Executive Director Zammeah Bivins-Gibson receiving the check from Pride Scholars
To say that the Penny Wars was a great success is an understatement.
This simple Project Pride service project that started with four plastic jugs raised over $1,800 for families in need in the Isaiah House shelter in East Orange.
Malik Oumorou and Amanda Carter developed the winning Project Pride proposal last year after they researched the 6th grade social justice issue of poverty. Together with Pride Academy’s League of Leaders, LOL, they developed the Penny Wars! Each grade competed against each other by bringing in as many coins to add points to their totals, while also bringing bills to take points away from their competitors. It didn’t take long for Penny Wars to take Pride Academy by storm. Not only were the jars too heavy to be carried, but we needed to have extra staff on hand to supervise the collection. What a memorable event in our Pride history!
Penny Wars helped us learn and/or re-learn things about our Pride scholars.
- PRIDE SCHOLARS ARE HUNGRY FOR FUN AND COMMUNITY! After a year and a half of being away from their friends, clubs, activities, and fun; our children were filled with enthusiasm and excitement over something as simple as a coin drive with the possibility of a movie party. Providing our scholars with fun community-building activities is just as important as providing them with an excellent education. It’s those types of experiences that motivate and inspire them to reach their greatest potential and accomplish great things.
- PRIDE SCHOLARS ARE BURSTING WITH DETERMINATION! Piggy banks everywhere were being busted open as our scholars demonstrated their willingness to sacrifice in order to win this community challenge for their grade. The prize was just a dress-down day and a movie party, clearly not anything that would incite such generosity! We heard from the kids that it really wasn’t the prize, it was the winning that motivated them. Our scholars want to achieve and want to be the best. More importantly, we learned that the key to turning on that determination is to tap into their competitive spirit, make goals attainable, and make it fun.
- PRIDE SCHOLARS ARE TRUE PHILANTHROPISTS! Over the years, we have had many fundraisers at Pride Academy. We have worked to raise money for student activities, trips, and even a playground. None of our fundraisers for the kids have ever raised as much as our fundraisers and drives for those in need. Our scholars have giving hearts full of empathy and compassion for others. Our scholars go above and beyond whenever our community engages in service events like food drives, Philanthropy Day, or our Penny Wars. Once again, our Pride scholars have shown us how they are going to make our world a better place.
The Penny Wars was a huge success for Pride Academy.
The Penny Wars brought our community together and focused us on living our school mission by giving back to others and being philanthropists. But more importantly, it helped families in need at Isaiah House.
As Executive Director, Zammeah Bivins-Gibson shared,
“Isaiah House continues to marvel at the love and support we get from Pride Academy. It’s evident that Pride is committed to our community and see the value in helping us, help others. We were absolutely blown away by the SIGNIFICANT donation you all contributed. It takes a lot to raise that amount of money, especially since many of us are suffering in our own way. This was such a loving and selfless undertaking.”
Eighteen hundred dollars goes a long way at Isaiah House.
To put it in perspective:
$30/month provides:
- A family of 5 with dinner
- Essential bedding for a family of 4
- 6 full bags of food to feed 3 families of 4 for $4 a day
- Cleaning supplies for 1 entire unit for a week
- Transportation to and from school for youth for a week
$60/month provides:
- Protective mattress covers for 6 beds
- Movie outing for 3 youth
- Transportation for single women program for 1 week
- 1 doctors visit for uninsured clients
- 2 days of fresh produce
$90/month provides:
- Room and board for 1 family of 5 for a night
- Daycare food for 2 weeks
- Milk for shelter for 1 week
$120/month provides:
- Activities for the mommy and we program
- Cleaning supplies for shelter for 1 week
- Host a pizza party for 1 unit
- Rental truck for picking up food and donations
- Gas for 1 agency vehicle for 2 weeks
- Paper products for 1 week
- One week of internet service
This means that Pride’s contribution of $1800 would cover each of these three categories for 6 months!
All of this came from the collective effort of OUR Pride Family bringing in some of their loose change and a few dollars.
As one of our team namesakes, Mother Teresa of Kolkata said, “Not all of us can do great things, but we can all do small things with great love.”