St. Aloysius pupils show heart
BY DAVE BENJAMIN
Staff Writer

JACKSON - Sixth-graders at St. Aloysius School, Bennetts Mills Road, are all heart.

Students, families and teachers created three super-sized Valentine's Day baskets that have been raffled off.

Proceeds from the raffle will be donated to the local St. Vincent de Paul conference, which uses the money to help needy people in the community.

"It was most heartwarming to see the faces of the sixth-graders as we accumulated the money for the baskets," said Paula Stedman, a teacher who helped organize the effort.

"The children were thrilled to know that through their service, people in our community were going to benefit. At St. Aloysius we are blessed with an incredible group of boys and girls," Stedman said.

The program is now in its fourth year at the school.

The overflowing baskets were filled with Valentine's Day goodies, stuffed animals and Valentine's Day toys. The sixth-graders then sold raffle tickets to their fellow students in the fourth through eighth grades. Each raffle ticket sold for 25 cents.

Three tickets were selected and the winners were fourth-grader Connor Bohringer, sixth-grader Cassie Weber and math teacher Pam Lopez.

"I felt great when I found out that I won," Connor said. There's so many cool things. I'm going to share the gifts with my brothers."

"I was very surprised to find out that I had won," Cassie said. "I was thrilled. Wait until my three sisters and little brother see."

Teacher Dina Hoover, who also helped to coordinate the event, said that through this activity, the students put their faith into action.

"Here at St. Aloysius we do more than learn about our faith," Hoover said. "We practice it in all we say and do. That's what our school is all about, informing and transforming."