Kootenai students rally to help others

SANDPOINT — Never underestimate a Kootenai Elementary student when their classmates’ well-being is on the line.

It was a lesson quickly learned by elementary school teachers upon completing the Christmas-themed “Collection for Clause.” First-grade teachers Kim Vanhorn, Amanda Merrifield and Kyla Pincher expected a modest return when they proposed the idea of an end-of-the year food drive. Spurred on by the idea of helping local families and classmates, however, the students mobilized their loved ones into action, eventually collecting almost 2,500 pounds of food altogether.

“Our teachers tried to encourage us to bring in two cans, and some of us got a little crazy,” sixth-grader Jordan Surby said.

The charitable project began last week as an idea generated from the school’s first-grade classes. After a discussion about the difficulties many low-income families go through during the holidays, the classes decided to make a difference for their community by hosting a food drive. Throughout the week, students served as Santa’s helpers by collecting and organizing the donations.

“When we told them that this was going to help their friends and family, they really got on board with it,” Pincher said.

The students were further motivated by a little friendly school competition. Whichever class was able to raise the most food during the drive would be treated to a pizza party sponsored by Super 1 Foods. Mindy Roget’s sixth-grade class squeaked ahead for a photo-finish victory by the last day, taking the lead with just a few dozen items of food. The class was bolstered by some particularly enthusiastic students, one of whom brought in around 316 items alone. That show of dedication encouraged others to even greater heights, students reported.

“I started to feel a little bad, so I had to bring in more food,” sixth-grader Dylan Bankson said.

By the time the dust settled, Kootenai Elementary teachers were amazed to find more than 3,000 non-perishable food items in their possession. They decided that 1,480 pounds of the take would head to local food banks, while 800 pounds would go to Kootenai Elementary families in need.

“Our teacher told us it was all about helping people during Christmas,” sixth-grader  Isabel Edwards said.

According to Pincher, the project also tied into the students’ studies. The competition aided unit two of the first-grade Common Core inquiry project, which focuses on exploring local communities and careers. The collection and tallying also provided a useful context for writing and math projects. Meanwhile, Collection for Clause took its inspiration from the Sandpoint Backpack Program, which helps many Kootenai Elementary kids keep their bellies full over the weekend.

“We are all blown away by the results,” Pincher said. “These kids have such big hearts.”