Shady Side Students Raise Funds for the Bay

A group of fifth-graders at Shady Side Elementary School is working hard to ensure the Chesapeake Bay gets the restoration it needs.

Not only are the students participating in a project where they raise oysters to help save the bay, but one Shady Side class has taken the project even further by starting a fundraising endeavor.

The class has created postcards, developed a business plan and is launching an effort to help raise money for Chesapeake Bay restoration projects.

“After participating in the oyster project my class wanted to extend it even further and give back to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation for the oyster cages they supplied us,” said Shady Side fifth-grade teacher Molly Tremel.

Tremel explained that the entire project got started when fifth-grade students at Shady Side began a project called “Taking a Stand.” The project requires students to take a stand on something they feel is important. Since many Shady Side students live so close to the water, taking a stand for the Chesapeake Bay seemed like a natural fit.

The students wrote persuasive letters asking U.S. Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-5th District), U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) and U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) to continue funding bay restoration. Tremel said they also reached out to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation to see if they could participate in the oyster restoration at Discovery Village in Shady Side.

“The oyster restoration project was great,” Tremel said. “They gave the kids two cases of oysters and they have gone back twice to check on them and learn about their growth. They will be planting them in a bed off the West River in the spring.”

After having the chance to participate in the oyster project, Tremel said, she and her students decided they wanted to do more to help.

Tremel had her students create pictures of the bay, which she then turned into postcards. Her class has come up with a business plan for marketing, promoting and selling the postcards, which they presented to the PTO.

“The PTO was so excited the kids came up with this,” Tremel said. “The kids presented the business plan to the PTO and they are providing the $400 we need to fund the project.”

Tremel’s class is now waiting for the postcards to arrive and then they will begin their fundraising effort.

“It’s fun watching them take pride in something they are interested in and it’s real life—they will have to sell the postcards and do the work,” Tremel said. “The PTO wants this to be in the budget every year so the kids will be able to leave a legacy behind that is important and leave something for the other kids to come.”