School relief
CENTER TOWNSHIP — In May when Joy Bernhard learned about an Oklahoma elementary school that was leveled by a tornado, killing seven students, the disaster struck a nerve.
Thinking over that unimaginable situation, the Center Township Elementary third grade teacher decided she wanted to help.
She began putting fliers up around school before summer break, asking teachers if they could donate any spare teaching supplies or materials to deliver to Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, Okla. Seven third graders died there following a tornado May 20, and the disaster left 80 classrooms in rubble.
“Not only did they lose their classrooms, but many of them lost their cars and their homes,” said Bernhard, who's been teaching at Center Township for 17 years. “It really hit home with me.”
Before the new school year begins, she will fly to Oklahoma and delivering more than 80 boxes of supplies, from books to holiday decorations, even a popcorn machine, to the tragedy-stricken school.
Bernhard has received supplies and monetary donations from teachers, parents, former students and several organizations including Keystone Ridge Designs, Future Point of Sale, Wendy's, the First United Methodist Church and Crossfire. Butler School District did not sponsor the project, but it did let Bernhard store the materials in an empty classroom at the elementary school.
Jody Harbison, a recently retired Mars teacher, heard about the project through a friend. She delivered about 15 plastic bins of supplies. Having been a teacher for 41 years, she had accumulated a lot of materials. Teaching manuals, books and classroom decorations were among the plethora of her donations.
“Teaching supplies, those are the kinds of things you take out of your pocket,” said Harbison, who was a reading and language arts teacher. “I'm glad they're going to a good source. I want teachers to be able to use these ... I was never going to use them again.”
Bernhard has been overwhelmed by how much the community has been willing to help, with donations far exceeding her expectations. Because she received so many supplies from donors, a delivery truck will be making the trip to Oklahoma.
Her youngest daughter heard a radio advertisement for Brother's Brother Foundation, a Pittsburgh-based charity that delivers education and health supplies to the needy. Over the years, it has delivered supplies to more than 145 countries.
Bernhard made the arrangements with them to deliver the goods.
“It worked out in my situation beautifully,” she said. “God just has a way of putting things in place.”
Because this was not a school-sponsored project, Bernhard had help from her husband Mike and Center Township teachers including Karyn Calderone and Sandra Baxter, volunteered to assist.
To learn more, visit the Facebook page, “Send Joy to Moore, OK to rebuild Plaza Towers' classrooms.”
