A rose is one of the most traditional Valentine’s Day gifts.

For students in the Elizabethton High School Health Occupations Students of America, the colorful flowers are more than that. They are also a ticket to the state HOSA competition.

Each year, the HOSA club sells roses to other EHS students and faculty as a fundraiser to help cover the costs associated with the trip to the competition.

This year, the club sold more than 500 roses through the fundraiser. They sold flowers in three different colors which held different meanings for the purchaser.

“The white rose means it is from your secret admirer, the yellow rose would be from a special friend, and the pink rose means ‘Will you be my sweetheart?’ ” Gina Johnson, HOSA advisor said.

The fundraiser is an annual hit with the students and the faculty, Johnson said. People are able to buy as many flowers as they like, in any color arrangement and can include a handwritten note.

The flowers were put together in their arrangements Friday, which meant a busy day for students as they worked to get the them ready for delivery.

“I’ve been running through the halls making deliveries since second period,” Lacey Greenwell said early Friday afternoon. “Everyone gets into it, and it is always fun when someone has a secret admirer.”

Abbi Carey helped deliver flowers to other EHS students. She said the best part of the day was watching her fellow classmates reactions when they received their roses.

“It was always nice to see when people are so happy and surprised,” Carey said. “One guy bought his girlfriend 12 roses and it was really sweet to watch her get them.”

Carey also received a few roses herself. She received one pink and one yellow rose.

“It is always nice to get a rose,” she said. “I enjoy the yellow one because it is from a friend and they wrote a really nice note to go with it. The pink one doesn’t have a name on it, so that one has me a little puzzled.”

Kunjal Patel received a special flower delivery while she was helping to distribute the flowers herself. Her rose came from Carey.

“It was very sweet,” Patel said. “It had a nice message with it. What I enjoy is delivering the flowers, because everyone is really happy. It is a fun thing to do.”

The rose project is the biggest fundraiser for the HOSA club, Johnson said.

“It helps cover a lot of the cost that comes with going to the state competition,” she said.

The HOSA students received a helping hand from agriculture teacher Bill Meredith and the Future Farmers of America club. The club helped pick out the roses and prepare them before they were handed out.