Inman Middle School community gets jazzy for Haiti

Alumni from Grady High School and Morehouse College returned to Inman Middle School for a concert to benefit relief efforts in Haiti on March 9. The event was titled “LOVE: A Night of Jazz for Haiti.” Inman’s own, Ryan Bolton, opened the show and was followed by more of the school’s jazz musicians under the direction of concert planner and skilled band leader, Arneesa Woods, performed at the concert. They presented the crowd with impressive jazz and R&B numbers that served as the climax of the evening.

A jazz quartet from Georgia State University participated in the event, along with Earthshaking Samba Ensemble. In addition, band families contributed to a successful bake sale, adding over $300 toward medical supplies for relief efforts. The concerts total earnings were more than $1,800. Jazz percussionist Molly Collins joined Woods at Cathedral of Faith Church of God in Christ to present a check to support their group’s second upcoming trip to Haiti.

“We are blessed by our children’s enthusiasm and talent and by the support of their families here at Inman” said Woods. The concert showed how the generous spirit and determination of one dedicated Inman teacher, Woods, encouraged students, families and the community to donate their time, talent and resources to reach out to our world in need.

Beecher Hills Elementary’s ‘Coins for Haiti’ initiative turns into big bucks, supplies

On Jan, 19, Beecher Hills Elementary kindergarten teachers Linda Smith and Tonette Little challenged the fellow teachers, staff, students and the surrounding community to help raise $1,000 through a “Coins for Haitians” initiative. By the end of January, Beecher Hills had raised more than $1,300! This is not the end of the school’s efforts, though; Each month until the end of the school year, the school will add on to the original initiative by collecting gallons of water, canned goods, school supplies and clothing.

Beecher Hills is also in the midst of partnering with two schools in Haiti to facilitate the delivery of supplies, donations and pen pal letters. The Beecher Hills community strives to make its students “International Thinkers, Learners, and Leaders.” They hope this will be the first of many efforts to help those who have experienced tremendous losses due to the disaster. Hat tip to Linda Smith for sharing this great news.

Forrest Hill Academy makes Haiti relief point of discussion for spaghetti dinner

After the earthquake in Haiti, the students in the Current Issues class at Forrest Hill Academy watched clips from CNN and were moved almost to the point of tears at the devastation that they saw. Once they took everything in, the students of Forrest Hill Academy decided to raise money for Haitian relief by organizing and selling tickets to a spaghetti dinner. The first step that these students took was to organize themselves into committees to work on three parts of the dinner, which are the kitchen, decoration, and the tickets and program, which consists of 17 students and 12 faculty members. These committees have worked diligently to write a grant to Communities in Schools for $500, which they were awarded in January.

Continental Colony makes the buck stop here for Haiti

Continental Colony Elementary School recently conducted a two-week “Pay It Forward” campaign for the victims of Haiti. During that time, the school collected a total of $485.48. The proceeds were mailed to the America Red Cross Foundation.

The “Pay It Forward” campaign was initiated by Principal Sandra R. Sessoms, who believed strongly in explaining to the students the importance of assisting someone in a time of need. You might one day need a helping hand, or someone probably has already helped you along the way, she explained to the students.

Each student was asked to contribute $1; about 70 percent of the students participated, and 100 percent from the administrative team! Kudos to Principal Sessoms, school secretary Linda Askew and office assistant Carolyn Strozier for constantly reminding everyone to bring in their dollar. And special kudos to the third grade, which collected the most money.

Carver grad makes good, sings for Haiti relief

Erica Thomas, Class of 2009 graduate of Carver’s School of Arts and currently a Berklee College of Music student in Boston, was invited to perform with her group Mélange at a Haiti relief concert at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on Jan. 29.  At Carver, Thomas was class president, recipient of the Dr. Beverly L. Hall Project GRAD Award, Ray Kroc Award, and the Faculty Cup Award. At Young Middle School, she was the original vocalist for the jazz band under the direction of Robert Jeffrey, and at Centennial Place she was in the APS Honor Chorus, and played Dorothy in The Wiz under the direction of Angela Allen. APS prepared her well for this moment! 

