Students from nine schools with the Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board are filling up school buses full of food and toys to help those in need.
The 10th annual Santa School Bus involves schools from around the WECDSB collecting toys and food items for the Windsor-Essex Children's Aid Society and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul.
Students at H.J. Lassaline, Our Lady of the Annunciation, Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Sacred Heart, St. André, St. Anne French Immersion, St. Mary, St. Pius X, and W.J. Langlois were involved in this year's campaign.
"We have supportive parents, we have a great staff, but our students are always excited and engaged to do anything that makes a difference in our community or in our area at large," she says. "They're just very kind and giving individuals. Very enthuastic, they never say no to anything we ask."
The board partners with the Windsor-Essex Student Transportation Services, the Windsor Police Service and other community volunteers to help with the delivery of the goods to the charities.
Bus driver Judy Steinhoff is one of those helping to collect and deliver the donations. She decorates her entire bus in a Christmas theme to spread some cheer to the kids.
"I think children have gone through a lot in the last few years, so I just try to make a smile," she says. "The last thing I say to my students as they get off the bus is, 'Don't forget to share your smile today.'"
The canned goods donated by the school will be added to AM800's annual Cans for a Cause fundraiser.
Donations were loaded onto two buses Thursday morning outside St. Pius X Catholic Elementary School on Lacasse Boulevard in Tecumseh.
Students from 9 ?@WECDSB? schools, including St. Pius in Tecumseh, collected enough food to stuff two schools buses. The food will be delivered to the Windsor-Essex Children’s Aid Society and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. ?@AM800CKLW? pic.twitter.com/TRHH0ZEnQt
— Rusty Thomson (@RustyThomson800) December 5, 2024