Cherokee Casino aids local school during education budget cuts

■ Cherokee Nation Entertainment employees gather needed items for Peavine Public School.

WEST SILOAM SPRINGS, Okla. — Employee volunteers from Cherokee Casino & Hotel West Siloam Springs stacked boxes onto the shuttle bus to deliver much-needed school supplies to Peavine Public School in Stilwell, Okla., last Thursday.

The casino staff gathered 1,419 boxed items for the children and teachers at the school by organizing a contest for the departments gathering the most items.

“This was the largest school supply drive to date for our property,” said Bernadette Keck, human resources generalist and Community Impact Team captain for Cherokee Casino & Hotel West Siloam Springs. “Our employees were very involved, and trophies will be awarded to the two departments that contributed the most items. The drive allows us to make a significant impact on one of our local schools each year by providing items necessary for the education of children in our communities.”

The boxes of supplies included a total of 1,159 No. 2 pencils, 710 pens, 1,224 crayons, 250 markers, 1,440 colored pencils, 248 rulers, 26 calculators and 48 containers of disinfecting wipes, along with assorted school boxes, folders, binder bags, notebooks, loose-leaf paper, copy paper, highlighters, erasers, facial tissue, scissors, glue, construction paper, dry erase markers and a dry erase board.

“We want to thank all of the employees at the casino for the school supplies and taking the time to deliver them to us,” said Michael Hargis, Peavine Public Schools superintendent. “Every item will be put to good use in the education of our kids. These supplies will definitely relieve some of the burden on our shrinking budget.”

The volunteers collected the items in their free time and with their own funds as part of the Community Impact Team, a group of employees at each Cherokee Casino property who dedicate their free time to improving and impacting their local communities for the better.

“This year we were so happy to see some of the children the supplies would go to,” said Keck. “It was a great feeling to know that, with our help and these items, hopefully the school year will be a little easier for the children and teachers there.”