Reminder: Oakdale Elementary PTO will be collecting items to donate to tornado recovery tomorrow (Thursday) during school hours. Volunteers will be loading items into a truck in the school parking lot starting at 7:00am during car drop off and again in the afternoon during pick-up starting at 2:00pm. Items can also be dropped off at the school during the day if the truck isn’t open.
Oakdale Elementary School is located at 171 Oakdale Rd, Brandon, MS.
Students have already raised $1,200 this week during fundraisers. The money and items collected will go to Sharkey County Disaster Recovery Efforts.
Students, parents, and community members are collecting items and raising money for Mississippi tornado victims next week. The Oakdale Elementary School PTO has organized a donation drive to be held at the school. All of the donations and proceeds will go to tornado clean-up and relief efforts in Rolling Fork and the surrounding areas struck by tornadoes.
“Rolling Fork and the neighboring towns have been heavily weighing on our hearts after seeing such devastation. We were getting smart boards installed at Oakdale, while 90 miles away, there are elementary schools that don’t know a date when they’ll even restart,” said Holly Thomson, Oakdale PTO President.
The donation drive includes both money fundraisers and item collections. On Thursday, April 6th, a trailer will be in the school parking lot to load donations. Volunteers will be on hand to collect the items from students, parents, and anyone else who wants to drop off items. It is open to anyone who wants to donate to tornado recovery efforts. The PTO requests people only bring paper goods, cleaning supplies, water and non-perishable food items as these are the most needed supplies requested in the tornado ravaged communities.
“We have so much to be thankful for and I try to serve and live by ‘To whom much is given, much is required.’ We are so blessed at Oakdale. We have a great school, both the facility and the staff. Our parents and community have really stepped up this year with their time served and with fundraisers. We are so blessed, and now I feel like we have been called to do more with our time and resources,” Thomson said.
Please see the attached flyer for the information on the donation drive and the items being collected. The volunteers and trailer set-up for donations will be in the Oakdale Elementary School parking lot on April 6th at 171 Oakdale Rd, Brandon, MS.
For more information or questions, email oakdalecougars.pto@gmail.com.