Interact Club champions local and global change

Service over self. Students in the Warwick Valley High School Interact Club are turning inspiration into impact through collaborations that represent the latest chapter for a club deeply rooted in local service!

For the past 22 years, Interact Club advisor Jeanine Fogler has guided Warwick Valley students in giving back locally, establishing the club as a staple of the community, frequently volunteering at local events and organizing highly successful annual holiday food drives to support families in need. And through their growing partnership with Hilltop Communities and its nonprofit initiative, PATH (Promoting Arts, Teamwork, and Hope), the student leaders of the Interact Club are discovering how local stewardship can spark global change. 

The partnership took root during leadership conversations between students and Dr. Roseanne Esposito, the founder of Hilltop Communities and a Warwick Rotarian. Through team-building experiences at Hilltop Communities, WVHS students are learning that leadership begins with identifying their own strengths.

And as students expressed a desire to lead projects tied to causes they cared deeply about, a shared passion for environmental preservation emerged. Out of those meaningful dialogues, Keepers of the Reef was born.

Turning Passion into Action: Keepers of the Reef

Led by Interact Club president Leila Thurber and a dedicated group of student activists, Keepers of the Reef is a youth-driven initiative focused on environmental stewardship, awareness, and action. The group's mission is to encourage peers to think intentionally about reducing single-use plastics, proving that small, daily choices can yield a massive environmental impact. They have delivered their message through ongoing pledge drives. What began as a passionate core group has quickly expanded, capturing the imagination of the broader school community.

With its quickly growing support, the initiative has already hit major milestones. For example, Madison, a founding Reef Keeper, recently became the first student to collect pledges representing more than 100 plastic bottles! 

The work that Interact Club members are doing with Keepers of the Reef seamlessly bridges environmental sustainability with PATH’s broader pillars: literacy, youth leadership, wellness, and cross-cultural collaboration. Throughout this school year, we have been keeping track of yet another ongoing Interact Club collaboration with PATH that also embodies those pillars, its Branches Across Borders program.   

Branches Across Borders: A Global Connection Empowering Youth

The Branches Across Borders initiative is built on the philosophy that we are all globally connected.

Since September (see this story), the Interact Club has helped fund a vital literacy and leadership initiative in Crawfish Rock (Roatán, Honduras), one that holds deep cultural significance. Crawfish Rock is an English-speaking Caribbean fishing community where access to English-language literature and educational resources is severely limited. In addition to being socially involved with the Branches program through video chats, the Interact Club donated money to purchase copies of the book Emily and the Mango Man, which were distributed to schoolchildren in Roatán.  

The book was integrated into a dynamic workshop hosted by Islanders for Change, a local Honduran youth leadership group, to support both literacy development and cultural preservation. Using the story as a foundation, students were encouraged to examine their own unique personal gifts and discuss how they might use them to strengthen their community. 

Aliyah shared that her gift is helping people. Danny said his talents lie in barbering and his desire to serve others. Another student who celebrated her artistic talents even expressed her pride in having received a book of her very own.

The books will make a lasting impact as they remain a cornerstone of PATH's ongoing literacy efforts in Roatán. Dr. Esposito will continue providing structured, literacy-based activities connected to the book, helping Honduran youth strengthen their reading skills while exploring themes of self-discovery and service.

Here, in Warwick, Ms. Fogler sees her students' enthusiasm growing for both of these projects.

"What has been most exciting is watching how much the students are embracing the true spirit of Interact and Rotary," Ms. Fogler said. "They’re realizing that service isn’t just volunteering for a day. They’re building lifelong relationships, taking ownership, and seeing that even as high school students, they can change the world."

With this school year quickly coming to a close, the Interact Club students have already begun preparing for next year with enthusiasm. One of their goals is to expand their Keepers of the Reef group into a schoolwide organization, even creating leadership roles across grade levels. Everything the Interact Club students do, begins with one simple question: What can we do to help? In that way, these young changemakers embody the Warwick Valley Portrait of a Graduate, exemplifying global citizenship and communication in their shared commitment to "Service Above Self."

"It all becomes very real for these students," says a proud Ms. Fogler. "They see their projects come to life firsthand, they see it through social media, they follow the work happening in Honduras, and they're communicating directly with youth leaders. They are realizing they can have a genuine impact far beyond their own community!"