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Mission Elementary students chocolate chip-in for the Haitian relief effort

By B.L. Azure

Mission Elementary School faculty member Susan Batiuchok and students held a bake sale to raise money for the Red Cross Haitian Relief Fund and it was very successful. (courtesy photo)

ST. IGNATIUS — The Mission Elementary School students opened their hearts and their mothers’ cookie recipe cookbooks and ovens to bake items to sell for the Red Cross Haitian Earthquake Relief and Development Fund. And it turned out to be a very successful endeavor as students, staff and faculty opened their wallets to purchase the sweet-tooth satisfying confections the students brought to school.

Mission Elementary faculty member Susan Batiuchok, who along with fellow faculty member Roberta Haynes spearheaded the effort, said she was overwhelmed by the elementary students caring ways and understanding of the situation in Haiti.

The small island nation was rocked to its roots by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake that laid waste to infrastructure of the impoverished country and claimed more than 150,000 lives. It has left nearly a million Haitians homeless as the substandard constructed homes and buildings collapsed like a house of cards.

It didn't take long for the baked goodies to fly of the table a the bake sale in support of the Red Cross Haitian Relief Fund. (courtesy photo)

Shortly after the earthquake Haynes approached Batiuchok about doing something at the school to assist in the relief effort. It was a good idea and it would be a positive real life learning experience for the students so they asked them to help in the effort. And the student gladly did.

It took the elementary students just a few days to get the ball rolling in the effort but once they did it snowballed. They soon had their mothers and others preparing all kinds of goodies that they brought to school and sold. There were also several monetary donations and that most people didn’t want their change back and that was applied to the effort. The bake sale lasted two days during the lunch hour and the final tally was $682.54.

“Even with the short notice and planning time we had an overwhelming response from the students and teachers,” Batiuchok said. “Everyone came through for this effort. They have such good hearts and I kind of well up thinking about that kindness.”

Batiuchok said she hopes the kindness of all Americans continues long after the initial response. Haiti is he poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and the majority of its citizens struggle daily to provide the basics of food and water for themselves.

Donations for the Red Cross Haiti Relief effort can be made online at www.redcross.org or by texting “Haiti” to 90999 and a $10 donation will be charged to the phone bill and the money forward to the Red Cross.