Delta_CommunityService

National Honor Society for High School Students of German

Delta Epsilon Phi

In the Community Delta Epsilon Phi not only rewards scholastic achievement in German, but helps students and teachers promote interest in the study of German language and literature through volunteer work and service in their communities. Chapters find creative ways to give back to their schools and communities across the nation.

Illinois Epsilon Omicron chapter members volunteer at Feed My Starving Children in Aurora, IL, packing meals to be sent to orphanages, schools, and clinics around the world.

Students of German Serve the World At Plainfield North High School our German Honor Society volunteers at Feed My Starving Children where students pack meals that are sent to over 70 malnourished countries.

Honor Society Chapter members also volunteer at a local German Language School in Naperville, where they work with the younger students as aids in the classroom. The students also tutor students in German 1 and 2 at our Plainfield High School. We set up a tutoring venue twice a week where students can come to get help and make connections with other students in the program. —Jenni Knop

German Honor Society

The Sandra Day O’Connor High School German National Honor Society in San Antonio, Texas really enjoys working with elementary schools in our school district.

The schools have invited us to participate in their cultural events where they introduce different cultures of the world to their students.

Students enjoy coming up with fun activities for the younger students that teach them something interesting and fun about Germany and maybe will inspire them to learn German in high school one day.

Students from the Sandra Day O’Connor High School German program work with elementary students on a handicraft and use the opportunity to teach them a few German words and phrases.

During the holiday time students made paper gingerbread people and taught a German Christmas carol. Another time students built a puppet theater and performed the wonderful fable Die Bremer Stadtmusikanten.

Last year’s activity was probably the biggest hit when we taught the elementary students how to make spinning Bavarian boys and girls. The elementary kids kept coming back for more, and they also got to learn a German greeting and farewell.

—Susanne De Jong

Texas students promoted German language and culture by crafting a puppet theater and performing Die Bremer Stadtmusikanten for local elementary school children.

Learn more about Delta Epsilon Phi and the National Honor Societies for middle school and community college students on the AATG Website.

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Linden, New Jersey chapter plants trees, makes memories Each year our chapter of Delta Epsilon Phi, New Jersey Eta at Linden High School in New Jersey, works for the Linden community planting the trees.

In May we go to Brandywine Assisted Living in Wall Township, NJ to spend the day with people living there. Groups of two or three students spend time with one person at the center. As a keepsake for the visit, they work together painting a bare wood picture frame. A picture is then taken of each group and put inside the frame. The students leave the framed memento with the person they were working with.

—Jan Pac Linden High School students beautify their community and benefit the environment by planting trees at Hawk Rise Sanctuary in Linden, NJ.

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Texas Alpha Tau members in Euless, Texas work with the local Clothes Closet, which provides clothing and school supply items to students in the district with a need. Trinity High School chapter members collect jeans or other school appropriate pants, and they bring multi packs of boys underwear or socks, all new—the items the Clothes Closet always runs out of during the school year.

If students can't purchase the underwear or socks, they work one Saturday at the Clothes Closet.

—Hildegard Lombardo

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Wisconsin students bring music and games to October festival

Oconomowoc High School band members and Delta Epsilon Phi students perform traditional German songs at the annual Oktober Kinderfest.

Oconomowoc Kinderfest, a local event hosted for children, is a great way for chapter members to spread German culture and traditions through games, music, and food. In an effort to include our 27 GAPP Exchange Partners in a community event run by our school’s chapter, we are hosting the 2nd annual Oktober Kinderfest at the end of October while they are visiting from Offenburg!

—Christele Schwerer

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ΔΕΦ Mitgliedschaft = Aktiv in der Gemeinschaft Abteilung und repräsentiert das Lernen von der deutschen Sprache und Kultur in einem sehr günstigen Licht in der Schule sowohl auch in unserer Gemeinschaft. Unter der Leitung von Deutschlehrer Michael Crotta und unserer Präsidentin Bailey Scribner nehmen wir an viele Aktivitäten teil, damit wir Geld für wohltätige Zwecke und Stipendien beschaffen können. Die Deutsche Erhenverbindung hält Konzerte zur Weihnachtszeit bei dem Danbury German American Singing Society und Verkäufe von Selbstgebackenem und Bastelarbeiten in der Gemeinschaft.

