MBE students help fund holiday project

Every year during the holiday season, Mountain Brook Elementary adopts children from the Salvation Army Angel Tree Program. Historically, students have raised funds for the Holiday Project through selling lemonade or hot chocolate and through chores. This year, student involvement reached a new level with many students participating in outside-the-box fundraising ideas and contributing heavily to overall funds raised.

One such group were fifth-grade friends Greer Golden, Lawsie Jolly, Elizabeth Kohn, Ellie Shelfer and Frances Vandevelde, who were inspired by the show Cupcake Wars to challenge themselves to bake, decorate and package 500 cupcakes. Each assorted pack of five cupcakes was sold for $5. They raised $600 total.

Another duo had the idea to sell art and music in Overton Park. William Stringfellow and Jackson Nunneley, third graders at MBE, raised $60 selling William’s dinosaur drawings and receiving tips from Jackson playing violin on two weekend afternoons.

Additionally, several fourth-grade students held a bake sale in Triangle Park on a weekday immediately after school. In about 20 minutes, the group raised almost $200 selling rice crispy treats, brownies and other baked goods.

Throughout the school, more than $12,000 was raised to allow each classroom to spend $300 on each of its 30 adopted angels ranging in age from 10 months to 10 years with the remainder donated to the Salvation Army to fund other angels and further its mission.