Barnstable Intermediate Students Go to War - Penny War for Charity

Barnstable Intermediate students turned pennies, and loose change, into a sizable check for the Needy Fund.

For three years, Team 7A has participated in the "Penny War." This year is its first annual contribution to the Needy Fund.

How does it work? There are six large water jugs placed in the six home rooms on the 7A team and students can put loose change or dollars into. 

Each home room is scored. Every penny is worth +1 and every other denomination is a negative (nickle = -5, dime = 10, etc.).

"The idea is to put all of your pennies into your own homerooms jug to raise your points and then put everything else in other homerooms to drive their points down," said Aaron Buckler, Math teacher at Barnstable Intermediate School. "We run the competition for two weeks and at the end we take all six jugs to TD Banknorth in Centerville to use their coin machine to total up the money and points to see what homeroom comes out on top."  

This year the teams raised just over $1,225 with $374.91 of it just in pennies.

"They had to empty the coin machine five times while we were at the bank," Buckler said.

On Thursday Buckler will announce the winning home room and will make the donation to the Barnstable Intermediate School Needy Fund. 

Buckler and the 7A team will present the check to the guidance department who runs the Needy Fund. 

Buckler's friend Scott Campbell designed a giant check and will be presenting it. What's more, later in the day the students will be rewarded with a salad and pizza lunch. For the last two years, Christian Boutiette at B&B Pizza in Hyannis helps provide the lunch at at discounted cost.