Quincey Reese, Managing Editor

     The annual t-shirt sales project completed by the Introduction to Administration and Management classes is benefiting the Make-A-Wish foundation this year. Along with the help of the video and film classes, these students are looking to grant wishes to four children in the Penn Township area.

     Penn-Trafford business teacher Kim Stefkovich has been using this project with her students for 13 years now. Each year, her students work together with their class periods to design and sell a t-shirt, and the profits go toward a particular cause. This year, there are three different classes, each of which designed a shirt to benefit the Make-A-Wish foundation.

    Stefkovich said she decided by the end of last school year that she wanted to shift the focus of this year’s project back to benefiting a foundation, as well as local children. Upon contacting Make-A-Wish, she asked about directing the donations raised to children in the community. Fortunately for her, the foundation ensured that all the money would go towards granting wishes of beneficiaries in Penn Township.

    Senior business student Sammy Smith said that knowing there was a local connection to the project this year made the experience all the more important to her and her classmates.

    “Just to know that we’re doing it for kids in our community is really meaningful,” Smith said. “You don’t realize people that are sick like that are always around you, but it’s nice to know that we can help them and make them happy for the period of time they are away on their wish.”

    Stefkovich said the goal for this year’s project was to raise enough money to grant four wishes, each of which costs $4,400, as well as attempt to top the record-breaking donation totals of last year’s classes. Last year’s students raised $14,680, a high number to beat according to Stefkovich. Individually, this year’s students looked to sell 25 shirts each.

    In order to accomplish this, students focused their efforts on t-shirt sales as well as emphasis on obtaining sponsorships. In all three of the business classes, 18 sponsors were acquired, bringing in a total of $11,313, including $5,000 from one sponsor alone. The unfinalized total of sales profits and sponsorship donations came in at a total of $18,649.69, with 1,549 t-shirt sales made, beating out last year’s total by almost $4,000 and 34 shirts.

    Stefkovich said she is dumbfounded by all that her students have accomplished in this project, especially after all of the success that has been seen with it in the previous two years.

    “Every year when I think things are the same, they’re not. I’m always surprised by the generosity of the community members here and by my students,” Stefkovich said. “They do a phenomenal job each year, and I can’t be any happier than I am.”

    She added that there have not been many changes to the way the project is run this year, being that a few aspects were adjusted in recent years. The students continued to design their shirts and advertise for them by wearing them around school, collaborating with the video and film classes to produce commercials for the morning announcements and creating posters as they had in years past.

   Some students, however, have taken on leadership roles by going beyond their individual responsibilities for the betterment of the project. Stefkovich said she allows any student interested in stepping up to do so.

    Smith and senior Hannah Rupp were two of the students who took on such roles. Both of them worked to create a presentation to advertise for their class t-shirt which the two eventually pitched in front of the administration, staff and principals.

    Stefkovich said Smith and Rupp’s efforts were a great way to contribute to the project.

    “I let everybody lead for the most part, so that if they feel the need to step up, they can. Sammy Smith and Hannah Rupp presented in front of the administrators which was awesome,” Stefkovich said. “They put together a really nice presentation. It was a great way to do it.”

    One unique addition to the project this year is its partnership with the Penn-Trafford telethon, also benefitting Make-A-Wish. The telethon is being organized by video teacher Steve Vinton and is set to occur on Dec. 22, most likely from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

    Vinton said he had always been interested in doing a telethon with his students, but was not able to in past years. Upon receiving approval to do so from the administration, he talked to Stefkovich about supplementing her business students’ project with the telethon.  In full support of the idea, Vinton proceeded to make preliminary plans for the event in August.

    The finalized plans for the telethon are still in the works. Vinton said, however, that as of now, the event will be streamed live on Facebook and possibly Youtube. His TV One, Two and Three classes have created about four hours worth of content for it, including news packages, creative videos and live interviews.

    He added that he has 10 student acts to perform during this time as well, but he is hoping for a total of 20. Vinton said he is looking for any kind of performance, including singers, dancers, instrumentalists, solos, duets and student bands. To sign up to be a part of this, students can respond to the Google form they received in their school email accounts.

    Vinton said his goal was to be able to help Stefkovich and her students by raising $4,400 and granting one extra wish. Along with the donations gained through the telethon, Vinton also raised money to go towards this goal from teacher dress-down days. Every Monday and Friday, a teacher can donate any amount of money to dress-down, and all funds are directed to Make-A-Wish. So far, Vinton said enough money has been generated to grant one wish from this alone.

    Vinton added that he was interested in helping Stefkovich because of the meaningful possibility it presented.

    “I saw an opportunity to add onto and help what I thought was a great cause in Kim’s selection of Make-A-Wish,” Vinton said. “I just knew that we could help, and if one extra local child can have that wish granted and forget about their life-threatening disease for a day, that’s why we do it.”

    Stefkovich said she is impressed by how well all of her students have worked together throughout the course of the project. Despite all of the different personalities she has in class, she commended them for coming together and contributing in their own manner.

    “They’ve worked very well from the beginning and have been very cohesive. I’ve seen everyone contribute in their own little way which makes a huge difference,” Stefkovich said. “Not everyone needs to step up and be a vocal leader. Sometimes you have the ones that are silent leaders who are getting everything done and being a vital part of the process. Overall, it’s been a very smooth year.”

     With the month-long period of selling behind them, the business students have the delivery of the t-shirts in December to complete before the project is wrapped up. Students can expect to receive their shirts before they leave for Christmas break.