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Avon Grove School District Community
Shares the Spirit of the Season by Helping Those in Need

The Avon Grove school community is ready to help whenever someone is in need. Many students, educators, administrators, support staff, and school board members participate in volunteer activities that better the community throughout the year — whether it’s a creek-side cleanup; weeding, mulching and beautifying the grounds around a preschool; or helping to repair a house for fellow community members.

During the fall and winter seasons especially, the school community responds with open hearts to make sure as many people as possible have a happy holiday, complete with a hearty meal, warm clothing, and practical and fun gifts.

Listed below are some of the many charitable activities spearheaded by members of the Avon Grove school community during the holiday season. While it is not possible to capture every act of kindness, those highlighted here and the many others that are not listed are wonderful representations of the spirit of caring and generosity that make Avon Grove a special place to live and work.

Penn London Elementary School

Penn London students, faculty and staff participated in three food drives this year. The latest involved the holiday food drive, which is conducted in each of the district’s four schools. Prior to the drive, the instructional support teachers talked with students in Healthy Habits classes about how “every act of kindness is a point of light.” Children in each color family at PLE brought in canned goods, dry goods or toiletries. The school filled over 40 boxes this year.

Penn London also participated in a Thanksgiving food drive in November. Donated items included canned goods, dry goods, toiletries, and free turkey coupons. Avon Grove High School also participated in the Thanksgiving drive. The collected items were distributed to 100 local families through The Bridge.

At the start of the school year, PLE participated in the YMCA’s Activate Chester County canned food drive. Students exercised, brought in canned food, or both. Three classrooms won pool parties from the YMCA.

Local church groups, women’s groups, the Boy Scouts, other community agencies, 10 PLE classrooms, administrators, secretaries, and individual teachers “adopted” children and a total of 35 PLE families this holiday season.

Kindergarten students hung hats, gloves, socks, and undergarments on a tree in the K center. The items will be given to children in need.

In addition, faculty and staff members selected “Giving Tree” type tags and purchased gifts for individual students on an anonymous basis.

Avon Grove Intermediate School

The AGIS Ecology Club helped organize this year’s holiday food drive, run by the school nurses. Students, faculty and staff schoolwide participated in the drive, which benefited families in the community.

Instead of exchanging holiday gifts with each other, the AGIS instructional support teachers pitched in to adopt an AGIS family. The teachers purchased gift cards from Giant Foods and Wal-Mart, and provided the family with wrapping paper, ribbons, and bows to help with wrapping holiday gifts.

Liz Shilobod, homeroom mother for Mrs. Vaughn’s class, organized a gift drive in the Orange Schoolhouse. Sixth-graders in the orange house donated gifts and gift cards to a family in need.

In lieu of teacher gifts and exchanging gifts in class, Mrs. Casarino in the Blue Schoolhouse suggested students and families might want to consider donating to a local animal shelter instead. Casarino received donations of gently used pet items, and new items such as dog bones, pet food, or collars. “ After I take the items to a shelter, I share with the students the thank-you letter we receive,” said Mrs. Casarino. “Hopefully, this allows them to experience the empowerment of giving and thinking of others.”

To share the spirit of the season, AGIS Blue House teachers adopted three local families and gave the family members holiday gifts.

Fred S. Engle Middle School

The Fred S. Engle Middle School Student Council organized a schoolwide effort to collect nonperishable food items as part of the AG Holiday Food Basket Program.

Faculty and staff at Fred S. Engle Middle School participated in the school’s Annual Holiday Drive this year, with many “adopting” a student and/or their siblings for the holidays. According to Susan Natale, school SOS coordinator, cards were hung on a paper snowman placed in the main office that contained the age, sex, and, if possible, the size for each child. Some staff members took more than one card. Each purchased a practical item as well as a toy, book or game for the recipient. Some donated cash and the funds were used to ensure all the children received something fun and useful for the holidays.

Rhonda Gatt, instructional aide at FSEMS, organized a Coats for Kids drive once again this year. Faculty and staff donated gently worn coats, mittens, hats and other winter attire. The drive was a huge success, and the school was able to meet the needs of many families.

FSEMS faculty and staff also donated blankets and material to make fleece blankets for a blanket drive coordinated by Jan Newman, an aide in the middle school’s athletic department. The blankets were distributed to families in the community through the middle school and Assumption BVM’s Christmas Basket Program.

Fred S. Engle students, faculty, and staff donated items to fill 32 boxes which were sent to the U.S. Marine Corps 1 st Regiment 8 th Battalion Alpha Company, which is currently serving in Iraq. The student council supplied the money for shipping costs. The care packages included basic needs such as socks, deodorant, powder, toothpaste, toothbrushes, mouthwash, books, magazines, packaged snacks, gum and hard candies. The packages were sent in mid-November. Avon Grove graduate Cpl. Bret Daneker, 22, serves with the 1 st Regiment.

Avon Grove High School

The Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) at Avon Grove High School participated again this year in the Avon Grove Christmas Basket Program by collecting non-perishable foods. The FCCLA also provided a free childcare service to parents and guardians of Avon Grove students on a Saturday in early December so parents could shop, run errands or attend to holiday tasks.

The Humanitarian Club helped assemble Christmas baskets delivered through Assumption BVM. The club also used the proceeds from the band and music booster’s Breakfast with Santa event December 15 to assist four families in need. The remainder of the proceeds from the breakfast went towards completing the holiday baskets. Student volunteers from the Humanitarian Club also helped staff The Bridge Christmas Dinner Program held at Assumption BVM on December 15. Students also helped decorate 15 donated Christmas trees for the event. The Humanitarian Club also conducted a coat drive. About 500 gently used coats were collected and distributed to individuals in the community. The club also used money they collected through fundraising projects throughout the year to purchase emergency gift cards that were distributed to 10 families in need.

The Avon Grove High School Youth Alive/FCA group sponsored several families for Christmas this year. Students, staff, and faculty selected angels from the “Angel Tree” located in the women’s PE office. Gifts were wrapped and delivered to families by staff members. The effort helped several local families during the holidays.

The Avon Grove football team and parents association sponsored a Red Christmas Stockings for Marines drive after hearing about the nonprofit organization MOM 4R MARINES on the TV news. Collections were taken up at home football games. The group raised $2,100 in donations and the boosters contributed $400 for an even $2,500. The MOM 4R MARINES organization founded by Patricia Lewis used the funds to assemble care packages and stuff stockings for members of the 3 rd battalion 2 nd Marines stationed in Al Qa'im, Iraq.

AGYEA sponsored a Stockings for Kids toy drive through the Salvation Army. The group collected small, new toys for children ages newborn through 12. The drive ran through December 17.

Melissa McPartland, a senior at Avon Grove High School, has spearheaded a teddy bear drive for the second year. Melissa’s sister Caitlin, an AG grad, started the drive six years ago as a freshman as part of a project to earn her Silver award in Girl Scouts. Over the years, the McPartland sisters have collected hundreds of bears donated from their neighbors, the high school, Fred S. Engle Middle School, and the Assumption BVM church. “We have been fortunate enough to distribute them to homeless shelters, hospitals, fire and police stations, and nursing homes,” said Melissa McPartland. “It has been a great experience for the both of us and we hope we have made a difference in many people's holiday season over the years.”

ACTOcollected new and gently used hats, scarves, and mittens to donate to a homeless shelter for Thanksgiving.

Posted: Friday, December 21, 2007 10:08 AM