Hooked On Hope: SPHS Students Fundraise For Fish For A Cure

Severna Park High School seniors Ciena Ellis and Matthew Smith recently led their Leadership 3 project through the school’s Leadership Institute. The students decided to partner with a local organization called Fish for a Cure to raise money to help fund the cancer survivorship program at Luminis Health Anne Arundel Medical Center’s Geaton and JoAnn DeCesaris Cancer Institute.

The students had set three goals for their project, which they called Hooked on Hope: to raise $300 in donations, to raise awareness, and to sell five Hooked on Hope sweatshirts. To reach these three goals, the senior leadership students were assigned four sophomore students, also enrolled in the Leadership Institute, to work with them on their project.

Severna Park’s Leadership Institute is known around the community for the diversity and success of the service projects they lead. In the two years leading up to their last year of leadership, students are taught important skills such as time management, presentation skills and teamwork. Leadership 3 students choose an organization to partner with in order to bring positive change into their community and improve their skills as leaders.

The Fish for a Cure organization was founded in 2007 and has raised over $4.5 million to benefit the Luminis Health Anne Arundel Medical Center's Geaton and JoAnn DeCesaris Cancer Institute. Ciena and Matthew decided to partner with Fish for a Cure because they both love to be out enjoying the Chesapeake Bay and being able to help others.