IDS Students Help to Keep Other Children Warm This Winter

Students at (IDS) in Middlefield recently raised several thousand dollars for Warm The Children, a local charity that provides new winter clothing for children throughout the greater Middletown area.

On Wednesday, Jan, 4 students from the school presented a check for $3,878.85 to Mack Stewart, founder of Warm The Children and the charity's chairman, Lynn Baldoni.

"This is just a fantastic donation and represents a lot of hard work on the part of a lot of people," said Stewart who said the money would help as many as 250 families, including some 600 children stay warm this winter.

"You guys have had an impact outside the community that's really inspiring," Headmaster John Barrengos told students gathered in the school's auditorium for the presentation.

IDS has been working with Warm The Children for more than a decade and since September students have been collecting money and clothing to donate.

Prior to the check presentation some individual efforts were recognized, including fifth grader Menelik Nesmith and first grader Finn Dwyer's read-along which raised $800 for the organization. Fourth grader Lauren Farrell and kindergartener Tracey Reynolds also organized a read-a-thon, raising about $600.

Director of Service Learning Katie Thibodeau personally thanked three year old students who collected spare change and pre-kindergarten students who created a mitten tree, collecting mittens for other children.

"That was fantastic," she told the group, adding that a Cheshire nursery had donated back the money it had raised during another IDS fundraiser for Warm The Children.

Thibodeau said many of the children who receive the clothes have never owned a new coat or stepped foot inside a store.

When she asked students involved in this year's learning project to stand up so they could be recognized, nearly all of the school's roughly two hundred students rose from their seats.

"It's just a great example of the more fortunate people in the community reaching out to help their less fortunate neighbors," said Stewart who founded the charity 25 years ago. "They just did a phenomenal job."

Editor's Note: In addition, the students of the third and fourth grade have given up their recess time this winter in order to count, bag and box donated children’s clothing items. These items will be donated to homeless children staying at Shelter Now, located in Meriden. 

The Middle School Interact club will be hosting a shoe drive to collect used shoes to benefit Soles4Souls, an organization that recycles shoes for those in need. They have already received dozens of shoes for donations.