Pleasantdale School hosted its Jump Rope for Heart event on Friday afternoon, and it went over very well, with lots of money raised and the participating kids having a great time.
Jump Rope for Heart has been a long tradition at the school and every year the school raises record amounts, with the money raised going to the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
“Things have changed a lot in terms of donations. Before the oil crash it was amazing how much we could raise for a good cause, but we did good this year and are proud of our students,” said Grade 1 teacher Marnie McKinnon, who helped organize the event.
“The kids seem to really love the event and this year we have raised nearly $10,000 for the Heart and Stroke Foundation, and that is an excellent accomplishment for us,”she added.
Nearly the entire school was participating in the event, and the gym was packed with students. Each group of children was given a number and got a chance to go up on stage and perform jump rope routines as music played in the background.
The kids were packed into the gym skipping and even hula hoopingtheir way through the day for about two hours. There was a short announcement at the beginning of the event, but that didn’t last long since the kids just wanted to get to have some fun.
“Two weeks ago, a man from the Heart and Stroke Foundation came. We had a big kickoff and he showed us what the kids can get and did a few videos telling everyone what the Heart and Stroke Foundation is all about, and the kids loved that as well,”said McKinnon.
The school had done the same event three years ago but fell short of its target of holding a Jump Rope for Heart event every two years because there was a large scheduling conflict with their Wave Production a year ago.
McKinnon remembers doing Jump rope for Heart herself when she was a kid and has always thought it was a great time for people, schools and kids to get involved with. Moving forward, she hopes to continue the Jump Rope for Heart tradition at Pleasantdale for a long time.
