Warriors Honored for Spreading Christmas Magic

On October 5th, Mr. McGowan and several students from Amityville Memorial High School were honored at the Stonebridge Country Club in Smithtown during the 25th anniversary of the Christmas Magic Program. Mr. Charlie Russo, a lawyer from Hauppauge, started this Charitable Organization to help our needy Long Island neighbors.

Mr. McGowan was presented with a plaque thanking him and the Amityville students who have assisted with the Christmas Magic program since 2006. Amityville students Diana Reyes, Sonia Canales, and Shanaisha Daniels attended the dinner and accepted the plaque on behalf of AMHS from director Charlie Russo.

Each holiday season, 50-60 Amityville students, with the guidance of Mr. McGowan, shop for and wrap Christmas presents for needy kids that are in shelters, group homes or are homeless. Many of these students attend an annual Christmas dinner in Sayville where they volunteer their time to serve drinks, food, dress up in costumes and hand out presents to kids from shelters. Dr. Andrews had this to say, “It is heart-warming to witness the passion and empathy our students display in helping students and families that are less fortunate and struggling financially.”

The Amityville “Elves” will start shopping again in early December for the 2010 Holiday Season.