By Shannon McFarlin News Director
Paris, Tenn.–Under the watchful portrait of the late Dr. W.G. Rhea, the staff and students at Rhea Elementary received a book vending machine from the SchoolStore Friday morning and you couldn’t tell if the students or staff were more excited.
The books are free and a reward given to students who follow the pillars of characters: caring, fairness, respect, responsibility, trustworthiness and citizenship. Students who were selected to be part of Friday’s activities (and who received the first books from the vending machine) are Axel Bryant, Lane Benson, Jenson Partain, Willow Harrison, Millie Hart, Titus Peterson, Daniel Rivera, Jacob McCaskill, Rhemi Morgan and Ty Davidson.
Students will be nominated by faculty and staff each month. The staff will choose students from each pillar monthly and do additional drawings as well for the six weeks.
The fundraiser was begun by former Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) President Stacy Hayes, who said she read about the SchoolStore fundraiser and thought it would be a perfect fit for Rhea School. Hayes was at the ribbon-cutting, along with the current PTO President Mandy Davidson and a group of staff and teachers.
Hayes said, “This was a really good fundraiser because it was something we could get the families involved in. You can’t imagine how excited we area. We’ve been working toward this for a few years and the work paid off.”
Principal Chris Hudgins said, “This is a great way to reward good behavior by the kids. And it’s a great way for the kids to get books and anytime you can get books in kids’ hands, it’s great.”
Other Henry County schools which have book vending machines include Lakewood and Henry.
Reading For Education and sister company SchoolStore has served over 40,000 U.S. elementary schools for 44 years, raising $250 Million for teachers. SchoolStore, America’s leading online classroom funding program, allows donors to gift Caring For Classroom cards to teachers for essential supplies.
In addition to raising funds, schools participating in the SchoolStore program have the exciting opportunity to win valuable prizes. Every week, one lucky school will be awarded a free Book Vending Machine, an innovative and fun way to encourage reading and reward positive behavior.
Book vending machines provide an engaging experience for students to access new books. By earning golden tokens and using them in the book vending machine, students can walk away with a brand-new book to take home. Not only does this addition bring a sense of excitement to y schools, but it also impacts students’ lives by encouraging a love for reading.
On Friday, SchoolStore is delivered a Book Vending Machine to W. G. Rhea Elementary School, which was selected as one of the winners. The school has a participation rate of 53%, giving them 13 entries into the drawing. This is W.G. Rhea’s 4th year running the SchoolStore fundraiser and has raised over $54,000 in total.
For more information, www.readingforeducation.org
Photo: Rhea School Principal Chris Hudgins couldn’t hide his excitement at receiving a book vending machine at Friday’s ribbon-cutting. (Shannon McFarlin photo).