In the spirit of the holiday season, students and staff at Hoglan Elementary School are transforming generosity into action to brighten the holidays for families in need.
The school organizes an annual holiday care project that engages the community in helping others in Marshalltown. Past projects have included supporting animals at the Animal Rescue League and aiding families with newborns. This year, the school is partnering with the Salvation Army for a toy drive benefiting children from infants to 14 years old.
“I really think that the students take away what it feels like to give to others and the importance of just the little things that you can do that really shine a light on others less fortunate,” said Hoglan Principal Amy Williams.
A committee at Hoglan Elementary sent communications to families weeks before the event, encouraging them to contribute to the toy drive if they were able. The collected toys were displayed on a table, allowing students to see the impact their school would have on the community.
The fourth-grade leadership group supported the drive by creating a banner to hang above the donation table and assisting with collecting donations at the start of the school day. The group also tracked total donations per classroom, adding a competitive element to the drive, with the top class earning a popcorn party.
“It feels nice (helping others),” said fourth grade student leader Kimberly Nunez. “I feel happy that other people can get the chance to help the Salvation Army and families because they are going to give the toys away to families that are in need since some don’t have a lot.”
Families were kept updated on the toy drive’s progress through daily communications during the event, which ran from Dec. 9 to Dec. 13. Hoglan staff and students successfully collected a total of 195 toys.
“It’s just a great feeling to be able to give because I know many of those organizations and many of those organizations and many entities within our community have given to our school district, specifically to Hoglan,” said Williams.