Morris Students Raise $15K, Vote to Benefit YMCA

Although they’re too young to vote in a real election, the Morris School District has been taking instilling the importance of civic participation in their students.

The Annual Coins for a Cause project is a meaningful civics and character education curriculum developed by teachers in the District. For grades K-8, Coins for a Cause teaches them about the right and responsibility of voting and the importance of reaching out to help others. Each year, the students vote on which of three non-profits will be the beneficiary of the coins they collect in class over an 8-week period.

This year’s winning organization, the Greater Morristown YMCA’s Strong Kids Campaign, will receive a total of $14,574.32, raised by the district’s six elementary schools and as Frelinghuysen Middle School. A check presentation will take place on Friday at the Y.

“We are thrilled that our town’s students have chosen our charity. Not only will $15,000 make a huge difference to dozens of local families, but it gets the word out to the community that we are out here working to provide a carefree and accessible summer to all children,” says Carol Armour, President of the Greater Morristown YMCA.

Students are introduced to three local non-profit organizations, or candidates, who compete for students’ votes and coins collected in each classroom during the course of the 8-week lesson. Representatives of each organization present their platform and the students discuss and debate the merits of each candidate in class. The students’ classrooms become the precincts they vote in and they cast their vote in official voting booths on Election Day.

The winning candidate receives all of the proceeds collected during the Coins campaign plus $1,000 from Provident Bank.

Since 2004, the district’s Coins for a Cause has contributed approximately $80,000 to community based non-profit organizations, such as the Seeing Eye Pennies for Puppies, Interfaith Council for Homeless Families, the Community Soup Kitchen, K-9 Vested Interest Fund, St. Hubert’s Giralda, and the Morris Minute Men.

Y’s Strong Kids Campaign, which provides financial aid for summer camp tuition that directly benefits local students, as well as full or partial scholarships towards early education for underprivileged children at five different preschools in the community.

The Greater Morristown YMCA sent two “superhero” characters, Running Squirrel and Blue Flame to creatively convey the impact that the Strong Kids Campaign has on our community. The two characters appealed to the students the ways in which the prize money would directly impact and improve the lives of children from struggling families in our area.

If one would like to make a tax-deductible donation to the 2013 Annual Strong Kids Campaign, in any amount, they may call (973) 267-0704 or send a check payable to The Greater Morristown YMCA at 79 Horsehill Road in Cedar Knolls, specifying a Strong Kids Campaign donation.

Editor's Note: an earlier version of this article said that the amount raised was $15,574.32. It was a typo in the press release and the correct amount is $14,573.32.