2nd-graders Ryan and Joseph wanted to do something to thank our troops overseas, and they knew they wanted to do something with an art component to it, so they decided on making cards to send to soldiers for the holidays. Under the expert guidance of MHS CCSR members Brittany and Laura, Ryan and Joseph each made construction paper cards. They decorated their cards with pictures and wrote nice messages inside. A few students from other groups who were done with their work also joined in to make cards as well. We sent the cards via Operation Gratitude, an organization that sends care packages and letters to troops overseas.

This group of 4th-grade students organized a winter coat drive for Cradles to Crayons, a local nonprofit that provides children and families who are homeless or otherwise in need with clothing and school supplies. They designed a flyer for their coat drive and had it sent home with students, and held their drive the week before Christmas vacation. They collected about 20 coats to be donated! We arranged for a Cradles to Crayons employee, Chris, to come and pick up the coats during the school day so that the group got to meet him!

This trio of compassionate 4th-graders organized a donation drive for two local animal shelters, the Northeast Animal Shelter and The Kitty Connection. To publicize the drive, they made a video for classroom teachers to show to their students. They filmed a video advertising the drive was shown in classrooms to kick off the drive. They also designed flyers to send home with students on the same day that teachers showed the video. They asked people to donate used towels, blankets, and newspaper (items that the shelters need to line cages), as well as pet toys and food.

These 3rd and 4th-graders decided they wanted to put together care packages for homeless people. They started by looking online for ideas for items to include in the care packages. Once they had come up with a list, they designed posters that they hung up around the school, as well as a flyer that they sent home with students, outlining the items they needed. Through online research, they identified a local homeless shelter called Medford Family Life Education, and this is where they decided their donations would go. Once the donations had all come in, they organized them into individual care packages in ziploc bags. At some point soon, they will present their donations to a representative from the shelter.

This group of enterprising first graders wanted to help children and adults that were facing homelessness. They brainstormed a list of supplies that they believed would be helpful and also did a little computer research to come up with more ideas, with the help of PTG mom Renee Hanley. They decided that they would like to raise the money to purchase sample sizes of essential supplies that they could donate. The first graders came up with the idea of having a “decorate a bookmark” table at lunches for a week. They made the blank bookmarks and worked at the table assisting peers in bookmark designs. They combined forces with a few other groups and raised over $140! Many supplies were purchased, bagged and donated to the local homeless shelter.

This group of second graders with a love of reading wanted to spread the joy to students that had a challenge reading. They chose to raise money to purchase books that offered both print and braille for preschool children with vision impairments. They joined forces with a few other groups to run a “decorate a bookmark” table at school during lunch. Before they could sell the bookmarks, however, they had to make a few hundred corner bookmarks. They got really good at this! Along with their CCSR peers, they were able to raise over $140! The students then went online to locate just the right books. They ordered some great books which will be donated to a Medford preschooler with a vision disability.

This group of students also wanted to help the homeless and wanted to combine gardening with their help. They chose several vegetables to grow that they started in school and planned to move to the community garden behind the McGlynn in the spring. They consistently watered and cared for sprouts that continued to grow and thrive. The vegetables got moved outside in the spring and will be harvested when they are full grown. The vegetables will be given to a local agency providing food for less fortunate individuals.

Inspired by the students who collected donations for local animal shelters earlier in the year, this group decided to do another fundraiser for local animal shelters. Using the money collected from our bookmark-decorating fundraiser and our “penny wars” fundraiser, these students purchased a variety of high-need items for local animal shelters.

The students in this group wanted to brag a little about how wonderful they think Medford is! They researched multiple categories of things which would be of interest to children in Medford and put together a flyer that will be made available to other children. They included offerings at the library, parks, and schools in Medford, restaurants and fast food places that would appeal to children. They also listed different sports you could participate in Medford as well as locations kids go to swim or skate. And, of course, they included ice cream places!