This past June, the Student Council of St. Mary’s High School in Kitchener along with their teacher, Kishanie Jayasundera, raised an impressive $5,000 to help kids their own age who are suffering from mental health illnesses.

 

“Essentially, we played the song "Mmm Bop” by Hanson for one week in between classes, in the morning, after school etc.” says Kishanie Jayaundera, The Religion teacher at St. Mary’s. “We set a goal of $5,000 and once we reached it, we stopped playing the song.”

 

The entire school got involved with this fundraiser. Teachers found ways to play the song within their classroom, Student Council members went around the halls with guitars and sang, and homeroom classes would keep a tally of the money raised, recording it on a progress meter in the cafeteria.

 

Not only was the fundraiser fun, but it was educational as well. Students learned a lot about the importance of mental health from guest speakers from Lutherwood and testimonials from students who went through Lutherwood programs, some of who now attend St. Mary’s.

Thanks go out to the organizers and the entire student body for their enthusiasm and hard work that resulted in such a meaningful gift.