No matter the distance: Catholic schools support Australia wildfire families
10th graders Olivia Snyder and John Pupillo-Gerchman started “Bands for a Cause,” in which the duo designed and now plans to sell red wristbands to raise money for Australians affected by the fires. “I think it’s great that they’re getting involved. The cute little pictures that they drew, the little sayings that they wrote. I think it’s wonderful,” Suh said. “The whole school is involved in this and they’re eager to help in any way shape or form.” Pupillo-Gerchman and Snyder’s idea came from the Google 20 Time initiative in teacher Mimi Suh’s classroom. Google 20 Time is a push from Google to give employees 20 percent of their work day to focus on a project they are passionate about. “I feel a lot of compassion for the victims. What happened is very sad and I feel really bad about it,” Pupillo-Gerchman said. “It’s really important because I really like to give back.” Suh took this concept and applied it to her English classes, with the only catch being the project has to be based in service. Suh told 12 News Snyder and Pupillo-Gerchman will attend WE Day in Baltimore on March 30, which celebrates student involvement in service projects. But some students even went a little deeper. Students within the district raised more than $2000 to help families at Lumen Christi College in Pambula Beach, New South Wales, a K-12 school. “I think it’s great what they’re doing, what they chose for their project,” Suh said. “I have all of my students involved in these Google 20 time projects, and they have a service component attached to it because our school is all about giving back.” BINGHAMTON (WBNG) — Students with the Catholic Schools of Broome County system are helping out Australia as the country faces devastation from wildfires. In addition to the wristbands and funds raised, elementary schools in the CSBC wrote cards for families, expressing sympathy and compassion during a difficult time. The money was raised through “dress down days,” where students paid $1 to dress in regular clothes instead of school uniforms.