When the students in Toby Fryer’s White Rock Elementary classroom heard that Sources Food Bank was struggling to keep up with demand, they decided to take it upon themselves to do something about it.
With traditional money-raising initiatives off the table due to COVID-19 restrictions – bake sales, for example – the Grade 6 and 7 students brainstormed and came up with what Fryer called a “creative alternative.”
They designed and sold masks.
The students held a design contest amongst themselves, eventually settling one that includes a black mask adorned with a round, neon-coloured logo that includes the school’s initials, WRE, and a wave – the school’s name for its teams.
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With the design finished, the students began marketing the idea to the rest of the school, Fryer explained. Classmates made posters, talked about their project during the school’s morning announcements and included information about the campaign in the community newsletter.
In just one week, students sold 99 masks, for a profit of $324, which they planned to deliver to Sources soon.
“The project was a big success,” Fryer said.
The campaign not only raised some much-needed money for the food bank, but also served a secondary purpose – it increased the number of students wearing masks at the school.
“The masks can now be seen on the faces of many kids and teachers throughout the school, and the students of Division 2 feel good about what they’ve accomplished for the food bank and community,” Fryer said.
“It has been a strange and difficult school year in a lot of ways, but the compassion and ingenuity that these students have shown has proven once again how a community can come together and all do our part to help each other out.”
editorial@peacearchnews.com
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