Cuyahoga Falls Students Organize Lunchtime Fundraiser to Aid Japan Tsunami Victims

Students at have raised funds for relief efforts in northeast Japan, where an 8.9-magnitude earthquake that hit March 11 was followed by a 33-ft. tsunami, leaving the region devastated. 

Ryan Freeman, 9, and a few of his fourth-grade classmates learned about the humanitarian crisis in math class. 

“I said I wanted to help. Tyler, Katherine and I all had the idea to help Japan and make a fundraiser. We had a bucket, and Katherine made the sign, ‘Japan Relief Fund,’ on it. If anyone wanted to donate anything they would be in a raffle for a big candy bar, and if anyone gave 50 cents or more we would put their name on a Japan slip and hang it up on a wall in the cafeteria,” Ryan said. 

With permission from Principal Frank Margida, the students created a schedule for a team of eight volunteers in the fourth grade and two, fifth-grade students to collect donations in the cafeteria during lunch periods. Between April 18 and April 29, they raised money from students at the elementary school. Ryan also sought sponsors among his relatives, bringing the donation total to $500, which was presented in a check May 3 to the American Red Cross of Summit and Portage Counties. 

“It was definitely a group effort,” Amy Freeman, Ryan’s mother, said. 

With assurance from the local chapter of the American Red Cross that all donations would go directly toward relief efforts in Japan, the principal, staff and students supported the fundraising endeavor, she said. 

“I know it is something they will think about for a long time. I think it’s exciting that a group of 9 year-olds can raise money for the Red Cross, and they were able to give the money directly to Japan,” Freeman said. 

Ryan and others composed a brief description of their fundraising campaign, which the principal read to the student population during morning announcements to kick start the two-week campaign. 

“This project showed great compassion and care for people other than themselves who needed help. I am very proud of these students, as I am of all Richardson students who are very generous when it comes to helping others,” Margida said. 

The experience of raising funds for disaster-relief efforts was an important one, Ryan said. “I feel really good about it. I bet you all the people in our group feel good about it, to help Japan rebuild. It’s really good to give and receive. If someone’s in need of that money, we should try to help them and actually raise money for them,” he said. 

For more information on aid for relief efforts in Japan, visit the Red Cross website.