Southgate students raise funds for school

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, September 25, 2002

About a dozen Southgate fourth graders crowded around a screen with two X-rays of hands clipped to it.

Austin High School 10th grader Ashley Brimacomb asked the children how many bones were in the human hand.

Each piped in until one child answered, "26." Clint Asprey, another 10th grader, tossed the student a piece of candy.

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The elementary and high school students were participating in the school's Walk-A-Thon Tuesday, the Southgate Parent Teacher Committee's largest fund-raiser of the year.

The students had a week and a half to raise money for it. For every $10 the students raise, they get one "gator dollar" to spend at the school store. The 525 students had raised $13,000 by 11 a.m. Tuesday.

The children and teachers wrapped up the fund-raiser Tuesday morning with a walk around the school. The rest of the day, students in all grades walked through booths set up by the AHS honors biology class.

The theme this year was "Gators: Inside and Out." Children learned about different parts of the body an AHS honors biology class at interactive mini-exhibits.

The money goes toward extra projects the PTC sponsors, such as trips, author visits and playground equipment, said Kathy Ewing, of the PTC.

"It's all enrichment. It's all extras," Ewing said.

Each year the school has a different theme and it tends to work with high school classes.

Ewing said the high school students have been eloquent and good at explaining the material to different age groups.

"It's wonderful to see the high school kids and elementary kids interacting," said Principal Daniel Posthumus.

Fourth-grader Alyssa Ofstedahl, 9, was glad the high schoolers came to her school.

"I think it's really neat that high schoolers take time to show us all about the body's insides," she said.

Tim Jacobson, 9, said the booths were "cool."

"You got to see all the muscles, see how eyes work, lots of experiments," Jacobson said.

Jacobson said he raised $120 and had decided he would buy inflatable boxing gloves, a sports necklace, a finger skateboard and a baby bottle pop with his gator dollars Wednesday, when the students are allowed to buy items from the school store.

All students, no matter how much money they raised, received a water bottle, donated by Hy-Vee, and a pencil.

Fourth grade teacher Bill Kinney said the day was going well.

"Elementary kids respond well to high schoolers," he said.

The biology class had a week to prepare the booths for the students, Asprey said.

"It's pretty fun. It's fun to teach kids all the stuff they don't know and to see the reactions to all the stuff they don't know," Asprey said. "All the kids are really good, especially when they find out they're getting candy if they answer right."

Cari Quam can be reached at 434-2235 or by e-mail at cari.quam@austindailyherald.com