Check out the video here on YouTube. (Accessible from your own personal computer only.)

King Middle School honors teacher with help for Haiti

King Middle School has a personal connection with the situation that has taken place in Haiti — eighth-grade team leader and physical science teacher Patricia Dunac is a native of Port Au Prince. In fact, her mother was home visiting family when the earthquake took place last month, and Ms. Dunac went days without knowing whereabouts of her mother (who is now safe in Miami). In honor of Ms. Dunac, King Middle  is supporting the efforts to provide relief to Haiti in many ways.

Parkside Elementary provides good cheer for Haiti

Parkside Elementary is known for giving and supporting, but  this year, they have gone all out!. Gregory Coleman, a third-grade teacher and winner of an Atlanta Families’ Award, along with his student teacher, Ms. Walker, came up with the idea of supporting the victims of the Haiti earthquake.  After sharing it with Armelia Braddy, the cheerleader sponsor, she decided to be the caretaker and keep the donations organized and in order. It has proven to be a huge success, especially with Principal Dr. Phillip Luck, who has been very supportive and encouraging everyone to participate.

After only one week, the school hopes to continue this support for at least a couple of weeks, especially when a nearby Haitian church volunteered to transport the items directly to Haiti. Parkside is truly a caring school.

Inman Middle kicks in once again for Haiti

Hat tip to Inman Middle School health teacher Kandy Wilkinson, for sharing yet another heartwarming story about schools around APS pitching in for Haiti. This time we thank Hope Van Duyne, a seventh-grader who Ms. Wilkinson says was inspired to do something for the people in Haiti after learning of the devastation caused by the recent earthquake. Hope’s idea was to launch a penny drive for two weeks and raise as much money that could help purchase water purifying packets to be made in Haiti, and then handed out to the people to make their water safer to drink. The goal was set for $1,000, but by the time all the money was counted, along with a bake sale, the school proudly reached its goal of $1,200.

“As the last week approached, more students were coming up to me, asking if they could help more with the fundraiser,” Wilkinson said. “Hopefully, this tragedy that occurred taught the students of Inman Middle School about caring for people they may not know who are outside their own community, but also the importance of giving and reaching out to others. For two weeks, many students of Inman who gave to this fundraiser were on the same team. A job well done, Eagles!”

F.L. Stanton and White elementary schools join APS efforts to help Haiti

Walter White and Frank L. Stanton elementary school students and staff and gotten into the help for Haiti. At White, students and staff collected items by grade levels and the administration. The school was able to donate many needed supplies. Among the supplies were toiletry items, water, medical supplies, baby food and other baby needs. Students helped place boxes of items in our cars and we delivered them to a drop off location sponsored by The Haitian Alliance, Inc. It was a very rewarding experience for all of the students and faculty.

At Stanton, staff and students focused on donating cases of bottled water. “After we began the collection, we were told by the agency we were intending to make our donation that water was to costly to deliver,” said Ms. Dale W. Tate, guidance counselor for both schools. “We immediately changed our direction and students began collecting money to be donated to the Red Cross.” Proceeds go to the Hope for Haiti Project.

“It was an awesome experience,” Ms. Tate continued. ” Students were very eager to contribute; they also assisted in decorating the boxes where we collected the items.   There was never a question about why we were helping.  They simply knew there were people who came across hard times and needed our immediate attention. We had the opportunity to help neighbors that were in desperate need and we knew we had to do it generously and quickly.”

Hill-Hope Elementary flips for Haiti

Hill-Hope Elementary has launched a “Flip-Flops February Hygiene for Haiti Initiative” for the entire month of February. Students, parents, teachers, staff, and community members are encouraged to donate hygiene products including (but not limited to) deodorant, toothpaste, toothbrushes, hair products, baby powder, baby oil, lotion, Vaseline, female products to the school. The supplies will be sent to Haiti on Feb. 26.

On that same date, students and staff members will have an opportunity to show off their favorite flip-flops and have a huge celebration due to their contributions to Haiti. Thanks for your support with this initiative! Hat tip to Principal Cassandra Miller-Ashley for the info.