By DOUGLAS W. MOTLEY
Senior Writer
Staff members and students at Lake Arrowhead Elementary School have embarked on a project in which useful donated items are shipped to Rim graduates who are serving in the armed forces, overseas.
LAE kindergarten teacher Kathy Flores conducts a service project each trimester. Trimester 1, she said, involves collecting items for care packages for Rim grads who serve in the military.
These are useful items such as notebooks, pens and paper, packets of drink mixes, socks, protein bars, Top Ramen, candy, jerky, gum, popcorn, corn nuts, toothbrushes, toothpaste, soap, shaving cream and razors, lotions and other personal hygiene items. These are counted, sorted and packed by students and then handed to Rim Blue Star Moms who pack and pay to ship the care packages. They also accept donations to cover the expenses.
Noting that the military care package service project has been running for eight years, Flores said, “Before Covid, we collected over 8,000 items for Rim Blue Star Moms. Last year, we collected over 4,000 items. My own two children are veterans. My son is currently deployed in the Middle East, so this project is very important to me.”
Flores added that “in Trimester 2, we collect Play-Doh for patients at Loma Linda Children’s Hospital. The Trimester 3 service project benefits the Mountains Humane Society.”
This current project, which began on Oct. 2, will run through Dec. 2. LAE is also partnering with local Boy Scout troops in collecting torn and battered American flags so they can be properly retired. Any and all of these items can be dropped off at the school’s front office. LAE is located at 1300 Golden Rule Lane in Lake Arrowhead.
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