On Thursday, October 5th students in Shine A Light club gathered in room 325 to make sandwiches for the Las Vegas Freedom House.
For years, the Bishop Gorman Shine A Light club has dedicated itself to serving the people in the Las Vegas valley that are struggling with addiction and/or homelessness. They have done this by hosting sandwich making hours on a monthly basis, led by Mr. Robert Crisp, Bishop Gorman math teacher since 2013. He is aided by student leaders that help organize events and prepare materials.
One of these leaders is Lilin Dong ‘24. He described his experience in the club as completely positive and rewarding. His job consists of gathering and preparing the sandwich making materials for an organized and efficient event. “Shine A Light is special in that it is a club that allows one to contribute to the community, especially people struggling with prior addiction and homelessness, while doing the most simple and basic task of making sandwiches,” Dong ‘24 stated.
The most recent sandwich making meeting was held on the first Thursday of the month and was delivered directly to Freedom House, an addiction treatment center in Las Vegas.
When asked about the importance of this charitable act, Dong stated that “these sandwiches are signs of our love for the community and our support for them.”
When delivered at the Freedom House facility, that love was well received by those rehabilitating who gave many thanks to the leaders who delivered the sandwiches.
It all started with the student volunteers though. Everyone contributed by bringing in supplies such as: bread, peanut butter, jam, and utensils; then after, of course they set aside their personal time to help make these sandwiches.
During sandwich making, students were happy at work. There were many groups of friends that attended. One of these groups included Justin Han ‘25 who simply came to “chill out with friends while still serving a needful cause.” This proved to show off the charismatic nature of the club through its charitable acts.
Sofia Sandoval ‘27, who was a part of the whole process of gathering materials, sandwich making, and delivery, stated that it was a “very eye-opening experience to see that we should be appreciative of what we have and what else we can do to help others. I got to spend time with my new friends at Bishop Gorman and do something to help the community at the same time.”
After all was accomplished, Dong admired the heart fulfilling moment, “it shows that anybody can help with the problems of the world if they really want to.”