Red means student generosity

I got to work Friday morning and found my little, red voicemail light was on. Such discoveries often bring a lump to my throat knowing that, behind that light, there is often an angry reader or an observant one who has caught a mistake in my story. For me, that little red light has come to signify dread and shame.

But Friday's red-light special was of the heartwarming variety. It was a message from Shane Baier, the principal at Mankato East, to let me know the Class of 2009 had made a $100 donation to the ECHO Food Shelf. The interesting thing is, the donations were collected during the actual graduation ceremony. Students received their diplomas and then dropped their dimes and dollars into a donation basket.

As the K-12 education reporter, I come across dozens of such stories.

Covering a story recently about Maud Hart Lovelace fans, I found myself wandering the Betsy House where I stumbled upon a framed letter written by an obviously very young student. Scrawled in somewhat misshaped penmanship, the note said simply that the Betsy-Tacy Society was important and the student council wanted to donate some money.

And that was it. No fanfare. No fancy language. Just an acknowledgement of work well done and a token of financial support.

This blog entry could go for days detailing all the generous efforts of students in this area. Truly, they prove regularly that this country is in good hands.

Consider this an acknowledgement of work well done.