The Douglas MacArthur Elementary School community collected 27,256 pennies, 4,396 nickels, 7,124 dimes, 6,604 quarters, 13 half dollars, and 39 dollar coins, along with over $2,000 in online donations to meet their goal of raising $10,000 as part of the Pennies for Patients fundraising drive.
Within the span of three weeks, students, parents and teachers collected and contributed tens of thousands of coins for Pennies for Patients, an initiative of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS). LLS has been raising funds to support research leading to a cure for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma since 1994, through the Pennies for Patients program. Every classroom in the school contributed towards the goal.
In addition to collecting coins, students set up lemonade stands, ran yard sales and encouraged friends and family members from across the country to donate online.
Our students set a goal and worked together to meet that goal. Their hard work paid off. We are all really proud of the work of our school community,” said Matthew Holland, a third-grade teacher at Douglas MacArthur and coordinator of the MacArthur Pennies for Patients drive.
MacArthur has been participating in the Pennies for Patients drive since 2010 and has raised more than $53,000 to help in the fight against leukemia and lymphoma. While this year was their biggest to date, last year they came very close to reaching the $10,000 mark with a total of $9,359.33.
In addition to supporting research to find cures for leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma, Pennies for Patients provides information and services for patients and their families.