Service project and collecting money

Windy, windeeeee, WINDY day! But the sun is shining here so I can't complain at all!

Every year we get our students involved in a service project. We feel that it is important to reach out and help others. Most of our students are on free or reduced lunches so we know that we won't get a lot of money. But by teaching them that every penny counts, they soon learn that pennies add up to hundreds of dollars!

This year we are helping to build a home for a family in the Phillipines. One home costs $1,000! Yes you read that right. . . I didn't forget any zeros. . . one thousand dollars. That builds a home that is up on stilts since they get a lot of flooding. It will have one room that will include a kitchen, living area and sleeping area. (but no beds and no bathroom.) The size of this home is about the size of a small bedroom in your own home.

If you're wondering how we knew of this project, one of our teacher's daughters went to Phillipines to help with the orphanages and this is what she saw. She brought back pictures of the homes (or shacks) the families were living in. Our kids were very moved by the pictures. It just started on Friday and already I've had students bring me a bag of change, one dime, a five dollar bill and a quarter. For any amount they bring in, a heart goes up on a wall where we are keeping track of the amounts. We are hoping to reach our goal of $1,000 in 2 weeks. I'll keep you posted.

Patty