Kids Live Lesson In Benevolence Catholic Students See Their Donations In The Hundreds Add Up To The Thousands

Catholic schoolchildren gathered Monday to count diapers, money, clothing and thousands of other items donated to the poor.

Students from 15 elementary schools throughout Eastern Washington crammed into the lobby of the chancery downtown to marvel at their success.

“Our kids really got to see that we are part of a big congregation all working for the same thing,” said Tami Druffel of Guardian Angel St. Boniface School in Colton.

The tiny school’s 60 students gathered 100 rolls of pennies to donate to the House of Charity in Spokane.

Other schools and classes collected sweatshirts and coats, kitchen utensils, baby food, personal hygiene items, food and toys.

Each school’s goal was to collect 100 things by the 100th day of school. Most schools surpassed that.

Adrianne Pearson, an eighth-grader at Trinity School, coaxed her mother into adding jars of baby food to her family’s weekly shopping list. She also gathered baby clothing from her neighbors and rummaged in her own closet for coats she seldom wears.

“It’s hard for me to imagine someone who is in a position that they can’t even afford a coat,” she said.

Pearson was part of a team of students that presented the collection to Our Place, a neighborhood center that provides clothes, food and services to residents of the West Central neighborhood.

Rick Markealli’s third-graders at St. Patrick’s School gathered 100 pounds of nickels. The exercise reinforced one of the school’s main lessons: to serve others.

“We want to make them aware that right here in their hometown there are many needy people,” Markealli said. “And they do get it.”

After representatives from each of the schools described their project and lighted a candle, Bishop William Skylstad led the students in a final prayer.

He praised the students for acting out their faith and encouraged them to do more.

“This should not be a single time; it has to be a lifestyle,” he said. “So this is a wonderful start.”

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