Warmhearted 5th Graders Come Out On Top, Win Pizza Party For “Sweaters For Seniors” Contest

September 14th, 2009
Mrs. Miller, 5th grade teacher at R.L. Norton accepts award for most "Sweaters for Seniors" collected by her class.

Mrs. Miller, 5th grade teacher at R.L. Norton accepts award for most "Sweaters for Seniors" collected by her class.

Njeri Skeete, Care Coordinator at Alternative Home Care for Seniors (AHCS) had a good idea. Why not put a “Sweaters for Seniors” collection box at her daughter’s elementary school? And then, what if all the classes competed to win a pizza party by collecting the most sweaters?

The principal at R.L. Norton Elementary in Gwinnett County agreed. And so, began the ”K-5 Sweaters for Seniors” (S4S) competition last month.

Four weeks later, 11 fifth graders beamed on a Friday afternoon. That’s when representatives from Alternative Home Care for Seniors, Njeri Skeete and Sharna Fulton, dropped by with pepperoni pizza and apple juice to honor the children’s charitable achievement.  But first, they held a brief Q&A session and awards ceremony for Mrs. Miller’s 5th grade class, which raised the most sweaters — or rather blankets — for S4S.

As Mrs. Miller explained, “When the contest started, I asked the class if they’d want to trade in their ice cream cards — a tradition here– for blankets to give to seniors instead. They unanimously agreed and thus, raised the most sweaters in the school.”

“My grandfather gets cold a lot,” said one young man. “He’s always looking for good buys on clothing,” he explained. “Seniors are more frugal as they get older,” explained another 5th grade young lady. “They have less money to spend and need to be more careful with their money,” she added..
The compassionate and well informed group then stood to gather around their teacher they obviously have great respect for. An Auburn alum and Georgia educator of 22 years at R.L. Norton, she smiled back at her students with pride. She then asked them to quietly line-up for pizza at which they politely obeyed, saying “thank you” to the “AHCS” team several times.  
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Great job, Mrs. Miller and class. Thanks to your caring hearts, many Gwinnett County seniors will be warmer this winter!