Liberty students raise nearly $600 for orphan
Posted on 09/26/2019
Liberty Elementary STEM Academy(SPS) -- Students at Liberty Elementary STEM Academy participated in a coin drive contest in an effort to raise money for a great cause.

On Thursday, four 5th-graders, as well as Principal Tom Walsh and teacher Kimberly McCallum, traveled to First United Bank to deposit the money and hear officially how much they collected.

The purpose of the drive was to raise money to sponsor a 6-year-old orphan in El Salvador. The goal was $420 which would provide a full-year sponsorship of Jose Ernesto (Neto) Ramirez. The money will go towards Neto’s school tuition, housing, clothes, food, etc.

Students Yah-Pon-na Watashe, Chevy Wikel, Jayce Cox, and Autumn Charles wasted no time going to the coin machine to count up the loose change that was collected. From there, they fed the paper money into the cash machine.

Students at First United Bank

When it was all tallied, the total amount the students raised was $571.07 - more than $150 beyond their goal.

The contest pitted the younger grades (Pre-K through 2nd) versus the older grades (3rd, 4th, 5th). The group that collected the most money would receive an ice cream party. In the end, much to the chagrin of the students at the bank, the younger grades came out on top.

However, before leaving and heading back to school, the 5th-graders learned that First United Bank had donated $100 - $16 of which forces a tie between the two groups and $84 towards the ice cream party. Everyone gets ice cream and Neto gets more resources!

Students with First United Bank VP

Additionally, Mr. Walsh and Ms. McCallum will travel to Shalom Children's Home in Santiago Texacuangos, El Salvador on Oct. 12 through the 19th to meet Neto and to deliver the money and donated school supplies.

Thank you to First United Bank and Vice President Rusty Kautz for donating an additional $300 to cover the costs of the extra luggage Mr. Walsh and Ms. McCallum need to transport the school supplies to El Salvador!

According to Harvesting in Spanish mission, Neto arrived at the home last December along with his two brothers and three sisters. The six of them were living in a two-room shack with plastic walls, mud floors, no running water or electricity with five other people. Neto and his siblings had never been to school prior to coming to the orphanage.

Neto Ramirez