A paws-itively purrfect fundraiser
LOWELL >> It is not unusual to find an 11-year-old at the Morey Elementary School, in fact the place has a quite a few of them — it’s an elementary school. But 11-year-old Lily is a bit different.
Her nose is a little wetter and colder, her feet slightly hairier. She never leaves a crumb on her lunch tray.
Lily is a pit bull mix looking for her forever home. She stopped by the Morey recently to meet two special friends who raised money to help her and her furry, feathered and scaly roommates at the Lowell Humane Society.
Haley, 9, and Reaksmey, 10, both fourth-graders at the Morey, had finished their work in art class, so they started on a side project. Fueled by creativity and an entrepreneurial spirit, the duo took a few boxes, some tape and paper and created a mini shop. They put their heads together and came up with a brilliant use for their tiny store — a sticker shop.
The girls set up their shop in the teachers’ room and sold stickers to teachers during their recess. All kinds of fun stickers — llamas wearing glasses, pineapples, hot-air balloons, etc. that they purchased themselves. We all know that teachers cannot resist the urge to buy stickers.
Haley and Reaksmey didn’t go into business to get rich. They did it to raise money for the Lowell Humane Society.
“We want all of the animals to be taken care of and to have a place to live,” said Haley.
On Feb. 17, Jonathan Northridge, the development manager for the Lowell Humane Society, and volunteer/foster mom Laura Howes came to the school — with Lily — to receive the $157.99 raised by the sticker store.
“It means a lot that they thought of us,” said Northridge. “This is what it means to be part of a community. Education is about more than just learning math, it is about learning to be a good citizen, and when you teach kids about charitable giving, they really latch onto it.”
The Lowell Humane Society recently celebrated their 150th birthday. The nonprofit, whose mission is to care for homeless animals and help find them homes, prevent cruelty to animals and educate the public about responsible pet ownership, relies on private donations to keep their doors open and their food bowls full.
Morey School Principal Kate Mclaughlin credits art teacher Kait Lawrence with encouraging the creativity that blossomed into this project.
Mclaughlin said while Lawrence teaches all of the required curriculum, she also provides students with time to think outside of the box and explore their artistic passions.
“It gives the students a lot of autonomy and learning becomes so much more authentic,” she said. “The girls incorporated math, art, writing, and community service into this project.”
Mclaughlin added that she is very proud of Haley and Reaksmey.
“We have been working a lot on student engagement and advocacy and to have two students step up like this was exciting,” she said. “When it comes down to it, these are the things they are going to remember about elementary school.”
For more information about the Lowell Humane Society, including how you can adopt Lily or one of her pals, visit lowellhumanesociety.org.