Westchester Students Donate Change to Four Charities
Westchester Country Day School students made an impact on four charitable organizations with ties to the school community by collecting and counting a month’s worth of loose change during the Change for Change coin drive.
On March 28, the school gathered for an assembly where it was announced that Westchester students collected quarters, dimes, nickels, pennies and dollar bills totaling $2,681.61 with donations still coming in. The final tally is still being totaled.
Change for Change is an annual project that inspires students in grades pre-K through 12 to make a positive impact for service-minded organizations. This year, students selected organizations that have a personal connection to members of the school community.
Katherine Walter, an 11th grader, nominated the March of Dimes for the help they provided to her parents when she was born prematurely and stayed in the NICU for 101 days.
Sixth graders Evans Elliott and Madeline Johrendt nominated The HEARTest Yard, a partnership of the Greg Olsen Foundation and Atrium Health Foundation, after seeing the support they offered to Madeline’s family when her baby cousin needed care for Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome.
Eleventh grader Isabella Reid nominated HorsePOWER Therapeutic Learning Center, where she is involved in volunteering.
Another group of 11th graders nominated Bingham Academy, a school for children in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where former WCDS teacher Lee Lancaster and his wife, Cindy, are volunteers.
Representatives from the organizations attended the assembly or shared a video message to accept the donations and share gratitude with the students.
“Together, we have demonstrated what can be achieved when we work towards a common goal with passion and dedication,” said Lauren Ingold, assistant director of development and alumni affairs. “We hope that this campaign has ignited a passion for giving back and helping others and that it will inspire [students] to continue to make a difference in our community.”
The project began in February when students researched causes and wrote nominations on behalf of organizations they wanted to support. Eight groups of students were selected to speak at a school-wide assembly, and then a student vote determined four finalists to receive the proceeds. Throughout the month as change was collected, students competed to see which grade levels could bring in the most change. Crew 5, which includes students in fifth grade and 12th grade, brought in the most change with a total of $670.
Change for Change is an annual project of Westchester’s C.A.R.E.S. Crews program, which pairs younger and older students together multiple times a year on projects that show compassion, awareness, responsibility, empathy and service to others. The project raises awareness for organizations doing important work in the local community and throughout the world and provides a practical connection between service and critical skills in public speaking, math, social studies, and language arts while encouraging students from different grade levels to work together.
