Lemont Collects Bottle Caps To Create Benches For Ellie Cuiching

LEMONT, IL — Dozens of kids, teens, adults and even a 92-year-old gathered together recently for a good cause and to remember Ellie Cuiching, a Lemont teen who died in April after battling a brain tumor for several years. All of the volunteers gathered at the Lemont Township Community Center Nov. 10 to sort, dry and organize thousands and thousands of bottle caps.

In honor of Ellie, Lemont District 113A schools recently collected bottle caps to create recycled benches at each school. A bench using the bottle caps will be created at Oakwood, River Valley and Old Quarry Middle School, all schools which Ellie attended.

Kelli Wunder Shoup, Ellie's aunt, said 1,300 pounds of bottle caps were sorted and are ready to be sent to the company that makes the benches.

Another 1,500 pounds of bottle caps will be sent to one of Ellie's home nurses, who lost a child to cancer and can use the bottle caps to also make benches in her daughter's name.