By Grace Aderibigbe
Two weeks after the 12th annual celebration of P.S. I Love You Day, New Hyde Park Memorial students still reel in the pleasantries of the event. Over the last few years, the school has been fortunate enough to introduce this special day to the students, faculty and staff, and student feedback has only proved positive.
P.S. I Love You Day, held on the second Friday of February every year, was created by Brooke DiPalma in recognition of her late father as a way to bring awareness to suicide awareness and prevention. Ever since its creation in 2011, it has done just that. From its humble beginnings in West Islip High School to its spread all across the country, the day has become a multi-regional event, boasting over 200 schools that have integrated the day into their calendar.
P.S. I Love You Day’s celebration calls for a sea of purple, asking those that participate to flood their schools with violet decorations, kind signs and reaffirming messages. Firmly adhering to these instructions, New Hyde Park partook in these activities. On February 11, students and faculty were encouraged to dress from head to toe in purple attire. Many student congress representatives also arrived early to the school in order to greet the student body with thoughtful posters and fruit snacks as they entered the building.
Source by Gregory Marzano
The windows near the cafeteria are decorated with post-it notes with compliments on them.
“As a representative of the special education theater program, Centre Stage, I was delighted to come in and show my support for such a wonderful event,” said sophomore Olivia Tomalska.
In efforts to give P.S. I Love You Day it’s full recognition, social studies teachers across all grades gave their students a break, straying away from the curriculum and introducing socially conscious activities to their classes. This year’s theme was “One Step at a Time,” and it prompted many students to highlight something positive about themselves. In AP Psychology, Ms. Esposito had her students hang up papers on different stairwells around the building written by freshmen and sophomores depicting their favorite accomplishments.
This, in conjunction with the other activities held, and the outpouring of support throughout the school is what played a role in the positive feedback from the students. Some described the day as “relaxing” and “relieving.”
“I enjoyed the in-class activities, it was nice to have fun with my friends,” junior Joel Massey said.
“Usually when I’m at school, I’m always thinking about a hundred different things, but it was different on Friday. It’s nice to have a break once in a while, and I feel like this ‘in-school holiday’ gave us what we all needed,” junior Jarred Tondreau said