Press release
One of the greatest lessons children can learn is to give back to their community and help others. The Galion City School District fifth grade teachers have made it a point the past two school years through a monthly community service project for their students to help others in need. The fundraiser for the month of October is called “Socktober,” and the goal is to collect socks for the needy through Oct. 31.
The original idea for the “Socktober” fundraiser three years ago came about from an idea fifth grade teachers heard about from YouTube sensation Kid President. In the three-minute video, Kid President challenged Internet users to change the world.
“I presented the ‘Socktober’ idea to my fifth grade teammates and we thought it would be a great way to get our students helping others in need,” said Fifth Grade teacher Paula Prince. “Kid President shared that there are 600,000 people in the United States who don’t have a home, and challenged us to think about three questions that could change the world.”
The three questions posed in Kid President’s video included:
- What are you not okay with?
- What do you have?
- What can we do about it?
“We went with Kid President’s idea of socks because we knew that socks would be an important necessity since winter is around the corner,” said Prince. “Over the past two years, we’ve been able to donate more than 1,000 pairs of socks to local shelters to help our neighbors.
“Our goal this year is to meet and exceed the amount collected the past two years. We hope that the Galion community will help us reach that milestone.”
The Galion Intermediate fifth grade team consists of Prince, Marsha Garverick, Jenny Reagan, Christine Smith, Sue Stark, Kristi Jackson and John Stinehour. The fundraiser has been opened to the entire Intermediate School building this school year so all students can participate in making a difference.
“This is a great way for our students to learn what it means to help those in need in our community,” said Superintendent Jim Grubbs. “Student-led community service projects enhance the overall education of students in the Galion City School District, and I am very pleased that the entire Intermediate School is involved with this project.”
Donations may be dropped off at the Galion Intermediate School through Oct. 31. For more information about the “Socktober” fundraiser, please contact Paula Prince at 419-468-3676 or email prince.paula@galionschools.org.