Wrightsville Beach Elementary School will host its biggest fundraiser of the year on Monday, April 11 when the school’s students participate in a Fun Run to help raise money for important items for the school.
Unlike 5Ks and other fundraising races, the aim for this event is to be fun for the kids, said Allison McWhorter, Wrightsville Beach School Parent Teacher Association president.
“It will be quite a production. The classes will run out like a team. There’ll be a lot parents that come out to see it,” McWhorter said. “The students have been challenged with raising funds to support the event, and they’re doing a good job.”
As McWhorter describes it, the event will be fun for the kids and the spectators, as the students won’t just be running, but will also have a chance to add some creativity to the event.
“Each lap will be different. There will be a ‘walk like a robot’ lap, a ‘run like an airplane’ lap and other ways to make it fun for the children,” she said.
The kindergarten through second graders will participate from 9:15 – 10:15 a.m., with the third through fifth graders participating from 10:25 – 11:25 a.m.
McWhorter said the fundraisers are critical since the state has been cutting school funding over the past five years.
“The fact is, if the teachers want something, the PTA will have to help provide it,” McWhorter said.
As the school’s biggest fundraiser, McWhorter said the goal was to raise $20,000, and so far, about half of that goal has been met.
The fundraiser is one of several events scheduled for the school this spring. Wrightsville Beach School will host its Marine Science Festival/Fun Day on April 22, which will include presentations from the Ashley High School Marine Science Academy students.
On May 23, the school’s fifth graders will be taken on a birding trip to the island’s south end by Cissie Brooks, the school’s marine science coordinator.
“The best part is that the kids made signs that warn folks to stay out of the sanctuary, and the signs are being made into permanent signs that will be posted around the shorebird sanctuary at the south end,” Brooks said in an email. “This year, the Audubon Society, with the financial support of Harbor Island Garden Club, is making 43 new signs using our students’ artwork. Some will be at Wrightsville Beach, but they will also be posted on Lea Island and Masonboro Island. I’m so proud of the students.”
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