Palatine Elementary School Raises $7,000 for Leukemia Research

Last month students at Marion Jordan Elementary School in Palatine collected nearly $7,000 in The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's (LLS) Pennies for Patients program, which raises funds for blood cancer research and patient services. Students at the school easily exceeded their $1,000 goal for the three-week campaign.

Student Ambassadors at Marion Jordan Elementary, led by teachers Kristen Eckman and Lizzie Falkenberg, coordinated the school’s efforts, according to a news release. At a kickoff assembly, a parent from the school spoke about their child’s battle against cancer, and students learned more about the difference their fundraising makes in research advances and services for Illinois patients through LLS.

Creative and effective incentives helped students fundraise. A penny graph in the school’s foyer recorded the progress of each classroom, as the highest-raising classroom received a pizza party courtesy of Domino’s Pizza.

Three special activities motivated students to raise more money, including an “Electronic Lunch” and a crazy hair day. For Electronic Lunch, students donated $5 to use an electronic of choice during supervised recess in the gym. In another activity, “Stuck for a Buck,” students paid $1 to help duct tape brave Marion Jordan principal Jennifer Grosch to a wall. In total, the Student Ambassadors helped the school raise $6,993.

“Working with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society was a very pleasant and easy experience,” said Ms. Falkenberg in a news release, who coordinates the Student Ambassadors and is a fourth grade teacher at Marion Jordan. “We look forward to helping again in the future!”

“We are so appreciative to the students, teachers and staff of Marion Jordan Elementary for their passionate involvement,” says LLS Executive Director Pam Swenk. “Without the commitment of each and every participant, and the dollars raised, we would not be able to invest in the research that is changing the quality of life for kids and adults fighting blood cancers.”

Leukemia, a type of blood cancer, remains the leading disease-related cause of death for children under 20. In addition, to Marion Jordan, more than 800 schools in Illinois registered for LLS’s Pennies programs this school year to help fund life-saving research and services for local patients.

• Pennies for Patients®: Value-building, service learning program for students from kindergarten through high school.  Students collect funds, starting with their own spare change, to support research and patient services programs for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. The school can run the Pennies program for any three week period October through April that works for their school calendar.

• Olive Garden’s Pasta for Pennies: Similar to Pennies for Patients, this program is sponsored by Olive Garden Restaurant. Students collect spare change, and the class raising the most money in each school receives a pasta party courtesy of Olive Garden. Olive Garden also hosts kickoff luncheons for representatives of participating schools in each city and provides marketing support and materials for the program.

• The Trish Greene Back to School Program for Children with Cancer helps children return to school and other activities once their treatments are over.

For more information on the School & Youth Programs in Illinois, or to learn how to register your school, visit www.schoolandyouth.org/il or call (312) 651-7358.

-Submitted by The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society