Rockwood School District: Eureka High FACS Students Give Back

Press release from the Rockwood School District:

June 10, 2021

​​Students in the Fashion Construction class at Eureka High lent their swewing skills to a good cause over the past two years as they embarked on a service project benefiting Shriners Hospital and the Saint Louis Crisis Nursery. The students made 37 blankets for these agencies providing support to local families in crisis.“For over 10 years, I have been saving scraps left over from the fleece tops students make in my class with the intent of using them for a community service project,” said Debbie Powell, Eureka High's family and consumer sciences (FACS) department chair​. “The students decided to upcycle these scraps into blankets to donate to local charities.”The project was a result of a new club at Eureka High, the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA). Powell and other FACS teachers created the club as a way to get students involved in service projects. Recent graduate McKenna Kling was one of the first to get involved. “I fell in love with the club even more after the first meeting,” said Kling. “Mrs. Powell and the other teachers chose me, as well as others, to serve on the executive board. Because I was on the board, I had a voice in helping to choose the projects we were going to take part in.” The students were able to make 10 large and 27 small blankets to benefit local families. “Because we already had the supplies and 20 sewing machines at our disposal, all we really needed was volunteers,” said Kling.The FCCLA was able to recruit students from the National Honor Society during FLEX time to help sew and cut fabric. These students also benefited, as the time spent volunteering was considered a service point opportunity for them. “These students spent countless hours assembling the blankets,” said Powell.“I felt really special and blessed to be a part of this project,” said Kling. “Serving just makes me feel so humbled and encouraged to do more good things.” Thanks in part to this service project, Kling hopes to continue her mission in the future.“Going forward, I think I will try to look for more ways I can use my talents to help others,” said Kling. “Even though I don't plan to study fashion in college, I think it would be really cool if I could still sew for fun and maybe do another service project at a local hospital in my college town or through my church.”Note: the unmasked picture of students sewing was taken during the 2019-2020 school year, before COVID-19 mitigation strategies too effect​ ​                                     ​​                  ​  

​​Students in the Fashion Construction class at Eureka High lent their swewing skills to a good cause over the past two years as they embarked on a service project benefiting Shriners Hospital and the Saint Louis Crisis Nursery. The students made 37 blankets for these agencies providing support to local families in crisis.“For over 10 years, I have been saving scraps left over from the fleece tops students make in my class with the intent of using them for a community service project,” said Debbie Powell, Eureka High's family and consumer sciences (FACS) department chair​. “The students decided to upcycle these scraps into blankets to donate to local charities.”The project was a result of a new club at Eureka High, the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA). Powell and other FACS teachers created the club as a way to get students involved in service projects. Recent graduate McKenna Kling was one of the first to get involved. “I fell in love with the club even more after the first meeting,” said Kling. “Mrs. Powell and the other teachers chose me, as well as others, to serve on the executive board. Because I was on the board, I had a voice in helping to choose the projects we were going to take part in.” The students were able to make 10 large and 27 small blankets to benefit local families. “Because we already had the supplies and 20 sewing machines at our disposal, all we really needed was volunteers,” said Kling.The FCCLA was able to recruit students from the National Honor Society during FLEX time to help sew and cut fabric. These students also benefited, as the time spent volunteering was considered a service point opportunity for them. “These students spent countless hours assembling the blankets,” said Powell.“I felt really special and blessed to be a part of this project,” said Kling. “Serving just makes me feel so humbled and encouraged to do more good things.” Thanks in part to this service project, Kling hopes to continue her mission in the future.“Going forward, I think I will try to look for more ways I can use my talents to help others,” said Kling. “Even though I don't plan to study fashion in college, I think it would be really cool if I could still sew for fun and maybe do another service project at a local hospital in my college town or through my church.”Note: the unmasked picture of students sewing was taken during the 2019-2020 school year, before COVID-19 mitigation strategies too effect​ ​                                     ​​                  ​  

This press release was produced by the Rockwood School District. The views expressed here are the author’s own.