Student Council delivers tech help to senior citizens
(Posted Feb. 25, 2025)
The McLaughlin Run Activity Center (MAC) was bustling with energy during a recent United Senior Citizens program. Prizes were being presented for the chili cookoff and it was National Puzzle Day. However, most eyes were trained on the windows and door as members anxiously awaited the arrival of Upper St. Clair High School students to help with their technology devices.
Thirteen freshmen and sophomore members of Student Council volunteered to provide technology assistance for senior members of the Upper St. Clair community on Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025. Upon their arrival, hands instantly went up all around the room seeking their expertise in personal technology devices.
This marked the third year that Upper St. Clair High School students have volunteered their technology skills. The devices and questions continue to evolve each year. Tech issues included helping with storage, connecting to Wi-Fi, reporting spam calls, navigating Safari, managing notifications and, new this year, helping with a few Apple Watches.
The students enjoyed the opportunity to make a difference and brighten the day for so many others.
“Offering only an hour(ish) of our time to assist our older neighbors and possibly saving them hours of their time was really cool,” sophomore Myles Owens said. “It was great to see other members of our community during the day as opposed to just school students.”
The students are led by Brooke Tarcson, head of student activities, who believes that anytime you can have different generations mingle is a special moment.
“Even though the students were doing the ‘teaching,’ they were also learning by listening to stories about the older generation’s life,” Mrs. Tarcson said. “The senior citizens all live in USC and have many interesting stories to share.”
For some of the students, hearing the stories was a highlight of the experience.
“The senior citizens were so excited to see us and tell us all about the activities they had going on,” sophomore Ian Putorti said. “It was really cool to speak to them as someone from USC because I recognized the places in all of their stories. The woman I helped had grown up here, met her husband here, and sent her kids to USCHS as well. It was really cool to hear about her life and relate to some of the experiences she had growing up.”
Mrs. Tarcson values these opportunities for community engagement. The Student Council members were eager to help and now are brainstorming other ideas for future visits with the senior citizens group.
“I want the entire community to realize that we have amazing students at USCHS and not only are they smart and knowledgeable about many topics, but they are also extremely kind and generous,” Mrs. Tarcson said.
Student Council volunteers included sophomores Caty Howard, Ian Putorti, Trevor McClintock-Comeaux, Myles Owens, Thomas Garces, Rex Wantje and Harish Rajaganapathy; along with freshmen Natalie Smith, Sydney Nash, Paola Ruiz Lopez, Harper Bogue, Noa Guizzi and Abigail Meyer.
The United Senior Citizens program is coordinated through the Township of Upper St. Clair Department of Recreation & Leisure Services. The program, led by Paula Henderson, offers weekly activities to entertain, educate and enhance the lives of seniors within the community.
