Number of Participants: 10
Hours Donated: 1
Value of Time Served: $85
Event Type: Civic & Community
Sport: Schools
Date: February 10, 2022
Location:
Garden City
NY, USA
About:
Students at Stewart School in Garden City are giving back to a number of charities and organizations through the Pizza with a Purpose and Pretzel with a Purpose program. The programs started at Stewart a number of years ago as a way to introduce service-learning to students.
Students at all grade levels have the opportunity to choose an organization that they are passionate about, then write a letter to the Stewart main office explaining why their chosen organization is important to fundraise for.
“I chose to do it because I like helping people in need,” student James Cassaro said.
For example, students have chosen charities including The Foundation Fighting Blindness, I’m Not Done Yet, The Marfan Foundation, Team Seas and a variety of local animal shelters.
“I picked an organization called BBBS, which stands for Big Brothers Big Sisters because they don’t just have one age group – they support the whole family, anyone who needs help,” student Pierce Hayes said.
Each week there’s a rotation between Pretzel with a Purpose and Pizza with a Purpose. Local pizzerias and the Philly Pretzel Factory sell their products to the school for a low price. In turn, Stewart sells either pizza or pretzels to students and staff who have filled out an order form at a slightly higher price. The funds that are made from the in-school sales are then donated to the selected the non-profits and organizations. Many organizations have received between $500 and $1,000 from Stewart School as a result of this fundraiser.
In addition, the students who write letters selecting organizations get to share what the non-profits are all about on the morning announcements.
Photos courtesy of Garden City Public Schools
