Dig Deeper! Candy Grams: This is a must read!

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"Alone we can do little, together we can do much." This quote by Helen Keller is exactly how I felt as my tears fell when the teller at the bank gave the final tally of this year's Candy Gram donations. This was the largest amount we had ever collected. All I could think of was how much relief this would provide to one of our own families here at Mt. Loafer struggling with overwhelming life challenges. And to think, it was the culminating effect of one quarter at a time! Add to that, the countless hours of service our 5th graders happily gave in order to make this possible.

This is the 15th year our Mt. Loafer 5th graders have been involved in performing service to benefit the lives of others. Over the years, the children's selfless service has enabled us to donate to such causes as the Huntsman Cancer Foundation, Mt. Loafer families in time of great need, and one year enough was collected to fund the of completion of four Christmas trees whose proceeds benefited Primary Children's Hospital, in honor of a Mt. Loafer teacher and her family tragically killed in an accident.

When I explained to my students where the money was going this year, I thanked them for the sacrifice of their time. One of them replied, "Mrs. Brady, this was not a sacrifice!" That is how we all feel! What a great opportunity this is for us all to learn that together we truly can do much!

Each year, at Valentine’s Day, our Mt. Loafer 5th grade class sells Hershey Kiss Candy Grams to raise money for a charitable cause. The money is used to benefit someone in our Mt. Loafer community. 

This year, Spencer and Jana Morris and their family were the recipients. The Morris’ have four children. Their two sons, Fenix, a former Mt. Loafer student, and Bryton, a current student, have attended in Special Education classes. This school year has been very difficult for the Morris Family. In October, Spencer was admitted to the hospital for routine surgery and ended up having to remain there for several months due to severe complications requiring a trach and feeding tube.

Having Dad gone for several months was very stressful for the family in addition to Mom visiting at the hospital as much as possible. During this time the family’s washer and dryer stopped working.

When Mt. Loafer awarded this gift to Jana Morris, she was overwhelmed. “The gift you have given us is beyond generous. We are so thankful and amazed at the kindness of your school. The fifth graders should definitely receive some recognition for their kind act to our family”. There were tears all around.

As you can see this simple event that is put on each year goes much further than most can imagine. We love Mt. Loafer and all of the community that is a part of our school. This is how we CLIMB to make a difference.