NMS Holds Annual Magazine Drive

By Larissa Lytwyn

   Each year, Newtown Middle School students eagerly vie for top prizes, from stereos and DVD players to giant Hershey chocolate bars, for the school’s annual primary fundraiser, the Readers Digest-sponsored magazine drive.

“It’s a really exciting opportunity for students,” said parent Laura Warren, one of the fundraiser’s leading parent volunteers. “I did the [Readers Digest] magazine drive in my old town, so I’m pretty familiar with how it works.”

The drive allows students to sell a variety of magazines, from mainstream People to specialty woodworking and other hobby magazines, at steeply discounted rates.

Top sellers are eligible for a variety of prizes; top classes earn the opportunity to hold a class party or other special program in recognition of their achievement.

Eighth grader Sean Gill, who recently won a DVD player, said his method combined asking relatives to purchase magazines with door-to-door canvassing in his neighborhood.

“I’ve done really well this year,” he said.

Ashley Soucar, also an eighth grader, recently received a five-pound Hershey chocolate bar for her efforts.

“I have a big family,” she said. “I usually ask all my relatives to renew their magazines through me, not through their magazine distributor.”

Fellow eighth grader Janelle Graham said it was her first year participating in the program.

“I was really excited by some of the bigger prizes,” she said. “I wanted to go for it!”

The magazine drive continues now until the first week of November.

For more information on the program, visit the Reader’s Digest website at www.rd.com.