Introduction:
From singing valentines to selling succulents, clubs like Bellaire International Student Association, choir, Crochet and Knitting Club, Cardinal Crafts and United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund hosted events or sold items to celebrate Valentine’s Day.
BISA:
BISA club members sold $2 carnations from Jan. 30 to Feb. 10, continuing a Valentine’s Day tradition that started before the current club sponsor, Micaela Segal, started teaching at Bellaire.
Junior and secretary Akshata Permual helped organize and execute the carnation sales while other BISA members soaked, wrapped and finally delivered the carnations on Feb. 13 during fifth period.
“I would describe BISA’s carnation sales as something that’s more meticulous than it seems to the normal student’s eye, and I feel like it’s a lot more complex,” Perumal said. “But it’s also fun, and it’s a really nice thing to do around this time of the year. “
Segal bought the carnations from Kroger and HEB, for about $1 a flower. The profit made from the carnation sales goes toward BISA Fest, regular BISA meetings and BISA T-shirts. While the T-shirts were part of the incentive to sell carnations, sophomore and club member Eden Wilson sold carnations because of her “love” for BISA.
“BISA is such an amazing organization and they do a lot of cool stuff,” Wilson said. “Carnations is a big thing that BISA does, and it’s a very cute tradition that they always do every year. I just wanted to take part in the tradition.”
Sophomore and club member Shivali Sinha sold carnations to support BISA and planned to help deliver them to students in classes.
“[Delivering carnations] is really fun and I get to see their faces when they get the carnation,” Sinha said. “They seem really happy and it’s really fun to spread joy through it.”
To keep up with BISA follow it on Instagram: @bisaclub or join its Remind: @bisaclub.
Choir:
Varsity choir students traveled from classroom-to-classroom singing Valentine telegrams to students on Feb. 13. The singing valentines were sold from Jan. 30 to Feb. 12, with in-person valentines costing $10 and over-the-phone valentines costing $5.
Four groups of choir students sang valentines, with two groups made up of the Harmonia/female choir and two made up of the Musaic/male choir. All groups received a list with classes to visit and songs to perform. Sophomore and Musaic choir student Wesley George enjoyed traveling to different classes.
“I think [singing valentines are] a good way to get your confidence up,” George said. “It’s a community-building thing and chance for soloists as well.”
Singing Valentines have been a tradition since before current choir director Amy Solberg Odiase started teaching at Bellaire 20 years ago.
“The idea was to raise money for the choir program and to make the choir students visible around campus,” Solberg said. “[Singing valentines] is a way to spread some love around the school.”
Choir students learned the songs at the beginning of the second semester. The chosen melodies vary throughout the years, but the songs “My Guy” and “My Girl” have been a staple since Solberg’s first years at Bellaire.
“The most popular song is usually ‘Count On Me’ because it’s a good one from friend-to-friend because it’s just about friendship,” Solberg said. “Bruno Mars’ ‘Just the Way You Are’ has stayed very popular too.”
For the choir students, the singing valentines act as a break from UIL season and introduce a new “fun” style of music to the singers.
“It’s a chance to introduce more pop-song-style music,” George said. “I think it’s such a fun idea and event that we do. It’s a very school-spirit-style event that’s very fun.”
Stay informed about the choir’s upcoming performances on Instagram: @bellairehschoir.
Crochet & Knitting:
Crochet and Knitting Club continued its tradition of crocheting flowers for Valentine’s Day on Feb. 12. Although the finished products weren’t sold, members gifted the flowers to their friends and loved ones. They explored how to crochet a small puff flower, daisies, roses and tulips by following different videos and written patterns. Members were provided with materials like yarn, crochet hooks and bamboo skewers for the stem of the handmade flowers.
Junior and co-president Miranda Wang taught members how to crochet flowers based on the members’ skill degree.
“For beginners, they made puff flowers, which are simple, but a good starting point,” Wang said. “For more advanced crocheters, or those who want a challenge, they worked on making actual flowers with leaves and a stem.”
Wang said that it takes time to crochet flowers, especially for beginners.
“A simple puff flower can take less than five minutes or longer for beginners, but a flower with a stem and leaves will take at least an hour or even longer, depending on how intricate it is,” Wang said. “This is because the flower has to be made, then attached to the stem, wrapped around with green yarn and around any leaves that will be attached.”
Although it takes time, she said that they are a perfect Valentine’s gift.
“Crochet flowers are a great gift for Valentine’s because they are handmade and really demonstrate the effort and care put into making it to the person you love,” Wang said. “There are different ways to organize flowers together too, to make bouquets. They are a long-lasting gift, which is another great benefit.”
Senior Sanya Misra is new to crocheting and is intrigued to learn more about the art of crochet and make crochet gifts for Valentine’s Day.
“I’m a knitting instructor, and I thought it would be fun to learn crochet since I’ve never learned it before,” Misra said. “I found a crochet book to learn other styles like single crochet and half-double crochet stitches, which can help me make more items for Valentine’s Day gifts like beanies for my friends and family. I’m excited to crochet something new in this club and on my own in the future.”
The Crochet and Knitting Club meets every Wednesday during lunch. Join its Remind: @bhscroknit and Instagram: @bhs.crochetknitting.
UNICEF:
UNICEF members sold succulents from Jan. 29 to Feb. 7 by handing students a ticket to preorder the plants and then distributing them on Feb. 12 throughout the school day.
Junior Ava Erikson enjoyed decorating the pots with classic Valentine’s Day colors like pink, white and red using paint markers. She especially enjoyed handing them out.
“The fundraiser was a lot of fun because we got to paint the pots for the succulents, as well as miss class to deliver all of them,” Erikson said.
Sophomore and secretary Areesha Memon sold tickets and delivered succulents to students all around the school.
“Selling succulents is a great way to support UNICEF’s mission,” Memon said. “It was nice to see so many students buying succulents to show appreciation for their friends.”
UNICEF meets every Monday for all of Cardinal Hour. Join its Remind: @bhsunicef4 and its Instagram: @bellaireunicef to stay updated.
Cardinal Crafts:
At Cardinal Crafts Club, members celebrated Valentine’s Day with an origami activity. With sheets of origami paper, they folded heart-shaped baskets.
Junior and vice president Lela Izaddoost said the reason they chose to make heart-shaped baskets was to spread love through the holiday.
“Valentine’s Day is all about love, and what signifies love better than a heart?” Izaddoost said. “It’s a way for everybody to be together for the holiday and do crafts together.”
Izaddoost guided members through the “trickier steps” and offered tips to help them perfect their baskets.
“We make sure to do the same design but also allow people to work at their own pace,” Izaddoost said. “We [officers] also create our own baskets at the same time so we were able to talk with [members] personally and show them exactly how to do it.”
Join Cardinal Crafts Club’s Remind: @cardcrafts and Instagram: @bhscardinalcrafts.
