Mt. Lebanon club donates supplies to students

From the stage on Tuesday morning, fourth-grader Dallas Chapman prompted other students in the elementary auditorium, saying “We are…”

“Logan!” the other children erupted in a roar.

The occasion was an assembly at Logan Elementary, East Allegheny School District, where members of the Mt. Lebanon Junior Women’s Club gave $20,000 in supplies to the students.

Tess Carter, club president, said the district’s financial situation prompted the gift.

“We knew this school district was in crisis,” Mrs. Carter said. “By us adopting Logan, we knew we would be able to fill a real present need in the community.”

Mrs. Carter said a large group of the club’s 80-some members decided to give Logan the $20,000 after reading a newspaper article during the state budget impasse that said East Allegheny administrators weren’t sure whether they could meet payroll during the rest of the 2015-2016 school year.

The women’s club adopted Logan through a program of The Education Partnership in Pittsburgh.

To qualify for the program, 70 percent or more of a school’s students must qualify for the federal free or reduced lunch program.

According to a press release, The Education Partnership distributed almost $3,750,000 in school supplies to various schools during the 2015-16 school year.

The agency uses volunteers to raise money. In March, the Mt. Lebanon Junior Women’s Club had a benefit at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Downtown.

It raised $31,500 at the gala. Part of it was distributed in mini-grants of more than $2,000 at the end of May, and two scholarships totaling $1,500 were given to Mt. Lebanon High School students.

A total of $20,000 was given to Logan Elementary School, and another part of the money raised will go to buy school supplies for the Pittsburgh South Hills 6-8 Middle School.

According to the club’s website, members paid for supplies for all of the 871 students at Logan and for the 500 students at South Hills, who are scheduled to receive their supplies on Sept. 26.

On Tuesday, the Logan students reacted as they heard about the gifts, then received plastic bags containing notebooks, crayons, pencils, pens, highlighters, rulers and other school supplies.

“Nice! Oh, yeah!” fourthgrader Nick Colbert said as his principal disclosed what was in the bags from the stage.

After receiving his bag, he said the supplies in it were “amazing.”

“I’m going to use all this stuff for years!” he said, pulling items out of the bag. He couldn’t believe the students each also received a toothbrush and toothpaste.

“It’s nice they’re doing this for us,” sixth-grader Samantha Hallick said.

“I’m definitely going to use all this stuff,” sixthgrader Gianna More said.

“We’re very fortunate to be part of The Educational Partnership and to be adopted by the Mt. Lebanon Junior Women’s Club,” Logan principal Angela McEwen said after the assembly. “We’re very appreciative.”