Trout Creek kids ban together to bring relief

TROUT CREEK – The kids of the Trout Creek After School Program recently came together to spread help to some other students their age who were affected by the tornadoes in Washington, Illinois.

The program and the community put together approximately 50 packages of assorted items including socks, blankets and school supplies.

The children added a personal touch and made tie pillows. Along with the pillows, the kids attached books or coloring books to help show their support.

Recently a tornado hit Lincoln Elementary School destroying many homes and displacing 70 of their students. After School Program Coordinator Gabriele Ohning saw this tragedy as a way to teach the kids to give back.

“I think they took it to heart because they thought it was really important….you could see it in their face,” said Ohning.

The kids had an option to choose who to help and the options varied. Their options included helping the food bank, giving back to service workers or helping kids and the children immediately decided to help kids their own age.

“They couldn’t imagine being in a hospital at Christmas time without anything,” Ohning explained.

This is the first time the program has taken on a project like this and Ohning said the turnout overall was good.

“I think for the first go around it was a success,” Ohning said. “It’s trying to instill that giving is a part of who we are as human beings and life in general. We are all connected.”

Although maybe the first project of its kind, it most likely will not be the last. These kinds of projects help tie together some life skills and decision-making processes while giving back to a good cause.

The Trout Creek After School Program hosts a variety of different events after school. On the calendar for this month are a family movie matinee, a gingerbread house decorating party and line dancing.

Overall, the Trout Creek school has 47 students enrolled and almost half of those students regularly participate in the after school program.

“It varies from day to day because students are involved in other extracurricular activities as well but we average about 20 to 23 (students),” said Ohning.

The goal of the program is to give students an extra learning opportunity in a fun environment, so the students do not feel like they are in school.

“If you make it like its fun, they don’t realize they are learning along the way,” said Ohning.

The program is an added incentive and focuses primarily on mathematics, arts, science and technology. According to Ohning, these are the main focuses of the 21st Century After School Program, the same program Trout Creek follows. The program is a STAR program, which stands for Success Through Academics and Recreation.

All of the activities put together by the program are open to the community at large. Ohning said for certain events the program gets a lot of family and community involvement, although she wouldn’t mind seeing more.

“I would like to see on a daily basis more families coming. They are always welcome,” said Ohning.