Facebook group dedicated to celebrating Webster’s senior class

Three Webster friends have come up with a great way to help recognize our Webster High School seniors.

It’s a Facebook group called Adopt a Webster Senior, and it’s dedicated to bringing a bit of celebration back to the Class of 2020.

The group’s organizers — Shanna LaDelfa, Jenn Birdsong-Ng and Janice Richardson — are all Webster residents with students of their own at several Webster schools. Although none of their kids are seniors, they understand what a huge disappointment it’s been for the class of 2020 to lose out on the last three and half months of their high school career.

They explain on their page,

This year has been very challenging for everyone, especially our graduating class. They have missed out on many traditional high school experiences such as sporting events, spending time with friends with whom they will soon be leaving behind when they go off into the world, senior ball, walking the stage at graduation, and sadly, graduation parties that have not yet been celebrated.

The Adopt a Webster Senior group hopes to help soften the blow.

The idea is to “adopt” a senior and surprise him or her with a care package or some other memorable gift. There really are no guidelines, no minimum or maximums and no mandatory purchase items. It’s all about having fun and bringing a smile to a senior’s face.

Shanna, Jenn and Janice originally began their effort after hearing about similar groups being organized in Greece and East Irondequoit, where two of the friends are teachers. They started small-scale, first surprising some of their Webster friends. Once they got it going, however, word spread and “it became a hit,” Janice said.

“We literally went from 20 members to almost 300 in two days,” Jenn added.

It has been extremely rewarding to see all the proud and hopeful parents sharing their children with us. Not to mention how emotionally comforting and encouraging it has been during these challenging times for families and communities. The teachers and retired teachers who have so graciously jumped in to help is heart warming.

It’s easy to join the effort. Simply go to the Adopt a Webster Senior Facebook page and leave a note that you’d like to help. You can also go there to nominate your own senior to get adopted.

Webster Schroeder senior Maggie Nagar with the surprise basket she received.

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