Tag: service-learning

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Knapsacks for Youth

This past April [2011] the whole senior school within their homerooms came together to produce at least three knapsacks full of necessities and life-easing items to donate to at risk street youth.

I had the pleasure, with a lot of help from our wonderful students, to organize such an event. The school produced over 90 full backpacks to ease the hardships of many at risk and ill fortuned street youth. These young members of our society are often released from the shelters and care they come to rely on during the cold winter months, every March needing a helping hand as they make it through the warmer months of the year without the minimal care offered in the winter. Thus, it is imperative that those who can help do help these unfortunate youth.

Thanks to the wonderful idea and work of Cara Sinclair, York House has been able to offer help in the form of Knapsacks for the past 5 years. York House and I am very proud to make this a tradition every spring and for allowing ourselves to give to those most in need. Many students spend countless hours shopping for the items on the list provided by Cara and donate a great deal to these projects. What is more, students are willing give up their lunch hours to help pack and make sure every knapsack is up to snuff.

Our girls take passion in helping the community and this project allows them to help in stride. Our motto at the school ‘is not for ourselves alone’ and with the donations and help I received in making this event a success, our students truly follow this motto.

Chris Cropley
Community Service Teacher

 

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Heart Heroes

One rainy afternoon in May, the girls in the junior school jumped their hearts out for Jump Rope for Heart. The event raises money for the Heart & Stroke Foundation and encourages kids to grow up healthy.

The girls collected pledges leading up to the event. The top fundraising class, 6H, was awarded a pizza lunch, for raising approximately $2600. There were rewards (“sparklers”) as each fundraising target was met, such as: civvies days (including one day where teachers dress as students!), school wide NO HOMEWORK DAY! and a movie afternoon.

During the event, there was lots of screaming and cheering as the girls encouraged their peers to hang on for a few more seconds. Those who showed a lot of spirit were able to pull a number out of a bin to win a special reward, such as participating in a one-sided water ballon fight with teachers, a silly string fight on the grass field, getting the chance to paint teachers faces, or give teacher Mr. Oates a makeover.

Donations are still trickling in, but well over $18,500 was raised for the Heart & Stroke Foundation (“hard to believe that we can raise this much in a day of skipping!” says Teacher Ms. Grills). Way to go girls! It was a fun and active afternoon, as the girls were inspired to be “Heart Heroes.”

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