Woodside students surpass goal for Haiti relief

Woodside Elementary School students more than doubled what they anticipated to collect in their efforts to provide relief to the victims of the Haiti earthquake.

Student Council representatives established a goal of $500 as they collected coins from classmates during a two-week period. The campaign included morning announcements, coin collections, recess reminders and a poster that displayed their collective progress in the front lobby.

When the donations were finally collected, the school raised $1,124.84 that was donated to the American Red Cross for disaster relief in Haiti.

“Woodside Student Council has worked hard to promote leadership, sacrifice and responsibility to the students in both the school setting and in the community,” said Peter Dargatz, fourth grade teacher and Student Council advisor. “So, when our representatives learned about the tragedy in Haiti, it was no surprise they wanted to help.”

“These representatives taught their fellow students about generosity and social responsibility by not only promoting the logistics of the drive, but in some cases, issuing personal challenges to their own class and buddy class,” Dargatz said.