Students dress as Disney characters to get psyched about fundraising

On March 6, students and staff at Airport were encouraged to come to school dressed as their favorite Disney character.

Airport High School's charity week events raise awareness and encourage donations for Camp Kemo; students are stepping up, introducing more student-friendly activities to participate in.

Airport's charity drive has been a passionate tradition carried out by the schools staff. They have created dozens of events and activities in the past four year alone, not to mention the many more before that. Last year the school raised well over $50,000 during their charity week.

As the years have passed, Airport has continued to increase their goal, raising more and more money each year, and when they began Disney/character day in 2015, students loved it. “Each year has brought uniqueness that no one really expects until they see it," said Mrs. Stilwell, Airport's theater teacher. “A lot of students around this time are asking me for costumes and/or advice, and I couldn’t be happier to help." This teacher went on to remark this is actually the first year since the start of this event that students haven’t sought her out in high numbers.

Disney character day has been ranked as one of the most popular charity drive awareness events and most participated in, right under Pajama Day and Food Fest. This past Disney character day raised $5000 throughout the course of the day. While dressing up doesn't actually raise money itself, it is great to see ho the school spirit imbued by wearing costumes translates to excitement about raising funds in other ways. While this is marginal in comparison to their goals, it is still a significant amount.

“I feel we should take it away for a year or two, just so it doesn’t lose its glamour,” said Trace W., Airport student and member of student government. “It’s entertaining to see the different ways people express characters."

“I definitely feel like it’s a way to take away the stigma of always having to be stiff and mature in high school," said an Airport junior dressed as Goku from Dragon Ball Z. “ I love it, I think my friends do too”.

Many students have expressed that they enjoy being able to embrace dressing up and feeling like a kid before they reach adulthood. For many it’s the fact that it both raises awareness and lets them have fun, while others appreciate the expressive aspect more than anything.