In the shadow of the untimely closure of the PMHS school building, it’s easy for students to feel like they’re running out of things to do. Although quarantine can get boring at times, students discovered that there were still plenty of ways to get involved in school remotely.  The Pel Mel reached out to students involved in Pelham Model United Nations (PELMUN), Environmental Science Club, and Pelham Together Club to get the inside scoop on club activities “remote style”.

The Environmental Science Club is a PMHS club that is focused on the preservation of nature and the importance of environmental science. Usually, it is easy for the Environmental Science Club to get together and discuss club activities; however, with school facilities closed and strict social distancing protocol, it became near impossible to hold in-person meetings. Instead, the club began to hold Google Meets to discuss club activities. During these meetings, the club planned a YouTube live event for Earth Day with the Junior League of Pelham, in which elementary students learned about the environment. 

Co-leader of the Environmental Science Club and junior, Honor Durham, said, “Meeting during quarantine has definitely been confusing due to irregular meeting times, but we were pleased with the success of our virtual Earth Day event!”

Another PMHS club that rose above the challenges presented by quarantine is Pelham Model United Nations Club, also known as PELMUNC. While PELMUNC meetings are usually filled with passionate, in-person debate, the club found ways to create events that took place online. For example, the club  hosted a virtual in-house conference based on the Six-Days War, in addition to weekly virtual meetings.

PELMUNC member and junior Sophia Leung said, “I’m thankful that we’ve still been able to meet through Google Meet. It definitely isn’t the same as meeting in person, but it’s great to see club members collaborating. We have been able to hold a variety of events, and our MilSlim Conference was successful in raising funds for Covid-19 relief.”

Pelham Together is another PMHS club that found a way to move forward with new projects supporting essential workers and Pelham non-profits. For instance, the club hosted Pelham Couchfest, an on-line concert featuring the talent of local students and community members that raised over $70,000 for various Pelham non-profits. The club also started making free masks for frontline workers as well as delivering hand-decorated lawn signs to frontline workers’  homes to display as a thank you.

Pelham Together President, senior SJ O’Connor said, “We have held weekly meetings during quarantine, and it has been amazing to see the high level of engagement from our club members and their willingness to help our community. Our lawn sign initiative was a really great way to thank our heroes in town as well as our six week long baking campaign on Instagram, which brought lots of people together!” 

Other PMHS organizations made meetings a priority since in-person schooling was suspended. Science National Honor Society continued speaker sessions through the medium of Google Meet, allowing students to hear new perspectives on interesting science-related topics. Sports teams, such as the Golf team and Track and Field, also found ways to hold virtual practices, allowing the spirit of teamwork and camaraderie to continue despite the distance. Sock ‘n’ Buskin held virtual rehearsals and are making plans for an on-line Young Playwrights Festival presentation, and the Forensics Speech team is about to take part in the first ever on-line National Championship. Overall, PMHS clubs have proven that they can handle the distance.