Abbot-Downing Elementary School
Concord, New Hampshire
Principal: Anthony Blinn
Advisors: Anthony Blinn, Stephanie de Nesnera
Student Council Officers: 10
Projects
“Hearts for the Elderly”
The students wanted to make residents at a nursing home feel special and loved. They made several heart ornaments out of cardboard and yarn. They visited the residents on Valentine’s Day to hand them out. They also teamed up with a resident to do some arts and crafts with them, followed by playing BINGO, which was a favorite. The project was more successful than anticipated. The students were nervous about meeting the residents, but, by the end, the nervousness had vanished and good-bye hugs were had. Plans for next year are to add more visits to the nursing home.
“Pass Along Project”
One of our members shared that there was a high need for socks and pajamas at the Pass Along Project Center where her mom volunteered. The Pass Along Project is a non-profit organization that collects, sorts, and donates clothing to foster homes that take in children who often arrive with only the clothes on their back. They saw a need and as a group we discussed how we could help fill that need. We decided to put on a donation drive for the months of December and January To get the community into donating, we gave them a goal. Our first year were were able to cover the school namesake, the Abbot-Downing Coach, with a post-it for every item donated. We have put this drive on for three years collecting over 2,400 new socks and pajamas. We then dropped them off at a sorting center where they are distributed to local foster kids. Our students saw a problem, planned a way to solve it, and put the plan into action, showing true student leadership and citizenship.