Page 5 - The Wayne Dispatch

Two elementary schools go to war with each other

By Carolyn Marnon
“Penny Wars was the best time
I’ve ever had with a fundraiser,” said
Hoover Elementary School parent li-
aison Jessica McMahen. “I had no
idea it would lead us to collect over
$1,000 in only two weeks or the
amount of fun we had while running
it! The name of the game really is
sabotage.”
The Wayne Police Department
was the beneficiary of the fundrais-
ing competition held between Hoover
and Roosevelt Mc-Grath elementary
schools. Charles D. Hallman, Roo-
sevelt-McGrath Principal, presented
what he called “a Happy Gilmore-
sized check” for $2,460 to Police
Chief Ryan Strong at the May 7 city
council meeting.
For the past two years, Hoover
and Roosevelt Mc-Grath have both
been chosen for the police depart-
ment’s Shop with a Cop program.
The schools wanted to give back to
the cops. After the check presenta-
tion, Chief Strong publicly recog-
nized Sergeants Hughes and Perez
for keeping the program rolling.
According to Roosevelt Mc-Grath
parent liaison Jillian Boston, “Penny
Wars has been around for a very long Charles D. Hallman, Roosevelt-McGrath Principal, Jillian Boston, and Jess McMahen present Wayne Police Chief Ryan Strong
time. I started doing it at Roosevelt- a check to the Wayne Police for two thousand four hundred sixty dollars from Penny Wars between Roosevelt-McGrath and
McGrath about 5 years ago. The first
year we raised money for Angels of Hoover Elementary Schools.
Hope. I am not sure who originally a popsicle party and that was Mrs. runner for 5 days before getting and in some past years has not had
came up with the idea; however, I Hess with -220.84. I am not sure if pushed down to second to last and enough put into it to host at all. This
saw it on Pinterest. We collected do- Hoover is doing anything like that came back for an astonishing win at year, we wanted to give back and
nations over 10 school days. All though.” the last minute. It was anybody's help strengthen the bond between
forms of money were acceptable. Hoover parent liaison Jess McMa- game and they played it so well!” our schools and the community that
The pennies counted as positive hen relates in an email “Jillian “Shop with a Cop is a fantastic already does so much for us. It's also
points for the class and anything else Boston and I had tossed around the program that gives to families in our a great way to teach our students
was negative. So if a student brought idea of having a fundraiser competi- area that need help with food and that we can care for others in small
in 25 pennies and someone else put tion between our two schools at pre- holiday gifts,” she continues. “It is a ways and they still add up to big
a quarter in their bucket then they vious parent coordinator meetings, program that is run on donations, things.”
lost 25 pennies. So silver and paper as we are so close in distance and
denominations were considered ‘sab- want to involve our students in help-
otage.’ At the end of each day I would ing our community. When Jill sug-
write the class totals up so they gested a Penny War and explained
could figure out who to sabotage the how easy and fun it is, I was sold on
next day.” the idea. We offered a pizza party for
“Roosevelt-McGrath won between the class with the highest points at
the schools,” Jillian said. “We the end, but one student's grand-
brought in $1,382 and Hoover mother stepped in and offered to
brought in $1,078. The winning help throw a school wide pizza party
school gets to decide on something with the Belleville Police Department,
silly for the losing principal/parent li- where her son is an officer, to show
aison to do. As for the classes, the their support for the amazing work
class that brought in the most pen- our students put in for this
nies won a pizza party, which was fundraiser! It was a fabulous sur-
Mrs. Hoover’s 2nd grade. The class prise. The class that won was Mrs.
with the largest negative amount won Carroll's class, who was the front
The Wayne Dispatch · June 2019 · 5