Cassell Student Council Presents $600 Check at 'Get Behind the Vest' Fundraiser

CHICAGO, IL -- Cassell Elementary School student council presented a check of $600 to Ald. Matt O’Shea (19th) at Sunday’s third annual ‘Get Behind the Vest’ pancake breakfast held at St. John Fisher School.

The breakfast raises money to help Chicago police officers replace their bulletproof vests. Officers need to dig into their own pockets to pay $500 or more to buy their own vests, which need to be replaced every five years.

The Chicago Police Memorial Foundation has replaced thousands of outdated bullet-resistant vests currently in use by Chicago police officers. The organization now works to provide an additional 500 vests annually to help ensure the safety of officers.

O’Shea worked with local schools to organize “dress down days” and other student-based fundraisers to raise additional funds for bullet resistant vests.

Cassell’s student council organized a dress-down day last week and collected $600 in donations from their classmates. Student council treasurer Jenna May presented to the alderman and police foundation representatives on Sunday morning.

The alderman started the pancake breakfast in 2015, which draws over 1,200 attendees. Since its inception, the breakfast combined with other school fundraising efforts has raised more than $50,000.