MOUNT GREENWOOD — Students at Marist High School in Mount Greenwood raised more than $6,000 for hurricane relief through a series of in-school fundraisers earlier this month.
The proceeds will benefit schools and ministries operated by the Marist Brothers in Puerto Rico, as well as the St. Bernard Project, a natural disaster recovery organization.
“The reaction from students was inspiring,” said Colleen Pochyly, a campus minister at Marist. “This gave them a sense that they could help someone in need even though they are far away.”
The fundraisers were coordinated by Marist Youth, the Catholic school’s service club. It's Hurricane Relief Week collected donations each morning in students' homerooms from Oct. 2-6.
An ice cream sundae sale was also held as part of the fundraising effort, and Marist T-shirts from previous events were sold with profits going to hurricane relief as well. The homeroom with the most donations at each grade level was awarded bagels and juice.
A mission trip to Texas is also planned for January to help with the long-term cleanup. Other spring break mission trips are being considered related to the hurricane relief effort as well. Marist sponsors about three mission trips annually.
“It’s both humbling and empowering for students to realize all they have and the immense ability they have to impact someone else’s life,” said Patrick Meyer, a Marist campus minister.
