OLD BRIDGE – Cars filled with students and parents filed onto the Old Bridge High School campus to experience a winter wonderland complete with music, photos and holiday lights.
Nearly 20 teachers from the high school set up the display, featuring a tunnel with about 100 staff members dressed for the holidays during “Light Up the Knight,” a socially distant holiday celebration held on Dec. 21. The staff members waved to their students and shouted holiday greetings as they passed by. In addition, a large screen displayed videos of Old Bridge High School (OBHS) teachers waving to the students.
At the end of the of the light displays, Santa Claus stood 30 feet above the ground inside an Old Bridge fire truck’s bucket, where he waved and shouted to the crowds.
In addition, the school collected toys for the U.S. Marine Corps Toys for Tots program and set up a Loose Change for Love Jar for Bryce Lomas, a freshman at the Ellen McDermott Grade Nine Center, who is fighting acute myeloid leukemia.
“We are so blessed to be a part of this wonderful school community that cares so much about our students,” OBHS Principal Vincent Sasso said in a prepared statement. “All of our students, most notably the Class of 2021, have missed out on so many events this year and the faculty and staff were so happy to celebrate with them at the first ever Light up the Knight Holiday Drive Thru.”
Over the past few months, teachers have expressed their concerns about the Class of 2021, which has already missed out on so many extracurricular activities. They wanted to come up with a plan that was safe during a raging novel pandemic to celebrate the spirit of the school and the holidays, according to the statement.
“We really wanted to find a way to celebrate with our kids, especially our senior class, and to let them know we love them and want the best for them,” English teacher Jessica Tosonotti said in the statement. “We wanted to put a smile on their faces and help them find joy in the midst of these troubling times.”
Tosonotti, along with Matt Donaghue, both senior class advisers, spearheaded the event.
“We wanted our students to know that we are always thinking of them and care about them,” Donaghue said in the statement.