Easter treats
Students in the Butler County Community College's physical therapy assistants club are filling Easter baskets for children who might not otherwise get any gifts for the holiday.
This is the third year club members are collecting donations for the baskets they will give to children through the Butler County Alliance for Children before Easter.
Students in the club are freshmen, but they said they want to carry on the tradition of serving the community started by previous students.
“The feedback from it was really great. We wanted to carry it on,” said Hannah Budzowski of New Castle, a freshman in the club and its vice president.
“It's a tradition. They've been doing it for years,” said club member and freshman Morgan Morrison of Butler.
Students have fliers asking for donations posted throughout campus, and those who have after-school jobs post fliers and ask for donations where they work.
New toys for boys and girls ages 3-18 are needed. Club members don't want electronics or anything requiring batteries.
“We have fliers everywhere. The students in our class are working really hard to fill the Easter baskets for the kids,” Budzowski said. Donated money will be used by basket stuffers, she said.
“Everybody around campus has been very generous,” said club member Brittany Lindsay, another freshman from Butler.
Club members hope to collect enough toys, stuffed animals and candy to fill a lot of baskets.
“One hundred is our goal,” said club member Kelsie Nicastro of Natrona Heights.
“It was a very rewarding experience for students because they see the difference it makes,” said Carissa Hicks, a part-time instructor in the physical therapy assistant program.
“It was a project that their club took on and it's something they've decided to continue. This is our third year,” said Denna Hays, executive director of Butler County Alliance for Children child advocacy center.
The center is a child-friendly place where members of a multidisciplinary team of child welfare personnel, law enforcement officials, medical and mental professionals, prosecutors and victim advocates meet to coordinate responses to child abuse allegations.
Hays said the students give the baskets to children or their parents or guardians at the center.
“They bring the baskets here and they actually hand them out. There's no restrictions as far as income levels or anything. They didn't want to have to turn anyone away. They would be available to anyone who is need of an Easter basket,” she said.The BC3 students wait outside the center with the baskets and let those who need them pick the basket they want, she said.“For me that's the part I like the most. The students from BC3 get to see that what they're doing truly impacts people.“I love it. The group is getting to see the benefits of their efforts,” Hays said.“One family lost everything in a fire. A boy picked a basket with a football. He started crying saying it was the only toy he had at that point,” Hays said.She said some people are grandparents caring for children and some are widows and widowers.Center staff members ask people who come for baskets to join the center's mailing list so they can receive information on services and programs.“We ask them to fill out a form to get them on our mailing list. We do a lot of training and community events for child abuse prevention. We add them to list,” Hays said.The baskets will be distributed March 29, but the time hasn't been set, Hays said.
