After a cold winter storm, shoveling a snowy driveway is not the first thing anyone wants to do. However, members of South’s Snow Angels Program help senior citizens in the community by doing exactly that.

The Snows Angels Program is a service project hosted by South’s Interact Club where students give back to the Glenview community by clearing snow for senior citizens. Senior Shawn Chollampel, student coordinator of the program, said the members use an organized process to ensure everything runs smoothly. The process includes three teams that switch off shoveling each snowfall, he explained. 

Bob Anthony, the Helping Hands of Glenview Coordinator, which is a local non-profit that assists the elderly, as well as Mark Gallagher, math teacher and the advisor of Snow Angels both help with the Snow Angels program. 

Interact President senior Grace Cullum said Snow Angels not only benefits senior citizens, but it also helps teach students responsibility and the importance of community service. Additionally, Cullum believes helping people directly in your community is crucial. 

“Obviously, there are so many opportunities to do service, but I think it’s really important and it affects you more when you realize that you’re helping people actually in Glenview,” Cullum said. 

The program has meant a lot to many people in the community. Gallagher pointed out how impactful the program is for the senior citizens of Glenview.

“I just think this year is as important as ever for [senior citizens to] get a chance to see some young people like GBS Interact kids take it upon themselves to do something so selfless,” Gallagher said. “It’s a big deal [for the senior citizens] because it’s right there in front of them… and they can see that there’s good things going on.”

There has been more volunteers this winter for the Snow Angels program, Gallagher said; the participants went from around 20 volunteers to more than 70. Gallagher said that he thinks the sharp increase of students is due to the pandemic. 

“I sincerely think that the students at South, and in particular the Interact members, have such a charge to help people, they just want to do anything they can,” Gallagher said.