Middle School students create 3D ornaments for holiday fundraiser

Talented and Gifted students to host fourth annual auction

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Now in it’s fourth year, West Liberty Middle School Talented and Gifted (TAG) students are continuing a holiday fundraising project to help the West Liberty Ministerial Association raise funds to buy students’ necessities.

Students use computer design skills and talents to create 3D Christmas ornaments auctioned off to the public every holiday season to help the class earn at least $1,000 that will be given to the Ministerial Association to help buy essential items for local students.

Sponsor Jackie Henderson explained that a class who are currently West Liberty High School sophomores came up with the idea and TAG students have continued with the project, noting she wanted to include a community service project as part of the experience. “We felt it was important to help our own students that we go to school with and so we created the Holiday Ornament Project,” she said.

The 30-some students involved in the project use a free online design website called “Tinkercad” to create objects which are printed on a 3D printer at the school, creating anywhere from 20-30 ornaments annually. Henderson said creating an ornament is optional for students in the program.

The TAG teacher said the students are allowed to design any type of holiday ornament, which is made with a plastic filament. “They vary from a snowman, angels, elves, Christmas trees, coffee mugs to a Chicago Cubs ornament,” she said. “They use their creative minds and so they are all unique.”

School librarian Kelly Butcher, the project’s “media specialist,” has helped with the online portion of the project, setting up a website that has the Google forms for people to bid on an ornament.

Henderson said the student help fund was created from the original group of talented students. “It was established so that the money could be used to help students in need within our school,” Henderson said. “Technically, the school cannot use funds to help with individual student needs so we had to work with the Ministerial Association to set up the funds to be held within that organization, so it is outside of the school.”

She said counselors, nurses, administration and teachers know the funds exist and, “if they have a need arise that the school cannot meet, we can try to take care of it this way.”

Henderson said the student group works with counselors and nurses to determine what items are needed on hand, including socks, undergarments, snacks/bars, deodorant, shoes, snow boots, clothes, shampoo and soap.

The teacher said she’s proud of the fact the TAG students involved handle the entire project. “Students are involved in the design work, help with printing, organizing the sale, displaying the ornaments and even help with purchasing items,” she said. “I have had them shop for items so they had to figure out how to maximize the money to get the most items possible.”

The group usually raises between $1,000 to $1,500 annually from the project. A link to the website for the auction, which ends at noon on Friday, will be posted on the school's website on Wednesday, Dec. 16.

The auction will be virtual and those interested are also welcome to make a donation through the school or the Ministerial Association to the Ministerial Association Student Help Fund.

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