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Poland McKinley students pie teachers for a good cause
POLAND
SDLqAidan! Aidan! Aidan!,” shouted McKinley Elementary’s fifth-grade class as their classmate Aidan Wire stepped into place, wound up and launched a whipped-cream pie squarely into his teacher’s face.
Social-studies teacher Susie Capps was the first of 10 McKinley teachers who Friday donned ponchos, shower caps and goggles before having the creamy concoctions shoved into their faces.
Cheers rose from the school’s stadium, where fifth-grade students gathered under the beating sun and raucously brought their last day of the school year to a close.
The pie-in-the-face tradition started last year, when teacher Bill Hegarty challenged students to give back to their community. Students who brought in donations for a local food pantry – this year, New Life Church’s – received raffle tickets. The 10 students whose names were drawn got the honor of throwing the pies.
“We wanted to impress on the students how important it is to give – but we wanted it to stay in our community,” said Hegarty, whose face was splattered from point-blank range by fifth-grader Logan Flament.
In all, the school collected more than 420 items that were to be delivered to the food pantry after school Friday.
Hegarty said he believes it is important for children to give back in their own community because, “I think in our community we take it for granted that there aren’t families in need.
“We tell them, ‘This could be someone down the street from you.’”