At the start of the semester, Heritage assigned a new Go MAD challenge: gratitude cards. Rather than just doing MAD week, this year Heritage is doing multiple Go MAD challenges throughout the year in order to create a bigger impact on the community.
Students were asked to write their card about anything they are grateful for. These cards were then used to arrange a 2025 visual made out of cards, in the main entrance. Whichever class with the most cards will get the points for the Go MAD challenge.
Caroline N. ’25, who helped come up with this idea, explains how practicing gratitude can have many benefits. She states, “Gratitude and optimism can play a major role in our mental and physical health. Optimism, or positive thinking, is linked to improved physical health, relationships, and the ability to handle problems in a positive and healthy way.”
These gratitude cards allow busy high schoolers to take the time to stop and think about what they are grateful for. All of the gratitude cards that were put on display all talk about different things students are grateful for, there are many things to be grateful for.
Piper G. ’26, for example, wrote her gratitude card about her family, and her cat, Arulo. She explains that practicing gratitude is a great way to generate happiness.
These Go MAD challenges may seem small and insignificant to some, however, they really do have a large impact on the community, especially if all Heritage students participate in them.
Piper encourages her fellow classmates to participate in Go MAD challenges because, “It’s just a small gesture that can really impact people and the world.”
Additionally, Caroline advocates that “These are a series of opportunities to benefit yourself, our school, and the world around us. It is an easy way to support Make A Difference and we can all work together to make the change we want to see.”