TA News

Featured photo: TA student Cecilia Luce ’24 works on matching students to jobs for Operation Day’s Work.

One of TA’s long standing traditions, Operation Day’s Work (ODW), was recently featured in the publication Media Voices for Children (TA’s piece is pp. 28-33). The quarterly, nonprofit child advocacy magazine, based in Martha’s Vineyard, invited ODW student leader Charlotte Reimanis ’23 to share her experience with the program in a feature article.

In her Media Voices piece, Charlotte opens with what ODW looks like at TA today: “On the morning of May 4, 2022, students arrived at the Thetford Academy campus wearing boots, gloves, and rain gear. Despite the drizzly weather, they were ready to work: these high school and middle school students were happy to endure the rain if it meant raising money for organizations around the world.”  Several students (some now alumni) also shared their experiences with ODW at TA. Mack Briglin ’22, Cecilia Luce ’24, Mary Bosco, ’24, and Annie Hesser ’24 shared what they took away from their work as student leaders of Thetford Academy’s ODW program: leadership, engagement, empowerment, and connection. 

Operation Day’s Work has its roots in Norway, but is a global charitable organization with participating schools all over the world. On “ODW Day,” students spend a school day working in the community, then donate their salaries to youth-related projects in developing countries. Thetford Academy is one of two founding schools for ODW’s program in the United States and has been a participating member school for more than 25 years. This year, with the retirement of national leader Ron Adams, TA has an opportunity to take on the management of ODW-USA and become the program’s headquarters. If the school takes on this role, TA will have greater influence in ODW-USA’s goals and operations. 

This year’s ODW co-leaders (Charlotte and Annie) are excited about the opportunity. “We believe TA has the right resources and enthusiasm to run this organization to support kids around the world,” they shared, “Our mission is to give students opportunities to give back to our youth community and learn skills that will all benefit us in the future.”  

Luke Teshner is the faculty advisor for TA’s ODW chapter and is supportive of the students’ efforts to become the leading chapter of ODW-USA. “ODW is an opportunity to get involved and help make the world a better place. The ODW student leadership at TA is proof that when a dedicated group comes together, they can and will make a difference.”