This was previously published in our May 2025 issue. “Oftentimes, I found it to be violent. Other times it was nice. It really depended on the day and the situation, but it was very chaotic.” John, an Emmaus High School junior whose name was changed for anonymity, remained calm as he recounted his experience. His voice was smooth and composed as he explained his past. He suffered from a mental health crisis, leading him to seek care at KidsPeace, a youth psychiatric hospital within the Lehigh Valley. “I had been going through a very dark period of depression and anxiety, panic attacks, the whole thing. I eventually tried to commit suicide...
What are they thinking right now? Are they getting the help they need? Did I make the right decision? Lying awake at night, a thousand scenarios brew in parents’ minds. The possibility of their child being scared, angry, or worse is at the forefront of their thoughts. For parents whose children are admitted to residential treatment facilities, the experience can feel like a whirlwind of uncertainty, hope, and disconnection. While programs exist to provide necessary care and treatment, deciding to send a child away — no matter how necessary it may be — can be an impossible choice. Emmaus High School junior Morgan Schuler attended two residential treatment programs in 2020 and 2023,...
As the curtains close and applause rises from the audience, many think of the actors on the stage. However, behind the curtain lies a group of...
Firecrackers ignite, lion dancers jump and leap, cymbals crash, drums vigorously echo, and gongs explode in sound. All while hundreds of millions...
On May 2, Emmaus High School senior athletes officially announced their plans to continue their academic and athletic careers at a collegiate level. Of the 37 EHS seniors continuing their sport, 10...
From being a hardworking student to a competitive and outgoing volleyball player, junior Cirrae Cuffy shines brightly on and off the court. Allowing her humble beginnings on her elementary school team...
Spikes grazing across the track. The essence of self-determination and grit fills the surrounding air. This is the average race for Emmaus High School athlete Kayla-Rayne Quinones. This being Quinones’s...
Emmaus High School cheerleaders made their way down to Florida for the National High School Cheerleading Championship for the first time in 20 years, from Feb. 7 to 10. To get the Emmaus Cheer team...
On June 24, the Supreme Court of the United States made the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 landmark court case that protected the right to have an abortion, with five of the nine justices...
This previously ran in our April 2022 print issue.