As I said before, May is for miracles (#MayIsForMiracles) and May 7th was most certainly a day jam-packed with philanthropy. I have become a pro at 2 appearance days, and even pretty good at getting through 3 appearance days, but I had never attempted a 4 appearance day. Well, there's a first time for everything -- I guess it was inevitable. For the sake of ease, I’m going to break this day into two separate blogs, so here goes!
Stop #1:
My first visit of the day was to P.S. 69. As Miss Staten Island 2012, I created "Wish For Change," where students in local elementary schools filled buckets with spare change and bills that they earned themselves to donate to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Classes competed to see who would collect the most money and the winner had a pizza lunch with yours truly. Over the past 2 years, this program has changed and grown with my platform expansion. I have used my buckets in over 10 schools to include causes such as Light The Night ("Bright Lights") and Children’s Miracle Network ("Miracle Makers"). On this particular day, I was at P.S. 69 to talk about The Children’s Miracle Network. My goal was to speak to the fifth graders about volunteering and kids helping kids. They would then be empowered to turn key the information to their entire school and motivate all 46 classes….yes, 46…to help others.
Accompanied by my dad, who was excited to join me, I was greeted by Linda Sorrentino, Enrichment Coordinator, who escorted me to meet Principal Doreen Murphy. Afterwards, we went to the auditorium where I waited for the fifth grade classes to arrive. Throughout my presentation, the students listened attentively as I spoke to them about myself, the Miss America Organization, philanthropy, and the Children's Miracle Network. They asked so many questions on so many levels, but it was clear that they were ready and willing to help. I explained what they needed to do and left my buckets in their hands.
I picked up the buckets, yesterday, and I am quite pleased with the results! I will post the total soon! On Monday, May 19th, I will return for the start of their "Spirit Week" to announce the winning class!
Stop #2:
My second stop of the day was a visit to I.S. 75 to speak with students involved in the "Junior Giving Circle." The Staten Island Giving Circle, of which I am a member, does amazing work in helping others in hundreds of ways from wrapping Easter baskets for those in need to collecting money to send to the Phillipines to help typhoon victims.
Samantha Cooper Pettinato, a member of the Staten Island Giving Circle, started this junior chapter at I.S. 75. The students meet once a week to work on various projects to help their community. Their current project is collecting unwanted prescription eyeglasses.
I was told that the students - especially the girls - had been awaiting my visit for the past month. So, when I was finally able to speak with them, they were extremely eager to hear what I had to say. The conversation was a casual give and take. I had the opportunity to tell them of my personal philanthropic accomplishments, as well as hear about theirs. What a remarkable group of young people they are! I am truly thankful to have had the opportunity to meet them.
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