After the devastating hurricanes in Houston, Florida and Puerto Rico, a group of fifth graders approached Woodbury Assistant Principal Doug Myles about raising money to donate to hurricane relief efforts. Their goal: to raise $2,500 by mid-October.
Mr. Myles and Woodbury Librarian Rob Kaminski, along with guidance from Sixth Grade Teacher Ruth Heide, selected Heart to Heart International, as the charity allowed students to earmark their donations to hurricane victims.
Fifth grade students began making and selling bracelets to raise money during lunch. Then the Woodbury staff decided to host a bake sale on October 10--all proceeds from the bake sale went to hurricane relief.
“We involved our Woodbury Positive Behavior Support ambassadors and made this into a school-wide effort. And we really grabbed on to our theme this year: Be kinder than necessary,” Mr. Myles explains. “We tried to let the kids lead the way and to use their talents, cultivate their voices and see that they’re making a difference in the world.”
The final total for the fundraiser: $1300. "It was certainly inspiring to see how the interest of a handful of 5th graders to help people in a desperate life situation lead to Woodbury students and staff to raise money for recovery efforts," Mr. Myles said.