StuCo members carried mason jars around the school from Nov. 17 to December 1 to raise money for their annual Adopt-A-Family fundraiser.

The project itself begins with StuCo raising money, then buying various products and gifts for the two families they “adopted” for the holiday season. The students themselves are required to carry around the mason jars and try to raise as much money as they can from people around the school. 

For sophomore representative Logan Koester, the atmosphere pushed everyone and allowed the fundraiser to have the success it did. 

“Everyone was just really eager to be involved,” Koester said. “Everyone in the Adopt-A-family committee was wanting to do more and wanting to help and that made it so much easier to be motivated and try to be at everyone’s level.”

In the eyes of student body treasurer senior Lucas Robins, the fundraiser is more than raising money, but is a time to have a beneficial impact on the lives of families within the community.

“We hope that students and staff in the school realize how fortunate we are and that we just want to help other people,” Robins said.

To many, the idea of having to sell items or ask for donations, even for various sport fundraisers may be daunting. Koester believes that this was just a challenge to overcome. 

“It can be challenging at times to keep asking people for money and it’s hard when you have social anxiety,” Koester said. “It’s always a rewarding feeling to know that you’re giving back; it’s always worth it to ask for money.”

Also  passionate about raising money was  sophomore class president Kenzie Johnson, who believed this new project as an incredible opportunity to take a step back and be grateful for what you do have. 

“Give when you can,” Johnson said. “I don’t know if this sounds cliché, but I would ask people to donate and then when they wouldn’t, I’d be frustrated. But then I would take a step back and be like ‘wait, what have I donated?’”

The work StuCo put in didn’t stop with carrying mason jars to every class or overcoming social anxiety. For Robins, the preparation required effort from the entire club.

“The most successful part [of fundraising] was getting people involved and everyone in StuCo wanted to help out,” Robins said. “That made it easier to raise money.” 

For many, this opportunity shined a light on the resources that Mill Valley has access to as well as being able to have a firsthand experience in utilizing these resources for good can have an impact on the community.

Robins hoped that they were able to help make another family’s holiday season and express the importance of giving to students. 

“We want people to know how fortunate we are and just to help out any family and neighbors,” Robins said. “It’ll make someone’s day.”