PCA’s Junior Civitan Club Donates Nearly 80,000 Pop Tops to Ronald McDonald House Charities
Since the fall of this school year, PCA’s Junior Civitan Club has been hard at work to serve the community, and they have not done it alone! The service club started a Ronald McDonald House Charities Pop Top collection with the lower school in November to foster a tighter school-wide community and create a lasting impact on the kids both inside and outside of PCA’s classrooms. Working together, the students gathered an astounding 62 pounds of pop tops – which is approximately 79,000 pop tops – from the sodas, energy drinks, and soup cans their families consumed over the past few months!
Pop top collections are known as one of the best ways to support the Ronald McDonald House Charities. About $15,000 annually in Alabama chapters alone are brought in from these simple metal tabs, which make up for what some families in the program cannot contribute themselves. The Ronald McDonald House Charities were designed to help children and their families who must travel long distances for medical care. The program provides comfortable and affordable housing near hospitals for parents and siblings so that the sick or injured child’s health can be the family’s focus instead of the stress of paying for meals and hotels. The houses even offer multiple support services and resources to make a family’s stay as close to being at home as possible! Completely decked out with playrooms, gardens, and warm meals, the houses enable families to stay together, balanced, and strong throughout their children’s treatment.
Just a short drive away, families will experience the effects of PCA students’ efforts in Birmingham as the pop tops are recycled and turned in for cash. Every Junior Civitan member worked with specific homerooms throughout the collection process by providing instructions and celebrating the students’ compassion during each visit. Finally, on Thursday, April 14, members made one last trip to their classrooms, greeting the kids with a sweet treat as a profound “thank you” for all of their hard work.
All together, the students enjoyed oreo cookies and milk as their Junior Civitan representative gathered the last of the pop tops. According to club treasurer Alyssa Birchmeier, “It has been really special to see how involved the elementary students want to be along with how the school can come together to help those in need.” Overall, Junior Civitan Club sponsor Coach Holt remarked, “Since this was the first time the club and school had done this project, I really wasn’t sure what to expect. Well, I should have known that anytime PCA gets involved with a service project, it will go better than one would expect.”
Truly, PCA students’ servant hearts are always shining! Fantastic work to all of the Junior Civitan members and lower school students involved in this project. We cannot wait to see the compassion you will continue to share!
Learn more about Ronald McDonald House Charities here.
By: Maddie Jeffery ’22
Journalism Student
