Not many students can recite New Trier’s motto: “To commit minds to inquiry, hearts to compassion, and lives to the service of humanity.” Yet, students follow it every time they put a can in a donation bin or their spare change in the Misericordia boxes that pop up in the spring.

As a high school, New Trier makes a huge impact with the countless fundraisers and community service projects in which it participates every year.

The latest of note was the contribution of the girls cross country team to Bright Pink, a Chicagoland non-profit dedicated to educating girls on breast and ovarian cancer. This year, girls cross country raised close to $12,000.

Last spring, the boys lacrosse teams at both Loyola and New Trier teamed up with Misericordia and raised an impressive collective sum of $75,000. Through various methods, including selling candy bars on the street, selling specially designed t-shirts and socks and online campaigns, New Trier boys lacrosse supplied over two thirds of the collective sum.

There’s no doubt that New Trier students are willing to give to others, but is shelling out your parent’s $20 for the advisery NUSH project the same as dedicating your time to Boys and Girls club?

This is the problem that we face at New Trier. There is a definite difference between donating money and donating time. We have the potential to make a difference both financially and through service, and sometimes students forget about the service part.

Now this can be due to several reasons. New Trier students are notorious for being busy. But New Trier offers over 25 different social service clubs to students on both the Winnetka and Northfield campuses. These clubs usually occur once every week and are easy to join.

These clubs are full of students who make a difference and build close relationships with the organizations they serve. That’s what matters. Forming relationships is far better than just giving money or donations where you can’t actually see the difference it makes.

It’s undisputed that the New Trier area is more affluent than other neighboring communities, and students do make a difference. But New Trier also has a superiority complex that no one really talks about. It’s the idea that we’re somehow better than the surrounding communities, so we need to swoop in and help them. While our hearts may be in the right place, material donations are different than donating time to the cause.

In the end, dedication is what makes a difference, not a monetary amount.
As students at New Trier, we are lucky to live in a relatively affluent community. It’s our responsibility to give back to those who are not as fortunate, let’s just be mindful of how we do it.