Charity Drive plans in full swing

Trace W., Student Body President and Mr. Daniel Bailey, Student Events Coordinator, are in the midst of planning this years’ Charity Drive. Charity Drive is to kickoff March 1 and ends March 10. Airport High School will start the money earning week to give the proceeds to Camp Kemo. Many events set up by Airport Student Government, local businesses, and organizations will commence.

The kickoff of Charity Drive will unleash a week of festivities that the community can take part in to give money to Camp Kemo. The money raised will be used to send kids to the camp. The cause for Charity Drive and the fun events to come will make mass student and community participation increase.

Even though Charity Drive is a week filled of money spending, the students at Airport High School can get involved with the dress up days that are included in all the fun. Have fun on a Monday and participate in Pajamas Day to get in the spirit of giving!

Camp Kemo is a program that found to be funded completely by the community around us. The donations from the community fund the camp, and if the donations stop coming, the program cannot be ran. Camp Kemo has the mission to let the children gain allies, support, and strength through their fun experiences at Camp Kemo.

“Charity Drive is one of the best things we do at our school, but it is also very difficult to plan… It takes us about four months for us to plan all the events,” stated Mr. Bailey, the main man organizing and in charge of Charity Drive. The school’s Student Activities Director also said that the planning of Charity Drive starts near October.

Trace, Student Body President at Airport High School, exclaims,“I always expect that the student body and staff participate as much as they can because this is always the best part of our year.” Trace also shows his responsibilities by enthusiastically taking on the challenge of organizing Charity Drive with Mr. Bailey.

“Charity Drive started in 1994, and it actually started as just a fundraiser for a local non-profit in the West Columbia area. Then, it grew to encompass a whole week of events, and, I believe, in 1999 it moved to Camp Kemo and Palmetto Health Children’s Hospital,” informed Mr. Bailey. There had been a student that attended Camp Kemo that influenced the shift of the week, and many may be happy about this shift in charity focus.

The plans for Charity Drive are making many wait in anticipation for the fun that is to come. The festivities that involve food and getting out of class are the most looked forward to. While many are excited, some are worried whether they will have enough money to get through the week.

In the 2017 - 2018 school year, Charity Drive raised 54,000 for Camp Kemo. In total, Airport High School and its community has raised 558,761.80 since its inception. 1,009 kids have been sent to Camp Kemo. This 2018 - 2019 school year is the 25th year of Charity Drive.

To know the specific days in which certain events take place, you can visit ahs.lex2.org for the calendar that has all the school events. Or, you can check out Mr. Bailey’s room, 510, for a specially made Charity Drive calendar!