Unsere Aktivitäten sind in der Schule sehr beliebt, und viele interessieren sich für Deutsch, nachdem sie uns durch solche Veranstaltungen kennen lernen.

Als Mitglieder müssen wir auch bereit sein, Nachhilfe und Unterstützung zu jüngeren Schülern anzubieten.

Connecticut Omicron Schüler beim Verkauf von selbstgebackenen Sachen, um Gelder für wohltätige Zwecke und Stipendien zu sammeln.

Die Deutsche Ehrenverbindung an New Milford High School, Connecticut Omicron, in New Milford, Connecticut funktioniert so wie eine Public Relations

—Brandon Rehaag, German 3 Honors student

“Man muss auch tun” – Spotlight on outreach programs in Michigan

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The Oregon Alpha Alpha chapter at Cleveland High School in Portland, Oregon hosts a blood drive for the Red Cross every spring. We have been doing this for 10 years now, and the school community looks forward to it every year. —Roberta Stubbs

The Saline Chapter of the German National Honor Society’s main service outreach is through tutoring.

Our members tutor students in the high Saline High School students promote German school and middle language and culture to at WorldFest 2015, an school who are event for local elementary school students. struggling to meet rigors that studying German in Saline during the summer, by requires. translating documents. Delta Members also stay involved in the Epsilon Phi members worked hard community through volunteering translating historic information about Saline as well as America as for German events, such as the WorldFest for elementary students a whole in the weeks leading up to or the Saline Oktoberfest. Students the visit. By translating these documents for our visitors, we also helped visitors from Saline’s sister city, Lindenberg, who stayed hope to have improved their stay.

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German Honor Society is about the appreciation for German language and culture. That is why outreach programs such as tutoring or volunteering are so important to us. As Goethe said, „Es ist nicht genug zu wissen, man muss auch anwenden. Es ist nicht genug zu wollen, man muss auch tun.“ —Sara Shuster

Houston High School students donate time, gifts during holidays

Florida students share holiday spirit At The Paragon School, a K-12 school for higher functioning students on the autism spectrum, social skills acquisition is a major part of German class, and our German Honor Society students enjoy practicing social skills with community members of all ages.

During the holidays, Paragon students visit the residents of the Indigo Palms assisted living facility, who enjoy singing German and American Christmas carols. Students also had the opportunity to speak with many veterans who served in Germany during the Cold War era and were able to get first-hand information on a subject that interested them very much in German class.

—Sara Hoefler

Houston High School students of German purchase and prepare gifts for the Angel Tree Program, which provides holiday presents to underprivileged children and seniors.

German Honor Society members at Houston High School in Germantown, Tennessee participate in many activities that give back to our school and community, like baking German cookies and pastries for our school teachers and staff, which has become an annual tradition that we always do on Nikolaus day. Each year, we also give back by purchasing and preparing gifts for an Angel Tree child and a senior.

The Memphis Area Salvation Army runs the Angel Tree Program.

For thousands of underprivileged children and seniors, the Angel Tree program provides the magic of Christmas. German club members participate by either donating money, items, or by going shopping and packing up the items. The students feel good about helping people in their own community. “It is a great opportunity to do something good for someone in need. It is a very humbling experience to go shopping for someone else,” a chapter member said.

Community service is also about learning: Paragon School honor society members sing holiday songs with residents at Indigo Palms Assisted Living Facility.

