New Brunswick Teacher's Goal: Every Student Gets A Gift To Open

NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ — The holiday spirit is alive and well at Livingston Elementary School in New Brunswick: For the fourth year in a row, physical education teacher Jennifer Olawski organized a GoFundMe campaign that raised more than $10,000. All the money was spent to buy a gift for every student in the school (there are more than 400), and the kids unwrapped the gifts last week at a school-wide assembly.

Olawski said she started doing this drive four years ago, when she worked at a public school in Paterson. It was such a success there, that she brought it to the New Brunswick school district. Even though the project was started and carried out by Olawski, the entire New Brunswick school district chipped in with donating, purchasing and wrapping gifts, Patch was told.

Last year, her campaign raised enough money that every child was given winter accessories, a toy and a science STEM building kit to open during the holiday season.

"As an educator for Livingston Elementary School I have been granted the chance to interact with and educate approximately 450 incredible students from a tight-knit community," Olawski wrote on her GoFundMe page. "The reason for the season is to spread kindness and to teach our scholars the importance of giving back to their communities. A little bit of kindness can go a very long way!"

The money was donated online by strangers, and the fundraiser raised more than $10,000.