Every year, the students and staff of Byron-Bergen Elementary School undertake an annual, school-wide community service project to coincide with the 100th day of school. This year’s project was to create 100 care bags for residents of Premier Genesee Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation in Batavia.
“We wanted residents to know, in spite of not being able to have family visit, their community has not forgotten about them,” said project organizer and Byron-Bergen Kindergarten Teacher Ayn Gardner.
The care bags included snacks, personal care products, and adult coloring books and supplies. Each grade level was assigned a certain item to collect and fill the bags, such as shampoo. On Friday, February 19, the school-wide effort resulted in 114 bags for delivery to Premier Genesee the week of February 22, the 100th day of school.
“We are blown away by the generosity,” said Rhonda Kunker, Activities Director at Premier Genesee. “The bags are beautiful and we are very thankful.”
Gardner originally brought the idea of an annual service project to the school 15 years ago. “I felt it was important to plant the seed of the importance of community service in our youngest community members,” said Gardner. “The District embraced the idea, and we have been conducting an annual project.”