—Doreen Penrod

Marian High School German Honor Society members partner up at Christmas time with the senior class homeroom food collection for St. Christine's Food Pantry in Detroit, MI. Our members donated cans of coffee. In the spring we partnered with our Campus Ministry director to collect cereal for the Children's Hospital of Michigan's cereal drive. The cereal drive helps provide needy children in Southeast Michigan with food during the summer recess. –Jill Shopinski

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Wisconsin Alpha Rho chapter members volunteered in the community at Milwaukee’s Holiday Folkfair by cleaning, serving food and drinks, and crafting.

Chapter: Wisconsin Alpha Rho School: Wauwatosa West High School, Wauwatosa, WI Chapter Sponsor: Karin Awve

Students teaching Students

Photo by Sidney Davis, McKnight Journal, Trib Total Media North Hills High School German Honor Society President Shannon Kelley greets Pittsburgh Linden K-5 fifth-grader Danae Macklin in German as she and several other club members tutor Linden fifth-graders April 27, 2015, The Linden students were preparing for their oral German exams. Andre Moore also is in the photo.

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orth Hills High School in Pittsburgh, PA started a tutoring program at Linden Elementary, a Pittsburgh German Magnet School in the city. We got started by our current president, Wes Stuckey, wanting to give back to his elementary school. We go there several times a year and do tutoring lessons with the fifth graders to help them do better on their proficiency exam at the end of the course. Read more about the North Hills program in an article from Trib Total Media. —Joseph Deible

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Helping those in need at home and in Germany Bishop Lynch High School’s Texas Eta Iota Chapter of Delta Epsilon Phi participates in community service every year. In addition to helping with our school’s campus-wide Food Drive during the month of November, we help the Stewpot in Dallas by putting together shoe boxes for the homeless. The boxes consist of toiletries, razors, socks, hats, and gloves and then are given to the homeless and needy in our community.

Usually, we are able to get empty shoeboxes from local shoe stores for free and we wrap them with Christmas paper or red or green butcher paper to make them more festive. In 2015, members wrapped and packed 3 boxes.

We also hosted an “Ich bin ein Berliner” Bake Sale during National German Week 2015 to raise funds to donate to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to help Germany with the refugees.

—Beth Burau

Follow Bishop Lynch High School German Program on Twitter!

Texas Eta Iota Chapter members sell donuts during National German Week 2015 to benefit refugees in Germany.

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ΔΕΦ members in NH support charitable organizations with donations The German Honor Society students at Kennett High School in North Conway, New Hampshire are highly motivated to raise money to give back to the community. We had three excellent fundraisers – one through Yankee Candles, one through Flatbread Pizza and one through a t-shirt fundraiser. We raised over $2000 dollars. This year we also donated money to the Gibson Senior Center, and this is our fourth year in a row of a $500 dollar senior scholarship to a non-German first-generation, college-bound student.

—John Weitz

New Hampshire Nu students presenting a $500 check to the Conway Humane Society (left) and a check for $500 dollars to Angels and Elves, a charity for children, in North Conway, NH (right).

Keeping history alive Volunteer work at local historical sites helps students give back and understand local German-American heritage Chapter members at Belleville East High School in Belleville, Illinois volunteer at various local historical sites, including the Gustave Koerner House, a building being made into a museum honoring his life.

Our volunteer work at the Gustave Koerner house got started as I have been involved with the restoration

Students sing old Burschenschaft songs and folk songs at the West Belleville museum’s open house day at the old town square of the original town of West Belleville.

project for over ten years. At one meeting the topic came up about needing volunteers for a fundraising event, and Delta Epsilon Phi students have been helping out with events, fundraising, and cleaning up the house and property for different events ever since.

Students really enjoy helping out in the community and certainly with this project, especially when they know the importance of Koerner to the German-American community in the 19th century, his relationship with Abraham Lincoln, his role in the Civil War, and his revolutionary actions in the 1830's while still living in Germany. This past summer on our GAPP exchange, I was also able to show my students some sites in Munich and Frankfurt where Koerner was involved in some events that are mentioned in his memoirs, some of which led to him moving to Belleville. —Andrew Gaa 8