Centreville students raise funds for Ukraine
Ukraine is getting help from an unlikely source 5,000 miles away.
The sixth-grade team at Centreville Elementary recently completed fundraisers over the past two weeks, which netted nearly $2,000.
Called “Pop For Ukraine,” the fundraiser involved all three sections of the school’s sixth-grade students. They spearheaded a can and bottle drive, a daily raffle and linked to an online donation site. Proceeds from the three sources were dedicated to humanitarian relief.
Organized by social studies teacher Lori Marshall, the effort was as much about fortuitous timing as it was proving it is possible to make a difference in a seemingly helpless situation.
“Right around the time Russia started its invasion, it happened to coincide with a lesson focusing on Russia and natural resources, so that worked out perfectly,” Marshall said. “The kids had a lot of questions and they’re old enough to understand this was a really sad situation for the people in the Ukraine.”
Marshall said talk about wishing something could be done to help evolved quickly into a full-blown fundraiser. There were a lot of options and many moving parts, but after further discussion, the class decided a bottle and can drive had the potential to raise a fair amount of money. Students also decided to sell raffle tickets for 50 cents each. Finally, after extensive research, students agreed to align with a web-based organization called mightycause.com, which led them to a charitable outfit called Direct Relief.
A fundraising committee was formed and once everything was in place, the hard work started May 9. Teams were made and members of the pick-up crew gathered classroom bottle and can offerings daily. Meanwhile, others manned a table and sold raffle tickets at lunch time.
Marshall spent several hours of her own time, hauling the dozens of can- and bottle-filled bags to grocery stores, where she laboriously fed the machines that count returnable cans and bottles. Marshall conceded it was a dirty job, but she faithfully completed the task knowing the benefits of the end result.
The final tally? Redemption of more than 9,000 returnable cans and bottles, more than 1,000 raffle tickets sold and $425 in online donations generated just shy of $2,000; the group exceeded its goal of $1,800. An online payment will be made next week.
“We had an online meeting with a high-ranking official from Direct Relief and he was so impressed, not because of our monetary amount – because it really is just a raindrop in an ocean compared to what the (financial) needs are – but he said he was excited the kids were embracing the idea of helping others,” Marshall said. “I think some of the kids made the realization that one person, one group, really can make a difference, you can do something, which was better than not doing anything at all.”
This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: Community
