NACI shows its support for Fort McMurray

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Photos by Kira Paterson. Students lined up in the NACI lunch room to get some treats at the Grade 8 bake sale for Fort McMurray on May 19.

By Kira Paterson

Neepawa Banner/Neepawa Press

On Thursday, May 19, the entire student and staff body of NACI banded together to raise money for the victims of the Fort McMurray fires. 

The first fundraiser that day was a bake sale put on by the Grade 8 students. The students brought baking and mixed iced tea to sell during their morning recess and lunch break.

Junior high, senior high and adults alike came by the table to get some treats while supporting a good cause. 

Then after lunch, Miss Spring’s Grade 9 Social Studies class took over with the talent show they organized. Entry in the show was open to students from Grades 6 to 12 and the entire school gathered in the gym to watch. 

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The Grade 9 band class performed a percussion piece on garbage cans, coffee tins and buckets.

Admission was by donation, and with the donation, attendees were given a ballot to vote for whichever act they liked the most. 

“Miss Spring introduced the idea of starting some activity that would benefit people around you and we started brainstorming and we came up with the talent show idea,” explained Claire Brister, one of the Grade 9 students involved in organizing the event. 

Kailyn Hanke, another Grade 9 student involved in it, said that the class didn’t really know about the fires until Miss Spring told them, so they all decided it would be good if they raised money for Fort McMurray. 

The class started planning the event only two weeks before the day the talent show happened. “I think for the time we planned it and did all the work, it went very well,” said Brister. 

“We put that together really quick,” added Hanke.

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Elisha Diaz, Joanne Plaza and May Ann Sadiamona got the crowd pumped up for the event with a dance number.  

They said that about 30 acts entered to be in the show, but because of time restrictions, they were only allowed to have 16 perform.

“It went very well and we were happy to have everybody participate, because we weren’t sure how many people would want to come,” noted Brister. Hanke agreed, saying that they chose the talent show because they hoped it would get the whole school involved. 

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Vicky Elgert (left) and Jessica Gibson serenaded the audience with "I See the Light", accompanied by Dasha Chekhovskaya (right).

The class also made posters telling about the different communities and organizations across Canada that have helped Fort McMurray in some way. “I think those went over well too, because the students could see the different things other people have done to try to help,” said Hanke.

The girls said that both the talent show and bake sale combined raised about $2,200, which they will send to the Red Cross to be used to help Fort McMurray.

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The Grade 9 Social Studies class kept busy, organizing the event as well as making the posters hat let people know about what others have done for Fort McMurray.