After learning about the Australian wildfires in class, sixth graders Olivia and Addison wanted to make a difference, so they asked a few friends for help and started a fundraiser called ‘Koins for Koalas.’
“It was really scary because they were mostly videos about koalas having special gloves because they’ve been burned so bad,” Paige Miller says.
Paige, along with her classmates from , Olivia, Addison and Ella, didn’t like what they saw happening on the other side of world.
Ella says, “I thought it was very traumatic and it was scary because I’ve never seen anything like that happen to the animals.”
So they came up with a way to help save koalas from extinction.
Paige says, “I think it’s going to help other people realize how important this is, that every penny counts.”
They’ve placed a coin jar in every classroom at their school, encouraging their schoolmates to donate their spare change.
Addison says, “We’ve been pretty successful, I’ve seen like Mrs. Hammon’s class, they have a lot of coins.”
Olivia says, “Once the little kids get in sixth grade or higher grades that they take this on and just help people anywhere.”
All of the money will be donated to the to help rescue and supply emergency care to injured koalas.
Principal at Anne Gwaltney says, “I am so impressed with them, first of all they’re thinking outside of themselves, which is what we want for our students, but the other thing is that they were so organized and so passionate about what they wanted to do.”
Ella says, “It’s something we that thought was just going to be a small little thing, but everyone’s taking it so good and responsibly.”
Young leaders, inspiring others to help make the world a better place.
Olivia says, “I think this is important because the Koalas have a chance in going extinct and we just want to help them so they don’t go extinct.”
The school even had a fun competition between the classrooms. Last week, the school raised more than $1,000.
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