Cranston-Calvert Student Collects for Sandy Victims

The following has been provided by Cranston-Calvert Elementary School:

Cranston-Calvert Elementary School fourth-grader and Feinstein Jr. Scholar Kailey Allen has set a very high bar as far as citizenship is concerned. Kailey and her family are with the Navy and moved to Newport from California in early October. She was not here even a month before hurricane Sandy hit the northeast, but never the less she very moved by what she saw on the news and jumped into action.

Kailey asked her teacher, Stephanie DeAscentis, if she could start a clothing and coat drive to help the victims of hurricane Sandy in New York. She was directed to Rebekah Rosen-Gomez, Family Service Coordinator at Cranston Calvert School, who instructed her to do some research, find out where she could donate the collected items, make some posters, write up an announcements and publicize the drive. Once again she got right on the ball and within a week she had coordinated with the Boys & Girls club of New York City to accept the clothes, enlisted her mother to drive her and the donations down to New York, made posters, wrote a loudspeaker script and talked it up to her classmates.

Kailey’s clothing drive ran for one month and she collected 43 jackets and sweaters, six hats, two sets of gloves, two scarves, 53 pieces of clothing (jeans, shirts, shoes) and one lanket. She is thrilled with the many items she collected and is even more excited that she was able to help so many New Yorkers in need. Kailey’s mother Ilce was impressed, saying, "This would not have been possible without the support and help from all the families who donated. All the items have been delivered to New York City and are getting into the hands of those who need them and were affected by the effects of Hurricane Sandy.“

Kailey would also like to thank everyone who donated and the school for supporting her in her efforts.

Needless to say, we are incredibly proud of Kailey’s efforts. The collection took a lot of planning, coordinating and hard work, but she never hesitated and is now basking in the pride of helping so many people in need. The Cranston-Calvert School community would like to thank Kailey for being such a responsible and kind hearted citizen and hope that she can serve as a role model for all students at Cranston-Calvert and the city of Newport.