An exotic animal, “pumped up,” starts life. As the smell of rubber and latex fills the air, the balloon creature floats in the hands of its creator, senior Khyati Khanderao.
There are a vast amount of clubs here at PHS and a large number of students, but there are still some clubs that find it difficult to function well because of the scarce amount of students that actually join clubs and participate in school activities. In this club, there are only 3-4 members, but they still manage to keep the club running.
Club adviser and English teacher Emily Koonce starts off the Balloon Animal Club with gathering materials, as she teaches students to make a new animal, a pig.
“I made the club because I really like balloon animals, and I wanted to give people a way to express themselves in something they don’t usually see,” senior Isabella Hoye said. “So, they could have a little party trick to show their friends or just something to do after school that isn’t school-work related.”
The club members said it offers them a way to connect with people and with the community.
Khanderao had her own reason to join the club.
“I mean, we all do a lot of hard stuff in school, senior year for most of us here,” Khanderao said. “So, it’s nice to have something where we can just connect with each other and do something for fun.”
This article has been edited by Sahasra Kandiboyina, Emily Logan, Victoria Byers and Trisha Panicker.
