Their first idea was to sell their Halloween candy for charity. But 4th graders Eliana Hopkinson and Charlotte Evans decided to do something bigger. A month and a half later, with the support of their teachers and classmates at North Glenmore Elementary, they had gathered well over 500 good used clothing items to benefit the Kelowna Women's Shelter.
"At our school, we created our own little fundraiser," said Evans, "to collect donations and bring them here to the Women's Shelter."
"It felt really good," added Evans. "Everybody around the school wanted to either join or wanted to donate."
Along with the clothing items, there were over 200 hats and scarves and pairs of gloves, over 50 pairs of boots and shoes, 50 coats, plus food, and even cash. Those that aren't useful to the women staying at the shelter will end up at the thrift store that benefits the shelter.
"It's incredible," said Connie Marchal, the manager of programs at the shelter. "They're going to be my volunteers in a few years!"
Hopkinson and Evans made up posters and worked the drive this way: For every good article of clothing donated, a student got another entry in the draw to win one of five prize packages. The draw was held on December 6.
The response was very gratifying for the pair, who then had the honour of dropping-off a stuffed car-load of things to the shelter. Before the drop-off, all the clothing items got a free wash at Your Laundry Fairy, which is operated by Eliana's mother, Tessa Russell.
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