Ann Arbor elementary students raise nearly $3K for local animals in need

‘Our students were very dedicated to the cause’

ANN ARBOR – “They presented the idea to me and I said: Let’s do it,” said Martin Luther King Elementary School Principal Koren Clinkscale.

In May, students at the elementary school, located on Ann Arbor’s eastside, raised $2,942.67 for the Humane Society of Huron Valley.

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The fundraiser was led by the King Student Council, which has representatives from 3rd-5th grade and emphasizes service to the community.

The council chose HSHV from a list of area organizations because many students at the school have pets that use the services offered by the animal not-for-profit, Clinkscale said over email.

Student Council leaders, teachers Jillian O’Leary and Tess Peck, then presented the idea to Clinkscale and the school got to work raising money.

King students were inspired to contribute to the fundraiser by a game called Penny Wars, in which different grade levels competed against each other.

While many students contributed their own money, others asked family members to donate to the cause.

“I heard many fun stories of students biking to the bank to retrieve their own funds to donate to the organization. Our students were very dedicated to the cause,” said Clinkscale.

After the grand total was added up, Clinkscale said the first reaction among students and faculty was “Wow!”

“We were so excited that we, as a collective body, could work together to raise so much money for an organization near and dear to our hearts,” she said.

Learn more about King Elementary School here and the Humane Society of Huron Valley here.


About the Author:

Sarah has worked for WDIV since June 2018. She covers community events, good eats and small businesses in Ann Arbor and has a Master's degree in Applied Linguistics from Grand Valley State University.