confidence when performing in front of their friends,” senior officer Ava Karlstad said.
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Giving back to the community is one of the most important values as an NHS officer. All of the profits from Coffeehouse went to the Red Cross Storm Relief fund. The members of NHS noticed the devastating aftermath of the recent tornadoes and hurricanes and wanted to help out. By donating those funds, Coffeehouse became a fundraiser to help the community.
Irwin explained giving the proceeds to smaller businesses and described Coffeehouse as, “a fundraiser and a talent show combined.”
Some of the challenges the NHS officers faced was lack of participation and handling safety measures. Their goals were to get the whole school more involved and excited for Coffeehouse. They included a variety of acts into the show to display as many different student talents as possible. The officers of NHS encouraged masks and spread performers and the audience out, as ways to make the showcase safe and comfortable for all the people involved.
“People aren’t familiar with Coffeehouse and everyone’s nervous to perform. We need leaders to take initiative, then get their friends participate too,” Karlstad said.
Since Coffeehouse was about unity and creating a supportive environment, the NHS officers made the showcase inclusive. By bringing people in to see each other’s talent, the community grew as a whole. It was a great opportunity for students to show off their talents and get recognition. NHS put on another successful Coffeehouse for the school and look forward for Coffeehouse in the spring.
Tyler Quade • Apr 3, 2022 at 6:32 pm
I really liked that you used a quote for your lead, it got me interested right away and ties your whole story together. You did a great job of creating an actual story around the topic- explaining the process and effort that went into putting it all together. Great work!
Isabelle Knighton • Feb 15, 2022 at 8:23 am
I think you did a good job explaining all of your information in an intriguing way, the story also flowed really nicely.
Olivia Kuslich • Feb 14, 2022 at 10:09 am
This story is great, I really enjoyed reading! You did amazing sharing the fact-based parts of the story and covering the perspectives of the NHS members.
Delaney Clendenen • Feb 14, 2022 at 8:47 am
Your writing is really good! You really kept the story engaging and I couldn’t stop reading it. I learned what the coffeehouse was and what they do. Amazing!
Katie Kangas • Feb 14, 2022 at 12:15 am
You have great fact paragraphs! The time you took to research about the event and be a part of it as a journalist really shows! Great reporting!
Lauren Guinee • Feb 13, 2022 at 10:37 pm
Awesome story Ruby! I really liked how you incorporated the positive and the negative (hardships) that coffeehouse brings forth! Very well written story and super informative!
Sara Norton • Feb 13, 2022 at 7:22 pm
This is an amazing story, Ruby! The way that you explained what coffeehouse is, and its meaning of it is amazing! It truly opened up my eyes to how beautiful the coffeehouse is!!
Taya Hehn • Feb 13, 2022 at 7:09 pm
This is a great story! It really showcases the true purpose of Coffeehouse. It’s very informational while also keeping the story compelling. You also used great wording and structure.
Sophia Arndt • Feb 13, 2022 at 6:22 pm
Very sweet article with lots of information and moments regarding a much beloved event. Amazing job Ruby!
Chelsea Stahl • Feb 13, 2022 at 10:58 am
This is a really great article Ruby! You did a good job explaining all the information while keeping the reader engaged. You also had some very strong quotes and the story flowed nicely.
Charli Burdick-Kitchell • Feb 10, 2022 at 2:07 pm
The article is great for sharing how the coffee house went and what it actually is. There is a variety of structures and the quotes are very compelling with the article.
Nissa Wilcox • Feb 1, 2022 at 7:39 am
You did a great job describing what Coffeehouse is, and gathering facts for how this year’s Coffeehouse went. The quotes you chose advanced the story and were very descriptive. Good job Ruby!
Mikai Tasch • Jan 22, 2022 at 9:51 am
I thought you did a nice job of putting many facts together to explain what the NHS Coffeehouse is. You also explained the challenges they faced this year.
Shannon Pothen • Jan 14, 2022 at 11:17 am
I liked how you used a variety of different words to describe the acts and performers at Coffeehouse. I could tell that you put effort into learning about the shows and gave good information about it. I like how you gave the reader a lot of information in a short amount of words and didn’t finish reading at feel like you are missing information.