Fundraiser is a class act

Just before winter break, Sara Newell, a fifth-grade teacher at Thomas Jefferson Middle School in Port Washington, received a Christmas card from one of her students. Inside was a handwritten note and $40.

“That was $40 of her own money,” Newell said. “I just cried.”

The gift — one more thoughtful than Newell could have imagined — was from Ella McManus.

“I remember thinking about what to give my teachers for Christmas, and I remembered Mrs. Newell talking about wanting to run a marathon,” McManus said last week.

Newell’s students know that her 15-year-old daughter Sophie, a sophomore at Port Washington High School, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes four years ago, and Newell mentioned to her class that she wanted to run a marathon to raise money for diabetes research.

“My class knows I run marathons, and randomly in conversation I mentioned that if I raise enough money I could run the New York City Marathon,” Newell said, adding that while her times in the five marathons she has under her belt are not nearly good enough to qualify her for such an elite race, runners can also qualify for the New York City Marathon by raising money for charities.

Inside her card to her teacher, Ella wrote, “A few weeks ago I heard that you were raising money for Type 1 diabetes. The $40 is a donation,” adding at the bottom of the card, “Thank you for being an amazing teacher! You are so sweet! Even though during math games you ‘cheat,’ you still are an amazing teacher.”

The tears Newell shed after reading the note wouldn’t be the last, because what happened next touched her deeply.

“I shared Ella’s card with the class. A girl donated $50. A boy donated $70 he earned cutting grass all summer. He said, ‘I feel like people who are struggling need this more than me.’ Today, a child brought in all the money in his piggy bank,” Newell said last week. “These are 10-year-old children. I’m sorry, but when I was 10 there was no way I was going to give away my money.

“This is not something in our curriculum. It’s my job to raise this money, certainly not the job of my students, but these two classes are filled with amazing children.”

Newell was referring to her partner teacher Barbara Papamarcos’ class, who is also participating in the fundraiser, but it’s no longer the fundraiser Newell first envisioned.

“I decided not to run the New York City Marathon because it didn’t seem right for the students who are working so hard on this not to be able to participate,” Newell said. “So I’ve decided to run a marathon around the Port High track so the kids can run a few laps with me and be part of the excitement.”

Newell said fellow Thomas Jefferson Middle School teacher and her running partner Sandy Crain will join her in the 105-lap “plus a little change” marathon on Saturday, May 16. Crain will be running to benefit spina bifida research because one of her students has the condition.

So now the students’ fundraiser will directly benefit Breakthrough T1D, a nonprofit organization dedicated to finding a cure for Type 1 diabetes, and they are all in.

They have chosen a name for their effort on the Breakthrough T1D fundraising website — Students Leading the Charge for a Cure — and are working toward their goal of raising $5,000 by July 31 like seasoned fundraisers.

As fifth-grader Hope Wojcik put it in an email to Ozaukee Press, “Our class has become a small business, splitting into teams such as marketing, T-shirt making, morning announcements, advertising and donation gathering, to name a few.”

Students, it seems, are finding any way they can to participate.

Kinsley Jungbauer is selling figurines during lunch periods that are made on a 3D printer by her aunt. Her aunt, Kinsley explained, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when she was in eighth grade.

“That was a really big change for my family,” she said.

Jackson Harmelink has designed a “We Run for Type 1” T-shirt for students to wear during the May 16 marathon.

And a team of students is preparing to pitch the details of its primary fundraiser — Tattoo-a-Teacher — to their principal, Nick DeBaker.

Students will be able to buy temporary tattoos for the teachers they would like to “ink.” A single arm tattoo may cost a nominal amount, while a face tattoo or an entire sleeve would require a larger donation. Teachers who participate will probably apply the tattoos at home, then join in a Tattoo Parade at school, Newell said.

The hope is that the tattoo fundraiser, in addition to being good fun for students and teachers, will contribute significantly to the cause, although as of earlier this week students have already raised $2,261, according to the Students Leading the Charge for a Cure Breakthrough T1D page.

“It’s just crazy how this fundraiser has grown,” Newell said. “Students are donating. Moms and dads and grandmas and grandpas are donating.”

As exciting as the fundraiser is for the students, there is still reading, writing and arithmetic to learn, so much of the work that goes into raising $5,000 for diabetes research is being done during their free time.

That said, the fundraiser has turned into a learning opportunity of its own, giving students the chance to develop skills that range from math and communication to organization and leadership.

“This is learning in action, as our teachers call it!” Hope, the fifth-grader who contacted Ozaukee Press, wrote.

But there are some things, Newell said, these students don’t need to be taught, among them empathy and determination.

“We have students who are bringing in wads of cash. This whole thing has made me cry a lot. It gives me goosebumps,” she said. “And they’ve done the research. They know that Type 1 diabetes is an incurable disease that you have to manage every day of your life, but they are determined to help find a cure.”

To donate to the Students Leading the Charge for a Cure Breakthrough T1D fundraiser, visit https://tinyurl.com/3e8a8npy.