$5,000 for textbooks, school supplies and I-Pad mini technology

MONROE — Piles of glue sticks, pencils, binders, paper and composition books sat on the chorus risers in the music room at North Main Elementary School this past week, as children walked in with their school supply lists in hand.

There were plastic folders in various colors too, because every student knows to only buy the required colored folders noted in the teacher’s supply list.

Never, never deviate from the list.

Having access to these free school supplies makes a difference in being prepared and ready for the first day of school for these children, who are part of the Monroe-Woodbury School District’s summer “English Language Learners Boot Camp Program.”

Those children, district officials have said, tend to be members of the neediest families in the district.

A week’s time
It’s all possible though the generosity of parishioners of St. Patrick’s Church in Highland Mills and the families and volunteers who attended the parish’s weeklong bible summer camp.

Every year, Theresa Weissburg and Patricia Murray, bible camp co-directors, select a mission project with camp families and the church community supporting it through fund-raising activities.

In only a week’s time, though bake sales, a summer camp performance and contributions from parishioners and other donations, almost $5,000 was raised to support Weissburg’s and Murray’s project.

Weissburg and Murray used the funds to purchase textbooks and reading books for students enrolled in the district’s English Language Learners summer program, which is based at North Main.

They will also use some of the funds to purchase I-Pod minis for the English Language Learners program at North Main, said Murray, who is a music teacher at that school.

The rest of funds were used for school supplies for needy students district-wide.

Like a Staples annex
This past week, Murray’s music classroom was transformed to look like a Staples annex, with bible camp volunteers working with students to select the supplies they needed.

“What’s nice to know is that students only asked for what they didn’t have,” said Murray. “So many told us, ‘I already have this and that.’ No one took advantage of anything.”

Weissburg thanked everyone who contributed to the mission project’s success.

“It’s extraordinary,” she added.”Look at the generosity of the community. I think this will become an annual effort, as long as we can fund it.”

- Nancy Kriz