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Deck the school’s halls for festive greetings as Christmas moves in, and what more jolly way for the Herd Council to tune into the merry season than with the tradition of Secret Santa?
Secret Santa is an anonymous gift exchange that was put together this year to prepare for the holiday with a new twist. Jessica Switzer, the Herd coordinator, collaborated with council members to make the exchange come to fruition on Dec. 4.
The kitchen staff prepared a “Christmas breakfast,” which consisted of eggs, bacon and breakfast potatoes. Apple juice alongside hot chocolate made a diverse set of beverage options available to meet every individual’s taste and needs for the meal.
“This is a tradition that we decided to begin this year to celebrate each other as we also celebrate the holiday season,” Switzer said.
Now that the council has expanded with the additional branch of grade representatives, it consists of 64 students. With the considerable size, the council’s goal is to bring these students together. Everyone was paired randomly with one another, making it tricky to pick a fitting gift.
“It was a little challenging to buy something for someone you don’t know as well,” senior faith family captain Addison Etzenhouser said. “But it was good for bonding because it made everyone have to ask around, and you realize that you have common interests with each other.”
Herd executives like Ben Frey handled a chunk of responsibility to prepare for the morning.
“I constantly have a lot of work to make everything play out,” Frey said. “The execs are behind any event really, just helping out and planning. So it’s a lot but I find it fun to be a part of.”
While shopping for someone unfamiliar can have its difficulties, the members shared how the morning was eventful and entertaining. From community gatherings to festive joys, this tradition brought the gift that keeps on giving with more future bonding to anticipate.
“After breakfast, we exchanged our gifts with our Secret Santa, which was a pretty fun process,” Etzenhouser said. “Seeing everyone’s reaction to the gifts was funny since some of them were unexpected.”
