Bishop Rosecrans holds 29th annual ‘Christmas on the Hill’ event

For 29 years, “Christmas on the Hill” at Rosecrans High School has provided local families in need with presents for the holidays.

Long time boys basketball coach Todd Rock began the tradition during his first year as head coach and the event has grown bigger and bigger every single year.

“We started with one family, five kids,” Rock says. “Now? Every year, over a hundred kids.”

The yearly event brings together the entire Rosecrans community, with athletes, coaches and even parents chipping in to keep the event running smoothly.

“I think we all love seeing the little kids, and making the Christmas special for them,” said senior guard Josh Merva. Senior Thomas Spohn added, “You know, like, obviously for kids who don’t have stuff like we’ve got. It’s just good to give back to the community.”

“You know, Coach Rock’s put this on for many, many years.” says Bishops football coach Chris Zemba. “As the football coach up here, he invited me to come up, and it’s just great to see the entire school practically take part in this and learn something from it.”

“I think that it’s something that the school community has done for many many years,” says parent and Bishops cheerleading coach Chelsea Tolliver. “I think that this year the need is even greater in some aspects than it has been in the past. Our students find it very important to continue to help with the community, Coach Rock, you know, and our school. I think that’s why we continued to make sure we figured out a way to make this happen.”

It’s not only current players, coaches and parents that make the event happen. Past graduates of Rosecrans high school come back yearly to contribute to the cause.

“A lot of the alumni usually get together on Christmas Eve and play basketball, then help with this program,” says 2004 Rosecrans graduate Adam Agin. “It’s just — being part of it when I was in high school, and then now, I think it’s one of the best programs that Rosecrans does. I think it’s great for the community in general. And I just think it’s one of the best things that Rosecrans does.”

“Usually, we have a game in here at six o’clock in the morning with all the former players,” adds Rock. “We couldn’t do that., but to get checks in the mail from players you haven’t seen in years, it just tells these current players what this means, and what it means for the kids in the community. ”

With the COVID-19 pandemic wreaking havoc on the economy, many parents saw furloughs, lay-offs or even terminations. With many families struggling, the need for assistance was greater than ever.

“You know, we looked to cancel this year,” Rock says. “Then, the first time that a mother called and said she’d lost her job, in tears, kids weren’t gonna get anything, we decided to do it in a different way.”

“You know, I think it was more and more important this year with the pandemic going on,” Coach Zemba added. “There are many families who can’t afford Christmas this year, so I think that this was the year that it really needed done.”

As for today: this year’s Christmas on the Hill was a major success.

Afterwards, Coach Rock expressed his gratitude to the community who’ve continued to keep the tradition going.

“I can’t say enough about the community of Zanesville and the Rosecrans community. You know, we’ve raised so much money for this over the 29 years and again, this year, over $10,000. It’s amazing. People stepping up.”

“You know, basketball’s important. Winning’s important. But some things, this puts it into place and tells you — we pulled this off in a pandemic, which is incredible. I’m so proud of everybody: all of my kids, all of my parents.”

“This is special. “